Rock’n’rollin’ with Mayday at their first Singapore outdoor gig

Rain, damp grounds, and damaged lighting and sound effects did not hinder Taiwanese rock band Mayday from pulling out all stops to throw their first successful outdoor gig in Singapore last night

Text: Joanna Goh
Photos: Rock Records
Videos: Fiona Lin

Five-member Taiwanese rock band, Mayday, announced their desires to hold their first-ever outdoor concert in Singapore whilst performing at the Singapore Indoor Stadium for their DNA concert world tour last year. They had their sights set on "the outdoor venue next door" (Singapore National Stadium), and fervently wished for their "dreams to come true next year."
Fast forward seven-and-a-half months later today, the quintet put their words into action, and returned for an encore of their DNA world tour -- at the Singapore National Stadium -- no less. Now, who says you can't have your cake and eat it?
The DNA Mayday World Tour [2010 limited edition] was labeled a "rain-or-shine event" on ticket stubs. Torrential rain and a heavy thunderstorm three hours before the concert might have flooded the grounds and delayed the schedule by one hour (due to ongoing repair works of the sound and lighting system), but it certainly proved to be no dampener with 15,000 concertgoers lapping up the humidity, muddy grounds, and buzzing flies.

Completed with the works -- and by that we mean fireworks, folks -- laser beams, a 360-degree running stage, and a gigantic yellow transformer-autobot-lookalike, Mayday kick-started the rock concert with a rousing medley of fast-paced songs like 'Scream of Spring', 'HOSEE', and 'Liver Explosion', topping it off with a smattering array of pyrotechnics.
And who else would better know how to work an outdoor concert than Mayday themselves? After all, what is one outdoor concert in Singapore compared to the countless gigs these rock gurus had in Taiwan? The wet weather may have damaged props, stage lightings, and sound effects, but it played no hindrance to their otherwise stellar performance last night.
After the first-half of the concert, things were heating up for the five men, who appeared drenched in sweat and looked fresh out of the shower, as they repeatedly mentioned the unbearably "warm weather" in their individual thank you speeches.
The band's drummer, Guan You, half-mockingly jested, "It is so hot I'm beginning to feel a little regretful."

Although like his fellow peers, the bespectacled-one could not resist talking about "the roofless venue" and continuously gushed on the "special event" and its significance to them.

After a fair-bit of singing from lead vocalist Ashin, it was the band's instrumentalists' turn to shine. Stone (lead guitarist), Monster (lead guitarist), Masa (bass guitarist), and Guan You, each took the spotlight and displayed their musical prowess with amazing guitar riffs and intense drumming to the catchy song titled 'Monkey King'.
During a short interlude, Ashin expressed his heartfelt gratitude towards fans and staff for "this dream come true." He also explained the schedule delay caused by the rain which flooded the area and "ruined props", but was otherwise "very happy and very touched."
Similar to their previous gigs it was no surprise when the group pulled a fake departure at close to 11pm and made a highly-anticipated return with an upbeat Taiwanese dialect song, 'Motor Rock', after much screams from ardent fans in the stadium.

After bopping to their hit-song 'I Am In Love Again', the rock group stayed on for three more tracks before calling it a night despite promises of "playing the longest to everyone's satisfaction."
They concluded their first outdoor concert with a bang of confetti strewn in the air and a smorgasbord of fireworks lighting up the night skies for two whole minutes.
As the quintet began to pack up and leave the stage at 11.35pm, relentless fans and concertgoers stayed in their positions and continued to shout for an encore performance over the next ten minutes. Fans were in disbelief when Ashin's voice finally came through the loudspeaker at 11.45pm, officially ending the three-hour long concert by saying it is "over".

After making history last year with two back-to-back concerts on two nights and the past-midnight concert, Mayday fans were certainly expecting more than just an early conclusion to the group's first large-scale outdoor gig in Singapore.
Perhaps the humidity was just too much for them to bear. Though one thing's for sure, rain or shine, this won't be the last of their many outdoor gigs to come on our tropical island. Grab your ponchos and fans, we're in for another ride.