Precis 06 2014 issue 1

pré·cis 摘要 june.twenty fourteen

issue one volume one

cargo:

editorias - 2 gigs - 3 seven questions - 4 expat - 5 tha bar - 6 perspective - 7 images - 8,9,10 word on the street - 11

pr茅路cis publisher : chris stecher editor : katherine tosi graphics : stech design photography : stech design contributing writers : symeon north, william griffith, iberia moline contact : stech@outlook.com 01

pré·cis editorias

As a veteran of over 15 publications I

can lend, and sometimes paid to share, my expertise with.. I figured out that in the age of rampant social media, posting your musings on Facebook, Twitter or blogs are only serving those who own the sites.

I came to this stunning realization in a bar, the James Joyce, one summer day when I had reviewed some of my Facebook posts regarding my tour of China.

Between word content and photos, I had enough to fill a book.. And I was giving this away to Mark Zuckerberg..

A guy who makes more money than an ice water salesman in the desert, for no good reason other than it was the path of least resistance. That... I concluded, was bullshit territory.

My past aforementioned publications ran the gamut of underground zines to actual mainstream newspapers, and everything in between... And these were done in conjunction with numerous people, far more talented and professional in scope than I. But in those days I had a good service to provide, and I filled it, on time, and with more than a little dose of stechisms.

So when my pivotal moment came that day, my first thought was, I have never actually BEEN a publisher, always on the crew.

My second thought was .. Well why the hell not?

So thus, précis was born. An agonizing process for the name was one of the first problems, and was arrived at by figuring out that most of life’s experiences can be summarized in less words and more meaning behind those sentences which are chosen.

In truth, this idea of concise stories came from my best friend and lawyer when he told me: “Dude, the one thing I have learned in a courtroom, is that judges hate when a defendant rambles on about the reasoning why they got arrested. The best thing to do is give the overview of the circumstances, and leave out the bullshit minutia.”

Anyway… I digress. This is a publication dedicated to the true China, as seen through expats eyes... You will get some music, photography, a bit of philosophy, some food, weird advice, and always a semi accurate description of events.

Enjoy.

Stech.

02

gigs.

Devils at the Crossroad, End of the World, Uterus, Groove Collective at SCHOOL (with a surprise Diders show)

03

5.30.14

A redefined classic is what

you would call Devils at the Crossroad.

We caught up with the band during their set at SCHOOL, one of many stops on the bands hefty summer tour of the Beijing club scene.

Précis asked the seven drunken questions.

Précis: What’s your name and what do you play?

Cedrick: I play drums. I am the drummer.

Alex: I play guitar.

Marco: bass.

Dave: singer.

Précis: So.. Devils at the Crossroad have gone through a couple of incarnations.

Give us a history.

Marco : well one and a half.

Cedric: 3 guys got together and started a project and then it got really big and one guy left and we got another singer and guitarist. And then we got bigger and better than we thought it would be.

We chose to play with two new guys who play and have more presence than before.

Précis: This is the second incarnation of the band.. What’s changed?

Marco : This is a tough question so I can’t really judge, but the feedback has been really positive, there is a lot more interaction with a guitarist and a separate singer.. The fans have been saying it is much more dynamic with a new energy.

Précis: The Devils have done 4 shows in the last 2 weeks.. And these shows have had a huge fan base, absolutely packed..

seven questions devils at the crossroad

How do you feel about your fans?

Alex: I was very amazed.. When Dave first contacted me I knew the band already, I had seen them with Joris (the ex-guitarist and singer), but I didn’t realize how big the fan base was. That was the first thing I saw before I hit the stage. People were expecting a lot, so it was a little intimidating.

People were saying “hey you’re now with the devils, hope you do well!” I didn’t want to disappoint.

Dave: I already knew the Devils. I was playing with the band Red Pirate and knew the band from gigging with them.

We played many shows together and it was a fucking great time. The Devils always knew Joris was going to leave and they knew my work, so it was a natural fit.

Précis: You guys are touring a lot in Beijing, do you see an out of China tour?

Do you have a label?

Marco: We are on a small label... Scream Records. We need to check out what’s happening on this. We do want to do a bigger tour. We want to do Japan. We would love to go everywhere. I am French, so we would like to do Europe, and obviously the US as well. We have also contacts in Brazil.

Cedric: Dave has no contacts because no one likes him. (laughter) Dave: Fuck you Cedric. (Much jocularities).

Précis: Last question.. Where do you see yourselves in five years?

Marco: We had a two years notice with Joris leaving, so we had a lot of time, and Dave was the natural choice. When I first saw Dave on stage, I just knew he was the guy to take the reigns.

Marco: In the bar!! Well.. in front of the bar...

Dave: For me, I already knew the fans, we shared a bunch of the same faces at shows.

When I was with Red Pirate, I played at the CD launch party for the devils.

Cedric: (pointing) ..dead..dead..dead, and on the street. (laughter)

Marco: you can hear him on the album, we needed a mad preacher, he can be heard on the track “we obey”.

Cedric: I want to say we love our fans!!!

Easy lovers, and not just because they buy us drinks.

Cedric: in a VERY good bar, then outside puking.

Dave: you will just have to follow us, because the next stuff we put out, the next release, the next tour, we are just gonna make your head fucking explode.

Précis: Do you have a website?

Marco: Devilsatthecrossroad.com, and you can search us on weibo, and twitter.

04

expat Iberia Moline

My experience as an expat begins 4 years ago (it’s now 2014).

I arrived in China without any expectations believing it would resemble something similar to Japan , I landed in Beijing thinking it would be a 3 month experience, China begun to grow on me almost exponentially.

By the time it had been 2 months, I didn’t want to leave. A native from Miami, I had always experienced a multicultural and metropolitan life, it was very surprising to me that Beijing was a satisfactory location and I felt right at home.

Unfortunately my experience in China had a rough start, I lost almost 90k USD within the first 2 months on a yogurt deal gone sour. We decided to stay in Beijing 05

even though our focus in manufacturing and rapid prototyping lied in the south of China, we stayed in Beijing to be loyal to our corporate manager who loves Beijing and would not consider relocating, eventually our clients in the States gained enough trust to rely on us and let us begin a business. As a Jew, Beijing was very welcoming, hosting two

full size communities.

I felt right at home once more, it allowed me to practice traditional Judaism and reformed Judaism making it extremely welcoming.

The history behind Beijing which intrigued me, made it even easier to fall in love and never want to leave this wonderful place.

Despite business drawbacks, China has stolen my heart and I feel as if I belonged here all along.

Many Americans don’t understand my love and passion for China. I don’t think they have a chance of grasping until they come visit and experience the magic for themselves.

China has been a wonderful host to us and has never ceased to impress me.

On top of all these wonderful experiences, I believe China has exposed me to something more than just business, it had taught me patience and kindness.

I don’t know why, but I have found peace in a place so far away from home.

China rocks.

tha bar.

Alibi

Précis: I have a question about your location, you are pretty much hidden on the side streets, why did you choose this place?

Area: Chaoyang, Sanlitun No. 2 Xingfuyicun 3rd. Alley www.alibibeijing.com

Ted: Well.. it came down to money.. It’s very expensive to locate in Sanlitun, especially near Bar Street, but this is close to Bar street, but not as much money.

When talking about bars and restaurants, you sometimes have to go underground. It’s the places on the side streets that will fulfill your desire for good food and drink.

Précis: You guys seem to have a loyal following..

What do you owe this to?

One of the places that we venture to is a little place called Alibi. Chinese owned to be sure, but the venue has the best western menu in this berg.

Sporting a selection that has classic burgers, an impeccable caesar salad, wings and a rack of pork ribs to die for, this place has it all.

The drink menu will make you long for home, wherever that may be.

Come hungry and thirsty, because the prices here will blow your mind, being fed and imbibed will only cost you a pittance .

The bar manager , Harley will go out of his way to make sure you are taken care of and the owner Ted will take your order making sure your dining pleasure is his as well.

Précis talks a wee bit with the owner Ted. Précis: So why did you decide to open Alibi?

Ted: Well I knew Harley (the Bar manager) and Vincent from other places, and we worked together at a pizza restaurant called Chico and also a place called the Crows Nest.

We had always talked about opening a restaurant. We needed to do something for us. We talked about a pizza only place, but then we started testing burgers, and that was a big hit.

Précis: Now your menu is primarily western.. How did you come up with that?

Ted: Well mostly because no one else was doing it, and because there is a desire for western food. We added the Ceaser salad, the custom burgers and the onion rings because thats what the people want.

cluded.

We started the “have your picture taken, and you get 10% off you food and drinks” right from the start.. That was a big hit, and you can see we have over 100 pictures on the wall.. yours in-

Aside from that, its the food. Large portions, at a reasonable price.

Précis: Why the name Alibi?

Ted: Well if you think about it, its pretty funny.. People will call you up and ask where are you? And you just say, yeah.. I am at Alibi.. I have an Alibi.. (laughs) Précis: Do you guys see you expanding?

Ted: Yeah.. Next year.. In September, we are looking at Lido. We are excited about this.

06

perspective.

by symeon north

The Struggle of being Free in America Every morning, just before the alarm rings, my trained brain arouses and my body sets into robotic motion. Morning hygiene is quickly followed by putting on the kettle to make a pot of coffee.

My work day begins by checking in to see if there have been any internet sales or more emails. I am a single mother, working artist, if it wasn’t for the internet I would be trying to sell my handmade

Most mornings I am filled with the gratitude of another night with roof over our heads and coffee to put in the french press. Today will be hectic, like most days. Starting with emails. An hour after coffee has started working, I will wake my children to prepare them for their day at school.

Sometimes my family tries to shame me into going back into the workforce reminding me that I am college educated., I’ve been a stay at home mom (or work at home mom) for 12 years and have lost all of my accreditations in my social work field. Even if they weren’t so old, I have moved to another state with a whole set of qualifications. Being out of the work force for so long, it is simply impossible to find a living wage job that allows me to care for my children as a single parent. This is why a 12 to 18 hour day at my house seems like a more realistic way to keep us in our home.

Bend, Oregon (USA) has a 3.1 vacancy rate. This means landlords are now able to charge double of what they were able to get in 2008, at the beginning of the housing bubble bursting. Bend also happens to have the nation’s highest artificially inflated housing market. So when the “bubble burst” it hit this area hard.

All of those sub-prime borrowers were now becoming renters, making the rental market even tighter for a single mother of two (with no viable source of income).

As soon as I hit the driveway, I turn on my hoses to water my meager garden. I get no help from mother nature, as we are in the high desert, nearly 4 thousand feet, and annual rainfall of 11.2 in (280 mm).

The growing season is short, we can get frost at any time during the summer months. What little we are able to grow is like gold.

07

My day comes to a grinding halt when it is time to gather my children. It doesn’t matter if I was in the middle of being driven by my muse… Once we are home, the garden is watered again and the children have their chores to do, we all need to pitch in, to make it work.

Soon after, I realize it is time to make dinner, my phone alerts me to an email about a large custom order.

Even though I am stretched for time, I agree to take it on. After all, both kids need new shoes and some new summer clothes. Some evenings all through dinner, emails are being tended to. Some nights it is back to sewing, because working 12 hours a day keeps us from being out on the streets again.

I wake the eldest up first, so she can shower and there will be no fighting for the bathroom. But, if by chance my younger child wakes up sooner than planned, he will be able to use our second bathroom. A luxury we never had before. A luxury we hope to keep. It took us 8 months to find a house we can barely afford.

After frayed shoe laces are tied and lost keys are found, children are dropped off at school. I breathe a sigh of relief, yet still full of anxiety. On my way home I can not help but see all of the boarded up vacant houses, bank owned and short sale signs.

do not realize I can create them something customized)

wares on the street (which, at some festivals, I absolutely prefer.)

Internet sales are how we keep the roof over our heads, the lights on and of course, internet. The biggest problem with that type of commerce is it is completely static and sterile. Unlike a brick and mortar shop, I can’t see foot traffic, and the passers by cannot see me sewing at my machines, touch my creations; they can’t see my smile or sense my gratitude when they come in to browse. (I don’t even know who is browsing on the internet, let alone if they like what they see, or

If only there was some way we could get all of the people living on the streets into vacant/foreclosed/bank owned housing, we would eliminate homelessness and still have plenty of houses to sell.There are 3.5 million homeless people in the United States and 18.5 million vacant houses. I don’t have a math degree, but this does not make one bit of sense to me.

We are told we live in the wealthiest nation in the world, but from where I sit,, poverty’s doorstep; it seems like we have been told a lie.

images. waiting.

perspective.

08

images. perseverance.

09

images. derelict.

10

word on the street...

LiveBeijingMusic.com

by William Griffith

It was only a matter of time kids – Live Beijing Music is happy

to throw their first (and hopefully not last) show with this scorching hot lineup to kick start your weekend – 6/6 LBM ‘Smooth Sailing’ Showcase (believe me, it makes more sense in Chinese). And wouldn’t you know it – the show happens to fall on 6/6 – one of the year’s luckiest days. LBM has selected some of its favorite bands of the past year for an evening of rock and roll that’ll leave School reeling.

Performing are The Big Wave who have taken their synth punk to new levels, turning it into a frantic, twisted funkadelic showcase of neurosis.

Also on hand we have The Diders, who have been shell-shocking audiences since late last year with their no holds barrel rock and roll which threatens to ignite at each and every

iBre

turn – heck, their bassist just had to get surgery because of manic flailing.

We have up and comers Heat Mark, a garage rocking duo that’s been the talk of the town, and whom I’m excited to check out for the first time. And if that wasn’t enough we have a very special performance from a new super secret band called Cat AIDS. Hint: tracksuits might be involved. So bring your friends, bring your loved ones, bring your stray cats and get ready to let loose. It’s 6.6 folks!! Time to roll the dice and get lucky!

When: Friday, June 6th 9:30pm Where: School Bar Ticket: 40/50 RMB Lineup: The Big Wave, The Diders, Heat Mark, Cat AIDS

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