Night belongs to the young－and so does the sound

[Photo provided to China Daily]

"I like metal and electronic," says Li Meiyue, 24, a night owl who brands her music taste as self-styled.

"Here (at Yugong Yishan) I can have a good laugh and enjoy new independent bands and DJs. I'm just not into this Billboard candyfloss stuff."

The idea of defining people by the music they listen to is debatable, but there is no doubt that diverse genres of music have forged a presence in Chinese society and that through them young people are taking the initiative to reflect on or even create their own social scenes.

This diversification has also prompted a surge of outdoor music festivals in China that seem to have evolved into a ceaseless gala that attracts ever growing throngs of young people. Since the May Day holiday and on to November, many music festivals, including the Strawberry Music Festival, the Midi Music Festival, the Zhangbei Music Festival, the Storm Electronic Music Festival and the Corona SunSets Festival have kept these young people enthralled.

Music festivals essentially used to be a preserve of rock music fans, but these events have become much more broad-based in their appeal.