Stereophonics: 'Pull the Pin' Tour
By Gabriel Leong
Welsh band Stereophonics dropped by Fort Canning in Singapore for their first concert ever here as part of their "Pull the Pin" tour, and the fans who went hoping to "have a nice day" might have left with a disappointed mug on their faces.
As overheard more than once after the concert ended, "why didn't they play 'Have A Nice Day'?" The 2001 single from their third album Just Enough Education to Perform is probably the band's most mainstream recognizable hit among the die-hard and casual fans alike. Thus, it was no surprise that many fans were addlepated by the band's decision to leave that song out of their playlist.
Indeed, if Stereophonics had opened the night with "Have A Nice Day", it might have set a more positive note for the rest of the night. Perhaps, the band had expected a crowd who wanted to rock hard under the stars, and so chose to get the ball rolling with edgier numbers like "A Thousand Trees" and "Superman". A pity the crowd remained relatively subdued, with a handful making a beeline for the beer booth.
As front man Kelly Jones belted out more hits such as "Mr. Writer," one could not help but feel that the band, while technically flawless in their delivery, were performing out of perfunctory courtesy. Perhaps the band had not expected local conditions to be this humid when they made the decision to wear a leather jacket throughout the entire concert. The heat could have fizzled the band's enthusiasm, along with the crowd as well.
Drummer Javier Weyler did wise up and take off his top midway through, and that was when things took off. Kelly finally took a moment to interact with the crowd, explaining how the song "It Means Nothing" wasn't a political number, although it was written around the time of the London Bombings. Asking everyone to cherish what they have and appreciate the people around them, Kelly and band then delivered one of the most poignant performances of the night.
The next one came when Kelly returned for the encore alone, and gave such a rousing solo acoustic rendition of "Maybe Tomorrow" that left the crowd cheering for more. The rest of the band came up and took a short break to celebrate a birthday on stage, before ending the night on a high note with the band's biggest hit, "Dakota."
So while "Have a Nice Day" failed to make it to the playlist, the encore that night still made things pretty magical under the stars.
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