SINGAPORE – In this weekly column, The Straits Times curates the most buzz-worthy music you need to know about now.
Ace Album: Green Day – Saviors
“We are the last of the rockers/Making a commotion,” Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong sings in the title track of their latest and 14th album.
It is an overblown statement, of course, even if it comes from one of the most commercially successful American rock bands in the last three decades.
But even as the three members hit middle age – Armstrong, bassist Mike Dirnt and drummer Tre Cool are all 51 – they exhibit much of the energy and spunk that catapulted them from pop-punk upstarts to global stars.
Thematically and musically, Saviors shares a lot in common with Green Day’s two most successful albums – mainstream breakthrough Dookie (1994) and American Idiot (2004).
The lyrics revisit some themes behind the two releases – mostly the breakdown of society (The American Dream Is Killing Me, Look Ma, No Brains!, Coma City), but also puppy love (Bobby Sox) and the love of rock ’n’ roll (Corvette Summer).
The trademark thick power chords, earworm hooks and frantic rhythms are on full display, but the zest and enthusiasm are also tempered by experience and mellowness.
This is most evident in Father To A Son, one of the album’s acoustically driven ballads, a heartfelt ode to parenthood and family ties. – Eddino Abdul Hadi
Chart Champ: Ariana Grande – Yes, And?
American pop star Ariana Grande has another winner on her hands with her latest single, Yes, And?.
The infectious dance-pop tune went straight to No. 1 on the United States Billboard singles chart, her eighth song to top the same chart. The song also topped Billboard’s global chart.
Yes, And?, which has elements of house music and New York City’s ballroom scene, is from her upcoming seventh album Eternal Sunshine, scheduled for release on March 8. If it sounds familiar, that is because it is also heavily influenced by Madonna’s 1990 dance-pop hit Vogue.
The tongue-in-cheek lyrics seemingly take aim at the public’s obsession with her private life – the Grammy-winning singer-actress was allegedly the cause of the split between actor-singer Ethan Slater and his wife in late 2023.
Grande wrote Yes, And? with Swedish hitmakers Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh. Martin now has 24 No. 1s, surpassing The Beatles record producer George Martin as the producer with the most chart-toppers on the US Billboard singles chart.
The song also debuted at the top of the Spotify Global Chart and went to No. 1 on Apple Music’s Top 100 Global. – Eddino Abdul Hadi
Stream This Song: Stefanie Sun – Appearance
Wistful and nostalgic, Stefanie Sun’s new single will have you reaching for that long-forgotten secondary school yearbook.
The sentimental track by the Singaporean singer recounts the appearance of a loved one from decades ago, untouched by the ravages of time, and the idealistic dreams of one’s youth.
Penned by Chinese lyricist Gou Lin, lines such as “Don’t forget your first dream/It was a rainbow dyed by heavy rain” are pregnant with reminiscence.
It is perfect as the theme song of the Chinese drama Love Endures (2024), which recounts the experiences of childhood sweethearts who reunite after a period of separation, and remember the aspirations of their younger selves. – Benson Ang
Must-see MV: 831 – I Love, I Love
Who says you cannot shoot a good music video in just one location? Taiwanese pop-rock band 831 rose to the challenge, and released an entertaining one on Jan 12 for their new rollicking single I Love, I Love.
Filmed entirely at the EZ5 Live House, a pub and performance venue in Taipei, the music video works because it deftly switches up camera angles and modes of storytelling, and cleverly uses props to keep the viewer engaged.
It stars Taiwanese actress Ally Chiu as a cute alien in a metallic spacesuit, who enters the venue where 831’s five members – Sky Deng, Dan Tsai, Up Lee, Orange Yang and Be Liu – portray employees who are off duty.
She proceeds to experience what it is like to be human – from biting into a durian-shaped cake to her first taste of bubble tea – before finally becoming part of the band’s performance.
It is a kitschy concept, but so charming because of Chiu’s performance. The props – from a fake skeleton to a mystical ball to a set of solar system mobiles – add to the video’s whimsical appeal. – Benson Ang
Singapore Scene: Sean Hong Wei & Jeremy Monteiro – The New Jersey Sessions
The New Jersey Sessions is the debut album of Singaporean jazz saxophone player Sean Hong Wei and a collaboration with his mentor, home-grown jazz maestro Jeremy Monteiro.
It briefly went to No. 1 on the overall chart and jazz chart on iTunes Singapore within two days of its release on Jan 1, beating heavyweights such as American pop star Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version, 2023) and K-pop duo TVXQ!’s 20&2 (2023).
Comprising nine tracks, it was recorded in 2022, shortly after the 25-year-old saxophonist moved to New York City.
The album also features other esteemed jazz musicians – bass player Jay Anderson, drummer Evan Sherman, trumpet player Alex Sipiagin and saxophonist Houston Person.
The songs were recorded and mixed by another notable name in American jazz – recording engineer John Lee, who is also band leader of the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Big Band.
Monteiro also added another feather to his cap recently, when his album Jeremy Monteiro Sings, released in June 2023, cracked the Top 50 of the chart of American publication JazzWeek.
Reaching No. 46, it is his third album to hit the Top 50 on the same chart, which ranks releases based on airplay reports submitted by radio stations. – Eddino Abdul Hadi
