In Each Hand A Cutlass :: The Kraken: 10 Years On

I was really looking forward to catching In Each Hand A Cutlass's first show after a dormant decade. The lads and lass didn't disappoint at all. They still got it! People came away happy to have caught them. The band was relieved that people turned up and were glad that they didn't mess it up. They gloriously pushed out those huge soundscapes that were for the audience to interpret as they wished. 

It was amazing, even for me, to catch the entire band on stage playing the album 'The Kraken' (2015). Listening to your husband practice in the music room and checking out the band's rehearsals ain't the same as hearing them live on stage with the full set-up in a gorgeous venue. 

There were two other bands supporting IEHAC too. They were good. A young and new-ish monda(e) opened the show and we were stoked that people came for them, and veterans 7nightsatsea. There were simple visuals for the bands' time on stage. IEHAC created a whole visual journey to accompany their songs. 

One always wonder, how do you then, make music for a living in Singapore. You can't. It's very tough, unless you're a sound engineer, then it's wider. You're down to playing at pubs and session gigs. You can't get by on one job. You'll need plenty of side hustles. So for these bands, they do it purely for the love of the music. Everyone has a main job. A 'day job', so to speak. The day job sustains the passion and the interest. They do music in their 'leisure time', which is an oxymoron. You gotta make time to play music, to write, to jam, to bounce ideas off of one another. 

I had a job to do that night — front of house. My secret power is that I'm able to contain the guest-list in my head, up to 1000 persons. I will be able to remember all their names and faces. LOLOLOL Anyway, there were only 250 persons tonight, plus 30+ crew. I didn't have to do it alone. This venue provided me with plenty of staff to help, and working with trained ushers is always brilliant. They know exactly what to do. After the pre-show briefing, we settled into the efficient rhythm of ticket scanning, tagging, bag checks and such. It's manual labor, but you'd be surprised at how much people can screw up. :P