Tang Dynasty () is a Chinese rock band formed in 1989. They are often credited as being the first

Chinese heavy metal Chinese heavy metal (中国重金属, pinyin: ''Zhōngguó Zhòngjīnshǔ''; also 中国重金属音乐, ''Zhōngguó zhòngjīnshǔ yīnyuè'', literally "Chinese heavy metal music") is commonly used to describe a wide variety of forms of heav ...

band.

Biography

Singer and rhythm guitarist Ding Wu, bassist Zhang Ju, and

Chinese-American Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage fro ...

guitarist Kaiser Kuo co-founded Tang Dynasty in early 1989. Kaiser left shortly after to return to the United States. Liu "Lao Wu" Yijun took his place and, according to Kaiser, went on to become China's first "guitar hero." In 1991, the band released its metal/rock version of "

The Internationale "The Internationale" (french: "L'Internationale", italic=no, ) is an international anthem used by various communist and socialist groups; currently, it serves as the official anthem of the Communist Party of China. It has been a standard of ...

" in Chinese. Tang Dynasty rose to fame with their eponymous debut album, released in December 1992. The album officially sold about 2,000,000 authentic copies throughout Asia and abroad, not counting the multitudes more of infringing copies. Their sound is part progressive rock and artistic metal and part traditional Chinese vocal technique. The lyrical poetry and musical arrangements meant to hearken back to the glorious days of ancient Chinese civilization; in particular, the art and cultural epitome of

Chinese history The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the '' Book of Documents'' (early chapte ...

as popularly represented by the era of the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...

. Bassist Zhang Ju died on May 11, 1995, when his motorcycle collided with a truck on the Zizhuqiao freeway overpass in western Beijing. Gu Zhong became bass player, but in August Liu left the band. Co-founder Kaiser Kuo rejoined as guitarist in August 1996. The band's 1998 release '' Epic'' was their second album, seven years after their debut record. Kaiser again parted company with Tang Dynasty in June 1999 and later formed another well-recognized metal/rock band, Spring and Autumn (Chunqiu). Kaiser was replaced by former Iron Kite frontman Yu Yang, and then by young guitar virtuoso Chen Lei in late 2000. After some more member changes, Liu rejoined the group in 2002. Tang Dynasty released their third album '' Romantic Knight'' (" Langman Qishi") in mid-2008, featuring " Feng Shan Ji" as the album's lead track. Kaiser appeared in the Western documentary by Sam Dunn, ''

Global Metal ''Global Metal'' is a 2007 documentary film directed by Scot McFadyen and Canadian anthropologist Sam Dunn. It is a follow-up to their successful 2005 documentary, '' Metal: A Headbanger's Journey''. The film's international premiere took place ...

'', released that same year. In January 2009, Liu announced his second departure of the band due to "personal reasons." Vocalist Ding filled the spot of second guitarist. In February 2010, Ding Wu announced that the band was preparing for their fourth release due out later in the year. The next month, Tang Dynasty put out a two-song EP entitled ''Ups and Downs''. The band released their fourth album, '' Thorn'', in November 2013, and toured outside China for the first time in nearly two decades. On February 20, 2019, Tang Dynasty revealed on Weibo that lead guitarist Chen Lei had been replaced by Liu Jingwei and Fu Dalong, again making the band a five-piece lineup.

Members

;Current members * Ding Wu – lead vocals (1991–present), rhythm guitar (1989–2002, 2009–2019) * Zhao Nian – drums, percussion (1989–present) * Gu Zhong – bass, backing vocals (1995–present) * Liu Jingwei – lead guitar (2019–present) * Fu Dalong – lead guitar (2019–present) ; Former members * Kaiser Kuo – lead guitar (1989, 1996–1999) * Liu Yijun – lead guitar (1989–1996, 2003–2009) * Zhang Ju – bass (1989–1995; died 1995), lead vocals (1989–1991), backing vocals (1991–1995) * Yu Yang – lead guitar (1999–2000) *Chen Lei – lead guitar, backing vocals (2000–2019) * Andrew Szabo – drums (1989) ;Touring musicians * Wang Yong - keyboards (1993–1995)

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

* 1992 - 唐朝 (''

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...

'') * 1998 - 演义 ('' Epic'') * 2008 - 浪漫骑士 ('' Romantic Knight'') * 2013 - 芒刺 ('' Thorn'')

EPs

* 2000 - 演义单曲纪念珍藏版 (''Epic (single)'') * 2010 - 沉浮 (''Ups and Downs'')

Compilations

* ''90 Modern Music Concert'' (1990) - "谁都希望"; "粉雾" * ''China Fire I'' (1992) - "飞翔鸟" * '' A Tribute to Teresa Teng'' (1995) - "独上西楼" * ''Goodbye Zhang Ju'' (1997) - "月梦" * ''True Love Forever'' (2000) - "花儿为什么这样红"; "明月千里寄相思" * ''Gift'' - "春蚕"

References

External links

tangchao.entCulture Express variety show hosted by Ji Xiaojun, featuring Tang Dynasty in studio for upcoming new recordTang Dynasty page
from Rock in China site

from ''China Beat'' radio program {{DEFAULTSORT:Tang Dynasty (Band) Chinese heavy metal musical groups Chinese rock music groups Musical groups established in 1988 Musical quartets Musical groups from Beijing