5 acts you must see on the Baybeats 2024 line-up

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In partnership with Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay

Ask any Singaporean music fan about their October, and Baybeats weekend is most likely marked in bright red on the calendar. Since beginning in 2002, Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay’s annual free alternative music festival has grown from an institution for the Singaporean scene to a touchstone event for the best indie offerings from the Asian region and beyond, from India’s F16s and Indonesia’s Voice of Baceprot.

The 2024 edition of Baybeats is back with the same musical excellence and will take place from Oct 11 to 13 at the arts centre in Singapore. There’s Chinese post-punk greatness in Berlin Psycho Nurses, math rock brilliance by Japan’s LITE and so much more. And just like every year, this edition’s overflowing with a slew of Southeast Asia’s most promising indie names. NME’s got you covered for this weekend – we’ve picked five key artists playing this edition that you can’t miss.

Here are five must-see acts at Baybeats 2024

B-Quartet (Singapore)

You can’t really discuss Singapore’s indie rock canon without mentioning B-Quartet. With their sophisticated blend of cathartic guitars and lush electronic orchestration, the Singaporean quartet’s discography in records like ‘Tomorrow is Our Permanent Address’ still stands amongst the most artful and gorgeous songwriting to ever grace the city-state.

Embodied by the poetic delivery of frontman Bani Haykal, perhaps the band describes their sound best: balancing “a mildly possessed demonic discman” and “the sound of butter melting on toast on the other”. Performing for the first time since 2017, this highly anticipated reunion promises to be an emotional affair for the local scene.

October 13, 2024 (Sunday), 10:40pm at Powerhouse² (Singtel Waterfront Theatre at Esplanade)

Pick: ‘Beautiful Crash’

Tokyo Shoegazer (Japan)

Tokyo Shoegazer’s name might leave little room for imagination, but the volume this Japanese five-piece brings makes thinking pretty redundant – you feel them instead. True to the genre’s spirit, Japan’s most devout shoegaze loyalists have won international adulation for their uncompromising approach to the genre, blanketing sweet melodies with deafening sonic violence that encapsulates, in their words, “joy, anger, sorrow and pleasure”.

Since reuniting in 2019, the group have brought their fine-tuned tsunamis of ethereal fuzz around Southeast Asia. Literally bringing things up to 11 (they play with just as many amps) and armed with cult classics like ‘Crystallize’, Tokyo’s elite amplifier worshippers will prove sublime against the Marina Bay skyline – just remember to bring some earplugs.

October 13, 2024 (Sunday) 8:50pm at Arena (DBS Foundation Outdoor Theatre at Esplanade)

Pick: ‘Bright’

Lomba Sihir (Indonesia)

With a moniker meaning “Magic Contest” in Indonesian, Lomba Sihir’s sharp hooks pack plenty of star power to match. With a line-up counting members from electronic duo Mantra Vutura, alt-rockers Glaskaca and Martials, and most notably superstar singer-songwriter Hindia, the Indonesian quintet specialise in expressions of joy.

On their 2021 standout ‘Selamat Datang di Ujung Dunia’, the group celebrated Jakarta with everything from funked-up synth-pop to dance-infused soft-rock; and on their latest single ‘Tak Ada Waktu Tepat Untuk Berita Buruk’ (translating to ‘There’s No Right Time For Bad Things’), the band makes things clear: there’s always enough time for great feel-good jams. With new music due later next year, expect the Jakarta supergroup to showcase new possibilities on their Singaporean debut with a blast – or according to them, expect “their A-game”.

October 13, 2024 (Sunday) 7:40pm at Annexe (Esplanade Annexe Studio)

Pick: ‘Mungkin Takut Perubahan’

Yonlapa (Thailand)

Underpinned by Yonlapa Plenpanassak’s refreshing vocal melodies, Yonlapa’s complex songwriting and dreamy, psychedelic edge have established them as one of Thailand’s most dynamic and lovable indie rock bands. The Chiang Mai group keep pushing the envelope on their latest record ‘Lingering Gloaming’, packing memorable riffs (bop along to ‘I’m Just Like You’), and proving themselves as even better songwriters (get swept away by ‘Is That True?’).

But they’re as irresistibly sentimental as they are stylish – lose yourself in the dreamy Door Plant collab ‘I love to Sleep more than you’, or the pure indie pop sweetness in ‘Miss U So Bad’. Returning after two years to the Esplanade stage, fans are in for a treat: after rocking the Powerhouse, they’ll be indulging in their softer side too, with two sets at the Chillout Stage.

October 11, 2024 (Friday) 7:30pm at Powerhouse² (Singtel Waterfront Theatre at Esplanade)
October 12, 2024 (Saturday) 6pm and 8pm at Chillout Stage (Esplanade Concourse)

Pick: ‘Is That True?’

Science Noodles (Hong Kong)

Music always comes hand-in-hand with love. Science Noodles would know: after all, the laid-back indie poppers first met through Tinder, before settling on their dreamy concoction of summery grooves and gentle guitar pop. With members across Taiwan and Hong Kong and taking their moniker from the ubiquitous Taiwanese snack, the cross-strait sextet channels their comfort food namesake with a smooth blend of twee melodies and lazy atmospheres.

With collaborators in Thailand’s Soft Pine, and freshly off a collaborative EP with Japan’s VIDEOTAPEMUSIC, their Baybeats appearance finally marks their first Singaporean performance: ready to usher in all things “comfortable, cozy and chill”.

October 12, 2024 (Saturday) 8:50pm at Annexe (Esplanade Annexe Studio)

Pick: ‘Slowtime’

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