I thought the gig at Hood Bar went very well last night and that Maricelle and Debra impressed all who were present. Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed my set and certainly would like to do more performances in 2012. Thanks to Clement (for being the kind host) and also to Narisa, Ginelle, David and Bevlyn for being in attendance.
These last few weeks of 2012 have seen more videos by yours truly uploaded to Youtube. Frankly, I really quite dislike the proliferation of ‘covers’ at Youtube so as usual I thought I’d do the exact opposite. Thus far, I’ve had a fair amount of videos uploaded with minimal covers (only Gram Parsons’ Hot Buritto #1 & Big Star’s Ballad of El Goodo) but the emphasis has been on my originals. Here’s a compilation of the orginals I’ve uploaded so far on Youtube.
So expect more in 2012. And yes I do accept song requests (of my originals of course). Send your request to kamcomusic AT gmail DOT com.
Icelandic artist Sóley releases her debut solo album, We Sink, which is in the vein of artists such as Joanna Newsom and El Perro del Mar. The album, being honest, raw and lilting, establishes Sóley as an individual artist, having been in the bands Sin Fang and Seabear for many years. Her songs are certainly not to emphasise her singing voice, but the unusual yet captivating melodies and arrangement of her songs.
First single and track of the album I’ll Drown is a beautifully crafted piece, where percussion defines and appropriate pauses lure the listener in to the rest of the album. Despite the album being acoustic-folk, the use of multiple instruments and Sóley’s unique vocals sets her music apart from the usual (sometimes boring) fare offered by acoustic artists. Each track on the album is unique enough to be a single, but they are also altogether cohesive and form an album that is enchanting and creepy enough, to be the background music of an abandoned circus scene in a movie. Given the current popularity of many indie female artists, Sóley has the potential to be one of the most popular indie/folk artists around, given more publicity and marketing.
In many ways, British band Bombay Bicycle Club comes across like a good old fashioned band who ‘just want to put out the music we want to put out’. I spoke to drummer Suren de Saram over the phone and found the man unassuming and down-to-earth. We began our conversation considering the prolific nature of the band’s recording history so far and went on from there.
Bombay Bicycle Club has released three albums in two years – why have you released so many albums in such a short space of time?
I guess it’s something to do with being young and restless and that we are still trying to find our sound.
Flaws was a very different sounding album from the new one (A Different Kind of Fix).
Flaws wasn’t even meant to be our second proper album. At the time, we thought that it’d be a little side project. Basically Jack (Steadman) is the main songwriter and after the first album was released, he happened to start writing more acoustic-y, stripped down songs. The project grew into something a lot bigger than we expected. And it was always our intention to go back to our more electric sound after Flaws.
How did you prepare for the recording of A Different Kind of Fix? How was this process different from last two albums, especially Flaws?
Flaws was quite weird – (it was) recorded over a period of about a year and a half in our spare time. Most of it was done in Jack’s bedroom. Very homemade, D.I.Y. and self-produced. Whereas A Different Kind of Fix is a more professional recording – if you want to call it that. We worked with Jim Abbiss, who produced the first album, on about half of this new album and we went to Atlanta to record a few songs with Ben Allen. We also went to Hamburg to record parts of the album in June as well. We thought it might help to inspire us a bit as previously we had only recorded in London.
As you mentioned earlier, Jack writes most of the songs – how do the songs go from conception to the final recorded track?
Jack would usually come up with the song idea – either a complete song or a just a couple of ideas (like a riff or baseline). He’ll then email the ideas to us, the other three of us can listen to it like any other fan in a way and we’ll start giving feedback. Then it just goes from there. If it’s not a complete song, then we’ll get together and try to work out a structure. Like on this new album, we had a few days of pre-production running over the ideas with Jim (Abbiss) and then we went into the studio and did it.
Are you satisfied with the final album? Anything you would change if you could?
I think we maybe slightly regret omitting Beg from the final album (it’s a bonus track on iTunes). In hindsight, we should have put it on the proper album. Other than that, we’re all very happy with how it turned out.
The thing I really liked about the album is that every song sounds different. Is that deliberate or something that happens organically?
Yeah, it was more of an organic process really. I know what you mean. You definitely hear influences from both the previous two albums like Bad Timing sounds like a track from the first album and then a song like Beggars could have been from the second album. But there’s also completely new elements like electronic influences that you can hear on songs like Shuffle. We like to think a nicely varied album.
It bodes well for the band’s future that you sound so restless creatively – do you think that is the case?
Yes, probably more to do with us being young. We still kind of finding our feet and just having fun really! We’re just putting out the music that we want to put out. It’s more interesting that releasing the same kind of album over and over again.
You guys seemed to have gotten quite a lot of success in a short space of time – what do you think is the secret of that?
To be honest, it’s definitely the past year really that it seems like things have really taken off. Up until then, it was quite a slow process – we’ve been a band for almost seven years.
But you guys got together in school right?
Yeah, exactly and for a few years of the band was really slow cos we decided we wanted to finish our school education. We consciously decided that we did not want to sign a record deal while we were still in school. So it does seems like that it’s only been the last year when things started to move forward and quite quickly. I can’t really say why that is – I have no idea.
What will your setlist be like for The People’s Party in Singapore? An even balance amongst the three albums or will there be a preference for more of a particular album?
Yeah, it’ll be a mixture of all three but mostly, the first and new album. It’s only recently that we’ve started incorporating songs from Flaws into our electric set. Before that we tried on a couple of occasions and find it quite hard to make it work cos the audience needs to be in a different mindset to appreciate the quiet songs compared to the more rocky songs. We’ve adapted a couple of the more uptempo songs on Flaws, changed them a little bit to be a bit more rocky to fit in with the songs on the first and third album. Hopefully everyone will be pleased.
What are you expecting to find in Singapore?
No idea! We actually just came back from Hong Kong – played at a festival (Clockenflap) there and that was great. We didn’t know what to expect at all and it turned out to be great. So hopefully Singapore will be the same. It’s a good lineup – we’re playing with Metronomy and Naked and Famous, aren’t we?
What do you think your fans in Singapore can expect from your show?
Lots of energy. We don’t really talk all that much on stage or anytime really – quite a quiet band in person. So I think sometimes people are quite shocked to see us get on stage and become totally different people! Yeah, so there’s not that much talking during the songs, we just like to play the songs really. That’s it!
Bombay Bicycle Club will be appearing at The People’s Party on 15th January 2012. Ticket are available at SISTIC.
Thanks to Hazel Lua/Universal Singapore for making this interview possible.
The Bee Gees aka Brothers Gibb (left to right – Robin, Barry and the late Maurice) have left an indelible mark on pop music that will never be forgotten. Unfortunately, despite their best intentions, the Bee Gees have been the butt of countless jokes over the years especially for their association with the derided disco era of the mid-70s. But the facts speak for themselves, to date, the Bee Gees have sold more than 220 million albums worldwide. More significantly, at least 2,500 artists have covered their memorable songs. Yet to this day, the Bee Gees are not taken as seriously as artists and have been constantly ridiculed. A crying shame.
Any casual music listener will be able to rattle off the Bee Gees hits (many of which are pop standards) e.g. How Deep Is Your Love, Staying Alive, Massachusetts, I Started A Joke, To Love Somebody, Words and so on. But buried amongst their vast discography (22 studio albums) are sublime obscure nuggets that highlight the Bee Gees’ gift with a melody, harmony and arrangement. Before the trio expanded into the R&B/Disco ‘genre’ that would defined their second career (with the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack), the Bee Gees were famous for the chamber pop ballad, which they specialized in and perfected.
So I present to you below, five such rare Bee Gees treasures, all of which I hold dear to my heart and hope you enjoy them too…
I spent most of last night’s waking hours watching Plinkett’s reviews of two of those dreadful Star Wars prequels. These are featured at Red Letter Media, a no-holds barred film reviews site which I have recently discovered. Over at the Plinkett’s reviews section, we have video reviews of the Star Trek and Star Wars movies, which believe me will have you splitting your sides in uncontrollable laughter. But seriously, it is obvious that the maker(s) of these videos has put in considerable effort to come up with such detailed analysis. But be warned once you start, you will be addicted in no time at all! Not convinced, check out the trailer below. You have been warned!
I believe that the regional indie scenes should be united as one to grow and develop in unison. When you consider that the estimated population of South-East Asia is in excess of 600 million with a total GDP of US$ 3,084 billion, it stands to reason that building up a SEA indie makes a whole lot of sense.
So it’s comforting to note that I am not alone in this belief as this principle is shared with the likes of SEA Indie, a website that promotes regional indie music.
Check out the various collections of indie music that the site has compiled: –
1. Days to Embrance (Indonesia Indiepop Scene)
2. Summer Daysdreams
3. Brilliant sight of sounds (Singapore Indie Scene)
4. Mighty Melody (Malaysia Indie Scene)
5. Everything Is Fine (Filipino Indiepop Scene)
I often pontificate about how fortunate our young musicians are today. I frequently read about our young bands recording and releasing debut EPs and albums at such a tender age and I am reminded that by the time Democracy was released by Odyssey Music in August 1993, I was already THIRTY-TWO years old!
But back then – now 18 years ago – it didn’t matter how old I was. All that mattered was that I had a recording contract (in my OWN name) and I was finally going to have my own album! Looking back at Democracy, there’s much on the record that sounds pretty terrible – the drum machine for one! – but I will stand by those songs anytime of the day or year. I am still rather proud of the songwriting overall and chuffed by the ‘critical acclaim’ that followed but am also glad that 18 years later I am a much better singer and songwriter now (in my humble opinion).
Thus, for nostalgia’s sake, I am making a download of the entire album available from today till 11.59pm 1st January 2012 as my new year gift to you, my loyal and faith reader. Send an email to info AT powerofpop DOT com and I will send you a link and password. And one more thing, please go to my Facebook page and click ‘LIKE’. Thanks again for your marvelous support over the years. Auld Lang Syne
Check out the Democracy review at rock in the fine city.
IN certain circles of the local music scene, you’ll find the term “mainstream” bandied about almost as an insult. Catalogue V will take that gladly as a compliment–this self-styled schizo-pop outfit is unabashedly hungry for commercial success and radio play.
Live, this six-man outfit consisting of Razil Razil Razil (lead singer), Matt Raham (drummer), Alfredo Lucius (guitars), Mal Mikhal (bass), Hans Ibrahim (guitars) and Rave Zulo (keyboards) are an electrifying, bottom-end moving act, combining sticky pop hooks with irresistible jackhammer funk grooves that disguise the oft-weighty lyrical themes of their songs.
Fresh off a November visit to South Korea for the Yamaha Asian Beat competition as the representative champions for the Singapore edition, we catch up with the homecoming heroes and find out what they have in common with army infantry units, Stanley Kubrick and leprechauns.
One month ago you guys were in S. Korea for the Yamaha Asia Beat. What was that like?
Mal Mikhal: It was an awesome experience. Definitely it was something different from what we have over here in Singapore. The atmosphere was quite encouraging.
Alfredo Lucius: We arrived in the middle of autumn so the weather was very cold. We were stuffing our hands in our pockets, bringing heat packs, wearing gloves…anything to keep ourselves warm.
Matt Raham: The entire experience was surreal, from the moment we boarded the plane at Changi Airport to the sound check before we played the gig. When we stepped on stage to a full house crowd…it was a really “wow” experience. The crowd numbered about 3000 to 4000, which makes it the largest audience we’ve ever played for.
Razil Razil Razil: It was a regional competition showcasing the champions from each country. We were the third band to play and we performed a song called “Mighty Night‟. Previously we had been told that Korean crowd was hard to please, but they actually stood up and danced and sang along during our performance. At the time we thought that the crowd was warming up and that they were going to do the same for the other bands, but they only did it for us.
It was quite amazing. We took a break outside of the hall and slowly the people from the audience started coming out and going, “eh Singapore!” We don’t get this kind (of recognition) in Singapore. We took a lot of pictures with both members from the audience as well as the other bands.
Did you guys play any other gigs in S. Korea?
Razil Razil Razil : Our trip was entirely sponsored by Yamaha, so we had to strictly abide to their terms and conditions. We weren’t allowed to extend our stay or play other shows.
Was winning an important thing for you guys?
Razil Razil Razil: Winning wasn’t an objective. The main objective was to leave them remembering the band from Singapore, and in that respect we’re quite satisfied. After our performance they (the other competitors) were saying they would tell their juniors back home to watch out for SIngaporean bands. That made us very proud…the main fuel for this band is not to impress, but to imprint. We want the whole experience to be imprinted in the minds of the audience.
I heard the rhythm section won quite a few awards…
Alfredo Lucius: One of the judges was a very good drummer named Akira Jimbo (from fusion-jazz band Casiopea) and when he came to Singapore to do his drum clinic a few weeks he actually mentioned our rhythm section by name. To get a comment like that from an international musician was a very big endorsement.
Razil Razil Razil: Apparently, there was somebody who was being condescending towards local music and putting down our musicians,, saying that the most Singapore could hope for was to replicate Japan’s music industry. Akira was actually pissed off, and defended Singaporean music by citing Matt as an example of local talent.
He might have a point though. Local music is not exactly financially sustainable. How are things on that front for you guys?
Razil Razil Razil: Financially it’s getting better and becoming clockwork. Before Korea we had a lot of doubts about whether we could sustain this financially as a career. After Korea I think most of the doubts have been cleared. Right now it’s a world ruled by the Internet. Online you can sell your music, talk to people, forego labels, and forego the middleman…so we’re planning to break into the digital market.
Definitely, with digitalization, you can distribute your music internationally a lot easier, but the flipside of that is that people are putting a lot less value in recorded music–they see it as something free and sharable. How do you guys make sure all those listens translate into actual money to recoup your costs?
Razil Razil Razil: It will be and it has always been very hard… it’s a matter of mental stamina. I think the only thing we only care about right now is our main focus, our passion to get the music out there. Money is always a need, yes, at the end of the day you need to put food on the table, but we take that as a secondary priority.
Matt Raham: We will probably do something different live from what we have on record and add something additional to our live experience. We can arrange something more extravagant…the challenge of trying to reinvent our songs live and add value is the proof of our musicianship.
For the benefit of our readers, take us through how the band started.
Alfredo Lucius: It basically started when I was playing an acoustic show at a company corporate show in mid ’09. I can‟t remember who the singer was, but Razil was in the audience and we met. We both wanted to start something and slowly we started sourcing for musicians. I knew Mal from NS and so I roped him in almost instantly and Razil met Matt in reservist training.
Razil Razil Razil: We were looking for a permanent keyboardist, and while Matt was sessioning for another band he met Hans. We intended him to be a keyboardist, but when I heard him playing guitar I was like…hell no, I‟m not gonna let this dude not hold the guitar. The line-up was complete when we saw Rave at the Boat Quay underpass outside Home Club, busking and playing keyboards early this year.
How long did it take for you guys to find a musical identity–what’s the creative dynamic in the band like?
Matt Raham: We basically came from different genres and…when you get different colours from different rainbows, you get a new rainbow which is unique.
Alfredo Lucius: And if you try hard enough, you might find a pot of gold…
Razil Razil Razil: And Fred would be the leprechaun.
Alfredo Lucius: Creatively, we work like an infantry section. The rhythm groove section are kinda like the SAW gunners who sit back and lay down the suppressive fire… and the vocal instruments like the guitars and the keyboards and the vocalist, we’re the soldiers doing the flanking.
Rave Zulo: For example, for “Mighty Night‟, Razil came up with the initial idea and we all tried to contribute. On my part I wanted to find the right kind of sound, the right kind of melody that would make people dance.
Razil Razil Razil: We’re all writing the song, and we don’t want to consciously set out to replicate the same sound with every song. We‟re not one of those bands that go, “Oh, we want to sound like The Strokes!” Basically our mindset is that every song is a movie.
How do you mean that?
Alfredo Lucius: Well, you can look at certain directors who‟ve directed movies of various genres, but their movies are still very distinctively them. People like Steven Spielberg and Stanley Kubrick, they‟re all directors who touch on various different themes but still retain a distinctive identity.
I’ve noticed some pretty interesting terrain in terms of the lyrics. What are your influences?
Razil Razil Razil: As a lyrics writer I’m very influenced by narrative song writing, people like Babyface, Anthony Kiedis, and Jay Kay from Jamiraqoui. I try to be ambiguous and make it relatable. The song “Dancer‟, for example, is a sarcastic song about girls who lead guys on, but I get female dancers who come up to me and tell me they identify with the song! So my approach is to leave it open so that the listeners can find their own meaning in the song.
Alfredo Lucius: We try not to do the obvious thing. “How I Am Alive‟, for example, is a song that has a very serious message about human trafficking and sexual exploitation, so we tried to make it easy-listening so it would grab attention.
Razil Razil Razil: It’s about the psychology of the song. We didn’t want to write a slow song which would only put people into a mood for moping and complaining–we wanted to inspire people to get up and do something about it.
So what’s your definition of success?
Razil Razil Razil: Our definition of success is having our songs played on local radio. Other radio stations might be friendlier, but our goal is still to get our music on local radio even though friends might tell us not to waste our time. It‟s not a matter of wanting to prove something. We want to be mainstream; we’re not shy of being mainstream. Some people come up to us and call us sell-outs–we don’t care. We want as many ears as possible. We’re doing the digital media thing but we also want the conventional media recognition because nobody is trying to change the system.
Doesn’t it frustrate you though, going to a foreign country and getting such a warm reception from fans and musicians alike, only to come back to Singapore only to run into so many walls?
Razil Razil Razil: It does but we’re still gonna be very optimistic about it. We take it as a new challenge to make Singapore react as much as a foreign audience would. We’re not giving up on Singapore…I still believe that if you can’t succeed in your own country, what makes you think a foreign country will be any different? We want to make Singapore dance.
So any concrete plans for the future? Is a full-length album coming out?
Razil Razil Razil: We‟re working on an EP right now, and “Mighty Night‟ is going to be the first single for sure. Most likely we’re gonna focus on releasing our songs single by single and afterwards compiling them into an EP.
Alfredo Lucius: It‟s a singles market now. With Katy Perry‟s last record, ten of her songs hit the charts–every song has to be a single.
Razil Razil Razil: You need all killers, no fillers now. The way music is consumed is something that‟s not in our control anymore. You used to be able to package your music and have the audience experience it the way you want it to tell a story, but audiences are much cleverer now. They mix-and-match, and music is like a candy store to them where they cherry-pick the songs to put on their iPod.
Alfredo Lucius: We’re living in the age where everything is being customized to what we want. Everyone has the option of a playlist made for themselves.
(Samuel C Wee)
Watch the video of Catalogue V’s performance in South Korea at the Yamaha Asian Beat below.
Captain Wilberforce (a nom de plume for Leeds-based singer-songwriter Simon Bristoll) has been a firm favourite here at Power of Pop for his psychedelic-laced pop-rock adventures. This latest album has been lying on my desk for some months now. Mainly because it’s a little different from the dominant pop-psychedelia of previous releases. The main thrust behind Ghost Written Confessions is an affinity for the classicist folk leanings of the likes of Mumford & Sons and Laura Marling. Which is fine in itself but I guess came across a little jarringly initially.
Of course, Captain Wilberforce going all folky on us isn’t actually the whole story here. As fourth track, the 80s poppy Get Hurt indicates, it’s all about confounding expectations, denying easy pigeonholing. And certainly I can understand that – after all, simply basing a review on the first three tracks is just sloppy.
So the whole rustic approach of A Beautiful Waste of Time, In Hell and Your Imaginary Friends seems to have been a red herring of sorts. By the time, the edgy bouncy Brit-pop of The Day Your Mouth Stood Still, the wonderfully spacey textures of Baby Girl and the freaky beaty Los Angeles hit you between the eyes, you’ll be marveling at Captain Wilberforce’s deft ability to change lanes in midstream. And the momentum is maintained till the end of the album with the Lennonesque Me And Your Mother (Before You Were Born), the sweet This Little Miracle and the quirky She’s My Kryptonite.
Never judge an album by its first three tracks seems to be the moral of the story. So, Ghost Written Confessions is an album pop fans need to consume from start to finish for maximum enjoyment!
Formed from the ashes of two fairly well-known indie outfits viz Piebald and Arlo, The Hunting Accident parlay powerpop-centric goodness into edgy indie rock constructs. The band has a debut 4-track EP available for FREE download over at its official website. All four tracks are worth listening to/downloading for their sharp tunage and smart licks. A band to keep a close watch on…
Truth be told, I have been sorely disappointed by fantasy movies in 2011. Discounting the superhero films, the likes of Cowboys & Aliens, Conan the Barbarian and Immortals have made me wary of the offerings coming up in 2012. But let’s take a look at them anyways.
Well, of course, there’s little doubt that Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises is the most eagerly anticipated movie of 2012 and based on the trailer above, there’s no reason to believe that it would fail to meet expectations. Check out that scene in the American football stadium – amazing! It is looking ominous for Batman here and I just cannot wait to see how Nolan wraps up this trilogy.
The Clash of the Titans was a waste of time and money. Now, this is a sequel that seems to actually feature the mythological Titans (shades of Immortals eh?) and whilst the visuals look good, I am not hoping too much from the story if the first movie was anything to go by. And rule of thumb is that anything with Sam Worthington in it tends to suck! Probably best to avoid eh?
Speaking of movies to avoid… it’s Nic Cage. Nuff said!
Finally, Bryan Singer returns to genre film-making with this promising adaptation of the well-known fairy tale. Fee Fi Fo Fum!
Men in Black? Again? With a Back to the Future twist? Sure, why not???
So what geek movies are you looking forward to in 2012???
It really does seem the year truly began for me when I started managing Cheating Sons in July. I went with the Sons on their China mini-tour and I lived the rock ‘n’ roll dream, albeit vicariously. It has been a great five months so far with the Sons and they are cool people to hang with. Fingers crossed for the days ahead.
Again, that’s what it was all about in 2011. The relationships. Sure, there have been huge disappointments on that front. But that’s life, isn’t it? To be honest, the first half of the year is a bit of a blur although I do remember vividly Age of Sinfonia’s assured performance at the Noise Showcase, especially Savvia’s high five when she walked off the stage and into the audience like a rock star!
What else happened in 2011? Well, two gigs with The Fast Colors were definite highlights (thanks to Pat, Chris, Wah Yong and Boon Gee!). As was the Noise-Timbre Singer-Songwriter Programme. Memorable nights all (thank you, Danny Loong!). I was a proud ex-mentor the night Cove Red opened for Villagers in January. Watching Rachael (Teo) singing literally sent chills down my spine. Sigh.
I am extremely thankful for having spent time with Lydia (Low), now firmly ensconced in Texas. Lydia did everything asked of her during our time together – resulting in cool performances and a strong EP that she can be rightly proud of. Not sure how things will turn out in 2012, but hopefully we can do more together and soon.
There were sporadic solo gigs which I enjoyed overall. I was really pleased with Debra’s performance at the Concourse, with me on the piano, especially. Need to get that single out, Deb! I am resolved to get more solo gigs, with emphasis on piano stuff. Any help would be appreciated if you’re reading this.
On the non-music front, it was great to hook up with Ric the last few months, with exciting times ahead in 2012, I truly hope. I can safely say that with 20 years behind us, he really is one of best friends – through thick and thin. Thanks, man! During these challenging times, it’s all about the relationships believe me. Who can you rely on?
In that context, I am deep into the latest Noise MMP and well pleased with my Noise mentees Ming See and Maricelle and whilst it is very early days, I like what I see and hopefully, the potential will be witnessed by all when the girls make their mark during the Noise Showcase in March 2012.
So I want to thank all the kind people who have enriched my life in 2011 – I hope you know who you are. So here’s to a promising and fulfilling 2012, everyone. See you around soon…
The self-styled ‘Greatest Rock ‘n’ Roll Band in the World’ seemed to rejuvenate and reinvent itself in 1978 with the release of Some Girls, an album that incorporated elements of disco, punk and new wave into the Stones’ tried and trusted brand of blues-rock.
This DVD covers that special era in rock history – perhaps the Stones’ last great incandescent moment of glory before descending into self-parody since. The main attraction is concert footage from a memorable gig in Texas, where Mick Jagger and company pulled out all the stops to demonstrate that even in their 30s the band was still a potent force.
Aside from the new material (Eg. Miss You, When The Whip Comes Down, Beast of Burden. Far Away Eyes, Shattered and Imagination), the Stones also delivered their ‘greatest hits’ with the usual aplomb – Honky Tonk Women, Tumbling Dice, Happy, Brown Sugar & Jumpin’ Jack Flash.
Bonus features include contemporaneous clips from Saturday Night Live, 20/20 and a 2011 interview with Jagger. For classic rock fans everywhere.
Also worth picking up – the latest reissue of Some Girls which includes an unmatched collections of outtakes that no Stones fans would want to miss.
As what their EP title suggests, what you see is what you get – and what you get from the EP launch performance from Natalie’s Plight is a set of visionaries and dreams come true for the homegrown band.
Formed in 2007 by four Republic Polytechnic students, the band is now made up of Ashlee Tan on vocals (from picture – second from left), Chris Cheah (right most) on drums, guitarist Mark Spencer (third from left) and newly included bassist member Sharime (left most). Youthful looking bunch, I must say, but with big dreams to fill.
Performing hits both old and new, as well as doing two song covers, the band appeared more than confident in their approach for live delivery, with clever management from the lighting crew (lights off, everyone, so that all’s welcome to wave their light sticks provided at the entrance’s ticketing counter).
Contrary to the opening band serenading with covers, Natalie’s Plight shines more on their original material than their live cover renditions. They were more able to connect and associate with their lyrics, melodies and anthems than those of their agreed favourite tunes, which I reckon they pretty much enjoyed singing them live as well. However, Use Somebody (by Kings Of Leon) deprived of the desperation needed to complete the tune basically, and The Only Exception (by Paramore) lacked the emotional element of love entanglement. Next time, my advice would be to pick songs to cover that are just plain fun seeking, catchy and silly.
That said, the foursome’s expressions on their faces were more than pleased to be jamming together and in front of a small and intimate set – of audience filled mostly of close friends and family members. Afterall, this is their own EP launch, something they should be proud and accomplished for.
There was even a midpoint acoustic set made up of Ashlee and Mark, as she sang through a couple of songs seemingly with torn emotions left on the sleeves of her shoulders (one of which is called San Francisco). Even Mark had a special dedication to a member of the audience, his girlfriend in the crowd of spectators. The night rounded up with an encore of Hello Buttercup, one of three songs featured on their new EP.
In a good way, some of Natalie’s Plight tunes felt like they could have easily come from the soundtracks of Twilight. Before the hippies pass this off as a negative comment (because the movie series is… too bloodsucking), some artistes that had been featured previously include Metric, Beck and Bat For Lashes, Florence + The Machine, to name a few.
Find out more about Natalie’s Plight on their Facebook page. Their EP, What You See Is What You Get, is out now.
A sentimental choice? Most certainly. As tough as 2011 was (and it sure was), this perfect singalong tune married with poignant funny lyrics touched me deeply. The fact that it’s written and sung by one of my favourite songwriters (and friends!) is icing on the cake. From Sky Full of Holes, one of the better power pop albums out there in 2011.
I’ve decided to forgo the usual ‘best of’ lists that I’ve been putting out for years. Maybe I think it’s quite cliched and I don’t quite have the stomach for the exercise anymore. So instead, I am writing this quite on the fly ‘stream of consciousness’ post reflecting on some of the musical highlights of 2011.
Album-wise, it must be acknowledged that 2011 was a very good year for new albums (and reissues) and there was no shortage of exciting music to keep a music lover fixated. Again, am not going to do the usual anal top ten list or whatever but will say that I totally enjoyed the following albums this year (in no particular order of merit).
Sky Full of Holes – Fountains of Wayne, Hurry Up We’re Dreaming – M83, The King is Dead – The Decemberists, A Creature I Don’t Know – Laura Marling, Codes and Keys – Death Cab for Cutie, Bon Iver’s sophomore effort, Helplessness Blues – Fleet Foxes, Father Son Holy Ghost – Girls, Let England Shake – Polly Harvey, Mockingbird Time – Jayhawks.
On the home front, I began working with two new local artists viz. Cheating Sons and Lydia Low and am pleased to include their debut works – Masters, Wives, Daughter LP and Electric Flower EP respectively – as major recordings for 2011. Also notable were the solo debut of Concave Scream’s Sean Lam with his album, Hanging Up the Moon, Don Richmond’s remarkable EP, Reset and of course, In Each Hand A Cutlass’ excellent debut. But sad to report that other than these bright notes, 2011 was a bad year for Singapore indie music. Highlighted most by Dick Lee’s blunt dismissive snub via the SingaPop event, lack of Singaporean representation at the Music Matters conference and the lack of Singapore acts to be considered good enough for Laneway Festival 2012.
That all said, it was a fantastic year for live music again as Singapore was deluged by a flood of foreign acts week in and week out. The ones that stick in my mind? Elton John at the Indoor Stadium, Michael Franti/Spearhead at Rock and Roots, Sara Bareilles at the Esplanade Concert Hall, Villagers and Owen Pallett at the Esplanade Recital Studio and Deerhoof at the Up In The Sky Festival (with special mention to Couple and the White Shoes Company).
In the final analysis, 2011 was a excellent year for music lovers but not particularly memorable for anyone plying their craft in the Singapore indie scene.
There’s certainly no denial that Danika Holmes has got her own distinctive voice and her own set of power vocal chords; but what would have been better is if she has a more defined style and direction with this album.
The album opens up with shimmering positivity, with tracks like Dreams Held Hostage and How To Be Beautiful – the latter with the Sarah McLachlan’s style of hush-hush. By the third track Bluebird, the positivity embracing may wear off to be too overwhelming, like indulging on a slice of cake with too much sugar and cream on it. The track also suffers and tracks down the familiar country-rock path that listeners by now know too well.
In a twist, Someone New To Forget and Kiss And Make Up show the jazz side of Danika, and the diversity she takes on the album.
Title track Living Your Dream, though thought to be a positive number about covering endless boundaries, shifting landscapes and climbing mountains like Miley Cyrus can (not), turns out otherwise – to be a song on someone living in the shadows of someone else’s dreams (I am living your dreams, it’s not mine; I only have one life to give).
There’re generally no major showstoppers on this album, and could lead to the general confusion and puzzlement as to which is the real sound of Danika Holmes.
English singer-songwriter Laura Marling turns 22 in February 2012. Yet this young songstress has already three critically acclaimed full-length albums under her belt! Since her debut release – Alas, I Cannot Swim – Marling has earned accolades galore for her mature songwriting and her unique appropriation of the pioneering musical styles of Joni Mitchell, Sandy Denny, Linda Thompson, Laura Nyro and Judee Sill. Artists who made their mark on the music world decades before Marling was even born.
Watching Marling in video interviews, it is clear that this fresh-faced young lady is down-to-earth, casual but deadly serious about her art and craft. This is evident in her prolific output and in the artistic development pursued in her three albums so far. Her latest album – A Creature I Don’t Know – was released in September 2012 and the leaps and bounds that Marling has moved forward with her music is simply impressive.
Even her singing style has gone deeper and lower to suggest such a greater sense of maturity that it is almost impossible to imagine that Marling is as young as she is! If I could highlight just three tracks off her brilliant new album it would be the Judee Sill-channeling Don’t Ask Me Why, the evocative Salinas and the bittersweet Sophia. On these wondrous tracks, the words and music carry the listener into a lost and forgotten world – a grand time for true music fans when music was made for music’s sake – a romantic ideal where vocal and instrumental arrangements embellish the beauty that already lies within and not merely to cynically ‘hide’ flaws and imperfections.
There’s little doubt in my mind that Marling will enrich true music fans when she plays Laneway Festival in Singapore come February 2012 – I for one am looking forward to this momentous occasion with bated breath…
Official Site – Laura Marling | Official Site – Laneway
Tickets available at SISTIC.
Watch Marling perform Don’t Ask Me Why and Salinas live below.
In recent years, we have witnessed the overseas successes of two Malaysian songstresses viz. Zee Avi and Yuna. Well now, Singapore, we have our own songstress to root for! Her name is Sharliza and she is currently making a name for herself in England – having just released her debut single, Is That Your Underwear On The Floor?, with a debut album to come in 2012. The single is a mad cross between salacious and innocent, psychedelia and synthpop, Western and Asian but ultimately a juicy delight in all that matters.
Sharliza kindly took time off her busy schedule to answers our questions, via email.
How does a girl from Singapore end up being an indie musician based in the UK?
You can take the girl out of Singapore, but you can never take the Singapore out of the girl! It’s ironic, but it’s the western-centricness of the music scene in Singapore when I was growing up in Bedok that inspired me to emulate musicians like Duran Duran, Suede, Beck, Boy George and Radiohead. The only local band I could recall getting radio play was Stoned Revivals. So, what better way than to join the pond – granted it is a big, scary, competitive musical pond! Singapore is a top place to live though so I envision my return eventually.
When did you leave Singapore for UK? Was the settling into life in the UK a difficult experience? Any Singaporean food you dearly miss?
I left right after O levels because a fantastic educational organisation called United World College offered to sponsor my studies at a castle on a cliff in Wales. That was intense, like a creative bubble – it wasn’t until I moved to England that I got properly involved in the music scene. Yes, I miss sop tulang. Everytime I visit home I definitely eat some! The food here is not so challenging, lah!
How would you describe your music? Is there an Asian influence?
I’m a spectacular confetti of eclectro-pop sound and sight. I make you laugh, I make you fear, I make you touch yourself. There is definitely an Asian influence – I love keroncong, P Ramlee, Saloma, Sudirman. One day I would love to perform with a gamelan band. My next single is called Claustrophobia, out Feb 13 – it sounds vaguely Japanese, in an odd way.
Who would you say are the artists that inspire you?
Now I would say Janelle Monae, Stereolab, Carmen Miranda and Michael Jackson. Musically it ranges from the electronic sensibilities of Hot Chip to the catchiness of the Black Eyed Peas. Above all I am inspired by positivity and energy and to me life is perfect (in a zen sense) no matter what happens. There are good reasons for everything and I’m very grateful to God, who is my ultimate inspiration!
What do you hope to achieve with your music in the UK?
Play Glastonbury! Play lots of festivals! Get signed by a cool record label with lots of promotional money to spend! Get on magazine covers! Afford places in the sun and culturally-rich havens! Hahaha!
Your press release mentions a tour of South-East Asia – when will you be in Singapore and where will you be performing?
Hopefully I’ll be playing the Prince of Wales at Boat Quay on January 5th. Please come, it will be a great start to your new year!
You have a new album coming up – can you share with us stories about your songwriting and recording process?
My upcoming album is called Strange Things and will be out early 2012. It’s motivated by a quarter life crisis and my lifelong dream of being a popstar. It’s like a ‘now or never’ moment, you know? This album marks a tumultuous period where several things were beginning and ending at once, personally and professionally. It was recorded in bedrooms and studios in the countryside, in the city and on the coast of England, in collaboration with some very talented and creative people. I write about working, wanting more sun, and what it feels like for a child or after doing something naughty, or to love or to die. It’s a pop record which starts high and happy and gradually grows deeper and darker. I find that contradiction is a common condition no matter how consistent we may be at our core.
How do you intend to promote the album when it is released next year?
Hopefully through a combination of tours, appearances and press write-ups – and hopefully you’ll write about it on your blog! Youtube is the second most important search engine, so I plan to create a video for every song on the album but we’ll see… Do check out my confetti-like website at www.sharliza.com.
The Baybeats Festival is one of the biggest indie music feativals in the region attracting about 75,000 fans over its three-day duration. The Esplanade Youths Budding Writers Program provides an excellent opportunity for tertiary students (JC, Poly, University) who are aspiring music journalists to cut their teeth by covering the Baybeats Festival 2012.
As a lucky budding writer, you will be receiving mentorship (from yours truly) in such areas as music reviews and band interviews with the Baybeats Festival 2012 as the perfect proving ground. This time around, the process begins with the auditions for new bands to win a prestigious spot at Baybeats Festival 2012. You will cover the two auditions, get up close with the bands and have the unique opportunity to perhaps break the next big indie band in Singapore!
Not only that but you will get to interview other established Singapore and regional bands and to ultimately review the performances at Baybeats Festival 2012 itself! All this in an exciting seven-month period in 2012. And it all begins with you submitting two samples of your work to to ksianeng@esplanade.com by 29th December 2011 or call 6828 8330 if you have any enquiries about the programme.
See you on the other side – I will be waiting for you…
Throughout 2009 and 2010 The People’s Party (TPP) series of shows became synonymous with bringing fresh, cutting edge music talent to Hong Kong. Now, TPP is expanding and will be focused on its new core home of Singapore. The four-city TPP tour builds to a climax in the Lion City with a special mini-festival to be held at Scape on the 14th and 15th of January 2012.
From Europe and Australasia: Metronomy, Bombay Bicycle Club, The Naked and Famous, The Jezabels, and Unknown Mortal Orchestra have all confirmed. Most crucially however, TPP’s commitment to put Asian talent front and centre with regional groups including: Plain Sunset, In Each Hand A Cutlass, The Analog Girl, DP and many more taking prime spots over the weekend. This is all of our Asian music community and we’re going to do every thing we can to support it.
2011 UK Mercury Prize nominees Metronomy headline the series with their brand of feel good sunset pop funk already firm favourites amongst the Asian indie elite. Three albums in and a famed live show leave us giddy with delight at having them over for their SE Asian debuts. Also hailing from the UK is Bombay Bicycle Club throwing in a chill wave of rhythmic hooks and having solidified their presence in the music scene with a succession of knock-out festival performances this summer are an ideal addition to the TPP bill. New Zealand’s chart topping #1 artists The Naked & Famous join in riding the crest of a wave of popularity that has seen them grow in profile across the globe. We defy you to listen to ‘Young Blood’ and not be instantly hooked. Sydney four-piece, The Jezabels make for another exciting addition to the line up and are our tips for future greatness. A cocktail of power and elegance, the band have been on a non-stop world tour stunning audiences everywhere they go. Their star is on the rise, and we couldn’t be more proud to be able to present their first full tour of the region. Unknown Mortal Orchestra round up the billing of international acts with their raw, beatnik psychedelic sounds curling ears and turning heads while intoxicating listeners with their uniquely lush and verdant tunes.
So join us for the Singapore debut of The People’s Party, a celebration of good music and good people. Great times!
Event Details Dates: Saturday January 14th, and Sunday January 15th Venue: *SCAPE
2 Orchard Link, Singapore 237978 Tickets: On sale from Dec 13th through SISTIC
***Join Untitled Entertainment’s FB Page www.facebook.com/untitledsg to access a special promo code that gets you an exclusive CD single from the award winning EP “Dark Storm” by The Jezabels along with your ticket purchase. Limited stock and availability so act fast!*** ***Follow us @TPPSG on Twitter for more updates! ***
Technology is as advanced as it already is, but if there’s one thing that Sony could do on one eventful night on Saturday, 3rd December 2011, it would be to somehow make the rain go away.
But that didn’t stop the party from happening down at *Scape, as fans of international superstars Mike Posner and Train made their joyous way to watch an evening of performances. Already in the day-long event, regional superstars like Hao Ren from Malaysia, Julia Abueva from the Philippines and Slot Machine from Thailand, had graced the stage and showcased their homegrown singing talents.
With anticipation, the fairly packed crowd (however, much lesser than I myself had anticipated) were mainly youngsters, and gathered themselves before a relatively compact stage. Newcomer Mike Posner would be to appear first, as he only has an album under his belt (31 Minutes To Takeoff) so far. Fans need not wait any further, as second offering Sky High will be released sometime early 2012, with first single off it ironically titled Looks Like Sex. You read it right – and um, how much more intelligence can you expect from that, really?
Dressed in a bright and dashing red jacket, with a back embroidery titled Brain Trust, a plain black tee inside, black three quarter pants and loud sneakers, Mike looked refreshed and alive, as he looked ahead to his own debut Singapore performance and interaction with the fans alike. But alas, has he not been told or informed of the basic Singapore crowd behaviour – conscious, cautious and careful?
He performed songs from his debut, kicking start with Please Don’t Go, Do U Wanna, Bow Chicka Wow Wow (less Lil’ Wayne), a new song from the upcoming record (which I think he lied in saying that it was the first time he was performing it live, as an artiste’s marketing and hype technique to get more cheers and screams), covered Adele’s Rolling In The Deep (with an interesting drummed-up version) and a surprise slowdown to Oasis’s Wonderwall, away from all the current mainstream dance-pop that he is well associated with.
He had the look and eyes of confidence, arrogance and stride as a musician may have, and maybe that of an American. His energy was contagious, as he bounced and jumped up, down and across the stage, standing atop the sound speakers and various attempts to get close and intimate with the front of the audience. However, as much as he worked the crowd, it was quite concrete evidence (through his expression) that he was disappointed with the whole response – it wasn’t like an O2 Arena, U2 concert type. Nonetheless, both sides of the spectrum (Mike as performer and the audience at large) did their best, especially much so the ladies when Mike joined the crowd and lost his tee in the process. You can just imagine and visualize the girls go weak in the knees as a buffed Posner stood onstage to conclude his set and greet a goodbye.
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With the success of Hey Soul Sister, Train reconnected with the mainstream this year, and the young ones talk about Train as though they know every single thing about them (when they don’t). And in a way, I pity Train for that, as they are more of an adult contemporary act than pop.
And how about did the fellows do to connect with a younger crowd, you may ask?
(a) got a handful of ladies from the audience onstage to just sing the line “hey soul sister”, in as many soulful attempts and versions as possible?
(b) got Mike Posner back onstage and covered Journey’s (or Glee’s, for that matter) Don’t Stop Believing?
(c) gave away an autographed acoustic guitar to someone in the audience?
(d) added random oh-oh’s during the musical bridges of songs?
(e) all of the above?
And the answer is (e). Patrick Monahan appeared onstage with messy hair, as though he had done up his nicely in the hotel room but had to rush to sing at the concert in the pouring rain. But he was entertaining, in an actor kind of way, as he cracked some very straightforward jokes. I suspected that there may be a bottle of liquor somewhere backstage, as sometimes it does help, when dealing with an audience who spent half the time with their hands up in the air, and a camera or a camera phone on it, taking non-stop snapshots. Jimmy Stafford looked the most sincerely merriest, like a person embracing this part of the world and the culture for the very first time.
If you have to ask, yes, despite not being a particularly big fan of their smash hit for the year, I couldn’t resist but to sing along to the lyrics out aloud (maybe I’m a closeted Train fan?). The Journey cover went down pretty bad, in my books, and I thought Patrick had the regretted look almost immediately as he started performing it together with Mike, as though he was trying to figure out what he was doing and what was going on here (the sobering stage, post-liquor, I reckon).
Other familiar songs performed in the quite short timeframe were their 1998 smash Meet Virginia, Calling All Angels (from the 2003 album My Private Nation), the title track from latest offering Save Me, San Francisco, and others like If It’s Love and the very close, intimate (he went around and took pictures with fans throughout the entire song, how much sweeter could he get, really) and some-may-consider romantic number Marry Me. He even joked just before singing the last round of chorus, saying, “now you really have to marry me”, in a slightly impatient manner, and in a very warm way, poking fun of their own selves and own hit song.
But the definite song of the night has got to be their biggest smash still, Drops Of Jupiter (Tell Me), which they performed as a one-song encore before closing the night. Yes, the same one local singer/songwriter Tanya Chua covered. I remembered myself belting out along, with emotions switched on full gear mode, and felt this small part of the world well connected together for that one particular moment. And then I took the train home.
Thank you to Sony for inviting Power Of Pop (and three pairs of our lucky readers) to this event.
[cj]
On December 2 the Sony Group of Companies held the UPHORIA Party with Sony press conference, with guests Grammy-nominated international hit band Train, and recent break-out star Mike Posner. The artists were in town for the UPHORIA Party with Sony, where their performances would be the highlight of the event.
First widely known as the ones behind massive hit Drops Of Jupiter (Tell Me), in the last two years Train has returned with a bang from their three-year hiatus. Especially with multi-platinum hit single Hey Soul Sister, which certainly took the airwaves by storm. As for Posner, his following has grown enormously from the time he was releasing mixtapes from his dorm room at Duke University to his 2010 debut album 31 Minutes to Takeoff featuring Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 single Cooler Than Me.
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This “press conference” with Train and Posner was more of a media promotional event, with contest winners, regional press, bloggers, the local reporters etc. all present, making the headcount about two hundred in total. It felt rather like Sony were trying to squeeze everything into one event and milk the most out of it, which was a pity as we didn’t get to spend much time (or any at all) actually interacting with the artists.
The session opened with a question for Posner: Will we be hearing any new material from the upcoming album at the UPHORIA party? “I’m planning on doing one or two new songs,” the singer/songwriter/producer replied.
Posner later talked about how he never expected to be performing on such a platform, sharing the stage with established international stars like Train. It’s certainly heartening to consider how far he’s come since he recorded his first mixtape in his dorm room. And he was evidently thankful for his label, family and fan support, and for friends who apparently treat him worse now to keep him grounded.
Throughout the hour the level of enthusiasm from the media was lukewarm at best. Disappointing, but then again, as the main interviewer helplessly acknowledged, welcome to Singapore. Fortunately the artists tried their best to liven things up, especially Train lead singer Pat Monahan, who had no problem throwing out jibes at the main interviewer and the other artists present like Thailand’s Slot Machine, or bantering with Posner.
On the topic of a special collaboration between Train and Posner being planned, Monahan teased the gathered crowd with suggestions of a Pussycat Dolls cover performed with hot pants and tank tops. And when there was the customary awkward pause waiting for the first question, Monahan came to the rescue with: “I have one! Mike, is it true that I’m cooler than you?”
When asked what advice they would give to aspiring young artists, Monahan emphasised the importance of staying true to oneself: “The only advice I have for anybody is, be yourself, because if you’re successful, then you get to be yourself for a little longer, but if you try to be something you’re not and you’re successful, then you gotta try to figure out how to be that other thing for a really long time to keep it together. So if you’re not successful but you’re being yourself, then the reward is still cool because you get to make the work that you want. I mean you know money ain’t everything, so being yourself can be pretty awesome, and then you just get better at it.” And then in characteristic cheekiness he added, “Money isn’t everything, but it’s about nine-tenths of it.”
Somehow the topic of stars being discovered on the internet came up. “I’m one of those people,” Posner grinned, “so I think very highly of social networking and things of that nature.”
Monahan weighed in with his view that things like giving away music for free, which is what Posner did and continues to do, is a very smart move because it gets people to see his shows when they like his work. “If you come into this business to be a business then you’re not gonna probably be here long,” Monahan mused, “but if you come here to make great work then, you know how like Mike proving… You could be here for a long long time.”
What’s next for all of them? Posner has just done another free mixtape, and his second album is scheduled to come out next year, “March-ish”. As for Train, according to Monahan their new single Drive By is lined up for a January release, with an as-yet untitled new album in April: “We don’t have a title for it, we’re thinking maybe, something along the lines of ‘Singapore kicks ass’.”
