Weekend Live Music Roundup: An August to Look Forward To and a Britpop Invasion

A couple of date confirmations dropped into our inbox this week. A doozie of a show has been announced at Yugong Yishan on August 28. A triumvirate of US indie rockers Other Lives, Canadian garage rockers PS I Love You and Dallas-based multi-instrumentalist Daniel Hart. Other Lives have been gushed over on the BBC website and by Mojo after hitting the big time when one of their tracks was used on sappy surgical schmaltzfest Grey's Anatomy. PS I Love You's body of work has been described as "epic" on Pitchfork, while Daniel Hart has made friends with the likes of Polyphonic Spree and Broken Social Scene through his brand of violin-led melodic pop.

Also at Yugong Yishan next month, San Franciscan jazz-hopper Kero One will land in town promoting his fourth studio album. It's great to have something to look forward to, and Yugong Yishan is certainly providing that throughout August.

Did you manage to get along to the Mark Kozelek gig on Tuesday night? It was an oddly captivating show. The former Red House Painters front man is known for wanting his audience to keep shtum while he's about his work, but I doubt even he would have expected the level of cooperation he got from an intimate MAO Livehouse crowd. You would have heard a mouse fart in between tracks if any mice had had the bottle to try it. The surly singer-songwriter reeled off a number of crowd pleasers from his vast back catalogue and treated the audience to the cream of his latest offering Among The Leaves.

Turning our attention to this weekend; as is regularly the case, Zhang Si'an gets the action going tonight with a show at Zajia Lab, while over on Gulou, WHAI get experimental with the Temple crowd.

Friday marks the highly-anticipated triumphant return of Hanggai from a European jaunt. 2 Kolegas is sure to be throbbing to welcome the Mongolian folk troupe back to their spiritual home. If you fail to get over to the drive in and you've a thirst for folk on Friday, then stop by Jianghu to catch veterans Buyi Band. If you're looking for something a little different, stop by Hot Cat Club for a spacy performance from Cam Norton and Nostalgia From The Stars marking the opening of artist James S. Chen's new exhibit, "Cosmic Fantasy".

Saturday sees an invasion of Britpop take place over at Yugong Yishan as Exile Parade hit town as part of Britain Rush 2012. In addition to a British cultural exhibition marking the run up to the start of the London Olympics, the Manchester group has been invited to perform alongside local favourites Residence A, CNdY and Elenore. Exile Parade have been compared to Oasis, and got the thumbs up from former Oasis guitarist Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs. Elsewhere, Franz Nicolay swaps the Big Apple for the big... er, Beijing this Saturday as he brings his vaudevillian stylings to Hot Cat Club.

For no particular reason, other than it's great, here's some Bloc Party to kickstart your long weekend.

And here's our pick of the weekend's offerings. Enjoy.

Thursday July 19

WHAI

Experimental cuts from the Beijing rockers. Free. 9.30pm. Temple (131 6107 0713)

Zhang Si'an

The French electro-folkster plays the hutong performance space. RMB 40. 9.30pm. Zajia Lab (8404 9141)

Friday July 20

Buyi Band

Folk veterans out of Ningxia look to rock the courtyard. RMB 60, RMB 50 (advance). 9pm. Jianghu (6401 4611)

“Cosmic Fantasy” Opening Party

Launch party for James S. Chen’s latest art expo, featuring Cam Norton and Nostalgia for the Stars. Free. 9.30pm. Hot Cat Club (6400 7868)

Hanggai

A special unplugged show from the folk rockers as they return from their European tour. RMB 120. 9pm. 2 Kolegas (135 5227 6845)

Saturday July 21

Britain Rush 2012

Exile Parade, Residence A, Cndy and Elenore feature on a night of London Olympic celebration. Expect Britpop, Brit
rock, British football on the TVs and British beer with a dollop of British culture. RMB 150, RMB 120 (advance). 2pm onwards. Yugong Yishan (6404 2711)

Franz Nicolay

New York-based indie star visits, accompanied by an as-yet-undecided local guest. RMB 40. 9.30pm. Hot Cat Club (6400 7868)

Plan B

The veteran Aussie rockers play VA Bar. RMB 50. 10pm. VA Bar (5844 3638)

Temple One Year Anniversary

Temple turns one and celebrates with a host of good friends it's made in its first year including Rolling Bowling and The Amazing Insurance Salesman. Free. 9.30pm. Temple (131 6107 0713)

Templo do Samba

Hips will be twisting as the samba beat takes over for a night. RMB 60. 9pm. 2 Kolegas (135 5227 6845)