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The first weekend of August proved to be a mind-blowing
experience for many indie music lovers who attended the Baybeats Music Festival
held at the Esplanade.
Now in its seventh year, the festival is an annual event
that aims to showcase astounding local and international acts performing a
diverse range of music such as post-rock, punk, emo, electro and hard rock.
Produced by WAKE ME UP music, a non-profit enterprise, and
supported by Rockstar Collective and Double Yellow Line, one of the most
endearing aspects of Baybeats is the fact that it is free-for-all.
Yes, awesome music that doesn't burn a hole in our shallow
pockets. Need we say more?
Actually, there is
more to say. This year's Baybeats promised to be bigger and better than ever,
and proceeded to exceed all our expectations. For starters, the festival opened
with the first-ever ticketed admission to Mercury Rev's awesome sounds, much to
the mass hysteria of their delighted fans.
Having been around for more than 2 decades with close ties
to The Flaming Lips, the American group charmed the crowd with their
concordantly melodic sounds and awesome lyrics, kicking off the festival in the
most fantastic manner that brought their audience from one magical realm and
surreal landscape to another, and back again.
Needless to say, audiences were tripping over themselves to
soak in the rest of the bands.
The following three days were a sheer tornado of gigs that
left many breathless in its wake. With local acts peppered throughout the festival,
folks were pretty pleased to see their very own talent take centre-stage.
B-Quartet earns a commendable mention for their great stage
presence and eclectic sound that fused funk, jazz, metal and progressive rock.
This spunky local act left many aurally drunk and wanting more.
This year's lineup saw a record number of female vocalists -
one instance was Jean from Giants Must Fall. With textured vocals not unlike a
younger version of Japanese singer Mika Nakashima, Jean had just the right
amount of feminine sassiness to inject the right kind of mood into GMF's brand
of music.
Their CD, available at the venue, didn't disappoint with its
quirky cover of red strings sewn onto it. Together with other sorts of Baybeats
memorabilia such as badges, one-of-a-kind T-shirts and a glorious amount of CDs,
it wasn't surprising at all to see the large crowd congregating around this year's merch booth.
International acts, on the other hand, included a mind-boggling variety from Malaysia,
Indonesia, Sweden,
Hong Kong, France,
the Philippines,
Australia, USA
and China.
Aloha (USA)
gets our thumbs up for bringing the energy level among the masses to an all time
high with their pop-rock flavoured music that definitely won them cult-status
amongst many in the enthralled crowd.
The level of energy from China's
Tookoo was unparalleled with their rocking sounds, as well as constant
rapport and engagement with the audience.
Closer to home, performing in Singapore for the second time,
Indonesian band Everybody Loves Irene left the audience craving for more with
their impressive chords and multiple-faceted sounds, coupled with lyrics that
sometimes veered on eccentricity.
Their cover of "Hybrid Moments", originally by 1970s
horror band, The Misfits, turned out to be rather charming with the female lead's
strong, but not overpowering vocals, while maintaining their
distinct brand of emo.
Earlier this year, 133 bands turned up for auditions,
showing the hunger of new local acts with the talent, but not the exposure
(yet). Despite only having 10 make the final cut, we say a big kudos to all
who've tried to follow in the footsteps of their more famous predecessors like
Electrico and Lunarin.
Baybeats'07 ended on a high note, leaving music mavericks
yearning for more. Having been delivered a satisfying alternative music buffet
yet again, followers of the festival are already counting down to the moshing
and head-banging affair of Baybeats 2008. HOOKED
Picture credits: baybeats.com.sg
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