Passing - Leslie Low in Concert for The Substation’s 35th Year
The Substation presents one of Singapore’s most prolific singer-songwriters Leslie Low in a solo concert, as part of its Gathering Ground 2025 anniversary series.
“Leslie Low's songs are like love letters to Singapore, and this concert, in a way, is our love letter to the artist and community,” says Yuni Hadi, Co-chairperson of The Substation.
Join us for a double celebration of The Substation’s 35th anniversary as an independent arts development platform and Leslie Low’s 35 years in music. Passing is a lyrical and sonic journey through Low’s indie-pop and soft rock reflections as an artist growing up, living in, and experiencing Singapore.
CONCERT DETAILS
Date: Sunday, 10 August 2025
Time: 5.00pm (Duration: 80min)
Venue: Esplanade Recital Studio, 1 Esplanade Dr, Singapore 038981
Tickets:
$35 Standard - Early Bird (until 1 Aug, 12noon)
$40 Standard (starts 1 August, 12noon)
$50 Premium - limited quantity with anniversary exclusives!
“In our 35th year, The Substation continues to hold space—for fresh perspectives, for shaping culture, and for strengthening our shared identity,” shares Yuni. “Spotlighting an artist like Leslie, whose poetic and powerful songs can captivate hearts to silence, allows us to gather in this space; the way I first experienced his music 20 years ago at a Substation event.”
Reaching back to his first album A Walking Purgatory in (1999) up until his latest effort, Chimera (2024), Low has handpicked personal favourites from his solo repertoire, including a previously unreleased track, for this special 80-minute show – performed by Leslie Low on guitar, with guest musicians, Sean Lam (Concave Scream, Hanging Up the Moon) and Alexius Cai (Piblokto).
Audiences can expect an intimate evening of heartfelt songs, stripped down to the pure sound, poignant lyricism, and evocative emotions behind Leslie Low the artist.
The concert follows a series of recent collaborations by The Substation to celebrate the music of Singapore artists, many of whom began their formative years at the old Substation Garden or Guinness Theatre—including Leslie Low as then frontman of 90s bands Humpback Oak and The Observatory.
The title, Passing, is ambiguous but reflective of the mindset behind Leslie Low’s songwriting – with lyrics open to interpretation, inviting the listener to tap into their own set of lived experiences and emotions. By baring the soul, Low hopes to find common ground with the listener.
The common thread is essentially the story of growing up. Like journals, Low’s songs document life through the years – from a place of naivety and innocence through the realities of adulthood, and beyond into the years of stasis during pandemics, to losing one’s job and recovering from it. All of these against the backdrop of an ever-changing Singapore horizon-scape. His songs conjure a feeling of ‘the Singapore experience’ not often talked about or presented in mainstream media, yet is a feeling that is intimately known and deeply relatable in the collective consciousness.
Depending on which album or period, Low’s lyrics can be conversational like in Blood Red Pale White (2021), or as in Worm (2006), seemingly inconsequential and simplistic but dressed up to obscure a deeper meaning. But always, there is an emotional quality behind the words and introverted presentation that define most of Leslie Low’s music.
Photo: Elizabeth Low
Leslie Low was once the singer and guitarist of Humpback Oak in the 90s. Over the next decade and a half, he was a member of several music collectives including The Observatory, Magus, Hanging Up The Moon, Piblokto and Pan Gu.
In 2017, Leslie released a series of solo folk acoustic albums, including Nature and Child of the Island, both recorded live and unadorned. He also released Singapore in my Bones, a collection of demos recorded on his phone for an art exhibition in 2018. In 2019, he collaborated with ex-bandmate Victor Low on The Monsoon.
During the pandemic, Leslie wrote songs that began as ‘The Mountain Trilogy’ - starting with Be Still, The Mountain (2020), then Sand, and Beyond The Mountain (2021). He also released Blood Red Pale White in 2021, a lost album recorded earlier but previously unreleased.
In late 2022, Nightingale and The Drill were released, weridly birthed from listening to Japanese bands Off Course and AB’S. Voyager (2023), primarly written on a nylon-stringed guitar, marks a return to standard guitar tuning and a sound that harks back to Humpback Oak - bringing the listener full-circle back to where it all began.
In 2024, Leslie released two contrasting albums: Metamorphosis, which blends synth textures and rhythms to explore change, and Chimera, a collaborative album featuring local peers Fuzz Lee (elintseeker), Sean Lam (Hanging Up The Moon), Alexius Cai (Piblokto), Victor Low (AFFIXEN, Concave Scream, The Observatory) and Evan Tan (The Padres, The Observatory, Minister). Chimera touches on themes of relationships, displacement, disillusionment, and the myth of the phoenix.
Guest Artists on guitar, backing vocals
Not content with an award-winning career as an interactive designer, Singapore-based artist Sean Lam wanted to share his talent with ears as well as eyes. Co-founder of influential '90s band Concave Scream, Sean has moved on from angst and rebellion to discover the simple honesty of folk music. What started as an outlet for personal expression, soon became a project unto itself; the solo venture earning the title Hanging up the Moon due to the many late nights Sean spent recording. Coupled with Sean’s unique visual accompaniments and collaborative input from old band mate Dean Aziz, Affixen's Victor Low and The Observatory's Leslie Low, Hanging Up the Moon is a complete package of lo-fi melodies and heart-felt lyrics, perfectly at home on Singapore's Kitchen.Label.
Alexius Cai is a Singapore musician known for his experimental guitar work and ambient soundscapes. Under his project Piblokto, formed in 2012, he explores textural depth and atmospheric compositions. His critically acclaimed debut album Colourless Fields (2012) featured collaborations with Leslie Low and other notable musicians, drawing inspiration from Nick Drake and James Blackshaw. After releasing Imperfection in 2016, which examined forgotten emotional landscapes, Cai returned in 2023 with The Leaves Will Fall Again EP following a decade-long hiatus. His longstanding creative partnership with Leslie Low spans multiple projects, bringing his distinctive sonic approach to their collaborations.