Tang Dynasty

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Tang Dynasty
The band's concert in Xi'an, 2004
The band's concert in Xi'an, 2004
General information
Genre (s) Metal
founding 1988
Founding members
singing
 Ding Wu
Zhang Ju (until 1995 †)
guitar
 Emperor Guo (until 1989, 1996–1999)
Andrew Szabo (until 1989)
Current occupation
singing
 Ding Wu
guitar
 Chen Lei (since 2000)
bass
 Gu Zhong (since?)
Drums
 Zhao Nian (since 1989)
former members
guitar
 Liu Yijun (1989–1996)

Tang Dynasty ( Chinese  唐朝 , Pinyin táng cháo , in German Tang Dynasty ) are considered the first metal band in the People's Republic of China . Their first album is widely considered to be revolutionary in terms of combining traditional Chinese opera and metal music.

At the time of its creation, Tang Dynasty's music was largely melancholy, solemn and depressed. Lost in their attempt to escape into an imaginary dream world full of contrasts. The music told how Tang Dynasty saw honesty and true feelings.

history

In 1988, Ding Wu, Zhang Ju, Emperor Guo (US) and Andrew Szabo (US) met at a party and decided to form the group Tang Dynasty. The band played several smaller gigs at various parties and had to give up their tour plans through China after the Tian'anmen massacre in 1989. Emperor Guo and Andrew Szabo then returned to the USA.

In the fall of 1989, Ding Wu and Zhang Ju met the musicians Liu Yijun (Lao Wu) and Zhao Nian, who both joined Tang Dynasty.

In February 1990, Tang Dynasty was allowed to perform in front of 18,000 people at the Xiandai Yingyuehui Modern Music Festival . The euphoria shown towards the Tang Dynasty surprised the band and organizers.

In May 1990, Tang Dynasty played in front of more than 100,000 people during the opening ceremony of the Asian Games at Worker's Stadium in Beijing. The Chinese government had a plan to present a modern China to the world in which they would allow a modern band to play.

The success Tang Dynasty had with this concert helped her to convince the Taiwanese record company Rolling Stone (Gun Shi) and to sign the band.

Equipped with a recording studio and a practice room, Tang Dynasty recorded 11 songs by December 1991 and released their first album "A dream return to Tang Dynasty" in 1992 (China's first own heavy metal album). According to statistics from a Taiwanese record company, more than 700,000 legal copies of this album were sold, as well as well over 1.3 million illegal and countless illegal best-of collections.

In 1995 bassist Zhang Ju died in a car accident. A year later, Liu Yijun left the band and was replaced by founding member Emperor Guo.

Members

Ding Wu
Tang Dynasty lead singer was born in Beijing on December 30, 1962 and spent most of his youth in northern Heilongjiang Province before returning to Beijing in 1972 to study at the Industrial Arts Academy. After graduating, he began to work at one of Beijing's many colleges, where he first came into contact with western rock music. In 1981, Ding Wu bought his first electric guitar , which he immediately started to practice with. In 1984 he joined the Bu Dao Wung group, then switched to the Hei Bao (Black Panther) group in 1986 .
Zhang Ju
Zhang Ju was born in Beijing in 1970, the youngest of three children. In 1984 he began to learn the guitar and switched to bass in 1986 . He died in a car accident in 1995.
Lao Wu
Lao Wu was born in Tianjin in 1963 and was the lead guitarist of the White Angel group before joining Tang Chao.
Zhao Nian
Zhao Nian was born in Beijing in 1961 and previously played in the band The Mirco-organists .

Discography

  • 1991/1992 : A dream returns to Tang Dynasty (梦回唐朝)
  • 1997: Goodbye Zhangju (再见 张炬)
  • 1998: Epic (演义)
  • 2008: Romantic Knight (浪漫 騎士)
  • 2010: Ups and Downs (沉浮)
  • 2013: Prick (芒刺)

Web links