So, you’ve just returned from two months in Thailand or Cambodia or Vietnam or any number of countries that have already deported Gary Glitter, and the question bound to lead off many of your initial conversations is: “So what did I miss?”

Rather than subjecting yourself to jealous retorts of nothingness from those who remained to bask in Shanghai’s lovely summer weather, easy answers are available around the world-wide blogosphere.

Local scene aficionado Jake Newby writes one of Shanghai’s best music blogs, at Kungfuology “The blog format is so straightforward and clear, and I think that makes it really accessible for readers,” he says. Newby recently commandeered the reigns from site founder Andy Best, continuing the blog’s honest and comprehensive coverage of the local music scene.

Newby cites a Miniless Records showcase featuring Lava|Ox|Sea (pictured) and Boojii as his highlight of the summer season. “I’m just a huge fan of everything (Lava|Ox|Sea) do at the moment ... I reckon their Next Episode: Lord Smart vs. Dr Jin is the record of the year, so far.”

While Kungfuology deals mainly with scene news and reviews of live shows, ChinaMusic­Radar has been on the pulse of industry news, often breaking English-language stories concerning music festivals and foreign acts in China.

During summer 2009, CMR offered readers insight into festival culture in China, blogging reviews of Zhangbei’s InMusic Festival, as well as tipping readers off about independent record label Modern Sky’s plans for its third annual throwdown on October 4-7.

A new addition to the local blog circuit, VoxRock.cn, has been following the much maligned Pepsi Battle of the Bands, currently being filmed in Baoshan. Although the bands aren’t particularly sexy and quite limited on talent, the blog offers a light-hearted take on otherwise easy targets.

These aren’t the only local blogs making waves (check Layabozi.com for more news on the jazz scene, IndieHeartAttack.com for indie rock, or LuwanRock.com for in-depth equipment analysis), but they will help bring you up to speed on what you’ve been missing.