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S’pore music: Top picks of 2014

SINGAPORE — Yes, it’s that time again, when we look back at the year that was and pick our favourite happenings in the Singapore music scene. And yes, I know we say this every year, but 2014 was truly an amazing one for Singa-pop, regardless of race or language. Here then are my picks. They’re in no particular order.

Stefanie Sun didn't let anything stand in her way to deliver a gutsy performance at the National Stadium. Photo: Jason Ho

Stefanie Sun didn't let anything stand in her way to deliver a gutsy performance at the National Stadium. Photo: Jason Ho

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SINGAPORE — Yes, it’s that time again, when we look back at the year that was and pick our favourite happenings in the Singapore music scene. And yes, I know we say this every year, but 2014 was truly an amazing one for Singa-pop, regardless of race or language. Here then are my picks. They’re in no particular order.

 

SHIGGA SHAY’S LION CITY KIA MUSIC VIDEO. While some might argue that Shigga Shay’s latest music offering doesn’t have as much impact as say, Lim Peh, you can’t deny that the video for Lion City Kia – shot over two days and directed by the rapper himself – is definitely one of the more eye-catching ones this year. First, it had those throwback shots filmed at Dakota Crescent. Then, stargazers could spend hours (okay, four minutes) spotting their favourite star cameos – and there were many, including Patricia Mok, Dennis Chew, Jade Seah, Chua En Lai, The Sam Willows’ Benjamin Kheng, Jack & Rai, Maxi Lim and more.

“We had to split it into two days because of the amount of cameos we had, but thankfully all them made it. So the most challenging thing was properly trying to line up everyone’s schedule,” said Shigga Shay.

It’s quite a coup for him and he’s promised that he’ll be helming more with his posse, the Grizzle Grind Crew. “Definitely. We’re working on a few at the moment actually. Look out for more material from Grizzle Films!”

 

TAUFIK FINALLY RELEASES A NEW ALBUM. Fans had to wait six years but by all accounts, the album, called Fique, was worth the wait. The video for the album’s single, #AwakKatMane, has garnered more than three million views on YouTube. Just don’t tell us we have to wait another six years for the next one!

 

ELECTRICO ROCKS THE SUBSTATION. They were to play at the Good Vibes Festival in Malaysia, but Electrico’s set was rained out. “It seemed like a waste — we came all the way and then we couldn’t play,” said drummer William Lim Jr at the time. Not one to let its efforts go to waste, the rock trio decided to organise its own concert here. On Oct 19, Electrico took to the stage at The Substation with the show called Love @ The Sub. It was not a ticketed event — instead, it was a “pay-what-you-want” gig, with proceeds from the show donated to The Substation’s fund to renovate its gallery space.

 

STEFANIE SUN COMES BACK IN A REALLY BIG WAY. 2014 was the year of Stefanie Sun (and no more “here comes the Sun” jokes please). She signed on with a major label last year and released one heck of an album this year (Kepler), which went on to win her four awards at the Singapore Hit Awards. (She also became the first artiste to win the Most Popular award five times.) For our money, Sun’s concert at the newly minted National Stadium was music’s hottest ticket this year. And what a show it was, considering she was still recovering from her illness. “Now, this is a concert!” said Sun, as she gazed into the bleachers of the National Stadium, which, thanks to the thousands of tiny blips of lights from said mobile phones, made it look like a sea of stars. A night to remember, truly.

 

GENTLE BONES’ EP SHOWCASE. By all accounts, the Gentle Bones EP launch at TAB was one heck of a show. The place was packed to the rafters (well, if TAB actually had rafters) and many were disappointed that they couldn’t get in. If there was anyone still wondering if local musicians would have a tight following, all they had to do was look at that show.

 

LANEWAY FINALLY GOES LOCAL. This year, it wasn’t just a case of “another year, another Laneway festival”. What was significant about this year’s edition was the inclusion of Singaporean bands (finally) to the Laneway line-up. Significantly, the organisers selected art-rock outfit The Observatory, electro-soul siren Vandetta (aka Vanessa Fernandez) and electronic artist Gema. And next year’s show also has local flavour.

 

OF JJ AND JEREMY. Both JJ Lin and Jeremy Monteiro have expressed a desire to slow down next year. And no wonder. The two of them have been super-productive this year. Lin spent the year holding concerts in cities such as London, Macau and Melbourne, bagged the coveted Best Mandarin Male Singer award at Taiwan’s 25th Golden Melody Awards for his 2013 album, Stories Untold, collaborated with Eason Chan for his Rice & Shine music project and laid down tracks for his latest album, Genesis. We say he deserves his wax figure at Madame Tussauds Singapore. For his part, Monteiro also spent a lot of time on tour, including one in China with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, as well as turning up at the EFG London Jazz Festival 2014. He also played judge on MediaCorp’s songwriting competition, Gift Of Song, and released not one, but two albums: The Jazz Blues Brothers (with Albert Marsico) and his first Christmas album in more than 20 years, Christmas In Our Hearts.

 

MOSAIC COLLABORATIONS. X marks the spot, they say, and this year, the Mosaic Music Festival definitely hit the spot when it celebrated its 10th anniversary with a series of Xs. No, we’re not talking about the inclusion of Hong Kong’s Noughts & Exes in the line-up (although that’s a personal highlight); but collaborative concerts such as Cashew Chemists X 7nightsatsea X King Kong Jane, The Oddfellows X The Fast Colors and The Good Life Project X The Steve Mcqueens. And let’s not forget the two-fer shows featuring our music heroes of yore, The Esquires, Pest Infested, Heritage and Graveyard.

 

SINGLED OUT. It was a great idea (vinyl records to be used as inspiration for artworks) and 50 musicians/artists contributed to this project. Not just because it was a great idea, but also because it was for a great cause - all proceeds from the sale of the vinyls were managed by Thunder Rock School through a music outreach programme that includes education and mentorship specifically catered to financially disadvantaged children in Singapore.

“In the future, these youth could eventually create music that will, in turn, inspire us. It’s much like a revolution of a record, with each turn an inspiration and to be inspired by,” said the exhibition’s curator Little Ong, who is also creative director of fFurious creative agency. “Sound and vision have always been closely intertwined. The artists and designers I have invited for this project are people for whom I know music makes a difference in their lives, be it that they have worked on music projects, are musicians or simply love music.”

 

 

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