Over the next few weeks all eyes will be on China for the Olympics, but funnily enough there are some who just don't really care what plays out at the Bird's Nest Stadium.

The Beijing rock scene has never had it easy, struggling simultaneously to resist government censorship and to make its voice heard over the manufactured pop that dominates the musical landscape in China. There is a small audience for Chinese rock bands, but it's not enough to support them financially. Even a member of a fairly established band with a staunch following might be going to work at IBM by day and playing gigs by night.  In that sense, this genre of music is quite untainted by the industry and the musicians are playing for the love of it without much hope of fame or fortune.

The Converse Love Noise tour aims to give Chinese rock a bigger platform and will try to distract attention from the Olympics by taking two Beijing bands, PK-14 and Queen Sea Big Shark on a specially-designed tour bus through six cities, beginning and ending in Beijing. Along the way, the bus will pick up local bands, and documenting the ups and downs of the entire tour and the climactic event in Beijing will be two brave Dazed Digital correspondents.

THE BANDS

THE DAZED CREW
Sarah Fakray: Blogger
Ellis Scott: Photographer

DAY 1
Menaced by storks, SARS and psychobilly.

DAY 2
Trapped in an episode of Hangzhou's Next Top Toilet Attendant.  
DAY 3
"Last Chapter" by Yang Haisong of P.K.14.  
DAY 4
An attempt to shoot an ad campaign on the road.
 DAY 5
Discovering the wonders of illegal piracy.

DAY 6
Searching for Changsha's illegal flea markets under an artificial rain.

DAY 7
It's raining men in Wuhan, where one of the oldest punks in China refuses to give up his bagpipes.

DAY 8
A simple attempt to watch the Olympic opening ceremonies in a restaurant turns into a potential hunger strike.

DAY 9
 The main part of the tour draws to its close beneath the beady eye of the Xi'an police force.

DAY 10
 The LoveNoise tour comes to an end and both of our correspondents have come back with 100 rolls of film and one clean t-shirt.