“It’s a bit tricky to talk about Old Heaven as a label – it was never intended to be one. It’s more like a byproduct of what [its founder] Tu Fei has been doing since the 90s,” says Mabu Li, a friend of Fei's, speaking to Abby Thomas in The Wire 435.

Old Heaven Books is a longstanding music venue, shop and community hub located in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, which turned its attention to publishing music when the SARS outbreak of 2002 meant artists could no longer make a living from performing live. Here, listen to a special selection of tracks compiled by Mabu Li, plus, read more about Old Heaven’s activities in The Wire 435's Unlimited Editions column.

Tracklist

Mamer 马木尔
“Xermawek (Trailing Plant) 蔓草”
From Kêngistik (Sky) 星空 (2012)

IZ
“Әldiy-Әldiy (Cradle) 摇篮”
From Kөlêngkê (Shadow) 影子 (2011)

Yerboli 叶尔波利
“Kharlegax (Swallow) 燕子”
From Kazakh Spirit 哈萨克精神 (2008)

Deng Boyu 邓博宇
“Mi 密”
From Wild Air Waves 旷野密码 (2012)

Puppet 傀儡
“Television 电视”
From Selected Works (1995​–​2014) 傀儡自选 (2018)

Guo Yongzhang 郭永章
“Old Man Blues 老来难”
From Guo Yongzhang Zhuizi Selections 郭永章坠子选集 (2019)

Blurt
“Empty Vessels”
From Cut It! Live! (2020)

Peter Evans
“Into The Silence, Part 1”
From Into The Silence 于无声处 (2020)

Keiji Haino 灰野敬二
“ここ”
From The Meaning Of Blackness 黑的意义 (2019)

Vladimir Chekasin & Vladimir Tarasov
“Part 3” (excerpt)
From La Grande Sonata 伟大奏鸣曲 (2020)

Masayo Koketsu 纐缬雅代, Lao Dan 老丹, Li Daiguo 李带菓 & Deng Boyu 邓博宇
“Improvisation 2” (excerpt)
From Burning Bookshop II 燃烧的书店 II (2020)