Upfront ft. Ratatat: A Junk Music Project @ Zouk 28.5.09

On record, Ratatat's unique brand of guitar based electronic synth fest is amazingly electrifying. After watching their live performance, they certainly lived up to that and did not disappoint.

The show kicked off much later than it should be, typical local timing. Around half past 9, the lights dimmed and one word was emblazoned on the projector screen: RATATAT. The crowd response was deafening. Mike Stroud and Evan Mast wasted no time in getting the party started with the tinkering sound of LP3's opener "Shiller". The New York duo did what they do best. Thriving on the enthusiasm of the fans, Ratatat impressed everyone with their layered, structured combo of guitar + synth music perfection. Heart pounding beats and distorted guitar riffs shook the room, with random video footage like multiplying bird heads and distorted version of Paul Simon's You Can Call Me Al with Chevy Chase and fire everywhere being played from the projector to accompany the music. On another note, Stroud is an incredible guitarist to watch, expressing his showmanship as he used every square inch of the stage to dance, jump or bend over backwards.

Much of “Classics” made an appearance, with “Lex” and “Wildcat” being obvious crowd pleasers. There is nothing lack from their latest album, “LP3” as well, which includes the Spanish-flavoured psychedelic "Mi Viejo", "Falcon Jab" and "Flynn". The electronic drum clutter of "Shempi" is one of many highlights. Starting off with the eerie bleeps and distorted guitar effect, the track definitely brought the excitement out of the crowd. Stopping for a sip of beer, Stroud made sure that what didn’t stop was the constant beat, feverishly banging on the bongos after that, with Mast pouding on the tom to bring the set to a climactic end before leaving the stage.

The crowd stayed on anticipating an encore, with the notion that a Ratatat's gig would not be complete without their best known hit 'Seventeen Years'. I even spotted two more songs - 'Bruleé' and the afromentioned hit from the set list, so I presumed the band would come back for an encore to please the punters who were seen chanting 'Seventeen Years' whole-heartedly. When the light was up and the band came out to plead for the crowd to leave, I could taste a horrendous taste of regrets hanging in my throat. Apparently, the band had to cut it short to give way for a notorious 'Gaga' event that took place in the same venue later. It is such a norm to put the mainstream regulars ahead from the minority indie kids that I have no qualm anymore. A word or two to the organiser though, why left us waiting for an hour and half without any opening act where they could have called for the gig to start earlier? They could have estimated the time length of the set to schedule an earlier starting time to avoid the massive anticlimax that took place.

Despite the flaw, the band pulled off a solid show. A decent live act indeed. Good effort from the local organiser for bringing in such amazing band and we definitely hope more follow suit in the near future.

Ratatat - Seventeen Years
Ratatat - Bruleé

VHS Or Beta @ Heineken Green Room, Orange Club, 28.3.09

Another installment of Heineken Green Room has arrived, and VHS Or Beta was billed as the headliner. Other supporting acts include Djuma Soundsystem and local DJ Box Frenzy. Orange Club was the venue this time, fresh from the Battles gig a week ago.

By the time VHS or Beta hit the stage, the club was brimming over with people, clinking beer bottles and roaring shouts of excitement. The minute-long "Euglama" was playing at the background, accompanying the band to the stage before they burst into the starter notes of “Burn It All Down,” stimulating those synth and bass driven melodies that were enough for the audience to dance to.

Offering a tight band dynamic, VHS Or Beta demonstrated versatility with each member switching roles playing different instruments at some points. Guitarist/vocalist Craig Pfunder and Mike McGill's incredible guitar work, coupled with Mark Palgy funky basslines, Chea Beckley's soaring keyboard as well as Mark Guidry's thumping dico-like drums, the band did a phenomenal job of and losing themselves in song and crunchin' out some decent retro electro rock.

Newer tracks from the latest album "Bring On The Comets" like “She Says” and “Burn It All Down" were the main focus of their set, peppered with older materials as well such as "You Got Me" and "Alive". Encore saw VHS Or Beta diving into lead single "Can't Believe A Single Word", before ending the set with the climatic crowd pleaser "Night On Fire" sending the audience into a literal sea of hands clapping while shouting, ‘Put your hands together and we’ll light this night/We’ll light this night on fire.’

VHS Or Beta's overall sound was so clean, sharp and soaring that there isn't any doubt that they are a decent and solid live act. It was an very enjoyable gig indeed, or maybe the only thing I could probably find wrong with the performance was that the lead singer’s long hair pretty much shielding him from the audience the whole set. It was certainly rather surprising and rare though to listen to such amazing soundsystem in local live scene, given the few bad experiences in previous gigs. I went in knowing little about this Kentucky dance-funk enterprise and was hooked and emerged a fan after that. Bring on the next Heineken Green Room!

VHS Or Beta - Burn It All Down
VHS Or Beta - She Says

Battles @ Orange Club 19.03.09

After I witnessed the reverb brilliance of Battles in Big Day Out a year ago, me and the usual took no hesitation to lay our hands on the tickets to a rare outing by a math rock band in this part of the world.

My energy was drained from working during first half of the day, but that doesn't deter me from getting hyped up for the inventive, genre-bending sound that Battles would bring on to the gig. The boys from Twilight Action Girl warmed up the crowd after the door was opened late almost to 9pm. Then Killeur Calculateur took on the stage with their brand of hardcore punk which seemed to pleased most of the crowd.

It took a while for the technician and crew to set up, shifting keyboards stands and drumkits across the stage and plugging in wires and laptops, before the highlights of the night took the stage. The band burst out of the blocks with Race: Out, meshing together with Tij, SZ2, and TRAS, a set of funky beats bristling with intent that it sets down an immediate and impressive marker for what is to follow.

Ex-Helmet drummer John Stanier stomped his way off with his trademark up high cymbal. Pounding his drums with a scarily intense look on his face, the human drum machine created most of the band’s drive. Tyondai Braxton created live voice samples in front of our eyes, then looped them with keys and guitar like a painter at work. Ian Williams alternated between keys and guitar, and Dave Konopka in guitar complemented the math-rock superband. Highlight was one of the best tracks of year 2007 - Atlas. The epic track sent the crowd into an absolute frenzy, everyone was singing along to "singer is crook woo-eee-oh."

By the time the gig winds up an hour or so later, Stanier looked like he needs an oxygen mask or just a closet of towels. The crowd did manage to prise the band back on stage for an encore of HI/LO and Bad Trails, with Stanier's intense drumming still sounding incredibly fierce.

Despite the subpar soundsystem and ocassionally power outage, everyone left delighted with the rare reverb feast dished out by Soundscape. Definitely looking forward to more exciting events.

Battles - Tij

Jens Lekman & Viktor Sjöberg @ Annexe Art Gallery, 09.12.08

The last time Jens Lekman played at Little Havana was nearly two year ago, that little intimate gig was still fresh in my pathetically restricted memories of live acts that this deprived country could offer. The multi-talented Swedish singer-songwriter promised he would be back with a full band during his last bill here, but that promise was only half-realized this time around as he brought along his lanky protégé Viktor Sjöberg to provide catchy remix to his otherwise acoustic guitar-driven sweet pop tunes through the lovely Mac.

The crowd was having small talk and catching up before entering the small room which could house less than 300 at Annexe Art Galley, Pasar Seni. It was an interesting scene seeing how different type of people get together for music, there are the well-dressed yuppies who bragged about the latest gigs they went for overseas all night, the up-for-everything scene kids and the musically-inclined-socially-handicapped indie geeks. Of course, Jerome Kugan, the man behind the gig was also seen running around the place.

Malaysians have lazy legs, they like to sit around. They still could not get their butts off the floor when Jens Lekman started playing The Opposite of Hallelujah. 30 seconds into the song, alright, I am waiting for someone to get up first. 1 minute into the song, my legs are itchy, I want to get up and dance, everyone is still seated. Midway through the song, please get up people! I am already in my half-seated, half stood ‘squat’ position. I guess Jens Lekman could not stand it anymore too, he did this little signal raising his two arms upwards like a wizard doing his little magic trick, ‘Wham’ a streak of light came out off his wand, everyone got up and started moving around. Finally!

Seeing Jens Lekman perform makes me miss attending a gig like this, no barrier, no security, no crazy screaming fan girls, no annoying gung ho audience who comes at the last minute and elbows his/her way up to the front. Regardless of whether you were merely 1 meter away from Jens Lekman or at the last row, everyone was just having fun, humming to the songs that were played in repeat mode in their iPods being played live in their eyes now. I almost forgot how good it feels to attend a gig as carefree as this, the last time was too long ago, Andrew Bird perhaps?

Being the charismatic himself, Jens Lekman was fun to watch. His little banters between songs cracked everyone up. At a point, they were having some troubles with the sound system, Jens Lekman just ignored the havoc going around behind him and played the song acoustically, though I pitied Viktor Sjorberg who looked endearingly helpless standing behind the deck. During the lovely A Postcard to Nina, Jens Lekman was narrating the story behind the song at the intro, the witty him even did some comical expressions to go with the story. He carried on the show with crowd favourites like Black Cab, Julie and songs from the latest album Night Falls Over Kortedala like Friday Night At The Drive-In Bingo and Shirin.

Jens and Viktor came back on stage not long after the audience cheered for encore without that much effort. The duo played Sipping On The Sweet Nectar with a the music video playing at the backdrop. Jens asked everyone to dance along the beats, even himself and Viktor came down from the stage and joined the dancing crowd for a brief moment.

It was a genuine fun gig for Jens Lekman's fans and even for those attendees who have not heard him prior to the show, I am sure they are entirely converted now. Hopefully this second gig Jens played in Malaysia would not be our last.

Here's a cover which Jens played when I first saw him,

Jens Lekman - You Can Call Me Al (Paul Simon Cover)

Van She @ Heineken Green Room, Zouk KL, 01.11.08

The night I had been looking forward to since a month ago. Thank god we arrived early to avoid getting stranded outside Zouk in the long queue and missing the beast of the night Van She. We even managed to ambush the quartet before the place is packed for a quick photo shoot and brief chat. A stage was set up at the dancefloor right in front of the deck for the live set.

Van She came on stage soon after LapSap's deck warm-up around 10.30pm. The band kicked off with the psychedelic and trippy Cat & The Eye. Next the poppish Changes exploded with vocalist Nicky Routledge's mesmerizing woooh-ooooh’s and the charmingly catchy chorus. The girls up front were all dancing along to Van She's brand of 80's synth pop with a touch of rock n' roll. The band played more songs from their incredible debut V, such as the euphoric Talkin', the rock-out The Sea, the perfect single Strangers and the old favourite Kelly. Songs taken out from self-titled EP were also played - Mission and Sex City which is sampled in the equally amazing Crystal Castles' Vanished.

The band's bassist Matt Van Schie lend his vocals in the deliciously bizzare It Could Be The Same. Matt was a mere kilometre from me, so I had a good eyeful of him, I clearly understand why the lanky frame and blonde crop make him the object of 19-year-old teenage girls in Australia. Drummer Tomek Archer dropped his drumsticks and emerged from the obscured corner to lend his hands on the sequencer on So High, the final track of the set. The waves of satisfaction I experienced from the live set was dampened by the rather short duration and the disturbingly annoying photographers who were fighting for spots with the audience at the front. These photographers disguised as fans were constantly snapping away throughtout the whole set with their arms getting on our way.

It was not over yet. Vocalist Nick Routledge and guitarist/keyboardist Michael Di Francesco took over the deck briefly after Dexpistols' pounding set. Known as Van She Tech in the remix scene, the boys dropped some awesome tunes to fuel everyone on the dancefloor. The night ended with local boys LapSap spinning their usual anthems. That's the Heineken Green Room and what is awaiting us at the next installment?

Van She - Kelly (Breakbot Remix)

Let's mourn

Readyset Glo is a bi-monthly indie disco night at Velvet Underground Singapore. Previous guests include Van She, Steve Aoki and the Ed-Banger crews. People were talking about Readyset Glo presents the Mystery Jets Live on 20th September. So I got all excited, thinking that there might be chances of it happening here in KL too, or at least a trip down south would not be a bad idea. Then someone picked up a shotgun and shot me straight into my head when I heard it is cancelled.

Apparently the Camera Obscura show scheduled on 31st October in KL as per shown in their MySpace might not be happening too. All these disheartening news deserve to be mourned for.

MGMT is touring Australia in December, but this is nothing to cheer about either. It is happening a little too late, with the fact that I will be in Perth a little too soon, two weeks before the gig. I will be delirious if any organiser is willing to bring the most-hyped indie duo here. If you are reading this, and you happen to be some gig organiser/promoter or you know someone is, please spread some delightful news.

Has the sky always been this grey?

Mystery Jets - Two Doors Down
Camera Obscura - If Looks Could Kill
MGMT - Electric Feel (Aeroplane Remix)

Malaysia vs Singapore Part III

Malaysia
25/1 Pelle Carlberg & Club 8
2/2 Switchfoot
19/2 Explosions In The Sky
27/2 Backstreet Boys
9/3 Bleeding Through
14/3 Colbie Cailat
15/3 Sunburst KL Festival (Incubus. John Legend, The Roots, etc)
30/3 HORSE The Band
11/4 Sean Kingston
13/4 Celine Dion
26/4 Comeback Kid
9, 10/5 2-Days of Freedom Festival (Tiësto, Ferry Corsten, Cosmic Gate, etc)
14/5 Marié Digby
17/5 X Live Music Festival (Missy Elliott etc
25/5 Soilwork
25/5 Sick of It All
7/6 The Click Five
5/7 Mono


Singapore
31/1 Switchfoot
7/3 Incubus/Saosin
9/3 Broken Social Scene
11/3 Raul Midón
13/3 Múm
14/3 The Roots
14/3 Sondre Lerche & The Faces Down
14/3 Fujiya & Miyagi
25/3 Maroon 5
27/3 KT Tunstall
27/3 The Rakes
29/3 HORSE The Band
25/4 Comeback Kid
26/4 Infadels
28/4 Stereophonics
7/5 Elton John
13/5 James Blunt
16, 17, 18/5 Gilles Peterson's Worldwide Festival
1/6 The Click Five


This is a reluctant post. I detest making this an annual affair. We hate to love the people across the shore that love to hate us. Yet we are let down again.

I was not aware of such substantial distasteful cult followings for screamo in this territory. The fact that there are so many hoo-ha over a handful of bands from this specific genre playing in these couple of months challenges my optimistic approve for those scene kids who listen to music more than what is deemed healthy. These bands are so awfully pretentious that even Panic In The Disco sounds genuine to me. Then again, people attend such gigs because it is deemed cool to listen to bands literally unheard of, the more obscured the better. What Comeback, they were not even here in the first place?

On the other hand, radio-listening youths are getting excited over those MySpace or YouTube made artists that hit our shore. Self-claimed singer-songwriters with no talent and only pretty faces, anyone? Or a disgustingly obese teenager who does not sing and look the part? People are eager to jump on that overloaded ship when I am stranded in an island, rather starved than chewing on some dead meat.

While we are assailed with excruciating noise and tasteless gums, the people down south are so much fortunate. Canadian indie rock supergroup, good looking Norwegian pop genius, London working class post-punk revivalist, Welsh answer to brit-pop and feminine piano legend/sir, how I wish I could be there.

Will there be part IV?

Elton John ft. Pete Doherty - Children of The Revolution (Live at Live 8 - T-Rex Cover)

Incubus @ Sunburst KL, Bukit Kiara Equestrian Club, 15.3.08 - Us vs Them

We defied the sun and rain, we tolerated the excruciating pain in our ears (and eyes) from seeing the sets of the likes of Joe Flizzow, we starved, we thirsted, we endured the cynical stares of fans when we looked annoyed and zombie-fied during the set of others. We were a barricade away from the stage, we thought that was the closest we could get. In a minute or so before Brandon Boyd and boys hit the stage, we saw THEM with tags printed ‘FREELOADER’ or ‘ROCKSTAR’ in bold hanging around their necks. They stood between the barricade and the stage, alongside the balding overweight security men. I don’t care if they are Tom, Dick, or Harry’s friends, some local ‘so-called’ celebrities, or pimply teenagers with well-off parents. I was disappointed, call me cheap-skate if you want to, I have not just spend RM200 just to see some little elite heads popping up and down, have I? I tilted my head to right, and to left, so I could get a view of the band on stage from their shoulder-to-shoulder’s tiny gap. Then this photographer came right in my eyes, with his lady friend who tagged along with a big green ‘MEDIA’ tag around her neck. Clutching a nice hand bag and sporting some fancy heels, she was one of THEM. Then I saw more of them, exactly like her, dressed up nice and clean, not doing anything what a media would do. Now I know what a photographer friend is for, I shall bang my head for not having one myself.

Despite feeling ripped off, Incubus mended my dissatisfaction straight away with their brilliant performance. One hit after another were belted as we sang along to every word. The band played a mixture of older material with some tracks from their latest album ‘Light Grenades’. Brandon Boyd was charming as ever, he indeed aged well, the girls in the crowd could not take their eyes off him, especially after he went topless under the sweltering heat in this region. DJ Kilmore, almost obscured by the turntable on the stage, occasionally came up a little bit and did some awkward dance moves. Ben Kenney, the bassist was putting his magical touch to songs like Vitamin and Megalomaniac that would sound explicitly mundane if lacking his plodding bass lines. Dress in a sweat shirt, drummer Jose Pasillas sure was ready to put out all he might to add some intense drum beats to those tunes. Mike Einziger was rocking out the hooks of the band’s hits, he also played Pipa in Aqueous Transmission, the closing of a three-song encore.

After the set finished, the feeling of disgruntlement and emptiness surged in again. We applaud the effort to bring us a festival, we despise the way we ticket buyers were treated inferior to those free-riders. This is the reality, I shall get numb to this kind of injustice treatment soon. I can’t complain anywhere, can I? Perhaps here. I think I have just contradicted myself, call me a hypocrite.

-Sim-

Orange and Blue / Sun and Sky

Big Day Out 2008

Sunburst KL 2008

Couldn't they be more original?

Silverchair - Do You Feel The Same

Club 8 & Pelle Carlberg @ KLPAC, 25.1.08

Concert-deprived Malaysia has been longing for some decent international live music and the night has come true with the arrival of swedish twee pop duo, Club 8 and singer-songwriter, Pelle Carlberg.

I attended this Labrador Asia Tour on Friday with a friend. An early depart to KLPac had us waiting for more than two hours, but it paid off as we managed to meet Pelle before show, who seems to be very friendly. At 8.30pm, the door opened and we got ourselves first row, just right in front of the stage. Local bands Ferns and Couple were first up opening for the two headliners. They warmed up the crowd with their brand of power pop by playing a set of 4-5 songs each and the audience seemed to enjoy them quite a bit.

As the light went off, Johan Angergård appeared on the stage with a full line up of band, followed by the lovely Karolina Komstedt. After a brief introduction of themselves, the band kicked off the show with 'Cold Hearts'. During the second track 'Heaven', the bassist faced some technical difficulties with his bass guitar and had it changed, before drowning us back into their wonderfully Scandinavian pop melodies. The set consists of 14-15 songs, those I can recall are crowd-favourite 'Whatever You Want', 'Football Kids', 'London', 'Love In December' and 'Jesus Walk With Me'.

Karolina seemed to be rather shy on stage with her soft spoken voice. She contributed the sound of harmonica during the track 'Boyfriends Stay' while Johan injected a different element into the rather peaceful set, playing the rock number 'Saturday Night Engine' during the encore. Things seemed to be a little held back by the flawed sound system but nevertheless, the same groovy, melancholy sound of the band is still there without the loss of any of the heart, soul, and overall fun that characterise Club 8's modern Swedish pop.

After a short interval, Pelle Carlberg appeared on the stage with his band. Pelle is really an energetic and charismatic singer, playing some beatiful guitar riffs while doing dance moves along the way. Tracks played include hits from his latest album - 'Go To Hell Miss Rydell', 'Crying All The Way To The Pawnshop', 'Middleclass Kid', 'I Touched You At The Sound Check', 'Clever Girls Like Clever Boys Mucher More Than Clever Boys Like Clever Girls' as well as some old materials of his former band, Edson. There is a swing to his music that really got the crowd going. At some points, Pelle explained the meanings of his songs which mostly revolve around situations in his life as a pop artist. The audience was pretty much amused by the imaginative and witty lyrics.

The climatic 'Pamplona' was one of the highlights of the show where everyone was singing along to the catchy 'Na na na na' part as requested by Pelle himself. He also did a wonderful cover of The Darkness’s I Believe In A Thing Called Love with only his acoustic guitar as accompaniment. Duet track 'I Love You, You Imbecile' was the closing piece where Club 8 appeared on stage again to give a hand on vocal and instruments. The show ended off with the band thanking and bowing to the crowd.

Videos:
'Pamplona'

'I Love You, You Imbecile'

Surprisingly there was an autograph session held after that. Pretty weird for some indie bands to do something that normally only pop stars do.

I had an enjoyable night, and money was well spent. I went in not knowing much about the two Swedish acts and emerged a fan after that.

Bring Back Some Glowsticks, Would Ya?

Klaxons is set to release yet another single from their Mercury Award winning album, 'Myths Of The Near Future’. The 'As Above, So Below' single will be digitally released in France on October 22nd with a Justice remix as well as a French version of the original track.

Klaxons - As Above, So Below (French Version)

Speaking of Klaxons, the jealousy revives as the occasional writer is going to catch the energetic band live next week. It is totally saddening to live in this good-live-music-deprived nation. I think the organisers should consider changing their jobs. I mean Whitney Houston ? Shaggy ? K-Ci & Jojo ? Oh come on, you've got to be kidding me.

We Are Scientists - This Scene Is Dead

If I Ever Feel Better

So the occasional writer has left for Perth. With Kaiser Chiefs and Klaxons on the go, and probably Silverchair too, it seems like she will be having the time of her life there. The jealousy is killing me, and the drought for good live music in local scene has made it worse. Oh, the list of pop stars doesn't count.

Oh well, maybe I should just have to look at the bright side. It brings new elements to the blog as gig reviews and perhaps the latest in Aussie music scene will be covered. So watch out for this space in the future.

Art Brut - Jealous Guy

Speaking of gigs, the guy who delivered one of the best live performance in my rather short acts-that-I-have-seen-live list is back. As the title suggests, Jens Lekman's latest single, "Friday Night at the Drive-In Bingo" sounds nothing but joyful. Look out for his sophomore album, which is set to drop in September.

Jens Lekman - Friday Night at the Drive-In Bingo

Malaysia vs Singapore Part II

I had a similar post same time last year. It is happening again, I am so depressed. I thought 'Visit Malaysia' year could have attracted more visitors, some international acts perhaps? I want some good music, rather than rockstar-wannabe pop trash, washed-out has-been and stuck-up arrogant rapper. Local concert organiser could have done better than this.

Malaysia
15/1 Akon
20/1 Jens Lekman
26/1 Boyz II Men
25/2 Muse
8/4 Kanye West
21/4 Good Charlotte

This looks much cooler,

Singapore
16/1 Muse
24/1 Jens Lekman
19/2 Good Vibrations Festival (Beastie Boys, Cut Copy, Jurassic 5, etc.)
3/3 Fall Out Boy
11/3 José González
12/3 Yo La Tengo
15/3 The Album Leaf
17/3 Rachel Yamagata
7/4 The Rapture

The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Whatever Happened to My Rock and Roll

Indie vs Commercial

Saw the current Sony Ericsson advertisement for the Cyber shot phone couple days ago and found the song featured quite familiar, then I realized it was The Black Keys' Girl Is On My Mind. I was paying more attention to the background music than the image, now I can't even recall a single thing about the advertisemnt except for the song. The Black Keys is frequently compared to The White Stripes because of the play on the band names and both are blues-rock, two-men bands. I learnt of The Black Keys and heard a couple tunes few years back, I love The White Stripes' bluesy rock, but I just don't know why I never intend to explore any other The Black Keys' material other than Girl Is On My Mind and another one or two songs. Anyway, Girl Is On My Mind is indeed a catchy number and has been getting more spins on my playlist upon hearing it on the Sony Ericsson advert.

Goldfrapp's song Ohh La La had been used in an advertisement of a local mobile phone service provider, quite a rare feast here in Malaysia. Both The Black Keys and Godfrapp are rather obscure in this part of the world. These adverts are definitely gaining more commercial recognition for those bands, let's hope more great things happen to good indie acts which definitely deserve better exposure.

The Black Keys - Girl Is On My Mind

Goldfrapp - Ooh La La

Malaysia in Headlines

Last year, Malaysia was named one of NME's 2005 cool places for being the bootlegging capital of the world. This time, Malaysia was in the NME news for wrong reason again.

I was browsing through the NME site, "Pussycat Dolls cause controversy in Malaysia" was spotted in the news section. Organisers of Pussycat Doll show had been fined 10,000 ringgits for flouting decency laws in our Bolehland. But the fine had been reduced by 50 percent for the organisers settled the fine early. I didn't know the Malaysia's annual Mega Sale carnival even covers legal fine. Now I wonder, are we citizens also entitled discount for the fine of losing ICs? If I turn in early for robbing/snatching, do I get discount too?

Pussycat Dolls pretty much dress and move the same level of 'indecency' in their videos, how come the video are getting considerably excessive amount of airplay on local TV without being labelled as sexually suggestive as suggested by our Minister on the show? Anyway, How could you expect six strippers who disguise themselves as singers/dancers dress decently according to our Minister's standards as in what Siti Nurhaliza would wear?

Also read
Mariah upsets Malaysian Muslims
Malaysia tells US band to cover up

Sufjan Stevens - Super Sexy Woman

Malaysia vs Singapore

Let's compare:

Malaysia
28/2 Fort Minor

16/3 Lionel Richie

18/3 Dj Tiesto

Singapore

24/1 Backstreet Boys

16/2 Franz Ferdinand (f*cking brilliant!)

23/2 Oasis

1/3 Fort Minor

16/3 Kings of Convenience

17/3 Jason Mraz

23/3 Placebo

30/3 Damien Rice

4/4 Jamie Cullum

30/4 Simple Minds

These are the international acts that play in my homeland and the 'beloved' neighbour in the past few months or the near future. Well, see the difference? Guess Malaysia isn't that boleh anyway.

However,

"...Kauai or Oahu, Molokai and Lanai.
Maui and the big guy, aka Hawaii.

Cut off from Malaysia back in who knows when...

Oh, we got kinda lost, but my god, what a place.
I profess, Airforce jets cannot take away my soul."

(Exerpt from The Strokes' Juicebox B-side Hawaii)

At least The Strokes know the existence of Malaysia, which makes this so-called Boleh-land slightly cooler.