Night belongs to the young－and so does the sound

[Photo provided to China Daily]

Ask any Chinese fan of the Dutch DJ Lvndscape what he means to them and just watch their pupils dilate. It was his first time doing live music in China at the Corona SunSets Festival in Shanghai on Nov 4 to 5, yet the young artist seemed to be unstoppable.

On his new record Stay Away he proves he has much to say with his lyrics that tackle issues of social identity in an ever-changing world.

So what does the music scene in China－one that can attract a fresh young DJ from so far away－look like? You may well find the answer at midnight on a Friday in a hangout in some of the oldest streets in cities like Beijing. Yugong Yishan, a tiny live house adjoining a parking lot across from Beijing Workers' Stadium in the Dongsi area, explodes with electronic beats for restless night-crawling hipsters.

It is one of many, with venues such as Dada Club and Mao Livehouse springing up all over the city, not only reflecting changes in musical tastes but fueling them as well.

That is happening as local and international bands and party labels are invited regularly to challenge the mega nightclubs that generally restrict themselves to playing pop songs.