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Laneway Festival
Singapore’s incessant rain did not stop the thousands of fans that flocked to last week’s Laneway Festival to bask in the joy of music.
Elda from Stars and Rabbit (Lionel Boon/File)
T
aking place, as it had before, at the sprawling Gardens by the Bay nature park’s meadow area, this was the festival’s seventh Singaporean edition. Originally an Australian music festival, the St. Jerome’s Laneway Music Festival brings with it plenty of Australian names to its Singaporean edition — and this time was no different.
Melbourne’s King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, a seven man psych rock troupe, stood out with their high energy live performance. It did not hurt that the band had two drummers and that their latest record, Nonagon Infinity, played quite well on the big stage, inciting the largest mosh pit of the day.
Fellow Melbourne musician Nick Murphy’s (formerly known as Chet Faker, a playful nod toward famous Jazz musician Chet Baker) electronic soundscapes provided a fitting soundtrack to the energetic festivities.
Other stand out acts came out from Singapore itself. Scene veteran Astreal, formed years ago in 1992, performed a confident set of rock. Frontwoman Ginette Chittick led the band through a set that included songs off their latest album Light (their first release in ten years). The band’s fans embraced heavy rain to rock out with their hometown heroes. Astreal ended the set with the epic “Morning Star”.
T-Rex is another Singaporean band that stood out, even if they lacked Astreal’s onstage ease and presence. The band’s progressive-rock was adorned with lots of saxophone flourishes, which blended well with the songs.
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Electro band Tycho presented carefully crafted moody song spells that felt suited to the falling rain. The performance mirrored a similar sentiment in a far more energetic manner.
British indie rockers Glass Animals performed a solid set that included popular singles, “Gooey” and “Black Mambo”. The band performed dancey indie rock with the ease of festival veterans, even though they have only been together for five years.
Japanese hip-hop artist KOHH also performed with confidence, presenting an energetic set that was confrontational and perfected. He had one of the liveliest crowds at the festival, providing them with a booming bass and chest-pumping beats. Fellow Japanese artist Wednesday Campanella (also known as Suiyōbi no Campanella) offered a contrast with her artsy, theatrical presentation.
Bottlesmoker and Stars and Rabbit were the first two Indonesian bands to ever perform at the festival. Bottlesmoker performed at the White Room with a strong set representative of their extensive discography. Backed with intriguing visuals, the duo of Angkuy and Nobie bobbed their heads and shook their bodies as they played retro electro pop.
Stars and Rabbit performed at the main stage to a fresh crowd. Frontwoman Elda’s eclectic sensibilities and unique vocal styling leaned comfortably into the band’s folk-pop.
To top things off, the festival offered a variety of food and beverages along with friendly staff. The readiness of the staff and the food offerings helped make the rain feel like a minor hurdle.
Laneway Singapore remains one of Southeast Asia’s best festivals for a reason.
