Interview with Jayesslee
By YudaAhead of their sold-out shows at TAB in July, the twins of Jayesslee, guitarist Sonia and vocalist Janice, tell Denise Cheong how they became overnight pop sensations – and how they’re dealing with their sudden fame
What is it like being YouTube stars? Were you
surprised by the extent to which your videos became
viral?
We are still getting used to being called YouTube stars. We are
two very ordinary 24-year-olds who are lucky enough to do what we
love doing. We still get surprised when we are stopped in the
middle of a shopping mall for photos and autographs.
However, this has made us more conscious of the way we treat each
other and the way we act in public, as we realise that people do
recognise us. The morning after we uploaded our cover of
[Tamia’s] ‘Officially Missing You’, we were shocked to see that
it had gone viral. Even to this day after 7 million hits, we
can’t believe that people are watching our videos
worldwide.
What are your day jobs?
As of 2010 our full-time vocation has been recording, touring and
performing. Prior to this, we’ve had part-time jobs where Sonia
worked at a juice bar and Janice was scooping ice cream. It got
to a point where we didn’t have time or flexibility to commit to
everything, so we decided to make music our lives.
Muse's Gigs At Wembley Stadium Voted Greatest Event Ever
By Yuda
Over 55,000 fans voted in the survey conducted by the Football Association (FA).
Muse's two gigs, which formed part of their H.A.A.R.P tour, came ahead of Michael Jackson's Bad Tour in 1988 in second.
Queen's Wembley gig in 1986 came third, Take That's Circus Tour residency in 2009 came fourth and England's 1966 World Cup win against Germany came fifth.
Melvin Benn, Chairman of Wembley Stadium, said: “Whilst all Wembley’s events have been special, Muse are very deserving winners for their 2007 Wembley concerts which were nothing short of spectacular.”
Muse performed again at Wembley Stadium in 2010.
Top-five events at Wembley Stadium:
1 - 2007 Muse (H.A.A.R.P Tour)
2 - 1988 Michael Jackson (Bad Tour)
3 - 1986 Queen Live at Wembley)
4 - 2009 Take That (Circus Tour)
5 - 1966 World Cup – England v Germany
LADY GAGA LIVE IN SINGAPORE TICKET GIVEAWAY
By Yuda
Listen up, little Monsters. It's official. Lady Gaga will be performing on our sunny shores on the 7th of July!
Singtel and Universal Music have come together to bring the international superstar back on our shores since she last performed here in 2009, at an exclusive showcase for Singtel customers.
The catch: This time, she'll only be performing for approximately 2,000 lucky Singtel customers as well.
Don't fret, however! 987FM, the Concert Station of the Nation, will be giving away ultra-exclusive tickets to catch Lady Gaga perform live in Singapore!
Simply to tune in to the Muttons on the Move from now till the 1st of July for a chance to win these tickets. You could just be a lucky winner.- XinMSN
Concert review: In Each Hand A Cutlass
By YudaSome familiar names, a debut album and the amazing concert that sprung forth
The band in question was Singaporean instrumental rock quintet In Each Hand A Cutlass (IEHAC) - Daniel Sassoon (lead guitar), Amanda Ling (keyboards), Roland Lim (guitar), Jordan Cheng (drums) and Nelson Tan (bass guitar) - who were launching their debut album, A Universe Made Of Strings, that night.
Called The Amaranthine Voyage, the show was sold out on the afternoon, but what was more important was the presence of "genuine" fans at the concert. It wasn't merely a gathering of family and friends.
With the stage decked out with treasure chests, bottles of rum, barrels, candelabras and skulls, and the band dressed in matching uniforms, it was clear that the show was going to be more than your usual album launch.
The band showcased the tracks on their debut album and highlighted the strong debt it owed to the progressive rock and post-rock genres with songs that were able to combine accessibility and intellectualism. Anyone who's seen an IEHAC concert will know that they aren't your typical shoe gazing instrumental band. And first song in, band leader Sassoon was doing his trademark jumps, stabbing the air with his guitar and moving around the stage like a whirling dervish.
By his side, Ling's keyboards and Lim's guitar provided the support and the necessary counterpoints to flesh out the sumptuous sonic palates. The percussive power of the rhythm section kept the band on an even keel, even as they sailed through numerous time signature changes and musical dynamics that characterise much of IEHAC's raison d'etre.
Sassoon described the music of IEHAC as "instrumental music for the cinema of the mind" and the band truly delivered on this premise: There was the freewheeling art house vibe of Chocolate And The Lovelorn Girl, the horror/monster vibe of Hammering The Bones, the space operatic feel of A Universe Made Of Strings and the grandiose period drama of Glaciers. Whether you were a music novice or expert, there would have been no difficulty in appreciating the kaleidoscopic array of sounds and styles emanating from the stage.
Ultimately, it was this eclecticism and its dynamic rendering that captured the hearts and minds of the audience as each successive performance brought enthusiastic responses and whoops of appreciative joy.
Even as the crowd demanded an encore that never came ("we don't have any more songs," explained Sassoon) you couldn't help but wonder if this would be the beginning of great promise from this enthralling new chapter in the Singapore music scene.
And by the way, the kid did buy the album. Kevin Mathews
The album A Universe Made of Strings is out now.
New Releases @ HMV This Week
By Yuda(week starting 27th June)
Rock & Pop
- Selena Gomez & The Scene - When The Sun Goes Down
- David Cook - This Loud Morning
- Foster The People - Torches
- Kaiser Chiefs - Future is Medeival
- Limp Bizkit - Gold Cobra
- Taking Back Sunday - Taking Back Sunday
Classical & Jazz
- Jackie Evancho - Dream With Me
- Beyonce - 4
- Alicia Keys - Songs in A Minor
- Thievery Corporation - Culture of Fear
Asian
- Girls Generation - Girls Generation (CD+DVD)
- Yu Ke Wei - 微加幸福
New Release @ HMV This Week
By Yuda(week starting 13th May)
Rock & Pop
- Eddie Vedder - Ukelele Songs
- Neil Young & International Harvesters - Treasure
- Owl City - All Things Bright and Beautiful
OST
- OST Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon
- OST Cars 2
- OBC Spiderman: Turn of The Dark
Classical & Jazz
- Jackie Evancho - Dream With Me
- Pat Metheny - What's It All About
Dance & Soul
- Bad Meets Evil (Eminem) Hell: The Sequel
Asian
- Zhang Liang Ying - Reform
- Crew - Crew +Tshirt
- Girls Generation - Girls Generation (CD+DVD)
Paramore is expected to roll into town in August
By Yuda
Just got off the blower with Hayley Williams of Paramore. She’s such a nice person to talk to, although I think she was a little tired of answering all the Farro brothers questions (and who wouldn’t be?). But she said she’s real excited to come back to Singapore. And I am too.
Paramore’s gig was probably the best show I’d seen in a very long time, and this is coming from someone who was not a fan. But I believe in the power to move and that show really moved me. And Hayley said that the new show is heaps better than that one. (“Well, I hope so!” she added, laughing.)
At any rate, their new single Monster, off the newTransformers movie, just dropped today. It sounds good.
Paramore is expected to roll into town in August. Watch this space for more deets!
Did Music Matters matter to Singapore?
By YudaParticipants say yes, and they can't wait for the next one
IT WAS something that many members of the Singapore music scene were looking forward to.
Music Matters, held for the first time in Singapore - all previous editions were held in Hong Kong - kicked off with a "digital" element, Digital Matters on May 23, and ended with a live music showcase, Music Matters Live With HP, on May 28. Gracing the occasion were various industry insiders and experts from around the world, including top management from record labels and digital companies, artistes such as singer-songwriter Imogen Heap, and legendary producer Steve Lillywhite.
However, some naysayers have grumbled that representation from Singapore was lacking in terms of panel contributors and speakers - although five Singapore bands were given the opportunity to showcase their talents at Clarke Quay alongside their foreign counterparts.
Still, many of the participants applauded the forum. Gonzalo Ferrero, a Spaniard based in Shanghai with media investment company DFA Asia, felt that the event "was a fantastic opportunity to meet so many potential business partners under one roof as well as to put faces to a lot of the voices and email addresses we already do business with throughout Asia".
Likewise, Hong Kong-based musician/photographer/writer Fernando Gros felt that the event met his expectations for meeting music-makers in the region.
Singapore-based film producer Ravi Vedant with Imagical Arts echoed Ferrero's bullish sentiments.
"It was great opportunity for all of us in Asia to meet these great people in music business from the West and share their professional experience," said Vedant.
Esther Chloe Masada Lee, programming officer with The Esplanade, felt that Music Matters 2011 was helpful to a certain extent.
"Some of the topics covered in the talks were also relevant in helping me understand even more about the music industry in Singapore and the region, which is quite vital to me as a programmer who is involved in music festivals such as Baybeats and Mosaic," she said.
But did the event benefit the Singapore music scene at all? Donovan Loh from Singapore band Cheating Sons (picture) seemed to think so.
"The opportunity to be part of the 30 or more bands from around the world playing live in Clarke Quay was not one to be missed. The atmosphere was fantastic and we made some new friends along the way."
Local singer-songwriter Natalie Hiong also gave a thumbs-up. "It gave me the chance to network with producers, managers and A&R (artiste and repertoire) representatives," she said. "The most useful session for me was the mentorship session for artistes, where we heard first hand from professionals in the American and British music industry about what they look for in new acts, which was both informative and inspiring."
"They provided a lot of good ideas for how the Singapore scene could come together for Music Matters 2012," added Gros.
Of course, what does matter out of all this is hopefully, Music Matters would have provided the proper impetus for the Singapore music scene to move on to the next level.
New Release @ HMV This Week
By Yuda(week starting 6th June)
Rock & Pop
- Cults - Cults
- Depeche Mode - Remixes 2 (81-11)
- Iron Maiden - From Fear To Eternity
- Arctic Monkeys - Suck It & See
- All Time Low - Dirty Work
- Eddie Vedder - Ukelele Songs
OST
- OST Green Lantern
Asian
- Lin Zi Xiang (George Lam) - Lamusique Vintage
- Red Flower - Sense of Security
Finalists of Eco Music Challenge launch album
By Yuda
ASPIRING singer-songwriter Kaye Chia has always viewed music as a way to reach out to people.
The 20-year-old, who is studying for a diploma in music and audio technology at Singapore Polytechnic, has been writing songs since she was 13. "I've loved music since young and used to play the piano for hours," she told my paper.
So, when her lecturer suggested she enter the Eco Music Challenge - a songwriting competition organised by the National Environment Agency (NEA) to raise awareness of environmental issues - she jumped at the chance.
Miss Chia made it to the finals with a Chinese song titled Light A Dream, and tied at third place with freelance audio engineer Haramain Osman, 25, who penned a song called Heaven On Earth.
The two performed at the launch of the Eco Music Challenge Season 1 album on Wednesday night at Timbre @ The Substation.
The CD features tracks by the 13 finalists of the inaugural competition, as well as a track, Let's Make Our World The Most Beautiful Home, by veteran Singapore composer Clement Chow.
Of the competition, Miss Chia said: "Music is universal... (so) it's easy to reach out to people (and create awareness of environmental issues)."
Mr Haramain, who holds a diploma in audio engineering from SAE Institute, agreed.
"By joining the competition, I was able to meet people from the music industry here, which is helpful in my line of work," he said.
The second Eco Music Challenge, with a grand prize of $5,000, is open for submissions until June 20.
The winning song will be announced at a finale concert on Aug 27 and will be named the official Clean & Green Singapore song for this year.
vbarker@sph.com.sg
For more information, or to participate in this year's Eco Music Challenge, visit nea.ecomusic.sg Buy a copy of NEA's Eco Music Challenge Season 1 album ($0.99 per song or $9.90 for the album) at nea.ecomusic.sg. All proceeds will go to the Nature Society of Singapore.Subscribe
