[event] Identite 5.2 // 3rd Feb 2012 @ Home Club

Identity.

Definition – The state or fact of remaining the same one or ones as under varying aspects or conditions.
 
I-den-ti-te aims to bring on different genres of local bands into a gathering experience. Always acting as a platform to escalate new and young talents, going forth, branding music capabilities. A new series of programming will entice freshness and depth in accordance to awareness within the local music scene. Be it from the roots of Punk and Hardcore or the progression of Post-Rock and IDM to the commercial value of Pop or the swinging beats of Jazz. These series of pure friendship and music will fill your needs on every other Friday evenings at Home Club. An introduction of what dreams are made of.

A growing brand among the local music scene, the team has churned and discovered new talented acts. Identite nights represent that love and respect that we all have for the local music scene. Come and enjoy your evening with them and communicate with and about music.

3rd February 2012, Friday, 18 and above
$12 (includes a housepour drink and entry to BEAT! after)

Brought to you by Home Club, The Rockstar Collective (RSC), and supported by 7x0x7.

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2FOLD

Formed up in early 2011 and has been spending time in studios to tighten up their song at the same time finding what and how they wanna play and sound like. Finally in the late 2011, they found what they wanted to play. Funky rythms and rock like solos, they are twofold!

 

 

NAVIRE CREUX

Formed in early 2009, Navire Creux started out as a home project to let out emotions through recording and writing his life into music. It stayed that way for about a year and a half untill Ahmad Khaliq, Bong Jklop and Syarul who shared the same interest in music started jamming and performing live. Navire Creux had released an EP entitled "INCENDIARY" and is in the current process of writing new tracks for a full length album that will be out sometime this year.

 

 

PLUTO

Pluto plays fast hardcore, Syafiq plays guitar, Dan plays bass, David plays drums, and Thomas sings. We are influenced by other fast bands such as vaccine, shank, and infest. Our lyrics deal with themes of existentialism influenced by authors such as Plato, Sartre, and Nietzsche. No nonsense.

 

 

CLOWNS

Clowns is a 4 piece band of brats from Melbourne. Repeat After Me is the latest noise they've added some pictures to and released. It's punk and hardcore at it's purist: fast, intense and with a punch that'll snap your head back. A squelch of feedback is the signal for the bass and guitar to send in the clowns, from here on the pedal is to the floor. The vocal is a perfectly demented balance of gritty scream and clarity, making it listenable and moshable.
   

[tour] TakexOnexStep (ID) Singapore/Malaysia Tour (Feb 2012)

More tours! It's been so long since we've had that bit of xposicorex we're starting to think it's making the scene regress a little bit! We kid, but next month sees us West Java straight-edge hardcore kids TAKExONExSTEP storm through Singapore and Malaysia for a short 3-day tour. We don't always see Indonesian DIY hardcore-punk bands getting out of their home countries so we're in for a rare treat! They will also be releasing their The Future Value EP on this tour so look out for that.

Definitely for fans of the likes of CARRY ON, CHAMPION, and HOLDxTRUE! Let's get that index finger (or thumb! or pinky!)  ready for some finger-pointing action soon, kids.

Brought to you by Learn To Trust Records. Singapore show organized by Prohibited Projects.

[tour] Up And Atom (AU) SE Asia Tour (Feb 2012)

Well, whaddaya know -- more Aussies! Feb really shows us a chockful of 'em tours and mid-month it comes in the form of Melbourne pop-punk band UP AND ATOM! Simpsons' reference aside, this 5-piece female-fronted outfit who in the past has dropped a demo and naturally, played a bunch of shows, are just getting started. They'll be releasing an EP this month, so what better opportunity than to embark on a SE Asia tour right now?

We're loving that upbeat and happy 'easycore' sound! Look out for Singapore show details soonish.

Tour brought to you by Kongsi Jahat Syndicate and Learn To Trust Records.

[tour] Video Nasty (AU) SE Asia Tour (Feb 2012)

We told ya, Feb is Aussie month. Following hot on the heels of CLOWNS, JESS LOCKE, and VIRGINIA SOOK is fastcore outfit VIDEO NASTY. Over here we have a special penchant for short, fast, and loud bands so this is something we are highly anticipating. We've seen some pretty crazy-looking shows courtesy of YouTube with their manic vocalist Mishu so hold tight for this! 

Word has it that they will be releasing a tape in time for the tour, too. There will also be shirts. And as if all of this wasn't good enough, Malaysian and Indonesian punk kids will see this band's (English) lyrics translated into the respective native languages too. We love it when stuff is accessible to everyone.

Watch out for Singapore show details round the corner.

[event] Frottage: Casual Encounters at The Pigeonhole v. // 9th Feb 2012 @ The Pigeonhole

  Unrelenting hardcore-punk party starters 7x0x7 are at it again, bringing you the cult series of intimate musical presentations Frottage, at book cafe and dynamic arts space The Pigeonhole. Number five in the series sees indie folk-pop artists in the form of Jess Locke and Virginia Sook – both hailing from Sydney, Australia – who are touring together in Southeast Asia for the first time. Supported by awe-inducing atmospheric rock band This Is Atlantis (first show in almost a year!), and wistful acoustic trio Penpusher, this installment is a gem not to be missed.

9th February (Thursday)
The Pigeonhole, 52/53 Duxton Road
Doors open at 7.30pm, performances begin at 8pm.
$10 at the door

=====================

JESS LOCKE

Jess Locke plays simple yet infectious songs that could be folk, country, pop, indie and sometimes even punk. Hailing from the Central Coast of NSW and currently based in the heart of Sydney, she has created several collections of songs including an EP, an album of home-recorded demos and, most recently, a split tape/CD with N. Martin. Jess has been writing and playing solo since around 2006 and can now be found playing with her band all over Australia.

VIRGINIA SOOK
 

Lindsay, also known as Virginia Sook has turned her stripped back acoustic songs into full band arrangements, which brings her on the road for her SE Asia tour with good mate Jess Locke this Feb. Perfect for fans of lovely storytelling and acoustic music.

THIS IS ATLANTIS
 

With a magnificent aptitude for texture and a distinctive blend of both the intricate and organic, Fadzil, Wan G, Sufi and Noor’s chemistry makes them unmistakably This Is Atlantis. Guitar works that complement each other with each own’s unique style, sometimes uniting to deliver strength in a single guitar pattern to give their music trouble free dynamics, edge and that definitively post rock climaxes. Their drummer, quite decisively seems to refuse to give in to the atmospheric soundscapes solely, and chooses to escape by giving those ethereal melodies some little mathy calculative madness. With each member’s unique style, an arguably genuine sound arises.

PENPUSHER
 

Penpusher is quite simply a songwriting unit still in the works. Ave Chan, Brian Leery and Thomas Wu meet up with the intention to perform songs that weave observations of everyday thoughts and emotions. They try to express it all as little soliloquys that seek to take the audience into tiny worlds within tiny universes.

[event] Distro Day Out // 28th & 29th Jan 2012 @ The Substation Gallery

DISTRO DAY OUT

A Carnival of S.E.Asian DIY hc-punk-underground distros!

28+29 Jan 2012 (Sat + Sun)

The Substation Gallery, 45 Armenian Street

12 noon till 10pm both days

Admission is free

With appearances by: Prohibited Projects, Slap Bet Records, Haxanhaus Records, Straits Records, Azadghei Records, War Free Zone, Fathomless Depths, Alternaive Distro (BDG), Pustaka Semesta infoshop (KL), Thrash Steady Syndicate, Because of The Night zine, & more!

And performances by: (Sat) CIRCUITRIP, DJ URINE (FR), and (Sun) DJ BASTARD!

The organizer (Prohibited Projects) is still looking for more distros to participate so if you're interested, do get in touch: prohibitedprojects@gmail.com

[tour] Jess Locke (AU) / Virginia Sook (AU) SE Asia Tour (Feb 2012)

It looks like it's Aussie month this Feb. More than a few of those are being booked and JESS LOCKE and VIRGINIA SOOK (ooh, double bill!) provide additions to the good ol' kangaroo party. 

It's not very often that we see folk/pop DIY bands on our shores, so we're happy for that respite amidst all that raging punk intensity, as we expect something a little more laid-back, a little more wistful, and a lot more folk. We need to chill out from the harsh stuff sometimes!

This is going to be a part of the Frottage series 7x0x7 been doing at the Pigeonhole so look out for details coming your way in the next couple of days.

[tour] Clowns (AU) SE Asia Tour (Feb 2012)

This is as literal as it gets. Punk rock clowns CLOWNS (AU) will be doing a quick 2-week tour covering Singapore, Malaysia (Borneo as well!), and Indonesia so look out for them in your city.

Imagine punk and hardcore at its purest: fast, intense, and with a punch that'll snap your head back. Mosh it up, kids! Just be careful of that whiplash.

More details a-comin' your way, so watch out!

Brought to you by 7x0x7.

[event] I Heart Emoviolence X // 28th Jan 2012 @ The Lithe Paralogue Studio

We know, all you skramz kiddos have been awaiting the news for this with bated breath.

PETETHEPIRATESQUID (DE/SW) are going to be rolling in helter-skelter just like the style of post-punk/hardcore that they play, which is at times jangly, at times melodic, and at times off-kilter. Merely classifying them skramz really wouldn't be completely doing them justice!

Haven't heard of them? You've got about a week to check out their discography. No doubt, you''re going to be inching to the front to dance & sing-along to this one.

W/ supports emo revivalists PATHOS, riot-grrl hxc BLOODY REJECTS and new skramz outfit THE FURY (ex-MY PRECIOUS, that should seriously create some hype).

Doors open at 6pm, and tickets are $6 a piece. Come early and hang out!

Brought to you by 7x0x7.

[event] Identite 5.1 // 13th Jan 2012 @ Home Club

Identity.

Definition – The state or fact of remaining the same one or ones as under varying aspects or conditions.
 
I-den-ti-te aims to bring on different genres of local bands into a gathering experience. Always acting as a platform to escalate new and young talents, going forth, branding music capabilities. A new series of programming will entice freshness and depth in accordance to awareness within the local music scene. Be it from the roots of Punk and Hardcore or the progression of Post-Rock and IDM to the commercial value of Pop or the swinging beats of Jazz. These series of pure friendship and music will fill your needs on every other Friday evenings at Home Club. An introduction of what dreams are made of.

A growing brand among the local music scene, the team has churned and discovered new talented acts. Identite nights represent that love and respect that we all have for the local music scene. Come and enjoy your evening with them and communicate with and about music.

13th January, 2012, Friday, 18 and above
$12 (includes a housepour drink and entry to BEAT! after)

Brought to you by Home Club, The Rockstar Collective (RSC), and 7x0x7.

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SLEEP EASY

SLEEP EASY is a mild cocktail of daydreams, nocturnal dreams, the imagined and play-written conversations that condense from seconds of isolation in a small steel flask and drunk only in morning’s darkness or in night’s light. An attempt to project a sufficiently reasonable façade to ease the out-of-line colouring that often rises to the skin surface of its lone member. SLEEP EASY tries to be the short story secretly tucked into the front breast pocket of a writer, a paltry symbolism of reverie, of pondering and of mere thought.

THE PSALMS

The Psalms is a band formed in Singapore, circa 2006. Initially, the band dabbled in music influenced by DAUGHTERS (US) and THE LOCUST (US) with much exploration in discordance or dissonance with objectives aimed at defining and redefining music. In 2008, the band experienced a change in their lead vocals and construction in their sound.

The band was featured in an interview with France's VoxPop, a reputable music magazine, and was described as "rhythmic potency in metal sounds with guitars blending both hardcore and noise, and a voice, similar to that of Camellia Jordana calling us into singing, shouting, and story-telling." In a gig review, The Jakarta Post journalist, Ari Ernesto Purnama who calls THE PSALMS as "Singapore's pro-rock jewel" with "perhaps, if I follow my instincts, I can say that they're SUN RA with rock riffs and a jazz improv a la MILES DAVIS with surprises thrown here and there, plus distorted bass lines akin to Japan's RUINS."

PARIS IN THE MAKING

Formed in 2004, Paris In The Making started out as a five piece rock outfit formerly known as DYNA TURMOIL. Heavily influenced by the European/Japanese screamo scene infused with elements of post-rock citing the likes of heavyweights ENVY and MOGWAI, as prime examples. At present the band is planning out to finish a long-awaited full length album and an Indonesia tour is scheduled upon the release. 

NIGHT HAG

South Australia's hardcore workhorse NIGHT HAG makes Singapore their 1st stop in their SE Asia tour this month. This 2-week blitzkrieg tour will see them bring their brand of blackened hardcore to Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia in support of their debut full-length Gilded Age, which has been ranked 5th on CVLT Nation's Top 6 Hardcore Albums of 2011 list. Expect to experience anxiety-inducing black metal to threatening doom, their only constant being the hardcore energy. Relentless Australian touring (this tour being their first overseas) and multiple releases have seen NIGHT HAG develop into one of the most exciting heavy bands around, with a live show not to be missed.    

[interview] NIGHT HAG (blackened hardcore from Adelaide, Australia)

South Australia's hardcore workhorse NIGHT HAG are set to tour SE Asia in January 2012. The first trip overseas for the band will see them bring their brand of blackened hardcore to Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia, in support of their debut album Gilded Age. Gilded Age is the band's most consistent work to date, venturing from anxiety-inducing black metal to threatening doom, the only constant being the hardcore energy.

2011 has been a huge year for the band. Relentless Australian touring and multiple releases have seen NIGHT HAG develop into one of the most exciting heavy bands around, with a live show not to be missed.

We're going to cut the shit now. Check out the interview (originally posted on The Ricecooker) and hold your breath! We're anticipating this tour as much as some of you are.

I must admit, I’ve never heard of NIGHT HAG before, so help me out here and do tell a little something about the band. It would be great if you could add in on how the band came about, previous bands and what other things the band members are doing, jobs/hobbies etc.

Joe: There are five people in NIGHT HAG. Dave and I play guitar, Nathan is our drummer, Mark plays bass and Dale sings. We’ve been playing shows for about two years now. When we first jammed we wanted to make a dark but melodic punk band.

When the band started I had known Nathan for a while. We’re both the same age and we both played a lot of shows together while we were growing up. I knew Dave and Dale also from playing with bands in Adelaide, it’s not a big place really. It’s quite a small-knit music scene compared to bigger cities. I even met Mark by chance in a university lecture- in only minutes we found out we possessed many mutual friends and were even employees of the same bookstore. Not a big city. It was at this lecture that Mark schemed the first jam with this line-up. A few weeks later we got together.

We all play in a lot of other bands, and we collectively wanted to make something we weren’t used to doing. Dave and Mark used to play in a band called THE RIVALRY, Mark plays bass for another sludge band called SEX WIZARD, Dave also plays with bands SPACE BONG, GOD GOD DAMMIT DAMMIT, DEATH CULT JOCK (and close to a dozen more). Dale used to have a band called LASER DEATH RAY, he sang. He also played trumpet for GOD GOD DAMMIT DAMMIT for a while. Nathan used to play in hardcore band THE WEIGHT – they’re still going strong, excellent Adelaide band. I play guitar for another band HYDROMEDUSA and sing for a band called PRISONBITCH.

Through all of us there is lot of bands. I think we all wanted to do NIGHT HAG as a side band for a little while before we started getting organised. We realised we could do a lot as a band if we all kept the momentum up and kept constantly writing. With that, our sound has evolved since our beginnings. I think we come across as more of a metal band now, I think Dale hates this but that keeps me amused. We’ve all kept a big part of our normal lives open for whatever this band will throw at us.

I work two jobs, I sell books and soap. I used to take my clothes off for an art school. It paid alright.. Dale is a researcher/computer, he also works for the university. Bright fellow, he’s the real organizational brains behind us. Mark is a student (homeless person), Nathan is a businessman but still poor like the rest of us. Dave bangs furniture together, I think. You can also catch him playing high-paid gypsy jazz gigs.

There’s a distinct mix of harsh black-metal sounding guitars, drumming and a maelstrom of power-violence in your songs; do tell where are all these influences coming from; what are the lyrics about?

Joe: We all do different things in writing the songs. It can be a bit retarded. For instance we’ve done things very quickly in the past. I learnt the song Cynic from Gilded Age the day of the recording. As a credit to the hasty succession of the recordings it’s everyone’s style mashed up together that makes NIGHT HAG sound like it does. Dave and I write most of the riffs. We listen to a lot of metal and punk but just as much as anything else. We didn’t really take any direct list of bands we wanted to sound like when forming the band. Any creative vibe for the band is best cooked up with us verbally discussing how we want an overall release come across as. Such planning is most fluent in the album. Dale’s vocals run almost independent to the songwriting phase however. He’ll normally practice with pre-prepared lyrics- work he’s done at home. His lyrics are a bleak look at the present and the future. I’d let Dale give you a better run through on his writing though.

Can you list out how many releases have Night Hag put out and where to get them?

Joe: So far we’ve released a Demo ourselves in 2010. Then we did a lengthy EP New Tourists at the start of 2011, before releasing our debut album Gilded Age in July 2011. Demo is sold out. The other two can be sold through Capitalgames Records. You’ll also easily find all three releases for free download on the Internet, we 100% encourage this free listening*.

And how is the Adelaide or South Australian punk/HC scene nowadays; compared to what’s happening in other big cities in Australia?

Joe: Adelaide is slowly becoming an interesting place for bands again. It seems the few venues that are keeping their doors open to live music are being well received. I’ve been running a DIY warehouse venue called Animal House for over a year with a few friends. It’s also our home. We’ve tried to facilitate a space that’s helping bands rehearse (including NIGHT HAG) as well as serving as a DIY venue. For a sometimes sleepy city I’m enjoying myself here.

I’ve been to Adelaide a couple of times and went to a few shows, but where would a DIY hardcore punk band play over there nowadays? How often are there shows there and how does it work, in terms of getting the venues and such.

Joe: I’d recommend Animal House to anyone. Getting venues has gotten trickier in the last half a year even. A lot of new bands, a lot of gigs, a lot of sub-genres are getting their own following and it can all cause a few months wait in trying to book anywhere. More bands is still a good thing.

I have seen Adelaide change quite a lot these days; from quite a warm, sleepy, art-friendly little town with a lot of excellent bands, to a rather indifferent, consumerist place with lots of the old, homely hang-outs turned posh streets. What’s your take on that?

Joe: Adelaide is a bizarre place to live at times. It’s probably the most boring place to live if you can’t entertain yourself or you don’t smoke pot. There’s a lot of pot. A few arts festivals too – they’re ironically held at the same time as V8 car races. There are also a lot of old people. I think our average age is 60… Friendly people at times, cheap place to live, a little over-fed and conservative in places but equally poor and isolated in other areas. A lot of suburbs, a lot of boring people.

Are there old punks there still active? I don’t mean the usual fashion-punk horde but the ones who worked hard in the scene since the days of yore.

Joe: There are always old cunts. A lot move to Melbourne and a lot become social workers but there’s still a few. A crew of them run a pub together in Adelaide called The Squatters Arms. Great food.

Give us a list of local bands which we should check-out.

Joe: There are too many, ROBOTOSAURUS, THE WEIGHT, VAGINORS, NO ACTION. The rest of Australia also has some awesome bands going on at the moment – SUFFER, EXTORTION, WARTHREAT, DROWNING HORSE, ENCIRCLING SEA, LOOKING GLASS, KROMOSOM…

What compels the band to do this upcoming tour; what have you heard about touring SEA and what are your expectations, if there are any?

Joe: We want to play to another part of the world. SE Asia is an awesome place, and the people are cool. We’re all familiar to various parts and are feeling it’s the next step in this year’s heavy touring. We’re riding the release of Gilded Age and look forward to playing some heavy and energetic shows. I hope this trip will bring a lot of experiences I’ll keep forever. We’ve all seen it as a great honor to play this tour.

Anything you wanna say to the locals here awaiting the storm that’s coming?

Joe: I look forward to meeting a lot of new people, making friends and seeing new places. Don’t be a stranger, say hello and please show us around. 

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*Yes, that's right -- it's FREE listening, you poor punx! Download the New Tourists EP here, and the much-raved about Gilded Age full-length here.

For more info, please check out Night Hag on these platforms:

http://nighthag.tumblr.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Night-Hag/148355551854563
http://soundcloud.com/wearenighthag
http://www.myspace.com/nighthagband

Tour brought to you by 7x0x7.

[tour] Petethepiratesquid (DE) Singapore/Malaysia Tour (Jan/Feb 2012)

This is something that is sure to get the skramz fans pissin' their pants. PETETHEPIRATESQUID (DE/SW) are going to be rolling in helter-skelter just like the style of post-punk/hardcore that they play. Made up of 2 guys and 2 girls, this band plays a style that is at times jangly, at times melodic, and at times off-kilter. Merely classifying them skramz really wouldn't be completely doing them justice! Haven't heard of them? You've got about 3 weeks to check out their discography. No doubt, you'll want to inch to the front to dance and sing-along to this one.

More details for the Singapore show to be out really soon.

Brought to you by Utarid: booking and 7x0x7.

[shoutout] Blackhole Radio #8 December 2011

We're a bit late on this, but y'know, better late than never and all of that. Blackhole Radio closes the year with an 8th edition, as usual chock-full with hardcore-punk goodness. Where do we even start? One band we can't stop raving about at the moment is THE SECRET PROSTITUTES, which has one track in this podcast. Hailing out of the US, this 3-piece band features Indonesian lyrics courtesy of their Indonesian drummer. Expect some catchy but straightforward fast hardcore-punk! We're lovin' it.