Written by Amanda Rizkita
If you are suffering from an agonizing thirst for good music, arts, and design (which—considering that we just ended exams, is very likely), make sure you make yourself available on 3 December 2011.
Because UpToTheSky Festival is surely going to let you off the hook with a holy matrimony of music, arts, and design—including seventeen regional and international powerful musical acts. The festival expects 2,000+ people to attend and will be held at Old School, Mount Sophia, from 1130am to 11pm on December 3. Tickets go for $70 for students and $95 for everyone else. The festival is also linked to the worldwide digital release of the SEA Absolute Indie Compilation album, featuring a variety of musicians from countries around Southeast Asia.
Music
The music concerts will be divided into the Outdoor Stage (main stage), and the Indoor Stage (acoustic stage). Below is the line-up for both stages; we’ve also highlighted a couple bands that you should really check out if you decide to come. For the others, click on the hyperlinks to see examples of what the music is like.
Outdoor Stage
11:30-12:30: They Will Kill Us All (Malaysia)
13:00-14:00: Sore (Indonesia)
14:30-15:30: The Trees & The Wild (Indonesia)
The Trees & The Wild’s name should by now ring a bell, if not a rekindled enthusiasm, as this is their third visit to the land of Singapore. The band, which are known for blending traditional Indonesian folk element with post-rock prolonged buildup, gained a great honor recently for being named as one of the ‘must see acts 2011’ by the TIME magazine. Having cemented a solid reputation (and still continuing to do so), TTATW are expected to take a spotlight during this festival.
16:00-17:00: White Shoes & The Couples Company (Indonesia)
One of the best 25 bands on MySpace according to Rolling Stone magazine, this band will showcase their ability to transport their audience back to the 30s and the 70s eras. Be prepared to have your visual and hearing senses provoked by their music and vintage outfit (performing retro music only makes sense when you are wearing a matching attire, after all). Also, you might face difficulties keeping your hands and feet still as their breezy melodies tempt you to sway along. Just a precaution.
17:30-18:30: The Great Spy Experiment (Singapore)
19:00-20:00: Chad Valley (United Kingdom)
20:30-21:30: Deerhoof (United States)
The Trees and the Wild
22:00-23:00: Mogwai DJ set (United Kingdom)
Indoor Stage
12:30-13:15: Little Fox (Thailand)
13:45-14:30: 9 Maps (Hong Kong)
15:00-15:45: Cambodian Space Project (Cambodia)
16:15-17:00: Bani Haykal (Singapore)
17:30-18:15: Muon (Singapore)
18:45-19:30: Tenderfist (Malaysia)
20:00-20:45: Zebra and Snake (Finland)
Other Programs
The festival is also going to feature an original screening program of independent music videos with projections from the widely respected experimental filmmaker Vincent Moon, Jakarta-based videographer (also JakartaConcerts’ co-founder) Dimas Wisnuwardono, Singaporean multi-disciplinary artist Ho Tzu Nyen, and progressive collective of Jakartan artists Ruangrupa.
UpToTheSky also ensures that design and fashion zealots receive a special treat (with no trick) by holding a music posters exhibition by KittyWu Records and a swell flea market with guaranteed-to-be-nifty stalls. The exhibition, called Rock! Paper! Poster!, will showcase over 20 limited-edition screen-printed concert posters for bands including Death Cab for Cutie, Feist, Arcade Fire, The Pixies, and Sigur Ros.
Your jolly belly will not have to wait long for a gentle, loving pat from you because there will be good food and good beer available in the venue. (Yay!)
UpToTheSky Festival 2011
December 3rd 2011
Old School @ Mount Sophia
Tickets at 70 SGD (student) and 95 SGD (adult)
