A band that unravels and utilizes the enigma of the human condition, Beijing’s The Grinding Ear is a post-rock quintet that breathes life into the chaotic, sentimental state that is human nature. In this latest Temper Sampler, our in-house music maniac Rochelle Beiersdorfer is back after an unintentional hiatus to dive headfirst into the capital’s indie music scene’s rich abyss.
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WHO?
The Grinding Ear (逆耳; nì ěr) is a five-piece made up of highly educated and introspective individuals, with members being either full-time professional musicians or diehards creating in their free time. For instance, founding member and one half of the string section, Ma Yao (马尧; mǎ yáo), in the last decade has made a name for himself in China’s electronic music community under the moniker 4 Channels Club.
Seeing music creation as just another part of life and a channel for self-expression, this post-rock motley crew isn’t a new band sprung from the COVID era. Instead, they’re veterans in Beijing’s indie music community who after (temporarily) throwing in the towel decided in late 2019/early 2020 to take up the torch again. Originally forming in 2003 when Ma Yao, guitarist and once vocalist, and bassist Liu Tuo (刘拓; liú tuò) were both college freshmen, The Grinding Ear has gone through their share of band members, boasting an impressive list of past musicians from both the Middle Kingdom and the West. Starting on the grittier grudge-rock and noise-core side of the indie music spectrum, the band eventually began to transition into a more post-rock, progressive rock and noise art outfit before their first official release. Mixing a plethora of somber and high-energy musical styles, The Grinding Ear released their debut “Rainy Day” (《雨昼》; yǔ zhòu) in 2015 and went on a “14-city national tour” to promote the album.
“After the tour, Tony [drummer from 2010 until 2015] wanted to go back to his home country [France] and start a new life because he had been in China for too long. At that time the band was in a relatively slow state of creativity. Plus, it wasn’t easy to re-integrate a new drummer into our style, so we decided to take a temporary hiatus and we each did our own thing for the next couple of years,” Ma Yao explains, “we were all still in Beijing and would get together from time to time. We have always been very good friends.”
Initiated by Liu Tuo, the band’s revival still sees the same good old pals but in a different configuration and with the addition of Pu Yinuo (蒲一诺; pú yínuò) behind the drums.
“My former math rock band in Beijing had some gigs with the Grinding Ear early on, and then they [The Grinding Ear] released the album ‘Rainy Day,” Pu Yinuo tells Temper, “…in 2020 the Grinding Ear decided to reboot, and because their drummer was back in France, the bassist Liu Tuo brought me in.”
Besides the new addition of Pu Yinou, former guitarist Ma Bing (马冰; mǎ bīng) is now in command of the keys. Due to a hectic work schedule, Ma Bing was unable to partake in this interview.
As aforementioned, these post-rock instrumentalists perceive music creation as a part of everyday life. “As a musician, life is purely about creating music,” Zhou Yang, the band’s other guitarist and producer on the most recent release, stresses, “In the supermarket, on the subway, walking by the river, [or] on the go, pieces of music are always emerging as random flashes in my head in every situation. When I pick up my instrument, it’s a quest to find these things [the music fragments]. These sounds, as far as I’m concerned, are actual.”
The meaning behind their band name is just as astute as Zhou’s point of view towards music making. The name The Grinding Ear (逆耳; nì ěr) was coined during Ma Yao’s post-high school graduation/“rebellious youth” period when the music he was creating, after changing his hobby from drawing to music, was just pure adulterate noise. “So, I came up with a simple, rebellious and destructive name,” Ma Yao recollects, “looking at it now, the meaning of ‘The Grinding Ear’ is probably more in favor of ‘an inner expression by means of philosophical representation.” For me, the role of a band is to preserve oneself amid the mundane.”
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WHAT?
“It can’t be described and never has been,” Ma Yao asserts when asked how he would define The Grind Ear’s music to a stranger.
A reason for this indiscernibility might be because The Grinding Ear’s music is like an abstract painting with layers upon layers of texture and tone. In other words, The Grinding Ear’s creations come from a place of deep contemplation and rebellious experimentation, saturating the silence that is their canvas.
Despite the band name, there’s nothing abrasive about the quintet’s music. Instead, it’s sweet and intelligent, radiating serenity and philosophical enlightenment. Between catchy guitar riffs and infectious drumbeats, it’s difficult not to bob your head or tap your foot when listening to their discography. In our humble opinion, it’s auditory escapism at its best.
With some songs being more lethargic than others, “Endless Dream Tide” (《无尽梦潮》; wújìn mèng cháo), The Grinding Ear’s most recent release, is a tapestry of post-rock ecstasy and finetuned jazzy pessimism. Songs like “Time Diver” (《时间潜入者》; shíjiān qiánrùzhě), and “404 Kingdom” (《纵梦国》; zòng mèng guó) flow with so much infectious groove and haunting melody that you will find yourself playing them on repeat, allowing yourself to be swept away into a tranquil domain of meditation and bliss. Besides being carried into a timeless aural nirvana, other tracks just bleed with rich quintessential progressive and post-rock oomph. An example of this is “逃亡景” (táowáng jǐng; rough translation: Escape Scene). First released as a single in 2020, this auditory opus fashions such a dramatic and complex atmosphere that it feels like you’ve been plucked and dropped into obscurity, left to wonder a dystopian wasteland as an outcast, a fugitive, as the song title implies.
Although most of The Grinding Ear’s discography is pure instrumentals, their music still expresses elaborate narrations, telling stories that are all too human. An exception to the Grinding Ear’s practice of producing purely instrumental works is the track “最后的一个邮递员” (zuìhòu de yígè yóudìyuán; rough translation: The Final Carrier) A seven-plus-minute melody, this song exhibits Zhou Yang’s prowess to harmonize sweet and spellbinding vocals with instrumentals that initially are nostalgic of The Grinding Ear’s more grunge rock days and transitioning into a melancholy soundscape. Lyrically, we’re taking an educated guess that “最后的一个邮递员” is about being down on your luck, feeling defeated and longing for what was and what could have been.
WHEN?
As previously stated, The Grinding Ear isn’t fresh meat on the scene, instead, they are old hands, starting in 2003 when Ma Yao and Liu Tuo were both freshmen at university. “After I graduated from high school, I bought a guitar and the first thing I did when I got to college was to find the right people to form a band with,” Liu Tuo explains, “when all the freshmen had to assemble, I saw Ma Yao wearing the same Nirvana t-shirt and struck up a conversation. This was the first time in my life ever where I initiated a conversation with a stranger, and the band The Grinding Ear was born.”
During The Grinding Ear’s infancy, their “approach was like a crappy punk band,” going headfirst into writing songs and learning as they went along. Through this creative period of trial and error, the band eventually found their feet and began the journey of honing their signature sound of somber fuzz and meticulous melodies.
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MUSIC AND FASHION
“Fashion is a game, a game with time,” Zhou Yang retorts when asked to give his two cents on what fashion is, “it is people repeatedly playing with aesthetics. The popular, the outdated, and the marginal, all are derived from this game. When you look at the 80s and 90s now, it seems like you can easily feel the zeitgeist of that time. The current zeitgeist is dead but will be resurrected again later.” Other members agree, stating that fashion can be the recycling of aesthetics and that this is admirable.
“Fashion should be a kind of re-examination and questioning of the established rules and order,” Ma Yao says, “fashion itself deserves to be respected, it has a certain rebellious spirit of deviating from the rules and breaking the inherent system, but fashion is also very dangerous. When it is overly branded, it can turn into a kind of aesthetic kidnapping and become one of the fastest ways to destroy the uniqueness of an individual.” For The Grinding Ear, fashion, like music, is a channel for self-expression and going to the beat of your own drum.
However, even with the consensus that music and fashion are bedfellows, the band personally doesn’t use their wardrobes with the explicit intent of expressing their personalities through patterns or colors, especially when performing. In fact, besides Zhou Yang who coincidently doesn’t own a lot of black, the post-rock instrumentalists prefer to hit the stage in every shade of black. “During performances, the music is the focus on stage. There is no need to pay attention too much to the people,” Ma Yao asserts.
WHERE?
The Grinding Ear is stationed in the epicenter of China’s indie and underground music scene: Beijing.
With the recent online release of “Endless Dream Tide” (《无尽梦潮》; wújìn mèng cháo), the band is currently touring the country in support of this new full-length. Catch them in either Shenzhen on the 29th at B10 Live (B10现场; B10 xiànchǎng) or on the 31st in Beijing at Yue Space (乐空间; yuè kōngjiān). More information on these two fast-approaching shows is available via The Grinding Ear’s socials. #scrolldown
WHY?
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Why not!?
Mixing a healthy dose of post-rock and progressive instrumentals, The Grinding Ear’s discography is the perfect remedy to overcome the dull humdrum of existence. It’s music to listen to on a chill Sunday afternoon when you just need to decompress and reflect.
In other words, The Grinding Ear’s instrumental post-rock anthems are the ultimate transcendental escapism, so (again)…why not!?
Follow The Grinding Ear on the socials for some good old ruckus and rumination:
ALL IMAGES COME courtesy of The Grinding Ear
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