TAG pres. Heineken Green Space @ Bijou

By Muna Noor • 28 Aug 2009 in Reports

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What would your ideal private party be? That was the deceptively simple question that Heineken Green Space asked theÂ 4 DJs behind top indie night Twilight Actiongirl. Their answer involved a revolving carousel of DJs, live bands, board games and around 150 of their closest friends and fans at a relaxed Sunday afternoon session at Bijou in Mont Kiara on August 16.

Image Heineken Music

With their Friday night residency at the Heineken supported Barsonic at Zouk KL, the 4 DJs – Bunga, Ribut 10:59, ChaseyLain and XU – have pioneered an alternative to the mainstream house and R&B that dominate most of Malaysia’s dancefloors and bars. In the process they’ve developed a loud and loyal following that has proved that there is an audience for electro, indie and esoteric tunes and that gives TAG’s Friday nights the air of a live gig complete with crowd surfing and console diving. It’s that passion for exploring new music and giving local talent a helping hand – their nights regularly feature up and coming bands and DJs – that made TAG a natural choice to host the 1st Heineken Green Space.

As well as changing perceptions about what constitutes a night out from the band-DJ norm, Green Space continues an established Heineken Music tradition of supporting and developing the local music scene, putting the power of the content in the hands of each event’s hosts. From live gigs to virtual spaces to motion graphics galleries, any idea with music at the core has the potential to be Green Spaced.

For TAG the chance to host a Heineken Green Space meant doing the unexpected, almost the opposite of the heaving mosh pits and blasting tunes of their regular Bar Sonic appearances. “It was kind of like the original vision of Twilight Actiongirl,” explains TAG’s ChaseyLain. “To invite friends over to our place and play the music that we like for them. And it’s always nice to see old friends and new friends and all these faces from over the last five years all meeting in one place. It was a nice feeling.”

That meant a quiet Sunday afternoon with chilled tunes and board games with a TAG twist like Indie Scrabble, a version of the popular word game where all the words have to be music related, and the floor-tangling Twister. They even reprinted some of those early black and white flyers and their iconic imagery and pasted them on the walls around Bijou.

An unexpected highlight of the Green Space afternoon was the Guitar Hero competitionÂ and theÂ grand prize forÂ “Kapak King”, which was a real life electric guitar. Speaking of which, when it came to real life performances, acoustic troubadour Wolf brought huge smiles from everyone when he took his set away from the mic and toured Bijou singing to TAG’s Heineken Green Space guests at tables. Ambient electronica whiz Flica bathed the venue in soothing waves of white noise and guitar feedback as the sun went down, while hip hoppers Rogue Squad brought some cut and paste scratch action. In addition Singapore transplant, Slowjaxx gave a feisty, one-man set with a gentle agit-prop feel, while Johan from MIA and Jee Hoe from Melee Punks upped the dancefloor ante later in the evening. It all combined to lend this first Heineken Green Space a gentle, laidback air that reminded everyone that there’s more than one way to enjoy the music.

Throw your own Heineken Green Space party!
Okay, so now that’s whetted your appetite, how do YOU host your own Green Space event? Yes, you don’t need to be the rock-DJ gods TAG to get your own Green Space. A bi-monthly series of bespoke events, Heineken Green Space gives Heineken Music fans like YOU the opportunity to throw your own personal music event of the year.

Hosting your own night is simple: just visit www.heineken.com.my/music for details. With support from Heineken Music that includes professional event organization and promotion all you have to do is provide the most creative ideas and Heineken’s expert team will select the best and turn them into private party reality.

Speaking on the latest Heineken initiative, Jasmine Foong, Heineken Senior Brand Manager, commented “Heineken has always provided cutting edge music experiences for its consumers and music fans. Now we are putting the power in their hands by turning their most creative party ideas into a custom built Green Space for them and their friends.”

Applications can also be made direct to [email protected]. Send your ideas with as much information as possible to the Heineken Team and enter the world of Green Space served by Heineken Music.