MAO Live House 光芒
111 Gulou Dongdajie,
Gulou
Just east of Nanluoguxiang.
鼓楼东大街111号
6402-5080
www.maolive.com
ma0livehouse@hotmail.com
- City Weekend
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Backed by Japanese record label Bad News, this Gulou rock club is guided by smart management that has invested its money in a killer sound system, great stage and a warehouse-like space with beaten up secondhand furniture and cheap drinks.
Reviews Been there? Add a review!
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cityweekend
Most Recent Reviews
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Liked this place. Good beer, good eats. lively.
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Absolutely like this place. The band was playing some great music. Drinks were on the dot. Good crowd.The only hassle is in winter dont feel like going so far to that part of the town.!
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My friends have just issued their first album as an underground band. I went to Mao for their 1st album tour show. There were 4 bands that night. They were not as what I expected. I mean they are a "wow". I was amazed by how much richer their music are compare to 4, 5 years ago. I'm so grateful for the existing of MAO and other venues like this who would provide the opportunities for the young musician to grow and exchange their understand of music and life.
My boyfriend is dying to go to Mao so I'll take him their on his next visit. Though as we are both non-smokers, the show room can get really smoky. -
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Hard to rate this place : Looking for small events, yes, this is the greatest place in Beijing with lots of local bands. But when it comes to big concerts of well-known bands, as collinwinn said, it is a real nightmare.
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5 stars for this one anyday! This is one of the best dance clubs/lounges in Jing. The crowd is pretty good. There isnt much of a line, which is really good. I hate waiting in line to get into clubs. The music is pretty refreshing and new. In all it is a great place to spend a night out in the city.
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if you need live music, look no where else
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I'd like to offer an extension of the above review by saying this venue should NOT be booking big names such as Battles and Ratatat unless they are going to be professionally managed. It isn't fair to the patrons who pay a stiff cover charge to see a well-known international band to have to deal with an unorganized, understaffed, and overcrowded venue with no air-conditioning. It is disrespectful to the artists who've traveled long distances and makes for a very unmemorable live-music experience. We all left with a bad taste in our mouth last night -- literally and figuratively.
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They completely packed the place last night for the Ratatat show. All they cared about was taking more and more money from people who wanted to go in, with zero regard to maximum occupancy. Everyone in there was dangerously soaking in their own sweat. No exaggeration-- I'm surprised people weren't passing out. Had there been a fire or stampede, we all would have died.
On top of that, they had maybe 4-5 staffers working total... 2 bartenders and 2 people taking care of tickets for an insane amount of people. Complete madness.
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I used to go here a lot, but now I don't. Good for anyone poor and under the age of 25.
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It's the kind of thing people could argue about endlessly, I guess, but I think the sound system at Mao live is one of the worst I've ever heard (and I've seen bands in some dumps in my day).
If you want good sounding live music, in my opinion, try Yugong Yishan instead.
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Best sounding stage in Beijing.
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they need a coatroom
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Balls out, amazing venue. One of the best I have ever been to; small enough to get intimate with the stage, big enough to move around & fantastic sound. Stage looks excellent and clean, they take care of the place.
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Some of the best bands and some of the best sound at one of the best locations. If it's your band's night on stage, there is no better place than the MAO.
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I'm usually one for long-winded reviews but MAO doesn't need a long review. Everything said above is true: it's basic, down to earth, cheap, and it has a killer sound system. It may not have the "friend's garage" feel of 2 Kolegas, but the quality of the sound, the bands booked, and the perfect size of the audience space make it the best Livehouse in BJ right now.
Four nightclubs a week open up in Beijing, but genuine music venues are rare as smog-free days. The last big opening was D-22 about a year ago. Like Pettis and the boys, M.A.O. Live benefits from some foreign backing, namely a partnership with Japanese record label Bad News (long-time home of local punk rock kids made good, Brain Failure). But instead of hyping the association and hoping for miracles, MAO manager Li Chi has drawn on their experience. He and his partners shopped hundreds of venues all over town before settling on their current digs behind Nanluoguxiang. And they’ve parlayed the monetary investment into a high quality sound system that is second only to Starlive’s in pure ampage. The rest of the place is as basic as they come. A bricked up bar. A hastily slapped on coat of red paint. Some used furniture. Ten kuai beers. It’s like a jalope with a jet engine in it. But on entering you know it’s all about the music, the show, and MAO Live will indeed be putting on some memorable shows if the opening two nights are any indication. Expect most of the bands to be skimmed off the local rock circuit with the occasional laowai act mixed in. Musically, Li Chi leans toward metal and punk, but appreciates originality in any genre. And it this love of music which will make Mao Live work where Starlive has failed so noticeably in building reputation and, more importantly, community. And yes, in case you’re wondering, the MAO in question is THAT Mao. Why? Because, according to Li, "he was the biggest rock n roller of all."