Bring on the Tension

By Amanda He • UrbanWire
• email reporter • email story • printer friendly

The deafening sound of frantic girls screaming is slowly becoming a customary part of Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s (NP) culture. This semester alone, we’ve seen the likes of Huang Yida and Stella Huang performing in NP and this time, the recipients of these screams were Taiwanese R&B boy band, Tension, which consists of members, Jimmy, Brian, Raymond, Andy and John. The sensational quintet was in NP to promote their latest compilation album, Story, which includes 5 new songs.

For the uninformed, NP was where Tension held their first concert in Singapore for their debut album, Smart, in 2001. The concert had such an overwhelming response that the free tickets were even sold on the black market. This time round though, the organisers, MediaCorp Radio and NP’s campus radio, Radio Heatwave (RHW) had given tickets through a Y.E.S 93.3FM SMS contest and RHW’s Yi Wei Re La Bang, the Mandarin Music Chart Show programme.

Waiting Tension
Backstage Tension
No Sweat
After-Tension

Waiting Tension
Outside Lecture Theatre (LT) 26, a predominantly female crowd, some still in their school uniforms, were already getting hyped up and chattering excitedly with their group of friends.

First in the queue were National University of Singapore (NUS) undergraduates Stephanie Lim and Mel Lee, both 21. Although the concert started at 6pm, they revealed that they had been waiting since 3.30pm. While they claimed that they weren’t big fans of the band, Stephanie noted that, “Tension stands out in the Mandarin pop scene because their music is unique, especially their a cappella.”

Naturally, fans from the local Tension fan club were given free tickets by Tension’s record company, EMI. The president of the fan club, Karen Tay, 18, informed UrbanWire that 23 members of the club had brought along banners and flash lights to show their support. Karen also agreed that they were all looking forward to “Tension’s a cappella, which is very solid because of their soothing voices” and “unique dance steps” which reflects their individualistic styles from other boy bands. .

Backstage Tension
UrbanWire met Tension backstage before the concert and was warmly welcomed by the members who were all clad in casual T shirts and jackets. Immediately, Jimmy set himself apart by being the most talkative member, while Andy and John seemed a little distant and thoughtful throughout the interview.

When asked why they decided to return to NP a second time, a quick-witted Raymond replied without hesitation, “The girls are beautiful. We want to see them once again.”

Amid laughter, Brian revealed that they were actually extremely moved with the response of their first concert and thus felt compelled to return to this place that holds great memories for them. “The students gave us support and they even stood on chairs. It just felt great!” he mused.

In fact, Jimmy pointed out that “the fans in Taiwan usually take us for granted. In Singapore, they [the local fans] really appreciate us and are warm and friendly”.

Besides that, Jimmy believes that what set them apart from other boy bands, besides their a cappella approach, are their different backgrounds and distinct musical taste which were then added into their lyrics and songs.

With a renowned mentor in David Tao, Tension knows that they can’t get away from high expectations from fans and critics alike. Brian mentioned that they also set high expectations for themselves, by practicing quality checks and not following the path-most-travelled-for-success. Jimmy added, “If we follow others, we will always be one step behind.”

No Sweat
Even before the concert started, the audience showed their support and familiarity with Tension by singing along unprompted to their songs played over the sound system.

Finally the concert began with Tension dancing up a storm while singing ‘Gotta Be Your Man’. Throughout their rendition, the audience didn’t let up on their screaming and cheering while waving beautiful yellow, blue, green and orange light sticks in unison to the song.

Dressed in stripped light-coloured shirts and pants, Tension’s efforts to be approachable and make the crowd feel included were evident when they tried to make conversation, initiate interactive games and by simply mingling with the crowd.

Among the interactive games was a contest where the challenge was to learn the dance steps for certain Tension songs. The 3 contestants, chosen because of their enthusiasm and loudest screams, suddenly became shy and overwhelmed in the presence of their idols. Fortunately, Tension made them feel at ease with their humour and sincere concern. Eventually, all of the contestants left with posters of their idols while the winner walked away with a new Tension single.

Tension also displayed their talent when a technical glitch occurred while singing ‘Our Story’. Not only did they all manage to cover for it by changing their pitches impromptu, they also exchanged comical eye signals, thus causing a roar of approval from the crowd.

For the finale, Tension ordered everybody to stand up and dance to ‘Say I’ll Be With You’. Emotions and adrenaline were high as Tension left the stage to join the audience to sing and dance.

Those present at the concert could testify that there were no trace of arrogance, which is fairly common trait among other boy bands such as 5566. What there was were plenty of handshakes for everybody and crooning as they sat within the crowd. They even went all the way to the back of the LT to ensure that they did not leave anybody out.

All good things must come to an end the crowd was visibly disappointed that an encore was not possible due to Tension’s packed schedule. However, Tension promised the crowd that they would be back in Singapore “as soon as they can”.

After-Tension
Karen Lun, 19, a NP Business Studies student found the show “very nice, especially the dancing and the interaction”.

Echoing her sentiments was Teo Teng Teng, 19, who said that she enjoyed the handshake sessions the most and that the show had made her like the band even more. “You can see the other side of them when they perform and they have no flaws,” she said, referring to their friendliness and degree of approachability.

Thanks to this concert, Tension left a deep imprint by their willingness to be seen as just any other human beings, humbling and moving all present by their sincerity.

Watch out 5566 and Energy. Tension’s here to eat your lunch in Singapore.