The late Clifford Lee Burton of Heavy Metal Band, Metallica was someone who inspired me to pick up the Bass guitar when I was a 13 year old. Never have I ever been captivated by a solo from a man who could do it with so much ease that made waves around the world before his death in 1986. This inspired me to wonder, “why not start my own rock band and be the next Clifford Burton!?” well such big dreams from a naïve boy indeed.
It was never easy going to be an easy task to start a band. We all think it’s that easy as it seems on televisions with rock stars that have thousands of fans screaming away to songs in a jam packed arena. Simple isn’t it? Just start jamming on a daily basis before ending it off with weekly performances over the weekends at a bar. You start writing your own songs and get a larger fan base, and poof! You’re now a rock star who’s earning big bucks that’s been capitulated to stardom.
If you probably thought this was the way to go, well, highly unlikely it’ll happen.
I started out Mrs Schneider’s, a five piece slow rock band when I was 15 years old roping in friends from my secondary school. It all seemed like a dream that was about to be fulfilled at such a young and tender age, but that wasn’t exactly how it turned out to be. What I realised overtime is that everyone has a tight schedule. Even till today when I interview bands, their main problem is schedule. I get the occasional, “oh, I’ve got work” and the once in a while, “I’ve got plans with my girlfriend” and even once “I’ve a blister on my fingers ah Kavin, can’t jam today lor”. If you ask me, it boils down to pure passion and pure dedication.
I still clearly remember the virgin performance that the band performed at a bar along Bugis (has since been closed down years ago) which sadly, was also our last. We were being paid 40 dollars (with no drinks or anything) that had poor amplifiers and really, I mean really sucky equipment to begin with. I never really thought much about the money that would be given to us and I mean with 8 dollars being split among each of us, it really wasn’t about the money. The saddest part of it, we were playing to a “crowd” of barely 12. With 2 kissing at the corner of the couch and 4 drinking by the bar while a few laid drunk on the floor, need I say anymore? It was really depressing but yes, we did play the covers of a few bands that lasted for about 40 minutes.
As time went by and as our commitments led astray, more frequent arguments within the band led to less jamming sessions that eventually killed all hopes I had placed for myself and the band. We broke up barely 6 months later and I’ve since found other interests as well.
What I’ve learnt from this experience in life is that to form a band, dedication and commitment is a vital key. Without passion and the strong bond between each band member, it really isn’t a “band” anymore, but a bunch of people who just wants to play their instruments. Local bands are as good, and I mean it, when I say local bands are good enough to be recognised in our country. We need to change this perception within the local fraternity and show them our support. I honestly understand how bands feel when they play for people that give zero support. It’s a depressing thing to do with no motivation to create new songs and tunes when there’s no one listening to them. If we ourselves do not support local music, who else will?
Now that I’m part of the Urban Ignite Team, I’m making sure we’ll be doing our best to make these local acts feel appreciated. I’m assuring people that this is not a one off thing where you’ll not be seeing us after a few months. We’re here to stay and we will be this platform for all local bands to show everyone what they’re really made of.
Signing off,
Kavin
Urban Ignite Team
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What's Promising in The Local Music Scene
It seems to be that Inch Chua is singing a different tune about the much talked Facebook post she made about the lack of support from music made here in Singapore.
In a recent interview with TODAYonline, the singer-songwriter claimed that it was really a “private posting” on her social media account and that word got out due to mass circulation from friends. Soon enough online news sites like The Online Citizen and even Mr Brown posted it up and her own private rant suddenly turned into an anti-Singapore post, in which she claimed was never the intention.
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| Inch Chua has a new album release entitled, "Wallflower" Photo by Jason Ho |
But things are slowly changing for the better. Slowly but surely, bands and solo artists are trying to reach out to the public by showcasing their creative works. As long as talents out there are willing to bring forward their compositions to the public, it is certain that word would go out and bring about more enthusiasts to allow growth of our potentially successful music scene.
Original interview with Inch Chua: http://blogs.todayonline.com/poparazzi/2011/12/12/an-interview-with-inch-chua/
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With the dazzling purple lights shining upon Cove Red’s , Rachael, Suyin and their guest for the night, Jo Ren kicked off their first set sharply at 7.30pm to the crowd of over 200 people. Starting off with their cover of Irish Rock band’s U2, “All I Want Is You”, we had the feeling that Cove Red was just another acoustic Duo who played songs related to relationships and love, though this was not to be.
After listening to their original written tracks like “Dreamer”, “Two travellers” and “Sarah”, it all seemed different. Songs about life and aspirations accompanied with a touch of nostalgia made them stand out extremely quickly not only to us, but to other audiences as well. Like what Suyin mentioned, they “wanted their fans to feel sheltered with their songs where it makes them feel safe and covered.”
Rachael was playing the guitar and the xylophone while Suyin was on the guitar and keyboards. Jo Ren who interestingly is also Suyin’s brother was on the Cello.
The first set consisted of 10 songs which included a classic from the Wizard of Oz, “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”. With the festive season just round the corner, they added this Christmas flavour to end off their set with a famous Christmas carol “have yourself a merry little Christmas”. We eventually decided that the second set was worth watching as the Urban Ignite team waited for the next set which started at 8.45pm.
We expected their second set to be of similar standard to their first, but it was beyond our expectations. There were 9 songs in this particular set, which included a cover of Rachael Yamagata’s, “Meet Me By the Water” and Leonardo Cohen’s “Hallelujah”.
However, what really took Urban Ignite by surprise was their original song “Oxygen” which had an electronic Indie feel that was similar to American Indie Pop band, The Postal Service.
Another original single written by Suyin titled “Elegy” also caught our attention not by how the song was sung or what instruments were played, but the inspiration behind it. Unlike how African kids suffer from poverty, “modern” people like us Singaporeans suffer from a more psychological type of poverty.
So did Cove Red have any parting information to let us know?
So did Cove Red have any parting information to let us know?
They could only give us little information to when their first album would be released, which Rachael mentioned, “probably late next year”. With that in conclusion, trying putting Cove and Red together, and you’ll get the meaning behind it.
Urban Ignite Team, Khalis: What struck me the most about Cove Red was how they used the Cello to bring emotions to the song. There were times during the gig; I was just staring at the Cello. With Rachael’s sexy vocals, and Suyin’s fingers strumming the chords, the Cello added a delicate touch to the trio. A perfect fusion indeed.
Urban Ignite Team, Kavin: A Band that even used a paper bag as instruments to add to the “texture” of the song, they stand out from other local bands for their originality and quirkiness. With Rachael’s voice drawing comparison to Amy Lee who is the Lead singer of rock band Evanescence, You could feel the passion and energy in their performances and if I’ve to pay to watch another performance just before they’re to work on their new album in the studios, I would gladly do so.
Urban Ignite Team, Kavin: A Band that even used a paper bag as instruments to add to the “texture” of the song, they stand out from other local bands for their originality and quirkiness. With Rachael’s voice drawing comparison to Amy Lee who is the Lead singer of rock band Evanescence, You could feel the passion and energy in their performances and if I’ve to pay to watch another performance just before they’re to work on their new album in the studios, I would gladly do so.
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Baybeats 2012 Auditions
This annual music festival is no stranger to all Indie bands, discovered or undiscovered. If you think your band could use a good platform, Baybeats is back with a bigger bang than before!
Be sure to register here by 19th Dec, 6pm and you might just be a part of this great experience of Indie lovin'. Good luck!
