Matchbox 20 - Live in Singapore, Finally!

After a 10-year absence (and so sorely missed by their fans here), rock band Matchbox 20 finally made it to the Red Dot Island. The last time they were here, as Red Dot Diva remembers, it was during the MTV Asia Awards in 2003.

Their stint in this part of the world was in support of their latest album release called "North", and the Singapore Indoor Stadium was the last stop of their Asian tour.

It was unfortunate that they had to give Manila a miss due to Typhoon Yolanda, but the band is hoping to reschedule for a Philippines concert date in the future.

At the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 10 November, Sunday night, not only were there the locals and the expats, Red Dot Diva noticed that there were many regional fans from Malaysia and Indonesia who flew in just for the band's live performance. It was not entirely a full house but there was a good enough crowd, with many of the hardcore fans and music lovers at the free standing area near the stage.

Red Dot Diva and her concert buddies - Ryan and Jean - were about seven to eight people deep from the stage barrier, and they had a pretty good view of what was going on stage. Best of all, they got their spots at about an hour earlier before the concert began. Score!!

Being "The Catalyst"

Linkin Park has been Red Dot Diva's number one favourite band ever since she first caught their song featured in the late 1990's TV series "Roswell". The discordant but refreshing Linkin Park track featured in an episode entitled "Meeting The Dupes" was called "With You".

That was the beginning of an almost 9-year love affair with Linkin Park for Red Dot Diva. She still remembered how she almost wore out the CD for "Hybrid Theory" as Chester's alternatively raw screams and other times, hushed vocals milked out the tunes. Their angst-filled "Papercut" in tune to her emotions simmering under a calm surface.

Red Dot Diva was working as a marketing / product person at an indie record label that time. She found that the band's successful methods of building an army of fans from the street level to their immense mainstream success was an interesting case study on the power of online marketing.