Music Recommendation 16｜CFI Label

Recently, I am going to talk to you about some very niche independent labels. If you are not very fond of that type of music, you may not have heard of it. The first label I chose the CFI label.

Bandcamp: https://cfimusic.bandcamp.com/music

This is a label co-founded by Li Jianhong and VAVABOND in 2011 to promote Chinese improvised music.

Let's first introduce Li Jianhong and VAVABOND.

Li Jianhong

Zhejiang native, a noise/improv musician, has participated in D!O!D!O!D!, VagusNerve, Mind Fiber and other combinations. Before CFI, he also hosted the "2pi Records" label. From 2003 to 2007, he also planned and hosted the avant-garde music festival "2pi Festival".

His music is mainly based on guitar improvisation, and his musical styles are improvisation, noise and psychedelic music. His music publishing is also very complicated. PSF, Utech, Archive, Buh and other foreign labels have been published, including the The introduction of the WV Sorcerer has also been published.

Recommend 3 of his solo releases.

1. Utech " Wanghaigang "

2. Buh " 1969 ", you can also listen to the version of " 1969 " released by WV Sorcerer . The two versions are slightly different. At the same time, the former is a CDR, and the latter is a cassette.

Briefly talk about the label Buh, which is an experimental music label in Peru. The manager is Luis Alvarado. In 2020, I communicated with him by email, because of the impact of COVID-19, the coup in Peru in recent years, and his Due to physical reasons, it was not easy for this label to persist, so I bought a record of nearly 300 euros to support it.

Buh Records: https://buhrecords.bandcamp.com/artists

3. Cold Moss " Father, and a wild trail zigzagging down "

There is also a story about Cold Moss, a Belgian label. At that time, many friends knew about the release of this album, but they did not buy it due to the high international shipping cost. I tried emailing the label manager and he agreed to lower the shipping fee to 6 euros, so a lot of people bought the record. When mailing, it was also due to COVID-19. The air freight from Belgium to China was too high. The manager drove to France to mail it, which is also an interesting little story.

In fact, there are many recommended ones, so I won't introduce them one by one, such as "Fog Mountain", "Shan Hai Jing", "At this moment, like a living person"...

VAVABOND

This is the code name Wei Wei has used since 2006. She is also one of the most active female experimental musicians in China. Her music style is notebook noise and improvisation. She has also joined 2pi Records and is also a member of the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve also made a comeback this year, starting new compositions and musical performances.

Let’s recommend two first, and there’s also a “ Lo Pan ” for the vagus nerve.

1. " no​-​brain improv "

2. CFI " walk | take a walk "

Finally back to the CFI label, I would like to recommend a few very important releases.

1. VAVABOND " HOLOGRAM OF sea "

This recording was recorded by Li Jianhong in October 2010 at the seaside of Xiangshan, Zhejiang. The intersection of electronic fragments and the sound of waves is like an album cover, forming a holographic image in the mind.

2. Li Jianhong's "Environmental Improvisation"

This is a series consisting of three albums - " Twelve Realms ", " Empty Mountain " and " Here ".

3. VA " passive tense 1 " " passive tense 2 "

The two cassettes were released in 2020, just like a party, and the participating musicians were Ding Chenchen, Wang Ziheng, Li Yangyang, Liu Xinyu, Li Jianhong, Yao Chunyang, VAVABOND, Zhao Cong and Sheng Jie.