Lonely Road; The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus Live in Concert.

The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Lonely Road Concert, Live in Singapore.

What a horrible idea.

Yes indeed it was, as you managed to get out of your seat and squeeze your way out of the packed bus 88, with majority of the commuters on board being the after office crowd.

For the pass hour or so, you’ve been stuck on the bus, trying to get to Downtown East, more specifically for the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus concert; something you’ve been looking forward to since one of your friends told you about them coming to town a few weeks back.

And as you got off the bus, a quick glance at your phone revealed no more than 45 minutes to the “start” of the show. Well, at least that was the timing written on the ticket.

but most importantly, your friends were already at the concert venue, waiting for you. You felt really really bad for making them wait and after explanatory text messages and even phone calls, you decided to take a cab; desperate times calls for desperate measures.

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Not long after, the cab reaches the destination and you got off, with much a heighten sense of rush and of course, anxiety.

In the distance, you see a vague outline of a tent which is D’Marquee, the concert venue.

You decided that it would be faster to take the “back route” and as you were walking pass the back of the tent, you notice a couple of men dressed in suits who struck uncanny resemblances to a couple of members of the band (namely Bassist, Joey Westwood and Drummer, Jon Wilkes).

However as you were running short on time, you decided that it would have been wiser to join your friends, who were already in the queue. (later on, you realise that those weren’t members of the band but were merely part of the entourage ie. sound guys/stage hands.)

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The queue was of significant length but thankfully, your friends were already at the front portion of the steadily moving line of concert goers.

And not long after that, you guys were already in the concert hall.

The venue was relatively small as compared to previous concert venues you’ve been to (ie. Singapore Indoor Stadium, Fort Canning Green) but nevertheless, it provided ample space for everyone, a crowd of about 200 strong and growing with people streaming in steadily.

You and your friends decided to filter right as you know what happens in the middle of the crowd during rock concerts as such. (!)

The Set, for 2 bands on showcase.

A glimpse of the stage revealed the set for the night’s entertainment. As you understand from one of you friends, A Vacant Affair, local band from Singapore, will be opening the show, thus explaining 2 drum sets on stage. (another one clothed, behind the other, faintly seen in the picture.)

And you knew that it was due to the fact that Jon was a left handed drummer, which meant that he would have to use a different set configuration.

Hunger soon exhumed in the form of stomachs growling as you and your friends soon felt the tinge to eat, having to have not had anything decent to eat prior to the concert.

Your group soon engaged in casual conversation while waiting for the show to start. (With topics largely centred around food.)

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A while later, the stage lights dimmed and the crowded erupted into cheers. Needless to say, the opening band was about to perform.

Local rockers, A Vacant Affair, soon took the stage and warmed the crowd with tunes of their own.

A Vacant Affair’s set.

You felt that A Vacant Affair’s set was a tad too loud for your liking and you didn’t really grasp the lyrics of their songs. You also thought that their guitars were over cranked and overwhelmed the rest of the band.

You did however, enjoy the stage presence that the guys from AVA brought out (they were really energetic).

But at least the band got the crowd warmed up for the main event and as they left the stage, the crowd was all hyped up for the band that they paid and came to see.

Chants of “red jumpsuit, red jumpsuit!” were heard from sections of the crowd, indicating their excitement.

Perhaps the worse part of the whole thing was waiting. As hunger was already creeping up on you and your friends, it made the wait seemingly longer, and nearly unbearable; evident from the rest of the crowd as well.

You knew that the crowd had gone restless (and on the verge of insanity) when they starting cheering at the sound man who started to tune the guitars and tested the microphones.

And so you waited. And waited…

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After a seemingly lifetime’s duration of waiting, the house lights started to dim, and as if on cue, the crowd went crazy.

Yes, it was about time. Slowly, you see the various band members come onstage in minimum lighting.

The hi-hat sounded and a familiar tune soon resumed. The crowd went wild.

High Octave action satisfies everything.

Sounds of their newest hit single, “You Better Pray” soon filled the air and everyone jumped along in excitement and anticipation.

You too felt the rush of excitement and was soon grooving to the catchy beat of the new tune, as with the other people in the crowd around you.

And strangely, your hunger pangs were seemingly cast aside as you sang along to the familiar tune.

The New Line-up.

You knew that not too long ago, Elias Reidy, former guitarist, left the band and the once group of five was reduced to a 4 man set.

Interestingly, the band managed to find a stand-in guitarist (dude with the red guitar to the right of the pictures above) and was introduced to the crowd, though unfortunately, you didn’t get the name of.

In a moment of comic relief, you and your friends agreed that he looked like Jack Black. You even shouted out to him, much to the amusement of the people around you.

Tunes which you already know by hard.

More familiar tunes were belted out. From the highly energetic “False Pretense”, which got the crowd clapping, to the head-banging favourite of “In Fate’s Hands”, there was hardly a moment’s respite from the high tempo rock tunes that the band jammed to.

You felt really good as you sang along to almost if not all of their songs, for these guys are probably the top of your list of favourite bands.

You also felt that most of their songs were very suited for crowd interaction, as the crowd could usually clap along, sing along, or in someway or another, get involved with the song.

The song, “Waiting” was one good example, where the crowd had to sing to parts of the chorus.

“We’re gonna play more songs off our old record tonight since we’re here for the very first time.”

This led to even louder cheers from the crowd as lead singer, Ronnie Winters, interacted with the audience, clearly being more comfortable and familiar with the older records.

You also thought that Ronnie’s ability to scream for such sustained periods of time was simply amazing and awesome.

Mellow at times as well.

The night was not all rock and roll though.

Melodic tunes ensured in the form of “Cat and Mouse”, a sub-piano piece where guitarist Duke Kitchens took to the keys. The song got the crowd singing and swaying as Ronnie showed his vocal capabilities in the form of mellow and highly emotional melodies.

Head Bang. Now.

Everything soon resumed after that mellow respite.

“What do you guys wanna listen to now?”

Drummer Jon Wilkes questioned the crowd only to be responded by endless tirades of “Face down!” screams from the crowd.

That all too familiar starting drum rift soon played and the crowd when into a mode of frenzy.

You thought your ear drums were going to give way as the crowd around you screamed at the top of their lungs.

Naturally you know that everyone in the hall would know “Face Down” and as if to confirm that claim, everyone sang along to the catchy song about an abusive relationship.

You felt that the lyrics to the song after, “Justify” were especially interesting and thought provoking.

A crowd pleaser.

Your legs are tired. Your voice, sore from singing along. Your stomach, growling.

“Pen and Paper”, your personal favourite from the new record was played but other than that and the opener, “You Better Pray”, you hardly remember any other songs from the new record.

A mini interval followed and several members of the band left the stage. Ronnie however, walked over to reach for his acoustic guitar.

And the crowd knew which song it was for.

He started out a couple of random tunes on the guitar but you couldn’t really make out what song it was.

“Your Guardian Angel” soon echoed in the air and everyone sang along, obviously to a song that they’ve heard or have come across before.

“I wanna see that mosh pit over there reforming.”

The concert was drawing to its climax but the crowd’s spirit remained as high as ever.

For a moment you felt like joining in the mosh pit that had opened up for the last song, “Grim Goodbye” upon Ronnie’s request, but you chose otherwise.

And with one final octave, the concert ended and the band left the stage, throwing drumsticks, guitar picks and random balls or tape (which was stuck to Joey’s back at one point) into the crowd. You almost managed to catch that ball of tape.

Awesome Experience. Awesome Concert.

Your legs crumbled as you walked out of the concert hall, clearly satisfied. Your voice is sore from singing along to all the songs played by the band.

And as you hobble off in search of food and refreshments with your friends, you can’t help but think that that was one of, if not the best concert you’ve ever seen in your life, thus far.

With tunes still replaying in your head, you head out through the exit, as with hundreds of others, with that look of satisfaction splashed across their faces.

Hopefully these guys will be back, you thought to yourself. You could really use such an awesome experience again.

-> The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Lonely Road concert live in Singapore, 10 March 2009. 2 thumbs up!

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Hope you guys enjoyed the little review for the awesome concert that is the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Be sure to check back for more updates and feel free to comment and feed back if you have something to say!

*The owner of metallic-stains apologises for the poor image quality as seen in this post largely due to the fact that resident camera, Audrey, wasn’t on duty on the night of the event due to safety concerns. The songs as mentioned in the post wasn’t the full set list for the night as memory fails on some of the titles played. This review of the above event only represents one opinion and may or may not be an accurate indication of the concert’s entertainment level. Readers are advised to discredit or credit the post, based on your opinion.

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Now playing: The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus - Waiting
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