The lineup at next year’s Laneway Music Festival in Singapore

In January this year, some 10,000 music fans trooped to the The Meadow at the Gardens By The Bay in Singapore for the region’s biggest indie music event, St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival. It was the largest audience the festival has had in the five years it has been held in the Lion City (it started in Australia in 2005). There is no clearer sign that the event is steadily outgrowing its initial niche market of indie music enthusiasts and is now creeping into the mainstream.

Earlier Wednesday, the lineup for the Singapore leg of next year’s Laneway, happening January 30, 2016, was announced and as always, it’s peppered with some pretty powerful names. Before we do a rundown of the acts playing, it’s worth noting that next year’s edition of the festival is going to be pretty special as, for the first time ever, a Filipino act will be featured. And it’s none other than…

Cheats

A staple of the Manila gig circuit for a couple of years, Cheats is a collective of millennials playing happy, now music. I first saw them at the launch party of the Esquire Eraserheads issue last year and if they bring that spunk and verve, not to mention their fresh, youthful sound, to Singapore, there’s no doubt they’re gonna pick up not a few more fans across the region. Well done!

Sounds like: Of Monsters and Men, Echosmith



Battles

Getting together in 2002, Battles is one of the old-timers in the festival. Call their music math rock, experimental or post-rock, but there’s no other way to experience Battles but to stand there and let their unique sounds take over your ears.

Sounds like: Hella, Lightning Bolt, Animal Collective



Beach House

Victoria Legrand was born in France but grew up in Philadelphia, while Alex Scally is a native of Baltimore, Maryland. Together they are known as Beach House, creating music that would make the perfect soundtrack to your dreams.

Sounds like: Grizzly Bear, Tame Impala, Deer Hunter



Big Scary

Australian duo Big Scary’s music covers a lot of ground: piano pop, garage rock, even ambient chill. Their 2013 release Not Art won the prestigious Australian Music Prize, so that should tell you something of their undeniable talent.

Sounds like: Sparkadia, Bon Iver



Cashew Chemists

Take the music of early 90s garage rock, mix in sunshiny 50s and 60s pop, and run everything through the bodies of five Singaporean lads and you get Cashew Chemists. The homegrown band should prove to be one of the popular acts come Laneway Day.

Sounds like: The Beach Boys, The Strokes



Chvrches

Scottish band Chvrches make their return to the Laneway stage after they charmed audiences back in 2014. They’re back with their sophomore album, Every Open Eye, and I can’t imagine anybody not looking forward to hearing (and seeing) sweet, sweet Lauren Mayberry again.

Sounds like: Polica, Haim



DIIV

DIIV hails from New York and play a pulsing, indie-shoegaze hybrid that would make for the perfect soundtrack for a night out in the Big City. I can already see myself rocking out to the song “How Long Have You Known.”

Sounds like: Real Estate, Mac DeMarco



East India Youth

East India Youth is William Doyle’s alter ego; an unadulterated dance act sure to get the Laneway crowds jumping. He was nominated for a Mercury Music Prize in 2014 for his debut Total Strife Forever, but his new release Culture of Volume takes listeners even further his 80s-inspired electronic dance journey.

Sounds like: Depeche Mode, Pet Shop Boys, David Bowie



Flume

Twenty-three-year-old Harley Edward Streten is Flume, an Australian DJ and instrumentalist. If you can’t get enough of vocals-over-electronic music to sway your body to and get lost in, his is definitely worth checking out.

Sounds like: Chet Faker, James Blake, xxyyxx



GDJYB

Math Rock. Girl band. Indie folk. If these don’t sound like they could come from one group, you haven’t heard GDJYB. It’s hard to get a sense of what they’re all about from just their material posted on Soundcloud, but it seems like they’ve garnered a bunch of fancs with their one-of-a-kind sound, not to mention aesthetic. Definitely will keep an eye out for this group.

Sounds like: Sufjan Stevens, St. Vincent



Grimes

Grimes should be familiar to obsessive Filipino indie fans. The artist, whose real name is Claire Elise Boucher, visited Manila back in 2013 and wowed audiences with her eclectic musical style that draws from artists as diverse as TLC, Enya and Aphex Twin.

Sounds like: FKA Twigs, Twin Shadow, Warpaint



Hermitude

Electronic hiphop act Hermitude have been making music since before they were even old enough to drive. The Australian duo have collaborated with a bunch of artists, including fellow Laneway act Flume, and both are expected to bring some instrumental dance music muscle to the proceedings. Bonus points for a ridiculously cool music video for “Speak Of The Devil”

Sounds like: Flume, What So Not



Hudson Mohawke

Another electronic and hiphop artist in the lineup is Hudson Mohawke, a Scottish DJ signed to Kanye West’s label. Also a producer and songwriter, Mohawke has garnered raves for his ability to effortlessly fuse genres, resulting in larger-than-life beats.

Sounds like: Jamie xx, Shamir



Intriguant

Singapore-based DJ and electronic music producer Intriguant (aka Louis Quek) has picked up notices from outside his home coutry, including parts of Europe, the Middle East and the US. He promises to bring “downtempo and fragile beats” to the Laneway crowd.

Sounds like: Nosaj Thing, Nicolas Jaar



METZ

Canadian band METZ sounds like what would blare out from your room that your mother would ask you to turn down. Bits of punk, grunge and metal emanate from the three-member group, undoubtedly this year’s big act that would satisfy cravings for loud, unapologetic rock.

Sounds like: Fugazi, Nirvana



Purity Ring

Another act from Canada, Purity Ring would probably be the band that would accompany the dictionary definition of “future pop.” Combining traditional vocals with synth and triphop beats that sound like they would come from bars of the 22nd century, the group is also known for stellar live shows.

Sounds like: Banks, Chvrches



Riot !n Magenta

Singaporean quintet Riot !n Magenta combines vocalist Eugenia Yip’s etheral vocals with edgy electronic beats, resulting in wistful, brooding rhythms. Another reason for Singaporeans to look forward to next year’s show.

Sounds like: The xx, Florence + the Machine



Shamir

Many artists straddle the line between genres, but no one in this year’s lineup defies categorization quite like Shamir. The 20-year-old Las Vegas-native’s dance-funk-R&B-soul hybrid has garnered critical acclaim, with many saying he reminds them of a young Michael Jackson

Sounds like: Prince, David Bowie, Grace Jones



The Internet

Hip-hop and R&B group The Internet makes the kind of music that would work in a chill lounge as much as it would in the bedroom. The band consists of members of Odd Future (Syd Bennett and Matt Martians), crafting sexy, soulful melodies for the picky R&B fan.

Sounds like: Kilo Kish, Frank Ocean, Janelle Monae



Thundercat

Funk and soul come together in the music of Thundercat, aka Stephen Bruner. A session musician for Erykah Badu, Thundercat has released two solo albums and has collaborated with Kendrick Lamar in the latter’s latest album.

Sounds like: Flying Lotus, Lapalux, SBTRKT



Tobias Jesso Jr.

I first hear of Tobias Jesso Jr. when Time magazine named him as one of the 15 Artists To Watch for 2015. It wasn’t hard to like the Vancouver native’s singer-songwriter vibe reminiscent of 70s troubadours and even shades of the Beatles. His is definitely the set I am looking forward to the most.

Sounds like: James Vincent McMorrow, Courtney Barnett, Bon Iver



Violent Soho

Transfer the Seattle grunge to Australia and you’ll have some idea of Violent Soho’s music. The Brisbane quartet channels Mudhoney, Weezer and even Nirvana but still play music they can call their own.

Sounds like: British India, Millions, DZ Deathrays



— BM, GMA News

The Laneway Music Festical happens January 30, 2016. For tickets, visit sistic.com.sg.

Paul John Caña is a magazine writer and live music geek. He is also co-founder of libreto.org, an online collective of writers and artists. Email him at pjcana@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter and Instagram @pauljohncana.