Marijannah : Full Moon / Shapeless (Live)
Marijannah
Full Moon / Shapeless (Live)
Just in time for Halloween, Singaporean stoner metal outfit Marijannah drops special live performance into our trick or treat baskets. Not being able to grace us with a banging Halloween show (like they did last year at the Music Parlour) with the current global pandemic still looming, the band has instead opted to release a recorded live take of Full Moon and Shapeless off of their excellent 2019 album Istanah, set in the empty theatre halls of The Projector. With an accompanying video directed by Ryan Chang and the live set’s audio recorded and engineered by the efforts of esteemed local producer Leonard Soosay and Martin Kong of Caracal fame, this live take of Full Moon/Shapeless is an almost impeccable Halloween treat for both the eyes and ears.
Given that vast chunks of their lyrical content are based off horror movies, there doesn’t seem to be a more perfect pairing for the occasion than Marijannah at The Projector. There’s an oddly hypnotic quality to seeing Marijannah play in front of an empty movie theatre – you can almost imagine the ghosts and ghouls watching from the wings and behind the dark, unoccupied fold-up seats of the front row. Everything that made these songs work so well on Istanah is strongly present in this performance, be it the mammoth sludge-fuzz riffing from both guitarists Rasyid Juraimi and Nicholas "Skinny" Ng, the crushing bass work from Muhammad Azri Azman, or the pounding drumming from drummer/vocalist Nick Wong.
Wong’s hard-hitting, almost mechanical rhythms, which he does while concurrently singing, makes him look like he’s been possessed by the spirit of Frankenstein’s monster. That, on top of the trance-like state of the rest of the band, helps the quartet plough through hammering riff work and thick wah-infused guitar solos, imbuing this performance with a true sense of Halloween spirit.
Unfortunately, Istanah’s main flaw also carries through - with the vocal performances by Wong and Juraimi being so averagely okay. Their singing is by no means bad, but it’s still the weakest link in an otherwise powerful and face-melting performance by Marijannah. This is also made worse by the vocals sitting at such an awkward frequency in the mix where it feels muffled and buried by the mix, unable to cut through the sludge. With all that said, given that it is stoner rock after all, the vocals aren’t really a deal breaker at all – unless you’re really looking to nitpick.
Marijannah’s performance of Full Moon/Shapeless is best experienced with the video accompanying it. You can watch it here:
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