Sabiq Rafid

Music Journalist

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Hear65 • 16th December 2021

.gif's Hail Nothing film launch was a brilliant gathering of hearts, minds, and bittersweet longing

...and what a show it was. Hail Nothing (the album) was released in the spring of 2020, but barring difficult conditions the group had never managed to perform it live. Their response was cerebral - a one-take performance film via Hail Nothing Live at Snakeweed Studios, an indie short screened at The Projector.

Originally set as a two-day showcase, tickets sold out within hours, leaving many desperate for an added show. The indie-electronic duo and The Projector kindly blessed us with an add

Hear65 • 22nd September 2021

The Lion City connection: how THELIONCITYBOY aims to inject himself into the music-meets-football world as creative director

From the birth of the glorious and victorious "Kallang Roar" in the old Kallang Stadium during the 70s, packing 60 thousand fans in a 50 thousand seater, witnessing the "Dream Team" of the 90s, to the bitter defeat against Malaysia of 2014 in the new Singapore Sports Hub (which led to a parody of Taufik Batisah’s 2014 regional hit ‘#AwakKatMane’) - football in Singapore has experienced highs and lows on both club and international levels. No stranger to these moments in time, THELIONCITYBOY prev

Hear65 • 5th April 2022

Mosh pits, crowd surfers, and roaring shouts – live music's home again at spikyfruits Fruit Basket Vol. 1

It was Friday, the 1st of April, and there laid a line outside *SCAPE’s Underground of faces without masks, eagerly waiting to get their wristbands for the first standing gig without social distancing in over 2 years. No, this wasn’t a cruel April fools joke - it really happened.

Homegrown independent music label spikyfruits dished out a selection of bands which played music that demanded movement from the crowd. Hard hitting drums, playful guitar riffs, catchy synth keys, screaming voices - th

Hear65 • 15th March 2022

All roads lead to Snakeweed Studios - Singapore's musical heritage, legacy, and lifeblood

The Singaporean music landscape has been built on multitudinous backs - and everyone, from artists, producers, labels, event organisers, and listeners - has played a key role for it to blossom into what it is today. It’s nowhere near perfect, but it is ours.

With the scenes' pockets of vitality, take one look at Shun Li Industrial Park at Kaki Bukit, and you wouldn’t think for a second that this plot of land - which employs car rental services and other industrial businesses - houses an importa

NME • 30th May 2022

Creamfields Thailand turns into seated event one day before festival, attendees still filmed dancing

Electronic music festival Creamfields Thailand became a seated event with one day’s notice after a local police statement calling on attendees to refrain from dancing – a call that was disregarded, as footage from the two-day festival shows.

The UK-founded dance music festival Creamfields made its Thai debut in the city of Pattaya on May 28 and 29. However, on May 27, a day before the festival, local police announced that the sale and consumption of alcohol would not be allowed during the event

Hear65 • 18th March 2022

Ʉ₱ⱠØ₳Đł₦₲ SG releases Time Capsule ft. 18 diverse tracks - a celebration of Singapore's electronic circuit

Singaporean stalwart electronic artist Intriguant has released a compilation album Time Capsule via Ʉ₱ⱠØ₳Đł₦₲ SG, a live event showcase for homegrown electronic music.

The 18-track album features a bevy list of 20 rappers, singer-songwriters, producers, and DJs that transverse the gamut of electronic music in Singapore. They are BGourd, Kitty Purrnaz, fzpz, Kelly Raphaelle, MZA, Zrina, Bongomann, Halal Sol, Kiat, OmarKENOBI, Fauxe, O$P$, Cravism, Intriguant, Oftrt, NADA, Mervin Wong, The Analog

Bandwagon Asia • 28th January 2022

Remembering St. Jerome's Laneway Festival 2018, four years later - photo gallery

Four years ago, on the 27th of January, we saw the very last St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival in Singapore. For many of us, the start of the year meant only two things: trying to keep up with your new year’s resolution, and attending Laneway.

The staple Australian festival, known for parading off-left and alternative burgeoning acts instead of mega headliners, first arrived on our shores in 2011, bringing along the likes of the inimitable Beach House, powerhouse UK rockers Foals, and creators of t

Hear65 • 23rd November 2021

Filled with vigour, Saints Amongst Sinners brought us on An Adventure of Cosmic Proportions - gig review

I, along with some 349 others sat and paid witness to the glory of Saints Amongst Sinners at their album launch showcase on the 13th of November. Being cozied up in the seats of Esplanade’s Concert Hall while the 7-piece outfit brandished their instruments around the stage felt like a crime, every inch and fibre in my body was screaming to stand up. Their energy, ever infectious - their stage presence, transcending heights beyond belief.

Visuals inspired by the journey of the band thus far back

Hear65 • 16th November 2021

Alternative parties: Dissecting the nights we'll never forget with EATMEPOPTART, Ginette Chittick, and EMONIGHTSG

When you think of parties, the immediate association one might have is clubbing, which in turn leads you to think of stalwart nightlife institutes like Zouk, F Club, Bang Bang or even Baliza. While genres like EDM and reggaeton dominated most of the alcohol-induced partying scene in Singapore, there has always been an alternative space cultivated by tastemakers and alternative-experience seeking people alike.

Take for an instance, label Darker Than Wax’s BREW. Spearheaded by Dean Chew, co-found