FIVE MINUTES WITH… AMANDA LING

Amanda Ling is the ex-keyboardist of Electrico, who went on to carve a name for herself in the male-dominated music scene. Ling played at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas, manned the decks as DJ Doopz and, as a member of In Each Hand A Cutlass, played to a sold-out show at the Esplanade. Ling managed to squeeze a meet-up with CATALOG into her busy schedule.

This is belated but congratulations on In Each Hand A Cutlass at the Esplanade; what was your assessment of the events leading up to the performance and afterwards?

Thank you! We had a blast performing for the weekend series at Esplanade Outdoor Theatre in late 2010 and the Esplanade team decided to give us a slot for the Late Night Series in June the following year. We decided to record our debut album and launch it on the night of the performance. It was full sail with recording and production for the first half of 2011. 

Many things happened along the way: lineup changes, crazy tight production deadlines, rehearsing for the launch, etc. After the launch, we decided to take a month or two just to catch up with our lives for a bit. We are now preparing and rehearsing for gigs lined up for the second half of the year and planning for some overseas shows too.

So… what’s the idea behind the “Doopz” in DJ Doopz?

When you’re drunk in a club, all you can hear is “doopz doopz doopz doopz" (bass kick and hihat) out of the system... so I adopted that and made it my DJ moniker.

We assume you started out on the keyboards, how did you fall into the DJ role?

I started as a young clubber who loved observing DJs spinning on the decks; I took a crash course in DJing and got more exposed to and interested in the electronic dance scene during my music college days. Since then, I aspired to be DJing one day too as I wanted to inject my own vibe of music into a venue.

Since leaving Electrico, are you more wary when other bands ask you to play for them?

I wasn't wary but I was highly selective. Nevertheless, I had fun sessioning with various local bands like Plainsunset, The Fire Fight, Meltngsnow and regionally,  with Pupil, from the Philippines opening for Nine Inch Nails and Tears For Fears.

With Daniel Sassoon (ex-Electrico and current IEHAC bandmate), was it always on the cards for the two of you to collaborate together?

We have an unspoken understanding and bond since our Electrico days. After our departure, we would jokingly talk about collaborating but it all came naturally when he asked me to joined IEHAC. This led to a great reunion and it was a rejuvenating time to move forward with our musical progressions and directions!

Since you’re in IEHAC, we feel obligated to ask you this: what kind of pirate would you be?

I'd be a hippie yogini pirate doing rounds of sun salutations with a robe and crystal ball, predicting our next pirate adventures!

How do you feel about Inch Chua’s disappointment in the lack of support in the local music scene?

I share her sentiments and even more so after the recent article Daniel Sassoon wrote regarding the Singapop issue where local indie bands were specifically left out as part of their lineup to celebrate Singapore's music. It’s disheartening that sincere, honest support for the music scene is lacking in the already tiny population and culture in Singapore. Even within the local music industry, it remains segregated.

There are more musical happenings now compared to previous years, but these "openings" up of opportunities are not sincerely and entirely about cultivating local musicians. It’s all about face; Singapore wants to be seen like they have done played their part in supporting though not necessarily for its own local talent.

There was a huge influx of foreign musical acts into the country in the recent year, with huge budgets to cover their costs, but we don't see or hear anything about a huge significant amount of local acts given big budgets to travel out of the country and tour.

There won’t be any changes if the masses continue to have such double standards and don’t give local musicians more support and confidence. But who knows, change could always happen as long as we all keep believing and going at it.

What lies in the future for Amanda Ling?

A lot more musical involvements, collaborations and musical creations! Besides, IEHAC, I’ve a live electronica outfit called The Synth Experience and we’re working on our own production and playing gigs.  As a DJ, I'm actually really excited with quite a few opportunities coming my way with travelling and playing around the region.

In a more business aspect, my friends and I operate Thunder Rock School, a music school that promotes originality, creativity and provides industry insights to students. We hope to create more awareness to the local music scene and share the love of music through teaching. All these are enough to keep me going and busy for the future!