Hands up for rocking good time at F1 concerts

Review Concert

FORMULA ONE SINGTEL SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX CONCERTS

BigBang, last Friday, Padang

The Killers, last Saturday, Padang

On the race track, the Formula One cars completed their laps faster than ever.

In front of the main Padang Stage, the fans too were turbocharged, especially the supporters of South Korean megaband BigBang.

The 35,000-strong audience last Friday night for the Seoul-based quintet were about half the size of that for American band The Killers last Saturday, but the K-pop lovers made up for their smaller numbers with the intensity of their vocal support.

Visually, one could not miss them either, despite the allure of the gorgeously lit-up Marina Bay area - many of the BigBang fans thronged the venue each armed with the band's official yellow light stick.

As soon as the big screens blasted a video of the band's infectiously catchy tune Fantastic Baby, the audience of mostly teenage girls were jumping and screaming their lungs out.

Tireless, too, were the five-member group, aged 22 to 25. G-Dragon, T.O.P, Daesung, Taeyang and Seungri never stopped working the crowds and walking to all ends of the T-shaped stage to get close to the fans there.

They sang and rapped all the major hits, including Tonight, Hands Up, Lies and Feeling. Their rendition of Bad Boy was especially fun as they switched between electro and unplugged sounds throughout.

G-Dragon, ever charismatic, teased his bandmates throughout the show, even providing them good "service". He made the girls swoon when he wiped the sweat off Seungri's face, and did it again when he suddenly grabbed a bottle of cold water and poured it over a very sweaty Daesung.

Taeyang, meanwhile, made everyone laugh when he did a fun beatbox segment about eating "chilli crab and pepper crab at Nando's". The fans hardly minded that it made no sense, given that Nando's is a chain of restaurants serving grilled chicken.

Diehard fans told Life! that compared with other shows, BigBang appeared "very relaxed" this time around, as the members had "more casual interactions" with one another, and with the audience.

Said Kuala Lumpur native and auditor Sarah Yip, 29, who drove to Singapore along with nine Malaysian fans to attend the show: "Maybe it's the outdoor setting and the heat, but they looked like they really had more fun than usual and were always teasing the audience.

"I've seen them perform live around Asia at least 10 times, but this was one of the most laidback and relaxed shows."

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Singapore-based Myanmar national Ei Thet Mon, 22, queued outside the entry gate from 6am last Friday to secure the best spots in the show, which started only at 11.15pm.

Dressed in the official G-Dragon black football shirt, the engineer said: "It was really, really hot today but waiting for so many hours was worth it because we managed to be in the front row in the mosh pit. I'll do anything for BigBang."

This is the second time BigBang or their members have performed at the F1 races here. G-Dragon, T.O.P and Seungri performed at the 2011 event, singing only seven songs in under an hour.

Last Friday, BigBang did a full set comprising 18 songs, even allowing the members time to shine on the stage individually.

Poor Seungri belted out two songs Gotta Talk To U and Strong Baby by himself to a response that could only be described as lukewarm when compared to the rest of the show. He tried all he could to charm the audience, throwing out a number of stock English phrases such as "I love this place", "It's getting hot in here" and "This night is crazy", but the crowd responded half-heartedly.

Perhaps some fans were still miffed about his scandal from a year ago, when a Japanese tabloid published a violent tell-all account by a woman who spent the night with him.

In contrast, T.O.P had only to show his face for the fans to go into a frenzy. He spoke very little throughout the show, but won them over with his striking looks and his seamless rapping skills.

His duets with G-Dragon in Knock Out and High High were among the most well-received segments of the night, as the crowd danced and sang along in unison as if they were partying at a club.

When BigBang bid their final farewell 11/2 hours later, the fans responded with a resounding crestfallen "no". The group quickly promised to be back again "soon" before rounding up the show with an energetic medley.

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Fans will be hoping that their "soon" is a lot sooner than the 10 years it took The Killers to finally play their first concert in Singapore.

They were scheduled to play here in 2010, but their sold-out show at the Singapore Indoor Stadium was cancelled when they went on a year-long hiatus, to the dismay of fans.

As if to make up for lost time, the concert atmosphere was in overdrive last Saturday night, when the American alternative rock quartet, who have sold 15 million albums, played to a full-house crowd of 60,000 at the Padang.

For 11/2 hours, the band, fronted by charismatic lead vocalist Brandon Flowers, blazed through 17 songs, starting off with their 2003 debut hit single Mr Brightside, then moving on to crowd pleasers such as Read My Mind, Runaways, Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine and Somebody Told Me.

They also played an upbeat rock cover of a 1967 hit song by American artists Tommy James and the Shondells, I Think We're Along Now, a track that Flowers said "still resonates strongly today".

The charming frontman, looking dapper in a black leather jacket, which he took off to reveal a red-and-white candy-striped short-sleeved shirt paired with skinny jeans, was smiling throughout the show, revealing a different side from the serious persona that comes across in music videos and band photos.

The rest of the band - guitarist Dave Keuning, bassist Jake Blanton and drummer Ronnie Vannuci Jr - were in top form, the beats and melodies whipping the heaving masses into a jumping frenzy half the time during their concert.

For the fans, their maiden show here was a long time coming. So it was an appropriate send-off when the band played their final song, the melodic anthem When You Were Young, with Flowers giving this parting shot: "I'm sorry it's taken us 10 years (to come here), we've had a wonderful time."

Many fans gave Friday and Saturday's concerts the thumbs-up. Dexter Tan, an F1 concert newbie who attended The Killers set last Saturday, said: "It was a pretty awesome experience. I really liked the lighting set up for the gig. It was extensive and really added to their excellent performance."

The 25-year-old teacher said he would definitely be returning for the concerts next year and hopes that the organisers will bring in "a big hip-hop name... perhaps Jay-Z or Kanye West".

To borrow the words of BigBang, the concerts on Friday and Saturday were, fantastic, baby.

yipwy@sph.com.sg

melk@sph.com.sg

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