The M SHANGHAI STRING BAND of Brooklyn, New York, started in 2002 as a monthly
show in the basement of a local chinese restaurant, the M Shanghai Bistro.
Locals began to call the band "M Shanghai". The name stuck. The crowds grew.
Their debut album, “Up From the Ground Below” (20 songs recorded in one day in
the restaurant’s dining room) set the mission in motion: timeless original
music played with a sense of abandon, captured completely live.
"Stellar songwriting, brilliantly musical arrangements, and one of the most
arresting live shows I've ever seen"
-Samantha Parton of THE BE GOOD TANYAS
With an adventurous take on Americana, the MSSB are not easily classified. They
belong with progressive contemporaries (Gillian Welch, Be Good Tanyas) who
emphasize distinctive songwriting above the constraints of genre. Lyrically
smart and modern, their songs feel both classic and new.
"The M Shanghai String Band have first-rate original songs. Their performances
are highly entertaining, like a modern day medicine show."
-Tommy Ramone, of The RAMONES & UNCLE MONK
The band’s second album "From the Air" (Red Parlor Records) was named one of the top 10 albums of 2007
by the Albany Times Union (along with Mavis Staples, Arcade Fire, Amy Winehouse, Robert Plant/Alison Krauss).
The band’s concerts have received equal praise, making “Best Live Shows of the Year” lists regionally.
NYC’s Village Voice dedicated a feature to the band in July 2008, and even the New York Times gave them
a shout in a major article on the roots music revolution in New York.
"Sophisticated and passionate old-timey sounding tunes from this freewheeling
Brooklyn collective"
-Greg Haymes, ALBANY TIMES UNION Best CD's of 2007
"Thoroughly contemporary songs, resulting in absolutely timeless music. Simply the most joyous musical celebration of the year."
-ALBANY TIMES UNION Best gigs of 2007
"There’s plenty of action closer to the ground…catch the M Shanghai String
Band, holding court in Williamsburg"
-NEW YORK TIMES, feature article on roots music revolution in NYC
On the new third album "The Mapmaker’s Daughter", the band captures the same
energy that we’ve come to expect from the M Shanghai mob, known to gather
around a single microphone Opry-style, but in the highest fidelity yet.
"Mapmakers" is testimony to their years of performing together.
"The band was on fire… playing with total abandon and total control
simultaneously. As they worked up the voltage... they crowded around that mike
like the faithful taking Communion, or like sharks smelling blood in the
water."
-Karl Greenberg, GUITAR JAM DAILY
"Vigourous, heartfelt, acoustic country with all the fixins!"
-TIME OUT, NY
"M Shanghai's "Devil You and Me" sounds like a mix of Yonder Mountain String
Band and Squirrel Nut Zippers, and that's a winner in my book."
-POP WILL EAT ITSELF, Pick of the Day: Devil, You and Me
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