In Wuhan the beat goes on

So when in 2005 Vox ran into its summer drought, Zhu began to wonder whether if was destined to suffer the bad fortunes of its predecessor. However, later in the year business began to pick up, with more and more people, especially students and local expats, turning up. Some of the country's most well-known rock bands, such as Miserable Faith and Brain Failure, performed there.

Now, 15 years on, Zhu has fulfilled his dream and Vox has become the oldest and one of the most well-known live-house venues in Wuhan. The city's location at the heart of China make it a stop that simply cannot be overlooked for any rock bands planning nationwide tours, Zhu says.

On Jan 16, just days before Wuhan's name began reverberating around the world, Vox held an end-of-year do to coincide with the Lunar New Year, and it attracted more than 200 people. Three days later Zhu returned to his hometown of Panzhihua, Sichuan province, to celebrate the Spring Festival with his family, and he planned to return to Wuhan after the weeklong holiday, the first show after the festival due to be held on Feb 9.

On Jan 23 the Wuhan local government announced that all public transport in the city, including local buses, long-distanced buses, subway and ferry, would be temporarily halted. Zhu had to cancel his plans and Vox was closed, with shows until May being canceled or postponed, including Cheers Elephant, an indie pop rock band from California, which was to have performed on Feb 28, and Long Shen Dao, a Beijing reggae group, due to perform on April 1.

"All this happened so fast," Zhu says. "We're now working from home, connecting with our fans through social media by sharing music and presenting online programs."