Cherie is a Baybeats Budding Writer, mentored by Eddino Abdul Hadi, music correspondent for The Straits Times and Hidzir Junaini, editor and writer at Bandwagon Asia.

A punk social. A skate bowl. A void deck in Pasir Ris.

While seemingly disparate, a common thread binds them. These are the spaces that spurred Rabak Records, TRIFECTA and 510 Media toward their goal of providing a platform for local acts to take centrestage, and an avenue for audiences to revel in their favourite songs.

Being in the right place, at the right time

Woes of the gig economy

Darryl concurs on the importance of having good partners, acknowledging *SCAPE’s unwavering support of the local music scene. “It’s so dope that they (*SCAPE) are willing to take a chance on niche subcultures,” he adds, referencing *SCAPE’s support for alternative music shows such as the Lion City Hardcore 30th Anniversary show (2023). He speaks from experience, having collaborated with *SCAPE for Super Tattoo Fun Times. 

“Shoutout to Isaac Chiew (founder of Big Duck Music who works at *SCAPE),” chuckles Darryl. “It’s people like him who boost morale and make working together fun…[*SCAPE] always sounds so excited when we talk to them, which helps with the whole process.”

Fostering an inside space for the outsiders

While such partners are lauded for their support of the underground music scene, these organisations are hard to come by.

In fact, Darryl claims that “music is culturally very absent” in Singapore. Growing up in the hardcore and emo scene, he laments that local music from such underground scenes often lacks public representation. Such marginalisation is what sparked the do-it-yourself (DIY) ethos within these scenes, where individuals like Darryl decide to take matters into their own hands, creating spaces for the non-conformers, mavericks and renegades of our society.

Beyond the likes of 510 Media, Dogswain and Blacklisted Productions, Darryl highlights the many up-and-coming gig promoters who are creating opportunities for newer local bands of all genres. Name-dropping smaller promoters like Our Stray Liberties, Thrashfinds and Heat Source, he emphasises that “what they’re doing is good and important…because they’re actually putting on young bands and really pushing the [scene] culture forward”.

Bearing that same heart, grit and zest is Rabak Records, whose goal, as Trevor puts simply, is “to not scale up”. His reason is simple: the smaller the business, the lower the overheads. 

“Right now I can just keep it completely informal,” Trevor explains. “You want to play a show? Okay, come, let’s find four more other bands and make something happen. I’m at a spot where I can do it. And if people ask me to play a show, how can I resist?” Unlike Rabak Records, larger gig promoters don’t have the luxury to host a gig on a whim. 

Beyond providing a space for bands to showcase their music, Rabak Records also serves as a platform for individuals to express their creativity. “Just as I give bands a place to perform, I give other people a place to design,” Trevor adds, referencing the multiple gig posters designed by his friends.

A quick scroll through Rabak Records’ Instagram account would also reveal their efforts to support their featured bands. In the lead-up to a show, Rabak Records shares a series of Instagram posts featuring fun facts about the performing bands. Inspired by Instagram’s collaborator tool, these posts not only generate excitement but also create content for the bands. “Many of these bands have Instagram accounts but no content. So I thought, why not make some posts, put their picture front and centre, and share it with them? While it’s a way to make personable content [for Rabak Records], it’s also to generate content for the band, to give them a head start,” says Trevor.

TRIFECTA embodies that same spirit, which they describe as “promoting creativity on the board and off the board.” Just as TRIFECTA serves as a haven for skateboarders, snowboarders and surfers, their Backyard Sessions provide a safe space and melting pot for creatives from all walks of life. While past iterations have only featured English musicians, TRIFECTA is not limiting itself. “We’re not really boxed in by genres,” Jessica remarks. “I think it would be really interesting to try other genres, like Mandopop, or even K-pop. I mean, why not?”

At this moment, nothing else matters

We’ve all been there that moment of awe that washes over you when you realise you’re at a gig that’s about to change your life. 

It’s a feeling of pure exhilaration and adrenaline. The air is thick with the stench of sweat and suspense, the floor vibrating with each guitar lick, as limbs reach out to push and pull you in all directions. 

t’s chaos, mayhem and pandemonium. Yet, at that moment, as the band plays and the music envelops you, nothing else matters save the simple fact that you are there, in that space, soaking in the atmosphere. 

Living has never felt so surreal.

For Darryl, that moment was Dogfest 2, the first gig he helped organise.

There are some shows where there’s this magical feeling, where you’re like, damn, this is what a gig should feel like…It’s like you just watched a nice movie and the credits start rolling and you have that feeling that this whole experience is larger than life.

— Darryl Carulli, show organiser

Magical feelings like these are hard to come by. But when they do, they sometimes come full circle, as in Trevor’s case. 

Trevor recalls the first time he caught local emo act Forests. It was in 2019, during Forests’ launch of their album Spending Eternity in a Japanese Convenience Store. Enamoured by the performance, he took a Polaroid with bassist and vocalist Darell Laser. 

Little did he know that five years later, Forests would perform at Rabak Records’ Turn It Up! Vol. 3 gig, where Trevor would be invited on stage to sing Forests’ hit song Tamago in front of a huge crowd. As a memento, Trevor recreated the same Polaroid he took with Darell in 2019.