On a night like this.
02 December 2008 @ 17:15 ; 0 Commentssuperyan is procrastinating. He is supposed to be working on his article (800 words, 3pm, this coming Thursday) but he's not (600+ words). He is supposed to work on his short stories project (three stories, unforeseeable deadline) but he's not (article, reading Special Topics in Calamity Physics). He is supposed to keep his indiscernible audience appeased by updating regularly but he's not (the last entry was the 11th of last month, gosh). He is, however, wishing Britney a happy 27th birthday. Heh.
Anyway he is here now, and you are reading this. Kismet works in crazy ways.
Continue reading now, it gets interesting.
Tuesday, the 27th of November, 2008. Never has a day and date illuminated so brightly to me. As I counted down to the day itself, I was getting innumerably excited. KYLIE IS COMING! The Queen Bee has been prepping herself listening to her latest album and watching her recently aired London concert. I, on the other hand, wasn't. Don't ask me why, but that's just it.
By 8pm, the two of us were in the snaking queue of the North entrance of the Indoor Stadium, as we deliriously kept ourselves entertained in line, which moved at a pace comparable to a snail. Eventually we got inside, and boy was it crowded! The premise looked as if someone had unintentionally let the fact that there's a discount sale going on there (80% off and slashing! First come first serve! Grab what you can! While stocks last!) We made our way to our seats (Balcony 07) - a decent seating area although looking back, I wished we had pooled in a little more to get closer to her.
As the time ticked by excruciatingly, The Queen was getting angsty and restless, recounting how Maroon 5 and Santana started promptly on time. The clock barely finished its endless one-hour cycle when the lights dimmed, the stage and screen projection lighted up, the sound went a few notches louder. The crowd began screaming and shouting. I, but of course, was not of the exception. Seeing as I am indiscreetly more prepared for the concert than everyone in the stadium combined, I knew what to expect but I still gave the best that I got. My heart was beating like a speeded-up metronome.
The projection and the opening music went on for a full minute before Kylie emerged from behind her props - speakers that looked as flimsy as cardboard pieces you can find at ArtFriend. The crowd went wild. The Queen and myself were singing and dancing along in our seats. At that point of time I almost wanted to cry. KYLIE'S HERE! IN FRONT OF ME! SINGING! IT'S MY FIRST CONCERT IN MY ENTIRE YEARS OF EXISTANCE AND KYLIE'S THE ONE WHO TOOK MY CHERRY! Meanwhile everyone else in the balcony was a notch more muted, just barely shaking their upper bodies as they intently paid attention to Miss Minogue, who was a distance away.
Now, the purpose of attending a concert is to get up, have a good time, dance like there's no tomorrow, dance like nobody's watching. It seems like the people in our seating area got the memo for perhaps a performance at the Esplanade theatre. Most of the time they sat rooted in their seats, like dogs, marking their territories and guarding it with their lives. Of the times they stood up to dance was few and far between. Only towards the last act of the concert onwards did they really grasp the meaning of "concert" and stood up to move. TOO LATE!
Meanwhile, The Queen and I barely sat throughout the two-hour show. After Kylie finished the opening song ("Speakerphone", track 4 of X), we got up and moved to the aisle and promptly proceeded to boogie to the music. Song after song we didn't really think of anything else other than enjoy ourselves, the concert, Kylie, the music, the atmosphere. It was breathtaking. It was mesmerizing. I was singing along to every song, copying the choreography, answering Kylie's questions. According to The Queen I was crazy/scary but it was all in the name of fun (:
Kylie, on her part, was in top form that night, as she has always been. There was nary a trace of the medical problem she had contracted and weathered through three years ago. On stage, here in Singapore, that night, she was Kylie Minogue, the extravagant performer, the showgirl that she's craved herself out to be. She exuded confidence and charisma, as she performed song after song with gusto. Her vocals were strong and her delivery was pitch perfect (I was looking forward to her doing the "opera" bit during "Your Disco Needs You" and I wasn't disappointed. My hairs were literally standing on end as she effortlessly executed the note!). She was generous during the banter in between sets, and grabbed every opportune moment to scream SINGAPOREEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! The audience lapped it up like cats with their individual bowls of milk.
Unlike previous tours, KylieX2008 comprised mostly of songs from her year-old album X, with a smattering of popular hits and crowd favourites peppered in between. I guess that's a major reason as to why people just sat down to digest everything, instead of joining in the interaction. They were probably unfamiliar with her recent work? (If she had came here for her Showgirl tour as she originally intended I bet everyone would have been up from their seats the instant she comes out and the thought of seating down would never infiltrate their minds.) I was extremely elated that she did my favourites ("On A Night Like This", "In Your Eyes", "In My Arms"), although the axing of the entire Naughty Manga Girl act and "Flower" were really uncalled for. In retrospect, the tour management should have done away the tired, kitschy, campy Beach Party act of the tour (and "Kids"! Urgh) and replaced it with the aforementioned act and song instead. It's too bad they scaled down the second leg of this tour due to the venues, since her first leg was majestic and impressive. (I just read Monday's issue of Life!, wherein some people complained about the downsize. Seriously? Some people will never be appeased. Granted, the tickets could have costed lesser, but you can't expect the Indoor Stadium to magically expand just for a couple of hours, even if it's for Kylie? Someone hunt down this Thomas Tan and smack his head hard, please.)
By the time we reached the encore, everyone was pumped. We wanted more! More more more more more more more! And Kylie graciously acquiesced with a number of songs. By the last song, the anthemic "I Should Be So Lucky", the people who had stayed behind were wildly singing and dancing along to Kylie. Such is the power of that hit of hers. She thanked us profusely, and decreed that hopefully it won't take her another twenty years to come by our shores and put on another concert.
I was truly appeased and satisfied. My body aching (when I got back from the concert, after a good long shower, I was aching all over. I didn't know I had used muscles that existed! For a few days after I couldn't walk properly. I was too scared to apply pressure to my legs and feet. Oh boy!), my voice hoarse, but all that were just the aftereffects of enjoyment. Kylie came down to Singapore and I had managed to catch her in action. Of course, not upclose and personal, but there's always another time, right? As I announced over at Facebook, the tickets were truly money well spent.
On a night like this
I wanna stay forever
On a night like this
Just wanna be together
On a night like this
One of my highlights of 2008.
K-Y-L-I-E!
KYLIE!
You ROCK!
WOO!
