A former bomb shelter offers refuge, rehearsal space, and inspiration for Shanghai's latest breed of aspiring rock bands.

Everything is still in the stale air of the long corridor but for a faint rhythmic sound, like a far-off television playing footage of an ancient tribal ritual. The sound grows louder as you approach a sliver of light spilling from a half open door. In the room a band plays, unrestrained and unobserved, like a generator harnessing the energy of the crowded city above. As you adjust your ears, you realize that these sounds are everywhere, emanating from behind the dozens of closed doors in the hallway, and echoing across the moldy cement walls and painted metal pipes like stilettos in an empty cathedral. Welcome to Shanghai's 93 Lingling Lu, an ancient bomb shelter quickly becoming a breeding ground for a growing rock community that may one day rival Beijing’s. Established bands like Flying Fruit, who will play at Beijing's Midi Festival in May, flock here to tweak their rips and riffs, while new bands come in search of a start. The building houses more than a dozen studios, many of which are collective ventures, with a manager divvying out time slots to musicians and collecting monthly or hourly fees to cover the rent. The oldest studio, in the deepest corner at the dead end of a long unlit hall, has been in use for more than five years.

It was this original room that legendary Shanghai musicians / performance artists Top Floor Circus arrived at in 2005. “[93 Lingling Lu] was perfect for playing punk music because it’s cheap and we could be as loud as we wanted without worrying about disturbing other people,” says GG, singer of Top Floor Circus.

The enig-matic Top Floor Circus began in 2001 as an experimental project aimed at taking Western music styles and making them into something distinctly Chinese. So far their journey has taken them through many genres, from folk to punk, as heard on their latest album, appropriately titled “Lingling Lu-93 Revisited, Timmy!”

While Top Floor Circus came to Lingling Lu seeking solitude, other tenants, like Jacky Shen, founder of Porclab Studio, have come in the hopes of creating a community. When a friend told Shen about the rooms on Lingling Lu six months ago, he saw the perfect opportunity to create a collective artistic venture.

“I have always liked rock music and music photography, so I wanted to create a place where musicians could play and I could discover new bands,” says Shen, a graphic design student at Donghua University. With close ties to Yuyintang, the famed Shanghai rock venue, Shen hopes that his studio can serve as a stepping stone for new bands to showcase their talents to a smaller audience before moving on to Yuyintang and other clubs.

"Right now there are more than 20 bands sharing the cost of the studio. I don’t earn any money, just enough to pay the rent. I even let a few bands play for free because I think they are really good and deserve a chance to play,” says Shen.

Many new bands, like the recently formed Five Elemental People, came to Lingling Lu in the hopes of tapping into this sprouting community. “We started renting a studio so we could communicate with other bands and meet more musicians,” says Enny, singer of Five Elemental People.

Unfortunately, not all bands in Shanghai share these sentiments. “The bands are friends, but they aren’t communicating about music. Everyone thinks their band is the best so they don’t try to develop new ideas together,” says Shen.

Other factors continue to hamper the development of a unique musical identity in Shanghai’s rock scene. “Most Shanghai bands just want to copy Western music,” says GG of Top Floor Circus, “The bands in Shanghai aren’t courageous enough to do crazy or funny things with their music.”

The financial strain of living in Shanghai also means that most bands cannot support themselves with their music alone, making the demands of having a band hard to meet. “The cost of living in Shanghai is high and most people just want to live a normal life, so it’s hard to commit yourself to music. Most bands just play in their spare time and work full-time jobs,” says Shen.

But in spite of its difficulties, many bands, like Top Floor Circus, choose to stay in Shanghai. “Shanghai is a quiet place for artists,” says GG, “There isn’t as much [artistic] noise and competition as Beijing. I don’t want to be surrounded by artists all the time, I prefer to be with the common people.”

Rent-A-Studio in Shanghai

Are you a garage band without the garage? Check out these three rehearsal spaces.

13D

Owner Wu Jun has outfitted this apartment with two soundproof rehearsal/recording rooms that can be rented at a reasonable hourly rate, as well as a small music shop where he can order just about any equipment you need at a fair price. Unit D, 13/F, 278 Wuxing Lu, 6415-3900

Shanghai Blue Sugi Musical Instrument Ltd.

This famous Shanghai music store houses some of the cities' oldest music studios in its conveniently located downtown store. Walk by on the weekend and you can hear bands playing from the upstairs windows. 227 Jinling Dong Lu, 6373-4547

Music Zone

This basement studio in Jing'an district has two practice rooms and a living room, all minimally furnished, but it gets the job done. For more information call Mr. Tang. 19 Yuyao Lu, 6217-7785