A version of this article originally appeared on Noisey China.After debuting on Howie Lee's music label Do Hits with his EP Black Dragon in 2017, Shanghai-based producer Alex Wang has continued to explore his unique futuristic club sound, which shows traces of nu-metal, black metal, and sci-fi influences. His new EP 0% pushes past the artist boundaries of his contemporaries, offering a violent narrative influenced by the likes of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World.The track is a hybrid of various textures, ranging from club beats, synths and distorted vocals. In addition to Wang's current home of Shanghai, it's a commentary on the societal shift to modernity and urbanization worldwide. 0% is meant to describe the tipping point that prompts new personal beginnings: in this instance, a lack of hope and the illusion of "zero" flaws in a "utopian" world.
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Directed by Chinese 3D artist Chillchill, the video for "A Brave New World" is a harrowing, apocalyptic depiction of present day China: an imagined look at the end result of rapid urbanization and the detrimental effect that had on the country's working class and migrant workers, or “the low-end population.” Programs like “bicycle-sharing”—often seen as examples of failed government regulation that only add to the degradation of urban environments—come under fire as well.You can listen to 0% in its entirety on Spotify.
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Directed by Chinese 3D artist Chillchill, the video for "A Brave New World" is a harrowing, apocalyptic depiction of present day China: an imagined look at the end result of rapid urbanization and the detrimental effect that had on the country's working class and migrant workers, or “the low-end population.” Programs like “bicycle-sharing”—often seen as examples of failed government regulation that only add to the degradation of urban environments—come under fire as well.You can listen to 0% in its entirety on Spotify.