(Apologies for the awkward timing of the entry!)

wow, Day 2 of baybeats is over already. This thing called time has to be stopped ah, it is moving TOO FAST.

So i reached the esplanade just in time to sit in on an interview session with Midnight Marvel. Dressed in teeshirts sporting their signature red lightning bolt design, this “nocturnal” band was, simply put, too cool! Lennat said that if she could pick anywhere in the world that they could perform at, it would have to be a gig at the Glastonbury festival. HELL YEAH to that i say. (Attending such a festival would be the high(est)light of my life fo sho baby.) After chilling with them at the esplanade office couches, getting to know them better and listening to their mature views on the music scene in Singapore (views of how if you want to be noticed here you either have to be “really good or really bad”) i regretted missing their showcase earlier in the evening. Man, i could have used a bit of that rockin marvel of theirs. But i’m going to be looking out for them in the future!

After that i headed over to grab hold of my wandering friends and caught You and Whose Army? at the Nokia arena. It was impressive how they all knew how to play multiple instruments  (”In order to join this band you have to play at least 2 instruments”) and i must say, these guys really had that radiohead-muse thing going on. I literally kicked back, relaxed and enjoyed the hypnotic edge (to me ah haha) they had to their songs. (Adam on bass was interesting to watch as he was really getting into his music)

I was smarter today as i forced myself to ignore my hunger pangs and hung on to my good seats at the arena. Next up on stage was The Oddfellows. Veterans in the local music scene, (going strong since 1988) they specially reunited for this year’s Baybeats Festival.Just the first few beats on the drumset and i liked them already. Their energy was explosive and i could see how it rubbed off on the audience. It got only better towards the end of the set as Kevin on guitars with his striking blond hair went all out crazy (using 2 picks at once i think) as he successfully delivered one hell of a crowd pleaser. These guys had real chemistry within the band, and also with the audience. i mean, cmon, they had the audience singing!

And then it was time to prepare for Electrico at the Nokia Powerhouse. When i say ‘prepare’ i mean it. We had this carefully formulated plan of how to get a great spot near the stage so as not to miss out on anything these feel-good music makers had to offer! The crowd (no really, it was a too-hard-to-even-breathe-kinda crowd) went wild even before the band came on stage(it was just the nokia advertisements) and once they came on - oh it was everything i expected and more. (The verdict is final, i will never ever ever tire of the song “Love in new wave”) There was mmmoshing, things being thrown into the sky, body surfing (it looked so exhilarating i swear) jiggying to the music, singing… i drank up every moment of their 30 minute showcase. The band looked stunning on stage (Amanda’s haircut was something awesome) and really, Electrico delivered tonight.

(Note to self: Body surfing is now on my life-list)

So after perspiring my life away at the  Powerhouse i headed over to the Chillout stage to well, cool down abit. Amberhaze was on and man, for the second night in a row, i left baybeats feeling relaxed, peaceful and just lightheaded almost. I don’t think i’ve seen anything quite like this before, actually. Giuliano skillfully shifted between the piano, guitar, his laptop & yes he even belted out melodies here and there.

*today i’m left with lingering memories of the moshpit of local energy that was the Electrico performance.

With that ended Day 2 of Baybeats 08. i really do hope to catch the short films tomorrow!

Tags:baybeats 2008
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