In Continuum.

This, is Múm, or at least before Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir decided to leave the band. As big a loss as it might be for Múm, the band's power and enchantment was not affected at all for today's concert at the Esplanade. I have been fascinated with Múm for a very long time, moved and mysteriously attracted to their deep and haunting sounds on the record of Finally There Is No One. The interesting choice of instrument is one thing, the emotions that transpired through the electronic sounds are indescribable. You cannot qualify Múm's works into words, because no words are ever going to give them justice. They are just a very unique band, from a very unique place on earth, filled with members of very unique vocal and instrumental talents. And these were just the thoughts I had after listening to their records for a couple of times, and it certainly came as a surprise when I found out how good they are at playing live. The truth is, their studio albums were great, and their live performance tonight at the Esplanade for the Mosaic Music Festival was perfection achieved. If perfection can get any better, it is watching this band live, working their magic. 

Once again, I must emphasize just how great the Mosaic Music Festival organizing committee is. Other than the previously mentioned points, I must commend on how punctual the performances have been, and the way they always organize autograph sessions after the shows. I mean, such things are not common overseas in western countries, this is something that is "Uniquely Singapore", as the posters and the advertisements from the Singapore Tourism Board would be proclaiming. You don't normally have this kind of interaction between the bands and the fans, and I feel that it is something that the Mosaic group and the Esplanade people have done very well, not to mention the fact that they accommodated the fans until after the closing hours just for the autograph sessions to be over. They don't rush the fans to hurry, they don't interfere at all, which I find to be remarkable to say the least. Once again, great job Mosaic and Esplanade, truly fantastic festival you guys are organizing. With that said, let's jump into the main event of the night.

For the Broken Social Scene concert last Sunday, sitting at the back of the venue was the best place to get the first spot in line for the autographs, but certainly not the best place to 'feel' the music. Today, I managed to grab the seats just six rows from the front of the stage, and it was certainly very exciting to be sitting that close to the band playing on stage. Everything became magnified, including the excitement and the anticipation. From the setting of the stage alone, anybody is going to tell you that Múm is a different band from all the others playing at Mosaic Music Festival this year. Everything from the equipments, to the instruments, they are just somewhat different from the conventional setup you would imagine. Normal bands will have a drum set, a few electric guitars, a bass guitar and maybe a keyboard set up somewhere. This band relies more than just the conventional instruments, which is what made them even more amazing than they already are. The concert hall began to fill up with people, and the lights were dimmed at 7.30pm, on the dot. The band came onto the stage, and Hildur lugged a violin and a cello out at the same time - I swooned quietly in my head.

The band started slow, but a powerful opener at that. The vocals of Hildur and Sigurlaug - or Mr. Silla -  surged through the halls and chilled me to the bones. The rising and falling of the notes must have created some kind of imaginary vortex, and it sucked my attention right in from the very first note. From the first song, I knew that I was going to be in a radically different concert from all the others I have been to. It was something out of this world completely, a strange and disturbing, yet beautiful experience altogether. Like Sigur Ros, another famous band from Iceland, the music of Múm does have an uncanny ability to take you to places. With Winter, they took the audience to an icy coastline with waves crashing against the shores, at least that is what I pictured in my head when I heard the song. It was utterly and downright breathtaking. 

The band continued their slow and steady march through the first few songs, taking us to different landscapes and places we have never been to before. It felt almost like an audiobook talking about a distant land you know that you are never going to visit, but you are so moved by the voice that you are actually there. The songs were punctuated by the voice of the very-accented front man of the band, Orvar, and the occasional gags by the bassist/pianist, Gunni. I must say, that women playing the cello or the violin are absolutely gorgeous to look at. Hildur's work with the cello was just amazing. 

Here, we get to see the various talents of the band members. Not only can they switch in between instruments easily, they were also multi-talented and very skilled in every instrument they brought onto the stage. Mr. Silla, Hildur and Orvar brought new life to the melodica, an instrument last seen in the mixed instrumental group performances back in my primary school days. Remember those mini-pianos with a tube sticking out from the side which you were supposed to blow into? Yeah, those. Orvar also played an autoharp, something which I found to be infinitely fascinating to look at. It has a very distinct and unique sound that is very difficult, I feel, to fit into conventional songs. June Carter used it for a lot of her songs in the past, and that instrument is certainly quite a rarity in terms of its usage in the bands today. Drummer Samuli also used a plastic tube of sorts to create a swirling sound by swinging it over his head like a propeller of a helicopter. By swinging the tube and controlling the speed at the same time, it managed to produce a sound that can only be justified by hearing it yourself. The band also used recorders - those dreadful things we used to play endlessly in primary school music lessons - and even a Chinese flute. Hildur also played the clarinet, the violin, the kazoo, and Mr. Silla also joined in with her skills on the harmonica. You get the idea, this band is freakin' awesome.

Blessed Brambles was pleasant to listen to live, and the vocals of the singers were pleasant and enchanting all at the same time. Seriously, the studio versions of their songs do not give justice to their live performances, because they are so much better life, doing their songs. They Made the Frogs Smoke Til' They Exploded was the high point of the night, it was just such a fun song to hear live. The "Meh Meh Meh" at the beginning placed a smile on the face, and I found myself going "Meh Meh Meh" together with the band as well. The amazing thing about this band is definitely the ability to kick into their fun and happy-go-lucky mode in one song, and then sink into a haunting and poignant mood in the next. Their range is incredible, the kind of concerts that one would deem to be unforgettable. The entire set clocked in at a little over one and a half hours, though it felt liked it ended a lot sooner. Good things don't last too long, and the set was very well ended with the medley of Scratched Bicycle and Smell Memory, with a heavy distortion layered with electronic effects played over the speakers. It was rousing, and it was a little intimidating for the lack of a better word. The band just sat there quietly while the distorted sound of chaos rang throughout the concert hall. Drenched in the red lights that poured down from above, it was a haunting sight to behold. Then the lights came on, the band came up to the front, and they were back to their happy selfs again. I wonder how they do it, I really do.

Icelandic people are nice people, therefore I love Icelandic people. They are just so happy to be wherever they are, and they are even happier to see you no matter who you are. Because I was at the front of the concert hall, getting in line at for the autograph session became a problem. I ended up near the back of the queue, which meant that I'd have to wait for a long time just to get my chance to get my autograph, and maybe a picture or two with them as well. But the organizing committee were nice enough to let the session drag on, and the band members really took their time to sign their autographs on every CD, book, iPod, and even a pair of shoes. I managed to talk to a couple of them, and Hildur told me about the melodica, though I was too enthralled by her presence. Samuli and I talked about that plastic tube thing which he swung over his head (Which is also why I was able to tell you how it worked), and Orvar and I talked about Martin guitars. "Small ones are cheaper!" he said, "Big ones like yours, expensive!" I should have asked him what in the world "Tredchorous rodd smells like fresh mushroom" mean, since that was what he wrote in my notebook. Oh, and Mr. Silla's little blob of monster is disgustingly cute, for the lack of a better word. 

So here ends the Mosaic experience for me this year, and I can hardly wait till the end of the year when they would announce the line-up for the next year's Mosaic. I do hope that more bands I like would be coming down to Singapore, more bands to blow me away like Broken Social Scene and Múm. It is difficult to tell which band was better, because they both took me to different places I never dreamed of myself to be. All and all, it has been a great year for concerts, and I do hope for more great ones to come! Go Mosaic!