Watching the Adorable SOBS on Soundrenaline 2019
BALI – While many people drew their attention to bigger acts on Soundrenaline 2019, we decided to watch the show from Singaporean indie outfit SOBS. Performing on the first day of Soundrenaline 2019 at Amphiteatre a.k.a All Time Stage, SOBS took the stage with a pretty huge amount of confidence. The indie-pop unit is comprised of three members namely Jared Lim, Celine Autumn, and Raphael Ong. Upon their first-ever performance in Indonesia, SOBS uttered their gratitude to be invited to one of the biggest music festivals in Asia. Celine Autumn caught our eyes in an instant with her adorableness and bright purple hair. SOBS have gained quite the popularity through Bandcamp, a popular indie music portal where their albums have sold across the globe. They began their career in 2017 by releasing an EP called “Catflap”.
SOBS might mean an expression of sadness and you might imagine them with tears streaming across their faces, but actually, their music and melodies are quite the contrary. Albeit the lyrics can be depressing at times, the trio presented cheerful rhythm, engaging guitar riffs, and of course, Celine’s sweet vocal. The addition of reverb makes their music sounds dreamy but not quite what we could categorize as full-on dream pop. If any, bedroom pop might be the music they can be closely identified with. On Soundrenaline 2019, they performed several songs from their debut EP like “Girl” as well as their latest release on full-length album “Telltale Signs”. Not many people knew this band when they decided to attend their show, however, we daresay that most audiences were pleasantly surprised by this new discovery.
We hope to see them someday touring across Indonesia in a more intimate stage where SOBS could introduce themselves and the meaning behind each music they make because we could not get enough of it! If you like acts like No Vacation, Sales, Clairo or Phum Viphurit, you might want to check out this band starting from here. While you’re at it, you might as well follow them on social media at @sobshaha on Instagram.
Report & Documentation: Hanif Ardhika/Editor: Novita Widia