Back from the brink

The life of most rock singers can be described as an endless round of recording, touring, taking a break, and writing new songs. But not He Yong - one of China's most influential rockers of the 1980s and 1990s.

When he transferred his interest from traditional Chinese instruments to guitar at 16, the rocker kept his creative fires burning by writing and recording his only album to date, Garbage Dump. He describes it as a "pretty exciting and naive album".

The 41-year-old will perform at the Midi Music Festival this May for the first time since the 1990s. "A number of people have asked where I've been and what I've been doing during my long absence from the public eye. I only can say that I broke down and have now collected myself."