When Shanghai Restoration Project started in 2006, it existed initially as a solo project of producer Dave Liang, before he met multidisciplinary Sun Yunfan in 2011. The duo has been involved in various multidisciplinary projects including soundtracking the Mubi film Have A Nice Day and visual art, created by Sun, to complement and correspond to, their musical territory. An album from 2017, R.u.r., explored an imaginary future where humans have been replaced by robots trying to understand what led to their predecessors’ extinction.
In their latest release, Flashbacks in A Crystal Ball – arriving officially on 7 November but on an exclusive preview a few lines below –, Liang and Sun turn inward to focus on the self rather than the past. Featuring tracks like Jazzy Grandma, Sudden Rush of Memories, and Dance School at Dusk, the new album is described as a collection of songs about about those ‘ah-ha moments’ in life, “where we suddenly see the world in a different light” – the moment you realize a pipe dream is no longer worth the pursuit, or the acknowledgement of the passing of a loved one, or that instant you decide to dedicate your life to a craft or a cause…
The glacial, almost contemplative pace of their sound is as experimental as it is meditative. Having been shaken by the current world, trends, inventions and global tensions that exist, it is no wonder the pair encourages us to take pause and be positive. I chat with the duo about what is currently moving and compelling Shanghai Restoration Project, notions of past and future, their influences, and of course, the news album, Flashbacks in A Crystal Ball.