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
via FoxyTunes

Awesome-ness (personified)

What do you get when Steven Tyler, Axl Rose, Slash and Joe Perry share the same stage? Total awesome-ness. Check this video out, my readers, Especially if you're hardcore Classic rock fans.



no seriously, its an insane performance. Think titan meets titan, think , think Subway meets Starbucks, you get the deal.

Cya'll later.

Commercialism; The Bane Of Art?

I would like to start this post off with a re-cap and update on the latest that's been going on in my life.

*scroll down right to the article if you're uninterested. (I would if i were you. lol.)

Firstly, i spend the last couple of days at my school's orientation; the School Of Business Management (aka. SBM) at Nanyang Polytechnic (aka. NYP) where I enrolled in Diploma for Media Studies and Management.

The past two days were memorable. My social circle expanded as I met new people and naturally, made new friends in the process. With that, through various games, cheers, tours around the school and the time spent together, my class and I bonded well.

MS0801, you guys are great!
We're easily the best OG!

The grand finale was simply epic; everyone was freaking high and dancing around. Evidently, everyone had their fair share of fun. Now let us work hard together and strive for the best academically! And once again, cheers to the new friends I made during the past 2 days or so. You guys are simply awesome.


That's that.
Well, as you're able to tell, I've been pretty busy for the past couple of days socialising amongst my new mates. Though this is no excuse, I didn't really think of topics to write about during the duration of the orientation.

However, at the band meeting held today, I chanced upon an interesting piece of argumentative topic that our Bassist had to complete for his GP (General Paper).

"Commercialism distorts the value of art" Discuss

The title caught my eye like a light in the dark and obviously, I wanted to give it a shot. He (the Bassist) was more than happy to let me help him complete his piece of homework. But seriously dude, you owe me lunch or something lol.

In the case of an argumentative topic such as this, I feel that the topic itself has to be carefully and extensively scrutinized, word for word for one small misconception or misinterpretation will mean that the article will render utterly useless.

In this case, the word "Commercialism" would be properly defined as an adjective which means something that is "organized principally for financial gain" (as cited from dictionary.com). The keyword here is "financial gain", take note of it.

The word "distorts" means to ruin, destroy, defame or strip of the true meaning and beauty in this case or art; general degradation in this case.

However, there is a choke hold in this notion in the phrase "value of art" partly because the phrase is vague and that there are many degrees of definition to it. It also largely depends one's point of view on the phrase. To some the "value" of art might be its material price, the person who draws it or how old it is for example and to others, this "value" might refer to the quality or the technique used in the art.

We stand before another grey-area for the definition of the word "art" is vague. A sane and logical definition in this context would probably be "The conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty, specifically the production of the beautiful in a medium" (as cited from dictionary.com again). The definition itself is vague as there are many grey-areas in between however, in this case, it isn't needed to fully define the term "art" or segregate it for we are able to treat it as a generalisation.

The next step is probably to piece the pieces together and formulate a simple yet effective definition of the entire notion. From my perspective, all it means is that the title is asking if one agrees or disagrees that the act of Commercialism of Art is only in the interest of financial gain and in doing so, defeating the true purpose of Art, thus degrading it to a level.


Commercialism of Art is something that has been done for quite a period of time in our modern society. This is evident on three fronts of art, which I will be focusing on in this article; Audio, Visual and Physical.

Audio art basically refers to Music, songs and various auditory related mediums. Commercialism is especially evident in this aspect largely due to the fact that there are many different genres and classifications for audio art. Music, itself has different genres. From Rock to Blues, R&B to Jazz; the list goes on.
Commercialism has indeed affected music in a way as there are certain segregation from the genres. The Rock genre, for instance, has a sub genre classified as "indie rock". No, Indie Rock has nothing to do with Bollywood or Indian films; its defined as an artist or a band that is unaffiliated with a larger or more commercial organization. It basically means that its a certain type of music that is uncommercialised.
In comparison, many die hard Rock fans will tell you that they prefer Indie Rock to their mainstream counter parts.

Why is this so?

Content. The content of mainstream music as compared to indie music is largely different probably due to the fact that mainstream music is controlled by a certain authority in terms of content. Instrumental-wise, the unique sound of the indie music scene is the missing ingredient that fans are looking for. Many feel that by commercialising, the true essence of music is lost as is it replaced by the need for more money.

But is this true?

I personally feel that obviously, there's a difference between commercialised and uncommercialised music, but not all artists or bands lose the "essence" of music as they make the transition from indie to mainstream. Only a number of them will suffer a distortion in terms of their artistic value and in fact to some, mainstream music would appear more appealing as indie music doesn't cover a wide spectrum of thought in their content; it caters to only a limited capacity.

Let us move on to the aspect of Visual art-form. When we say visual art, things like paintings and drawings and sketches comes to mind. Commercialism is actually the key in marketing and that is especially prominent in the field of visual art.
Not alot of people enjoy works of visual art as it is often concluded that it takes a certain degree of understanding and appreciation to fully immerse oneself in visual art. And it is due to that fact which makes commercialism an advantage in this aspect.

Through commercialism, the masses will be able to be exposed to various works of art and henceforth, develop and cultivate an interest and appreciation for it. They will begin to understand the true meaning of a particular piece of work and the complexity behind it.

But how about the quality? Will it be compromised in anyway?

No. In this case commercialism, as mentioned, is an advantage. We see examples like Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" and controversial piece "The Last Supper", or Vincent Van Gogh's beautiful piece "Starry Night" or even Michelangelo's "The Creation Of Adam", all of them awesome and intricate pieces of art that have undergone commercialism to a certain extent; they are now world famous pieces of art.
The point here is that the beauty of visual art pieces such those mentioned above isn't in anyway compromised as these works of art are not fabricated solely for the purpose of commercialism and therefore in this case, commercialism is considered an advantage.

Physical art basically refers to various landscapes, structures and revolves around the beauty of the natural environment. Places like Mount Everest, The Great Pyramid Of Giza, The Great Wall of China, Easter Island Statues, Aztec Ruins, The Stonehenge and The Col0sseum are just some of the beautiful examples of physical art we have on Earth.

The effect of commercialism on physical art pieces such as those mentioned however, isn't that beautiful. Commercialism means promotion and financial gain (as mention earlier) and in this case, tourism comes into play due to the fact that it is a major source of income to many countries and businesses.
Having tourists in the area would mean destruction or degeneration in the quality of these physical art pieces. Pollution will soon follow due to the fact that with the arrival of tourist; relevant infrastructure would have to be built to accommodate.

Clearly, physical art will not benefit much from commercialism as it will lead to distortion and over time, complete destruction. The value will drop and eventually perish. This is a case whereby commercialism will not benefit the value of art as only financial gains are thought of and as a result, the quality will deteriorate.

Like a coin with two different sides, an advantage and a disadvantage is obvious in the topic of Commercialism and the effects it has on the value of art.

However, I personally feel that Commercialism doesn't distort the value of art and thus disagree with the notion. Yes, the fact that Commercialism might bring harm and pollution to various art forms (like physical art), Commercialism is also a boon in certain aspects. Commercialism doesn't defeat the whole purpose of art but more rather, refines it into a modern context; to increase exposure and audience.

Thus i conclude that Commercialism is not the bane of Art.