Taylor’s University Music Club (TUMC) hosted Punk Goes Pop on the 12th of October which took place at LT12, Taylor’s University at 7 pm. Lee An, President of TUMC spoke about the origins of the event, “We wanted to make a crossover for the mainstream songs heard on the radio and add in the underground vibe into it.”.

Patriots

The first band to perform was Patriots. The band had a few achievements under their belt – notably being one of the winners for the Hitz, TV Music Video grant in 2011 alongside Maddthelin, The Padangs, and Ballad For Layla. They started out their performance with some headbanging and quickly grabbed everyone’s attention, keeping the performance lively and the night young.

Patriots

What truly grabbed my attention as soon as they walked up the stage was the artsy ocean blue pain smeared across their face. When the band started singing “A Thousand Years by Christina Perri” with a mixture of punk and pop, the crowd went wild with their impressive twist of funk. They also played a song from their EP album (Extended Play) titled Terranova which you can also catch it on Spotify! Patriots ended their performance with a cover of “When I Was Your Man by Bruno Mars”. They inserted punk vibes into the song thus making it their very own version of the song.

Spooky Wet Dreams

The second band to perform was Spooky Wet Dreams. A band from Klang Valley, Malaysia, which has been around for 2 years and has been playing in numerous gigs and concerts hosted by various organizers in the country. Here’s a fun fact about them, they were listed second on the Hitz.fm’s top list and one of them used to be a lecturer.

Spooky Wet Dreams

They just released their first EP titled, “Cold Pizza Party” and performed it. The audience started clapping their hands following the rhythm of the song when the band started singing, it was captivating. As what Crystal Loh, Vice President of TUMC said, “We learn that music breaks through all barriers and unites everybody. And though we may never fully grasp the powers at work, its effect is undeniable.” They also sang one of the song titled Girls originally by the 1975.

Night Skies and Visions

The third band was Night Skies and Visions, a 4-piece pop punk band from KL whose stage persona is well known for their energetic and engaging live shows. The band has been actively making a name for themselves in the music scene ever since their debut show at Sunway University in 2015. When the band started off their performance, I can’t help but notice the strong and angelic voice of the female singer. All eyes were on her when she started singing Rolling In The Deep by Adele.

Insomniacks

Insomniacks were the third band to perform up the stage. It is a band consists of four members who make acoustic covers and perform punk rock music. With their baseball jersey on, they gave out a stellar performance.

Sekumpulan Orang Gila (SOG)

Last but not least, it was time for SOG (Sekumpulan Orang Gila) to take the stage. SOG is an uprising Post-Hardcore/Metalcore band from Batu Caves, Malaysia. They started off their journey during mid-2009. Their music influences comes from post-hardcore bands such as The Devil Wears Prada, UnderOath and We Came As Romans.

Sekumpulan Orang Gila (SOG)

The whole performance was nostalgic as they went all the way back from Linkin Park to Grenade by Bruno Mars. The audience got the chance to dance on the stage with the SOG band as the performance was coming to an end.

Night Skies and Visions

These were truly great performances. Congratulations to all the band for putting up a fantastic performance and for keeping us, university students a night away from all the stress.

Lee An, President of TUMC

As a final note, Lee An, President of TUMC said, “We also wanted to introduce some of the best underground bands in Malaysia to the general public, especially those who are first-time gig-goers and those who seek to find more local music content”.

Insomniacks