observatory
/əbˈzəːvət(ə)ri/
noun
1. a room or building housing an
astronomical telescope or other scientific equipment for the study of natural
phenomena.
a position or building that
gives an extensive view.
Two guitarists and a percussionist took the
stage and set off a suite of complex musical movements spanning gamelan/dulcimer ensemble playing, live electronic manipulation, electric
maelstrom improvisation and post-punk twin-guitar-led incursion to sonic delirium.
Before you are fully conscious of what hit you, it is over. On a warm and humid
July evening, the Observatory as a trio unleashed what could possibly be the gravy
of what their yet-to-be recorded album might sound like: an intense, adventurous music phenomena.
The current line-up of The Observatory is a compact squad of veterans and the not-so-new: with one of the early members, Dharma’s return to
the foil, joining Chee Wai and Cheryl Ong remaining from the previous roster,
The Observatory are visibly distinct from all the prior casts of the seminal
Singaporean avant rock group. Leslie Low’s exit in 2018 spelt the end of the
association of his signature heartfelt verses with The Observatory which used to come
along with his instantly recognisable keening baritone. Another is the departure of Vivian Wang, who provided the group in past with some of the most exciting sonic textures, has left for her further studies.
In many ways, local music
fans have taken them for granted in both The Observatory and the local rock
scene since the start of the century. Chee Wai agrees that it is a big shoe to
fill in due to the fact that there is no vocalist now. Dharma adds on that with
the strong lyrical presence of Leslie in the past, it can be seen as
challenging for The Observatory to move ahead.
Challenges, however, always mean
opportunities. “There are limitations, but it is also freeing for us.”, the
trio concur affirmatively. A wide open space, to cast aside expectations and
re-chart a new or even multiple overlapping forward directions for The
Observatory seems to be in the air as I sit in the Observatory studio space with them at
Goodman Art Centre one August Sunday afternoon.
Filling in the spaces have been a term
brought up often at this juncture of the talk: the spaces vacated by the lack
of the low end besides the human vox and its associated utterances. Chee Wai
shared about the recent rehearsal and songwriting process as a break from the
past. Modular, a nimble mix of composed frames with ample room for
improvisation, musical deep dives and freak-outs, which the trio showcased on
the first night of Nusasonic/BlackKaji. This leads one to ask the question
about what The Observatory is.
The concept of space comes up again. A
space for creation which presciently was also the original creative ideation
and vision of Leslie Low and his band members when Mach I of The Observatory
was initially conceptualised around twenty years ago. The Observatory have
never been about going down the ‘band’ way of a conventional rock group
although once plugged in, they can take flight and soar like any top rock
groups out there. From around A Far Cry
From Here, the band have been pushing against the musical boundaries of
what many people think they know the band for since the mid 2000s. Yes,
Leslie’s voice might seem to be a ubiquitous presence but so do the crunching
guitars, the atonal electronic simmering, the ambient stirrings, the majesty
song arrangements a la King Crimson and Soft Machine and so much more that one
would expect to hear in the various permutations of sonic innovation till
today. The Observatory have never been a band to pander to the audience from
the get go; instead the band have been a beacon of taste shaping and making; bringing
the fans and skeptics along for a meaningful journey of musical exploration and
meeting-of-the-mind-heart-and-soul by channeling past and current sonic fellow
travellers from the fields of Progressive Rock, psychedelia, electronica,
post-rock, industrial and noise, weird folk and beyond.
The Observatory’s unwavering persistence
and resilience to defy market forces and musical trends have earned them
admiration and adoration from music fans both in Singapore/Southeast Asia and
globally. The extra-band activities of the group of curating and organising
musical festive events like Playfreely and BlackKaji, in a way, is what Dharma
has so aptly articulated as ‘part of the responsibility’ of The Observatory to
walk along side, to nudge and to gently and sometimes proactively connect
artists, musicians, writers, organisations and fans together. He is thankful
that The Observatory have come from the nurturing of the scene and it is only
right to help grow the scene. The lineup for the recent BlackKajiXtra Nusasonic's
festival stable of local rising stars like Pupa, Fauxe and Horizon 99, also
.gif at 2018 rendition of Playfreely firmly put to action what he, Chee Wai and
Cheryl strongly believed in – the idea of a community. But this community does
not stop at the borders of this island republic. There are always global
considerations and hence corresponding curation of musicians from the rest of
Southeast Asia, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and elsewhere in the world
meant a network which The Observatory have been actively plugged in for years.
It is not just about connecting with other
musicians and artists, but their rhizomatic nodal sprawl also extends to
organisations like The Observatory’s partners in the recent Nusasonic/BlackKaji event in July with Goethe Institute, CTM Festival for Adventurous Music
& Art (Berlin), Yes No Klub (Yogyakarta) and WSK Festival of the Recently
Possible (Manila). It is about expanding beyond the limited creative space of
the tiny island republic. Chee Wai’s other musical collaboration with the East
Asian artists like Otomo Yoshihide (Japan), Yan Jun (China) and Ryu Hankil
(South Korea) as Far East Network (FEN) exemplifies the zeitgeist of an adventurous
contemporary artist in today’s world: with reduced state support and
accelerating parochial nationalism, driven by the failure of neoliberal
capitalism to deliver the goods, the artist needs to seek not just creative
partnership, but build collaborative and generative networks.
"The Observatory – a name that may suggest passive objectivity, but which really describes a band whose music is an impassioned response to the society it is enmeshed in. Here is a band that has, in its close-to-20- year history, been ever ready to speak truth to power, whether through the symbolic force of words or physical intensity of sound. The latest constellation of The Observatory features Yuen Chee Wai and Dharma on guitars, efx and objects; and Cheryl Ong on drums; with Ong and Yuen multitasking on electronics. This marks The Observatory's latest sojourn into wordless territories and atonalism, with influences from postpunk to free improv and experimental electronics – a vibrant ecology of pulsing vibrations, extended freeplay and propulsive motorik-tions.
Music for those who still care. Music for a new world."
The above paragraph can be taken as a resolute statement of intent, a manifesto. Rather than letting others define, portray and signify them in sometimes inaccurate or misunderstood ways, they stake the flag in the ground, firmly, themselves. A musical endeavour of longevity and vitality, the three of them are forewarning us about what is yet to come.
So plans for The Observatory in its current
guise as a trio? Dharma, Chee Wai and Cheryl shared that they are looking
forward to a new album in the near future. With blessings from Leslie and Vivian to the three
of them when they left last year, the group wants to show you a different view from
one which you have been used to.
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