Based on sixteen years of research, this book explores various music scenes that emerged in China in the mid-1990s. Thanks to illegally imported CDs punched with a cut, the dakou CDs, a sonic world was opened up, inspiring young people to experiment with new sounds and lifestyles. In a context of intense globalisation and commercialisation, this book delves into the socio-cultural and political transformations of an alleged rising global power.<BR><BR>Jeroen de Kloet is assistant professor at the Department of Media Studies of the University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.<BR><BR>"How does sound become local in the global age? This is the question posed by Jeroen de Kloet. As much an ethnography of the subjectivities articulated to pop music practices as it is an interrogation of the assumptions of sinocentricity, this book constitutes a provocative statement on `Chineseness' at the crossroads of contemporary media, everyday life, and geopolitics."---Rey Chow, Duke University<BR><BR>"Jeroen de Kloet provides a rich and fascinating account of the myriad forms of rock in contemporary China. This book transformed my understanding of contemporary Chinese culture - and of rock music beyond Europe and North America."---David Hesmondhalgh, University of Leeds<BR><BR>"An authoritative, scholarly and up-to-date account of an important and fascinating field of popular music which sets a new benchmark in global music studies."---Tony Mitchell, University of Technology Sydney