Formed in 2000 in the remote and mysterious Yunnan province of southwest China, the region thought to have inspired the Shangri-la of James Hilton’s classic novel Lost Horizon, Shanren, literally “mountain men,” have become one of China’s top indie folk bands. With members representing some of China’s 56 ethnic groups, including the Wa and Buyi ethnic minorities from Yunnan and Guizhou, the four-piece aims to promote and preserve the colorful and diverse heritage of Yunnan and Guizhou’s many ethnic minority tribes through original compositions and reworkings of local folk melodies.

Shanren fuse indigenous music with rock, reggae, and ska, while showcasing a variety of traditional instruments such as the xiangzi and qinqin (four-stringed plucked instruments) and xianggu (a type of drum). Gaining popularity in Beijing’s small but vibrant alternative folk scene on the strength of their energetic live shows, the band appeared in front of 5,000 people in Cathedral Square at the Barcelona Festival Asia 2010. In 2011, Shanren performed at MIDEM in Cannes and Liverpool Sound City, UK. They are staple headliners at China’s major music festivals and have been featured twice on Hunan Television, reaching an audience in the tens of millions. Wild, eccentric, and charismatic, Shanren are true ambassadors for China’s ethnic diversity and emerging musical creativity.

2009 saw the release of their self-titled debut, and the band is currently recording the follow-up, to be released in early 2012