Pressing 'pause' on mainstream music
By Khoo Sin Yee
Escaping popular music genres, KHOO SIN YEE explores the unique musical styles of local underground artists.
In 2017, Spotify Asia revealed Singaporeans spend an average of 152 minutes a day on the music streaming application. Photo by Khoo Sin Yee.
You love listening to music, but having the same few songs on repeat is so boring. You find it difficult to escape the common pop-style of most songs and you want to find something fresh to listen to.
According to the 2017 National Music Consumption survey by the National Arts Council, songs Singaporeans listen to the most are pop music and the Top 40s in the music charts.
Melody Leow, 17, a Singapore Polytechnic student who loves listening to music, says: “It’s difficult finding new songs to listen to that are not too obscure [and] are not just [the] typical pop sound you hear all the time.”
In an attempt to look for the hidden gems of the underground music scene, I found three songs by local artists who are making a name for themselves for their unique music.
1. Fresh Air by BGourd
The name “BGourd” is short for bitter gourd. The rapper dresses in green as he believes his music is an acquired taste, just like the vegetable. Photo courtesy of Buro247.
Local rapper BGourd takes the saying "hiding behind a mask" to another level: he is never seen without his full green bodysuit. As BGourd lively raps to his 2020 single, Fresh Air, above an ever-changing drumbeat, courtesy of his producer, Fauxe, an energetic and vibrant environment is created for the listener.
With cleverly written, relatable lyrics like: “Man, I hate being so serious / Sometimes you gotta chill right?”, the hip-hop single expresses the emerging rapper’s need for relaxation after a day of hard work. Moreover, the smooth rap flow of Fresh Air makes the song a real pleasure to listen to.
If you ever have a get-together with friends or need a quick energy fix, Fresh Air is the perfect song to blast on your speakers.
2. 999 by Shye
In 2018, at the age of 16, Shye won the Vans Musicians Wanted competition which kickstarted her career as a musician. Photo courtesy of Gabrielle Ang.
999 is a soothing listen that will appeal to fans of indie music. The 2018 single features melodic, lo-fi beats, completed with Shye’s soft and dreamy voice. The hazy, half-whispered chorus: “999 I’ve got an emergency / This boy don’t want me,” expresses Shye’s struggle with feelings of affection for a boy. Despite the cheerful melody of the song, the song describes Shye’s frustration with her crush who does not share mutual feelings.
This bedroom-pop song is perfect for anyone wanting to take a break from the heavy electro-pop beats in pop music. With a catchy rhythm and lyrics that are easy to sing-along to, Shye keeps the song simple, yet listeners will find it difficult to get it out of their heads after a listen.
3. Pretty Bones by Yeule
Yeule is the artistic persona of Singapore-born, London-based musician, Nat Ćmiel, 21. The stage name comes from the Final Fantasy videogame character, Yeul. Photo courtesy of i-D Magazine.
Pretty Bones plays with themes of beauty and decay. The ethereal, dreamy ambience of Yeule’s vocals, among the synth soundscape, feels dark and charming at the same time. The electronic, lo-fi beats add vibrance to the song’s deep message. The lyrics: “Wake up and you don’t feel home,” laments Yeule’s struggles with feeling detached from reality most of the time. The post-pop single encapsulates Yeule’s feeling of hopelessness and exhaustion from dealing with her personal struggles.
However, Yeule’s light and airy vocals blend so seamlessly into the song’s melody that listeners may find it difficult to decipher lyrics at times. Despite this, listeners will feel like they are caught in an astral daydream as they listen to the song with its tranquil melody.
Genres performed by the previously mentioned artists, like rap, bedroom-pop and post-pop, are rarely heard on radio or television due to their obscurity.
The Music Director of Faith Community Baptist Church and long-time musician, Sharul Isaac, 45, says: “Versatility is not well received in [the] current media."
He brings up the example of hearing pop music more commonly in media than genres like punk and alternative rock as evidence.
“Culturally, a lot of people in Singapore are accustomed to mainstream music, anything that does not come close to that, people are not easily accepting of it,” says Mr Isaac.
Ms Vanessa Fernandez, 37, a local artist-producer, agrees that pop music is dominant in the music industry. However, she believes: “The current state of local music and artists is definitely very vibrant, diverse and interesting,” despite feeling a lack of attention by the media towards local artists.
“But the [local music] scene is certainly trying to address it and has more support than ten years ago, so hopefully in five-ten years we will see more progress,” says Ms Fernandez.