My Baybeats Blatherings

i’m still a little deaf, even as i type out this entry.

i returned not too long ago from a truly sumptuous dinner/supper at Bedok.

There’s truly nothing like the cuisine that can be found in the East, namely the world-famous (i might be exaggerating here) Bedok bak chor mee, bbq stingray, satay and bbq chicken wings (so succulent and barbecued to perfection that the meat slides right off the bones and into your grateful stomach).

Prior to that, i caught performances by Electrico and Lunarin at Baybeats at the Esplanade. Electrico impressed me, and the audience too, judging from their enthusiastic responses throughout the performance.

It’s not just about Amanda Ling apparently.

i never realised it before but seeing Amanda Ling in person today, i was struck by her resemblance to Fiona Xie. i guess it’s the pixie-likeness they share.

The crowd at Baybeats is a fairly young one, predominantly teenagers. i wouldn’t bet against the possibility that i was one of the older dudes around. But i attend Baybeats primarily to get a feel of the pulse of teenagers in Singapore.

i attended last year’s edition of Baybeats as well, and it was starkly different from this year’s.

There was a real undercurrent of restlessness and bubbling rebellion amongst the crowd last year. i felt this so acutely that i was feeling quite troubled by the time i made my exit. It wasn’t a case of “Oh, silly teenagers!” but, rather, empathy at their sense of alienation and frustration of they-knew-not-what. At the time, i was quite convinced that Singapore was close to a sea-change, such was the angst that was so prevalent last year.

This year, however, there was no such feeling.

Maybe it’s because Baybeats has been incorporated into the mainstream.

Maybe another year’s worth of numbing and mindless battering by MTV has worked its charm.

Maybe all those teenagers have grown up.

Or maybe they’ve just lost their fire. All too soon.

i wonder how next year’s Baybeats will feel like.

Will the hearts and minds of the youth of Singapore be stoked again?

I’ll stay tuned.