The Observatory is an art rock, experimental and electronica band based in Singapore, consisting primarily of members from 1990s Singaporean bands. The band formed in 2001 and performed for the first time at the Baybeats music festival in December 2002. They have released eight albums: Time of Rebirth (2004), Blank Walls (2005), A Far Cry From Here (2007), Dark Folke (2009), Catacombs (2012), Oscilla (2014), Continuum (2015) and August is the Cruellest (2016). The band has performed in Norway, Italy, Japan, France, Germany and Singapore, and headlined regional music events in Malaysia and Thailand and Korea, such as MTV's Pattaya Music Festival, Heineken Fat Festival Bangkok, St Jerome's Laneway Festival and the Seoul Fringe Festival.
The Observatory is the subject of a crowd-funded experimental music documentary, The Obs: A Singapore Story, which premiered at the Singapore International Film Festival in December 2014 and travelled to the CINEDAYS Festival of European Film in Macedonia, DORF film festival in Croatia, Bare Bones International Music and Film Festival in the United States and more.
Discography
Albums
Time of Rebirth
Released: March 2004
Produced by The Observatory & Rennie Gomes
Mixed by The Observatory & Rennie Gomes at members' homes and at Yellow Box Studios, Singapore
The debut album, Time of Rebirth, released in March 2004, is described by the band as "a quiet, ruminating album of poignant songs underlined by delicate textures and lush instrumentation. Delivered in hush tones over layers of subtle electronic elements blended with a distinct acoustic feel." It was written and recorded over a period of two-and-a-half years.
Reviewing the demo version of Time of Rebirth on BigO, Ivan Thomasz called it "a timely way-station on the journey of life", while critic Paul Zach praised the official album as being "so achingly, subtly gorgeous, it defies categorisation". Despite not receiving any airplay from local radio stations, 800 copies of the Time of Rebirth demo were sold, with the official album being picked up by Universal Music SIngapore for distribution, selling out its first run of 2,000 copies. Nominating Time of Rebirth as the Best Album of 2004, Razali Abdullah of Today called it "a groundbreaking album so ethereally beautiful...a local band as good as [The Observatory] comes by once a millennium." Reviewing the album in The Straits Times, Yeow Kai Chai wrote that "The Observatory invoke otherworldly beauty through a blend of electric gadgetry and classic instrumentation…gradually laying bare their emotional core while taking your breath away", while Chris Ho praised Time of Rebirth for being "[t]ender and beautiful in its intimacy".
Time of Rebirth features non-standard packaging designed by Kinetic. Rather than coming in a jewel case, it was released in the form of a diary, complete with paper-clipped photographs and torn pages. The band all had a hand in assembling the packaging. A music video for "Killing Time", directed by Royston Tan, was also released.
Blank Walls
Released: September 2005
Produced by The Observatory & Jorgen Traeen
Mixed by Jorgen Traeen at Duper Studio (Bergen, Norway)
Their second album, Blank Walls, elaborates on the band’s philosophy of perpetual change, and is described by the band as "deliberately loose, eschewing particular themes and genres while embracing unconventional structures, progressive sounds and improvisatory forms, continuing an experimentation with song form, delving into greater depths of musical and lyrical tension, creating a diverse, experimental palette of words, sonic layering, and musical contrasts. The subject matter signals a mood-shift towards a more palpable intensity, exploring various themes from anger to disenchantment, from the quaint and humorous to self-mockery or plain indignation."
Today gave Blank Walls 4/5, praising The Observatory for "upp[ing] the ante by bringing in new drummer Adam Shah – who gives the band an unexpected edge – and crafting a beautiful opus that is hauntingly powerful." Complimenting The Observatory on how "the[ir] audacity can be heard in the way sounds are spliced, unwound and transplanted without warning", Yeow Kai Chai of The Straits Times wrote, "No other Singapore band, past or present, has captured the imagination quite like The Observatory. In two brief years, this experimental space-rock combo has risen from nowhere to become a premier act which everybody talks about with a kind of reverential hush."