Sobs (band)

Singaporean indie rock band

Sobs

Origin| Singapore
Genres|

* Indie rock[1]
* Indie pop[2]

Years active| 2017–present
Labels|

* Middle Class Cigars[3]
* Topshelf Records[2]

Members|

* Celine Autumn
* Jared Lim
* Raphael Ong

Website| sobs.bandcamp.com

Sobs is a Singaporean indie rock/pop band formed in 2017. The band comprises Celine Autumn on vocals, Jared Lim on lead guitar, and Raphael Ong on rhythm guitar.[3][4] As a touring unit, Sobs consists of Autumn, Lim, Ong, and auxiliary members such as Zhang Bo on bass, Soffi Peters on synths, and Shaun Khiu on drums.[4] The band shares members and collaborators with fellow Singaporean indie rock bands Subsonic Eye and Blush.[5][6] Sobs have been described as a sunny oasis in the melancholy landscape of the indie music scene in Singapore.[7]

## Biography

[edit]

In 2017, Autumn posted on the Singapore-based online music forum, SOFT, to look for someone to produce her project. Lim responded to her post, and the two kindled a friendship that eventually became Sobs.[8][9] Autumn and Lim then wrote and recorded their first single, “Girl,” in the same year. In an interview in 2019, Lim recalled,

> “Celine and I have been making music for some time, but it wasn’t until we wrote ‘Girl’ that things started getting serious. Everyone we sent it to really seemed to like it, especially Raphael, who asked to join the band within minutes of hearing the song.”[9]

In June 2017, Sobs released its first EP titled Catflap, which featured the Autumn/Lim penned track, "Girl."[3][10] The band made its live debut on Sled Productions X Decline in Singapore the following month.[11] The band released its first album, Telltale Signs, in June 2018.[12] In October 2018, Sobs opened for Snail Mail's show in Singapore.[13] In January 2019, the band toured Japan.[14] The band embarked on its first Southeast Asian tour alongside Subsonic Eye, which started from February to March 2019.[15]

After four years of no new studio-recorded material,[7] the band finally released its second album, Air Guitar, in October 2022 via Topshelf Records.[12][2] Air Guitar received positive reviews.[7][8][1] The band announced a 2023 US tour to promote the album, beginning in February.[16] In early June 2023, the band toured Japan for the time since 2019.[17]

## Members

[edit]

### Core

[edit]

* Celine Autumn – vocals
* Jared Lim – lead guitar
* Raphael Ong – rhythm guitar

### Live

[edit]

* Celine Autumn – vocals
* Jared Lim – lead guitar
* Raphael Ong – rhythm guitar
* Soffi Peters – synths
* Shaun Khiu – drums

## Discography

[edit]

### Singles

[edit]

* "Telltale Signs" (released on June 1, 2018)[18]
* "Air Guitar" b/w "Cool" (released on October 7, 2022)[19]

### EPs

[edit]

* Catflap (released on June 23, 2017)[10]

### Albums

[edit]

* Telltale Signs (released on June 22, 2018)[20]
* Air Guitar (released on October 26, 2022)[21]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Edelstein, Mark. "Sobs' 'Air Guitar' Singapore Pop-Rock With Fortitude". PopMatters. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
2. ^ a b c Bloom, Madison; Moreland, Quinn. "9 New Albums You Should Listen to Now: Show Me the Body, Westside Gunn, and More". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
3. ^ a b c "Listen: Sobs "Catflap"". Alt Citizen. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
4. ^ a b Sobs. Sobs on Audiotree Live. Audiotree. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
5. ^ Basbas, Franchesca (12 May 2023). "The Purest Blue teams up with Sobs' and Subsonic Eye's Jared Lim for debut single 'Stationary Bike'". Bandwagon. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
6. ^ Singh, Surej (2021-11-26). "Singaporean indie rock band Blush release debut self-titled EP". NME. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
7. ^ a b c Hong, Michael. "Sobs: Air Guitar". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
8. ^ a b Gwee, Karen. "Sobs: Singapore's indie pop stars make a dazzling leap on new album 'Air Guitar'". NME. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
9. ^ a b Saalabi, Shayan (Nov 22, 2019). "Meet Sobs, the band spearheading Singapore's rock scene". Medium. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
10. ^ a b Sobs. Catflap. Bandcamp. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
11. ^ "Sobs on Instagram: "💦🎉😵FIRST SHOW😵🎉💦 We're opening for @splashhband on 15 July alongside @cosmicchildband!!!! Tickets available at ticketbox.sg/splashh ✨ Also @lush995fm has a ticket giveaway contest on their Facebook right now so check that ouuuuuuuut"". Instagram. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
12. ^ a b Ng, Scott. "Sobs announce new album 'Air Guitar', share title track and Gwen Stefani cover". NME. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
13. ^ Sobs. We love @snailmailband so much!!! she's one of our favourite artists ever & we are OPEINBG the show. Instagram. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
14. ^ Paramavisam, Indran (25 February 2019). "'I'm proud to be in this community of Asian Bands': An interview with Sobs about its Japan tour". Bandwagon. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
15. ^ Singh, Sirej (25 January 2018). "Sobs and Subsonic to tour Southeast Asia". Bandwagon. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
16. ^ Ng, Scott. "Sobs announce 2023 US tour including SXSW stop". NME. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
17. ^ "Sobs Japan Tour 2023". Fastcut Records. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
18. ^ Sobs. "Telltale Signs". Spotify. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
19. ^ Sobs. "Air Guitar". Spotify. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
20. ^ Sobs. Telltale Signs. Bandcamp. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
21. ^ Sobs. Air Guitar. Bandcamp. Retrieved 2023-06-24.