Artful Dodgers

Nuance took root in 2001 when internet chatroom pals Donald Pan (vocals, guitar) and Calvin Chian (drums) roped in friends Xu Yong Hui (guitar) and Kevin Loh (bass) into the fray. Known as Sub-Divisions then, Donald soon renamed the band Nuance. “There are subtle messages we try to convey in our songs, whether through music or through lyrics,” he explains of the name change. “It is about differences that might not be noticed.”

In 2004, Nuance issued a self-released demo, also known as the “$26 demo”, a three-track disc that has the original incarnation of ‘Fear Strikes Mankind’ and the truly addictive pop piece ‘Gentlest Of Breezes’. It was then that a fan wrote in and described their music as “very sincere pop”. Although they are heavily influenced by Radiohead, Sigur Ros and Elliott Smith, Nuance is more than just a collective hotpot of influences. Their debut self titled EP–available in stores in Singapore and also on their website at www.fearstrikesmankind.com–testifies to this.

Produced by Evan Tan of The Observatory and Eugene Wong of Morphy, the band has climbed a few more steps up the evolutionary ladder. With new guitarist Alexius Cai, ‘Fear Strikes Mankind’ has evolved into an epic tale of judgment and redemption. Opening track ‘Mesopotamia’ is a crunchy spiel on war and religion while songs like ‘Luna’ and ‘Labor’–both raw, live recordings on the EP–display the band’s taste for thoughtful twists. The surprising and most heartfelt piece is the folk-tinged ‘Silver City’, a yearning ode to love lost that was inspired by a death in Donald’s family.

A follow-up album is in the works; in the meantime watch out for a free download of live tracks from the Nuance website this month. It promises to be raw and gritty.

Words Yusof Photos Nuance
www.myspace.com/nuance