Lilac Saints to play first full show in 7 years
Add BT as a preferred source
ONE of Singapore’s first indie pop bands, Lilac Saints, is getting back together for a show.
The concert celebrates the members’ 35 years of friendship since their first meeting in Victoria School way back in 1987.
“We still hang out, although we do not perform (much) as a band,” said drummer-percussionist Desmond Sim, who is also the chief executive of real estate consulting firm, Edmund Tie.
The other members of the band are singer Ric Liu, guitarist-keyboardist Kevin Tan, guitarist Bhaskar Subramaniam, and bassist Eugene Wee.
Lilac Saints last performed in a stripped-down acoustic show in 2015 for So Happy, an exhibition on the history of local underground bands of the 90s.
Some members had also mounted a mini jam session during the Covid lockdown period. Sim said the jam had “brought back great vibes”, but that the concert is being planned as a one-off event.
Navigate Asia in
a new global order
Get the insights delivered to your inbox.
The upcoming performance will be a full electric set with guest singers, Joanna Dong and Dru Chen.
The band has begun writing some new songs, which Sim said might eventually be material for a new record.
“We still have our day jobs (and) planning for a full show was a humbling and tiring experience,” he added, “However, we do not think we will reject invitations to play if the opportunity arises.”
Lilac Saints was among the few local indie bands that garnered radio airplay with their catchy power-pop tunes like Gina, Nightfall and Jamaica in the 90s.
It grew its fanbase quickly with performances at now-defunct venues like The Substation, World Trade Centre Amphitheatre, Tower Records and HMV.
The band put out three albums – Halo! (1994), Lilac Saints (1995) and Awake (1999) – before adulting took over, sending its members into a hiatus at around the turn of the new millennium.
“Most of us took a break to focus on our careers and families, but we still performed for the odd wedding now and then for friends,” Sim said.
Asked why the members didn’t choose to make music for a living, he said: “To do that requires passion, talent, opportunities and a lot of luck – most of us still knew we needed our day jobs to fuel the passion.”
He added, however, that Lilac Saints is “happy to be a miniscule part of Singapore’s music history”, and added: “We hope that the music scene will continue to excite us – we do not need many Stefanie Suns or JJ Lins, but we do need to carry on the local sound and scene.”
Lilac Saints and Friends perform at the Esplanade Recital Studio on Jan 6 at 7 pm. Tickets are sold out. Listen to Halo Again: The Best of Lilac Saints on various streaming platforms.
Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter. Delivered to your inbox. Free.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
