Photo: Nadine Fraczkowski (Pan Daijing)
“Tell me about the discharge, Tom!” – “A bit yellowy.”. The opening lines of Pan Daijing’s contribution to our Groove podcast, courtesy of one of Australia’s most abrasive Hardcore outfits, Nasenbluten, set the perfect stage for the Chinese-born performer, who has just released her debut LP Lack 惊蛰 through Berlin’s PAN. After relocating to the German capital and releasing her first release SEX & DISEASE through Noisekölln Tapes, Daijing has made a name for herself with performances that try out the performer and audience’s psychological and physical boundaries. In the meanwhile, Daijing has been putting out music that ranges from the subtle and ambient to Harsh Noise and rave-infused dance floor cuts. It might not come as a surprise then that, near the end of Daijing’s Groove mix, an all too familiar voice asks us to relax our bodies. Preferably after the discharge has been drained and the waffle iron is hot, of course.
Your new album Lack 惊蛰 is to be understood as the “finale” of your improvisational live performances. Does that mean your live shows will take a different direction from now on?
More like taking it the further, especially in the way I build up narratives and expressing as I’ve realised the need of expansion. Things evolve. Films, dance, voice and installation, more forms and more people are involved in the projects now.
You’ll be performing a new piece called “The Speaker” together with Valerio Tricoli and Werner Daffeldecker for the first time this September at Berlin. How did the collaboration about and what is the concept behind “The Speaker”?
“The Speaker is a composition for one vocalist and a six channels acousmonium diffusing electronic sound, and could be described as a form of “aural theatre”. We are just being ourselves in it and obviously we really get along. We come from a very different background and our solo work is quite different from each other, but somehow it works perfectly when we come together and things just happen so natural and intuitively it feels great. It’s been a very inspiring journey.
For Lack 惊蛰, you have collected field recordings all over the world. Which sounds usually catch your ear and how did you incorporate them into the album?
I sometimes feels more like a film person recording footage than a musician doing field recording. Most of those field recording were also acoustic sounds I participated in. It’s a pleasure to observe and treasure every movement around us that creates a bigger aura around it.
You have referred the LP as an “opera”, citing its “storytelling and drama”. Which story does Lack 惊蛰 convey?
Well, it’s not a one sentence story. Let’s say it’s about revealing secrets of the others.
While your performances and the new record are mostly dedicated to both physical and conceptual or sonic experimentation, you have also released more dancefloor-friendly tracks on Bedouin or Bintus’s Power Vacuum. What draws you to electronic dance music and how does this facet of your work correspond with an album like Lack 惊蛰?
I never thought about genre before making any record, it’s always about what I want to say in this record and the concept of how I want to make it. Could be one-week studio jam, could two years of performing around the world. What you hear is what it has to be, I didn’t force it to happen. I want to just be myself, not be noise, techno or experimental.
Your contribution to our Groove podcast seems to put a heavy emphasis on vocals while keeping an eye on the dancefloor. What was your idea behind it?
I love to dance, this mix is for dancing to while making waffles at home.
Last but not least: Where can we see you performing live in the near future – and what are your plans as a producer?
I’ll be a busy bee the rest of the year. It’s a bit overwhelming but I guess I’m just the kind of person who is always trying to catching with my ideas as there are too many. Next Sunday I’m premiering Fist Piece in Kraftwerk during Atonal festival. We made a film for this, you see, sound has never been enough. Premiering “The Speaker” in September at Elisabethkirche. Then I’m building a performance installation for HKW. And there will be lots of shows around the world. For the first time I’ll go Mexico and Australia, really looking forward to that. Collaborations with designers is also something I start doing now and am very excited about. It’s gonna be tiring, but also amazing experience. Hopefully soon I can take a long break to focus on working on my next album, which you can expect something emotional and more intimate with a focus on my vocals.
Stream: Pan Daijing – Groove Podcast 119
01. Nasenbluten – Tom’s discharge
02. Randomer – Nar
03. Calexico – Untitled 3 (Virus Style Mix)
04. Six by Seven – Eat Junk Become Junk (TLS Remix)
05. Gazelle Twin – Exorcise
06. Shunji Moriwaki – Shirushi-O-Chodai (Neana Bootleg)
07. Clap! Clap! – Burbuka
08. Bintus – Stellar Drain
09. Pan Daijing – O
10. Container – Insulation
11. M.E.S.H. – Kritikal Thirst
12. Clap! Clap! – Ashiko
13. Cyber Factor – No Rock
14. JASSS – Minotauro
15. New Scene – Out of Control
16. Hodge – Mind Games
17. N.M.O. – Nassau Molasses Office
18. Drvg Cvltvre – Bunkerpunch
19. DJ HVAD – ANGST
20. Petit Singe – Akashi Ganga
21. Vessel – Anima
22. Moor Mother – By the Light
