Small Talk With... Adam’s Apple

Kro’s Nest’s Gongti garden may not be Eden, but after Midi’s implosion, it may be the last bastion of outdoor rock in the Jing.
Kro’s Nest Circus concert organizer Adam Gaier clues us in on how it's all going down.
So, what’s the Kro’s Circus all about? We have a huge lawn in Gongti, and we want to use it. And of course, Sanlitun, while great for lousy hip-hop, is lacking in good live music. It was just a matter of time before we came down from Wudaokou to help spread the live-music gospel. Kro’s Circus made believers out of us. How’d you go about organizing such a massive concert series? Well, I spent my first two years in China getting drunk with musicians, so I knew bands and promoters... It was actually kind of easy. You seem to know the scene well. Do you play in your own band? Yeah. I play in a Swedish d-beat hardcore band called Fanzui Xiangfa. And I also play in a sloppy punk rock band called Bu Hao Chi. The latter is more about getting drunk and having fun than real music ability. You have one of the few mohawks we have seen in Beijing. What reactions do you get? In London, I actually got better reactions. I once had an old lady yank her dog away when she saw me. In China, people act like it’s the best thing that’s happened to them. I’m best friends with every cab driver. As a rocker, what were your feelings when Midi was canceled? I wasn’t upset about not seeing the bands since we see the best Chinese bands at D-22. I was upset because Midi is a four-day party where you can hang with music heads from every corner of China. Do you think rock music sounds better outdoors? There’s a different feeling. Outdoor shows have more of a party atmosphere. Hopping up and down barefoot on the grass definitely feels different from a smoky club. Helping build its own outdoor party atmosphere, Kro’s has added some new drinks, I believe... one named after our magazine perhaps? Ah. The City Weekend Orange Cream Dream. At Kro’s we have a mad scientist named Diamond, who organized the Kro’s Circus with me, and he invented the drink. Diamond also concocted the Mr. and Mrs. Kro, which is a Guinness mixed with whiskey and Coke. It sounds weird, but tastes great and will mess you up. OK, last question... What’s the one topping you’d never put on a Kro’s Nest pizza? That’s easy. Corn.

Everyone Is Talking About... Turn, Turn, Turn

New turnstiles for Beijing’s Subway signify an underground renaissance for the city. But, how exactly will the changes affect you?

If you've traveled in the Beijing Subway lately, you've noticed an army of new turnstiles lit-up with red crosses and green arrows, as well as the darkened monitors of new touch-screen computers. This hardware for Beijing Subway’s new Automatic Fare Collection system (AFC) will soon replace the old lady gatekeepers of the Beijing underground.

A few things will change when these new machines get in on the action. Like in Shanghai and Hong Kong, you'll also need to reswipe your card when you leave the station. If it's a single journey ticket, your ticket will be kept. First, you'll either need to have a Super Pass (aka a Yikatong), or buy single journey tickets, which will come in the form of plastic cards, finally giving those tiny paper tickets the fiery doom they deserve.

The good news with the new machines is that they'll all fit in with the current networked price system-￥2 for unlimited mileage, except for the soon-to-be opened Airport Express. When the systems finally go live, however, is still a mystery. Chinese media initially reported they’d be in operation by May 17. But as we know, these things can take time. Regardless, the AFC ticket gates will be in action by the time Lines 8, 10 and the Airport Express power up in June. Those lines are only equipped with the AFC systems. For now, the changes will be minor, and we can continue to enjoy the low ￥2 Subway fare. But with Hong Kong and Shanghai using similar systems that charge by distance, it doesn’t take much imagination to figure out where Beijing’s trains are heading.

David Feng

DIGITS

➜ 5,270,913
The pounds of carbon dioxide emitted into the air in transporting the Olympic Torch around the world.
➜ 320,000
The number of Olympic tickets sold on the first day of phase three ticket sales.
➜ 1.38 million
The total number of Olympic tickets available in phase three of ticket sales
➜ 3.9
Magnitude of the Sichuan earthquake as felt in Beijing's Tongzhou district

BEIJING PERSPECTIVE

After the Quake: Let's help the victims
On May 12, Beijingers felt a wave of vertigo before realizing that they were in the midst of an earthquake. While Tongzhou, just outside the city, experienced a 3.9 magnitude quake, tremors were measured at 7.8 in Wenchuan, Sichuan, the earthquake's epicenter, with a death toll nearing 15,000 as we go to press. The disaster is reminiscent of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that destroyed the city of Tangshan in 1976, killing over 240,000, which resulted in improved building safety standards throughout China. Fortification levels now range from 6-9, and Beijing is at a level 8, although the city is not prone to major earthquakes. To help victims of the quake, contact the Red Cross Society (http://www.redcross.org.cn) or the Chinese Red Cross Foundation (http://www.crcf.org.cn) or Mercy Corps (http://www.mercycorps.org).