STAR (Straits Times Appreciates Readers) Concert

I am not a fan of going to concerts which feature various artistes because I usually find them a waste of money. However, when I knew that Boys Like Girls was coming to town, I immediately gave in. The tickets to USS and Singapore Flyer were really an added bonus. And boy was I glad that I bought the tickets - it was definitely worth the money (and my currently aching legs).

Before the concert officially started, young Singaporean talents took the stage and I was really impressed by them! They included 18 year old Amni Musfirah and 13 year old Sophia Joe. I felt that both of them did a great job with the older performer having more control over her voice. One thing I realise though, is that many young female singers in Singapore have the same voice quality - a strong, soulful voice which most bar singers have. I'm not saying that having a voice like that is bad..it is just getting a little boring because everyone is just starting to sound the same. But anyway, I'm just glad that young singers like these are getting much more exposure than before.

Rit Xu, a classically trained jazz flutist, was the final performer before the actual concert kicked off. Being a concert band member, I was naturally looking forward to his performance and it did not disappoint - although it got slightly boring as it dragged on. Don't get me wrong, it is just that jazz instrumentals just did not seem to match the ambience of the venue. One thing is for sure though - I will never look at the flute the same way again. But then again I don't even know why I am so surprised even though I watched this video of this amazing guy who can beatbox and play the flute at the same time a few years back. (Click).

Now on to the first act of the concert, Boys Like Girls! It was sort of an emotional rollercoaster for me throughout their ten song set. Aptly starting their performance with their very first hit singles The Great Escape and Hero/Heroine, they immediately set the bar for the craziness which was to come. BLG fans were treated to performances of three new songs (Be Your Everything, Life of the Party, The First Time) all from their Crazy World EP.

No biasness intended here, but they sounded amazing - it was as if I was listening to the original audio of the song. Transitions of the songs were smooth, and Martin hit every single note perfectly, maybe except for the insanely high falsetto-based choruses of Life of the Party. Paul and Morgan did not disappoint and did a decent job at backing vocals as well!

Of course, a Boys Like Girls set is never complete without their ballads. They played a short snippet of Go before transiting into Two Is Better Than One. When my all-time favourite song, Thunder, was being performed (acoustic for almost all the way), it felt like I was being transported back to two years ago in their first ever concert in Singapore. I felt exactly the same - and by that I mean that I was greatly touched. *cues crying me*
Pop punk bands like to end their sets with a bang, and that was they did. Ending their performance with their lead single from their second album, Love Drunk, it definitely sent me wanting more. I really could not get enough! Before they left the stage, they threw all their guitar picks, drumsticks and literally everything there was to be thrown into the audience (Martin threw a piece of tissue paper. Hahaha!). I did not have any luck with those though. Uh well!

I was really contented though - they played more songs than I expected and the best thing was that my friends enjoyed their set as well, even know they did not know some of the songs.

Next up, was the first ever Singapore Idol, Taufik Batisah and I have to say that he impressed me most out of all the acts! He started off with Addicted where he broke out into dance along with his crew members and I was like, "What? He dances? Wow!" I thoroughly enjoyed it - the decent choreography, him and his backup dancers moving in sync, and also his strong and stable voice.

Bringing all of us back to 2004, he crooned one of his trademark songs, Me and Mrs Jones. He definitely didn't disappoint with that and was really smooth. One of my favourites of the night!
He ended off his set with his newest single - Sky's The Limit! I'm really digging the song - kinda like a cross between Jason Derulo and Usher. Great job, Taufik!

The second Singapore Idol and Asian Idol, Hady Mirza, was the next to take the stage. His performances weren't as stellar as his predecessor and his songs did not leave much on an impression on me - except for You Give Me Wings, which is the only song I know from him.

Poor dancer dude on the ground.

Nevertheless, he still put up a decent performance which consisted of mostly slow numbers - it was just simply too bland for me.

Next up, was homegrown talent Tanya Chua! To be honest I was really looking forward to her performances, simply because she has a great voice - and she was one of the female C-Pop artistes I really looked up to back in my secondary school days (gahh I feel old).

She played the guitar for most of the songs that she performed and I was really impressed! Unfortunately, the songs she sang weren't familiar to me (I didn't even know she had English albums) except for 达尔文. The audience was obviously getting restless and fans from different fandoms were being kind of rude by making lots of unnecessary noises but I still felt that I had to give her the respect she deserved - after all, she is an established singer in the industry, having won many awards. The only reason why we have not been hearing much of her was because she was stationed overseas, like many of our C-Pop artistes (Stefanie Sun, JJ Lin, etc). Anyway, towards the end, she managed to lift the atmosphere by singing familiar tunes like Rihanna's Umbrella and Lady Gaga's Poker Face.
Commendable performance from her overall, albeit the slow pace. I could tell that she was really glad to be back in Singapore playing for people from her hometown.

Juz-B came on next with a two song set. You may remember them from 2006's Channel U's SuperBand as the a capella group which had a significant number of Malay members.

I remember that they caught my attention during the competition and I was really impressed by them and I never thought I'd get to see them perform live.
They initially got boo-ed at when they came on stage by the impatient fans who were awaiting the final act (4nias who did that, I hope you feel bad for that), but eventually got everyone grooving along to their covers of OneRepublic's Secrets and FUN's We Are Young, despite the shaky start. They adapted really quickly though, and their vocals and beatbox seemed to flow flawlessly! Really enjoyed their performance. Beatboxing always gets me. Haha.

Then came the last act - the one which most of the audience was waiting for - K-Pop girl group 4Minute!

They started off their segment with their newest single, Volume Up, and I was especially awed by Jiyoon and Gayoon as they hit the high notes flawlessly. Mirror Mirror, Muzik were performed subsequently. They stopped for a bit for a short interview and I'm glad that they listed more than Chilli Crab when asked which food they liked. Hahaha. They were also impressed with the fans saying a rehearsed 'saranghaeyo' to them.
Heart to Heart (my personal favourite from them) and Hot Issue were performed next. I am not a huge fan of 4Minute but they still got me singing to the choruses to their songs. They bade farewell after that only to come back on stage again to sing HuH. Apparently the sound crew was not prepared for that though, thus the girls had to fill up the time and they tried their best. From aegyo to Hyuna's Pikachu impersonation, it seemed like the fans did not mind the delay at all!

All in all, I enjoyed 4Minute's performances although I sensed some fatigue from them as their dances seemed a little sloppy at times. They are not the most vocally strong or the best dancers in the K-Pop industry but these girls sure have charisma!..as with many other K-Pop girl groups. Nevertheless, I do give it to them for trying their best despite their tight schedule, having come from Beijing just that morning.
What was the most important though, was that they made their fans really happy by providing tons of fanservice and trying to speak English as best as they could. Props to them for doing a good job, and for ending the concert on a good note.

So in conclusion, the whole concert was well-planned and the emcees did a pretty decent job in keeping the audiences' mood up (the whole Garden Wave thing is still quite dumb to me though). And of course, the artistes did their part in presenting their best to make a good show in all.

For those who can't get enough, or didn't make it for the concert, you can check out the performances over at http://www.youtube.com/user/SPHRazorTV/videos.

Photos credited to Rachel.