In a generally conservative Singapore, it is hard for more alternative
genres to reach mainstream ears.
By: Muhammad NurHazim & Wayne Liu Rong Xuan
LIFE OF A ROCKSTAR: Almost having spent a dozen years in the local music scene, Sean found his calling in the hardcore, calling it a ‘sweet spot’ between all the genres he loves. (PHOTO: SEAN SUNDARAN)
To feel like an outsider, walking to school while listening to your favourite music, just trying to fit in, can be a memory most of us can relate with. Thinking as if nobody will understand you, all filled up with teenage angst. Sean was just like you, but the only difference was the music he listened to. Music, people saw as satanic, music nothing like your typical pop song.
In every community, there are bound to be familiar faces. For Singapore’s hardcore scene, 29 year old, Sean Sundaran, would be one of those familiar faces. Heavily involved in local music, Sean plays for bands like post-metal band, Summations, metalcore band, Tariot and hardcore band, Losing End.
Apart from his life as a self-proclaimed rockstar, Sean also leads a more professional life where he works as a committee support representative for BandLab Technologies and also as a Production Director for Disrupt Collective Pte Ltd. He is also a trained live sound engineer, recording engineer and production manager.
A MAN OF DUALITY: Sean manages a weekly podcast called “Sunday Nights with Sean Sundaran”, which comments on the local music scene. (PHOTO: WAYNE LIU)
Having been in the hardcore scene for 7 years, Sean has had first-hand experience with handling the misconceptions associated with the genre. While others see hardcore as a genre and subculture that is aggressive in nature, Sean sees it as a way of life. Behind the aggression, there is actually meaning to the madness.
At first glance, one might focus on the ‘moshing’ at a hardcore show, where the movements include pushing and slamming into other attendees. However, within all that chaos, Sean speaks of the unity in hardcore. He speaks of a scene that fights against homophobia, racism, fascism, and many other things in that spectrum.
“It helps to release these emotions through the music. So, it's like, if you are feeling sh*t about something and then you go to a show and you just mosh it out, you feel better because it's sort of a physical release.” (PULL-OUT QUOTE)
Even within the screaming of lyrics, there is more than just negativity within the music. The music acts as an outlet of expression not only for the vocalists or band members but also, the community. Sean has described how the community preaches of inclusivity and fights against discrimination.
“Now it's more inclusive and it's more open, as long you do not misbehave, you are not an a**hole or anything, please come to a local hardcore show and have fun. There's no judgment anymore la,” he added.
Looking in from the outside, the hardcore community in Singapore can seem like the most intimidating group one can possibly encounter. One can go so far as to say that the hardcore scene in Singapore could be a testament to the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover”, as under all that aggression, there is a whole lot of positivity in the community.
“I mean I can understand why, but there is no way we can change our image you know. We are not going to start wearing flowers on our heads and everything you know? Like we are still going to look like tough guys, give all that tough-guy image and everything. But if you talk to us, we are going to be so nice.” (PULL-OUT QUOTE)
EXPRESSION THROUGH AGGRESSION
UNITY THROUGH MUSIC: Post-hardcore band, “I,Devotion” performing for Baybeats 2015. (PHOTO: SEAN SUNDARAN)
Before big stages, Sean was just like everyone else that started out in the hardcore scene. When he first got into it, the scene was nothing like how it is now. The hardcore kids were a lot more protective back then, with more ruthless means to make it clear that the scene was not a place for you to come and go.
“I got hit, so many times, like at my first show. But then in my mind I was like, "Yo, this is cool man." And I came back,” he mentioned.
Yet, hardcore runs deeper than just getting hit at a show. To the layman, hardcore may sound like mindless noise, but the music proves one otherwise.
In local band Radigal’s song, Equality, there is a huge emphasis on equal rights between genders, touching on topics like women’s rights and closing the pay gap.
“With the aggression in the music, it shows how strong the singer feels about these values that they sing or scream about.” (PULL-OUT QUOTE)
THIS IS HARDCORE
POWER OF MUSIC: The hardcore community in Singapore may not be well-known, but to the members of the subculture, it is an outlet of expression and a place where friendships are forged. (PHOTO: SEAN SUNDARAN)
We’ve all been there. Finding ourselves, searching for a place in a society. Some of us end up settling for 9-5 jobs while others spend their whole lives in search of fulfilment. For those in the hardcore scene in Singapore, it became a place for them to be their most authentic selves.
Hardcore is a music genre and subculture that has been around for about 50 years. Said to have been brought to our shores between the 80s and 90s, hardcore is far different from the mainstream rock or metal music most might think of when heavier genres are mentioned. The genre itself has been dubbed to be a lot more intense and aggressive compared to other heavy genres, sporting louder drum beats, fast power chords and abrasive vocals.
In Singapore, the hardcore scene can be categorised as one of the more underground genres, with minimal coverage in local media. Local hardcore shows are also usually kept within more D.I.Y venues like Decline, Pink Noise Studios or more established venues like The Substation and Aliwal Arts Centre.
These explosive shows have been put on hold as a result of the pandemic.
However, on 20 October 2020, MOH announced that indoor live performances would be allowed to resume at more venues from 1 November 2020, with up to two zones of 50 audience members. This follows the live performance pilots which were conducted from 11 September. Despite that glimmer of hope, there is still going to be a long wait till the hardcore scene in Singapore takes full effect again, due to the limitations brought upon by COVID-19 measures.
AGAINST THE GRAIN
FOUNDING FATHERS: Singapore’s pioneering hardcore band Stompin’ Ground performing at The Substation, 1994. (PHOTO: SUHAIMI SUBANDIE)
However, hardcore is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to subculture in Singapore. Singapore is home to punks, skinheads, mods and many more.
In a Masters thesis by J.E Donovan, “Hardcore Makes Me Sick”, published by the University of Sydney, it was mentioned that, “The members of a subculture lived by a different set of norms or moral code: being subcultural was their solution to the problem of having to live a difficult social experience. It is only to be expected, then, given the subcultural members’ moral perspectives were often radically different to the contextual culture, that they tended to be cast as being deviant.”
In their essence, subcultures in Singapore mainly differ through the music they listen to, the way they dress and their lifestyles. However, the one thing that unites them all is how mainstream culture alienates them.
Aunties and uncles judging you in less than subtle ways, parents pointing at you from a distance and kids giving you the death stare in public are among the many experiences one might encounter as a member of a subculture. Just by straying away from what society counts as ‘normal’, members of the hardcore scene or any other scene in Singapore share the same experience of being labelled as “deviant”.
THROUGH THE EYES OF A HARDCORE KID
BORN AND RAISED: Hani, the lead vocalist for a Singaporean pop-punk band, Fader, got into the local music scene in 2010, when he was only 14 years-old. (PHOTO: MUHAMMAD NURHAZIM)
Among the “deviant”, we have Hani Rusyaidi, 24, known for his melodic vocals for pop punk band, Fader, who the people in the local scene would call a “hardcore kid”. From listening to his dad’s Black Sabbath records to listening to more heavy genres through his cousin’s iPod, it is no wonder that Hani would eventually find his place within the hardcore scene.
Hardcore, for Hani, feels like home. A modern-day “kampung” where he can truly be himself, where he is free of judgement and where everyone knows each other.
“So, the whole idea of like “You are not alone, there are others just like you.” People may call you weird or like you are a misfit but there are others who are just like you.” (PULL-OUT QUOTE)
LION CITY HARDCORE: Even at a hardcore show, fans of both pop-punk and hardcore can be seen singing their hearts out to Fader’s songs, embodying the inclusive nature of hardcore. (PHOTO: HANI RUSYAIDI)
Hardcore, like any other subculture, has its own set of stereotypes. Drinking, smoking, tattooed from head to toe, are just some that are commonly associated with hardcore kids.
“I mean the whole drinking, smoking thing is just a small part of hardcore because there’s straight edge, people who abstain from drinking, smoking, who actually lead a very clean, positive lifestyle. So, to me, the only reason why mainstream society finds it hard to accept hardcore or heavy music in general is because of the fact that it sounds different from what they are used to and people tend to fear what they do not know.” Hani added.
The people, the music, the values are essentially an acquired taste. Some people get it, some people don’t, and that’s perfectly fine.
“You know, there's a lot of people that you know, have been to hardcore shows and everything and then they find out that it's not what they want anymore? And then they stopped coming to shows. And it's fine, because you grow up, it's okay. It's perfectly fine for you to grow out of that phase in your life, but for some of us, it's a way of life that cannot let go of.”
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