Jesus And Mary Chain, Joss Stone For China Fest

The second annual China Music Valley Festival, which takes place May 18-20 in Pinggu near Beijing, has lined up some quality international talent and moved its date on the calendar in hopes of faring better than last year.

Among the foreign acts on the roster are The Jesus and Mary Chain, School of Seven Bells, White Lies, Glasvegas, Joss Stone, Pixie Lott, Husky Rescue and Friendly Fires.

It is the second year for the festival, and in 2011 featured Avril Lavigne and KT Tunstall. Because it was scheduled around the same time as two other older, larger festivals in Beijing proper, it suffered in terms of attendance.

This year it’s taking place two weeks later than either the Strawberry or the Midi festivals.

According to China Music Radar, CMVF pulled off quite a coup by getting the Jesus and Mary Chain, which was “a key influence for many of the bigger Beijing indie artists of the last decade,” though it is impossible to predict whether that will be enough to attract the numbers of ticket buyers necessary to make the festival a success.

The main problem is getting all those people to leave the city for outlying areas, which is still a tough proposition in China.