Guinness Amplify Finale Show Will Make You Believe in Magic
The Guinness Amplify: Music Made of More campaign has been a magnificent platform to shine a well-deserved light onto local artistes that have strived to present their music with equal amounts of dedication and passion to eager audiences. Having had hit many bars in various locations, from Kuala Lumpur to up north in Penang and down to the southern tip in Johor, each gig has unfailingly been enjoyable with guests being treated to a flurry of diverse sounds and electrifying performances. Every talent has shown how they are made of more by doing what they do best — displaying a distinct sense of who they are individually and collectively as unique musicians.
Having spanned over seven weeks with each gig introducing three bands, you can do the math and realise that the Amplify tour has done a bang up job at celebrating our homegrown talent. To commemorate the campaign, a celebratory finale show is in order, of course! To be held at a considerably bigger venue, KL Live, the finale sees Dash and OJ Law — both of whom have closed their respective Amplify gigs — returning to support the international headliner, Canadian nu-reggae band MAGIC!
DASH
Dash Amplify session
The band has gone from being the Darren Ashley Band to simply contracted to its current one-syllable name, Dash. Though Darren is singularly quite well known, his band (and bandmates) should not be mistakenly overlooked. Darren’s signature electronic play on his vocals is evident but with the addition of a full band, which makes everything, for the sake of being punny, amplified. While Dash’s music is essentially electropop rock, it’s more than just that (here we go again); there’s a multidimensional quality to it with its spacey ambient sounds and multitude of sonic textures. Darren’s voice is transformed and reverberated from his technical manipulation before it echoes to the crowd of dancing, smiling people. Coupled with the other members’ solid musical abilities, they are set to thrill the mob of fans with their effervescent charm as well as their undeniable talent.
OJ LAW
OJ Law original track
Formerly known as just ‘Law’, this bespectacled guy might look understated in his live performances, yet his brand of “banana indie soulrocktronica” gleams bright with its aesthetically quaint songs that are just the right amount of twee — sans the saccharine frivolousness of the genre. OJ makes pop rock songs that are feel good and easily sung along to due to their catchiness, but they also have a tinge of nostalgia. Take ‘Tongue-Tied’ for instance, the lyrics are lovely in its simplicity but it’s also got a great groove that’s derived from the disco-influenced beat, making the summery love song all the more charming. His well-crafted songs earnestly deliver messages of love, be it nervous, burgeoning love or the sting of unreciprocated affection, you’d be moving to the music despite the myriad of heightened emotions in your person anyway.
MAGIC!
MAGIC! original track
The words of their immensely successful song ‘Rude’ have surely been embedded into your mind. The summer anthem is so popular that it even has a counter cover providing the “daughter’s side” of the song’s argument, where the lyrics are altered to have a more feminist tone (take that patriarchy!). You can’t please everyone with your number one song, can you? But with the song garnering about 160 million views on YouTube, MAGIC! is the perfect act to convey the mantra of the Amplify campaign. From being a little known reggae band hailing from the Great White North, they virtually became an overnight sensation with that single. Of course, let’s not reduce them to just a one track as they have made more — and are made of more.
Be there to join these fantastic acts as they bring this widespread musical campaign to a rollicking conclusion! Don’t miss it!
Guinness Amplify: Music Made of More Finale Show
Date Saturday 18 October ‘14
Time 8pm
Venue KL Live
Lineup MAGIC!, Dash, OJ Law
For more information on the Guinness Amplify Live Tour lineup and how to win tickets to the Finale Show here.