Founded in 1999 by Christiaan Virant and Zhang Jian, two active members of the Beijing music scene, FM3 are considered pioneers of electronic music in China.
Known for dedicating prime space for “live” aspects within their work, FM3 produces mysterious, meditative and minimalist soundscapes, while subtly adding elements of Chinese folk tradition into a universe abundant in micro-sounds and synthetic glitches.
FM3 has been called “the most prominent experimental act in China” by the US magazine Grooves. XLR8R described FM3’s sound as “poetic noise” and the UK magazine The Wire calls FM3 live sets “meditative,” “soothing” and “engagingly intimate.”
In 2004, FM3 was commissioned by the Louvre museum in Paris to provide a new soundtrack for the 1930s film “La Croisière jaune.” The project concluded with three live performances at the Louvre Auditorium in early June.
FM3’s sound installations have been featured at the 2004 Shanghai Bienalle as well as the Beijing-Tokyo Art Project, the Dashanzi International Art Festival and the Kulturhallen Dampfzentrale in the Swiss capital of Bern.
The mass-produced FM3 Buddha Machine loop box was named of the best “boxed sets” of 2005 by the New York Times and was one of the top selling electronic releases of 2005-06.
FM3 has released music on a number of European and North American labels, including Staalplaat (DE), Staubgold (DE), Bip-Hop (FR), Mutek_Rec (CAN), Mousike (ITALY), Nascente (UK), Leerraum (CH), Lona (HK) and Sublime Frequencies (USA).
“An extraordinary piece of sound art” (The Wire)
“Beautifully useless” (New York Times)
“Addictive, spellbinding, hypnotic” (Santa Fe Reporter)
“Insanely brilliant” (Alan Bishop, Sun City Girls)
“Defiantly rough” (Wall Street Journal)
“Mesmerizing” (Pop Matters)
“Reminds us how to listen” (Igloo)
“I can’t stop playing with it” (Pitchfork)
“And it kinda sounds like shit. But a good shit!” (Tiny Mix Tapes)
