Every time Avril Lavigne visits Singapore, my wife and I would attend her concert. Her first concert was at SunTec City. Must have been ten years ago? Back then it seemed a bit odd to be surrounded by so many teenagers while we were in our business attires attending a weekday concert. To date, all her teenage fans who stood by her since the beginning have grown up, added another decade onto their age number. All of a sudden, the age gap between us and them doesn’t seem that wide. They are working and so are we. But still, we had two young girls sitting behind us screaming their lungs out jumping in the air throughout the concert holding banners up high. While I am glad that we did not sit one row behind them having to stare at their erm whatever throughout the concert, their screeching sound pierced my ears. I didn’t mind though. Especially during enchore. It was good to have reinforcement from my back to add onto my own screaming. I mean, Singaporeans are the quiet bunch. I was so worried that Avril wouldn’t come out because the crowd went so quiet during enchore. Before the show started, one girl from the back came to us and asked if we wished to switch seats with her. Cynthia and I were at the front row, with unblocked view. Why would we want to give up our seats? But I have got to say, she has the determination though. To her, there was nothing to lose really.

A good thing about Avril’s concert is that over the years, both of us know what to expect. We would arrive early and dine at Brewerkz. It is a microbrewery and a restaurant. The food is so-so. But I love their beer. The atmosphere is good. We remember where we were seated in the past. And every time we stepped inside, good memories return.

The concert started at 8pm on time, which was as expected. Hello Kitty was the opening number, which was what I have anticipated too. The song is upbeat. It is current and has an Asian feel to it. Loved her Asian doll-like outfits. This tour of hers started in Japan in the beginning of the month, she was in Hong Kong in Valentine’s Day and in Singapore the day after. I joked with Cynthia that we celebrated this special day on the 15th instead.

Next one was Girlfriend taken from her 2007 The Best Damn Thing album. Who doesn’t know how to sing Girlfriend? So, everyone sang along. The third number was Rock N Roll, a single from her latest album. The crowd went wild. I like Avril’s debut album. And her latest self-titled album is my favorite after her debut album. Rock N Roll is such a great song that portrays her unique attitude that her fans love so perfectly.

I remember her previous concerts usually were kept to 60 minutes long. This time, she has extended the duration to 90 minutes. I wish there were more but I understand that Singapore’s crowd is tiny, may not look that enthusiastic towards Western artists (compare to say Taiwanese artists). Most of the concerts I have attended are short. 90-minute is still longer than expected. So I am happy.

In her last concert, she cracked jokes on the stage and made connection with the audience. This concert, the connection wasn’t quite there. Maybe she didn’t have time to do much in our country. She did mention “Singapore” a couple of times though. Every time she did that, the crowd went wild. Some of our favorite songs from her most recent album, she did not perform. Having said that, she did pick a few hits from her previous albums, which was a treat. The highlight of the concert would be the band’s rendition on the the song written by Marilyn Mansion for Avril called Bad Girl. Avril has a costume to go along with it too. A black cap and two little red horns on her head.

Except a few glitches here and there probably due to sound engineering, she held her notes well throughout the concert. I knew she would do well on stage. And she gave it all for the last few songs of the set reaching notes so high till my ears and heart bleed, in a good way. What a blast last evening was. I sure hope that she will make a return to Singapore one day. Below is a photo I have taken during the concert with my mobile phone.

Cued to perfection, as Avril pointed her microphone to the us, ten thousand electrified audience sang in unison, “I miss you!”  And we did it more than once, as she performed “When You’re Gone”.  Yes.  We miss Avril.  The last time she was in Singapore, it was back in 2008.  At the end of the concert, I shared my reflection with Cynthia.  I said, “Every time we go to Avril’s concert, the age of the younger crowd stays the same, but we are getting older!”  It was scary, to be surrounded by so many young people.  The atmosphere was entirely different from the Jolin Tsai concert we have attended merely 2 nights ago.  The crowd for Avril was more international while the crowd for Jolin was more local and many girls dressed up and dolled up to look like Jolin.  On that note, I would say I enjoy looking at the Jolin crowd better.

We were anticipating Avril to be late by one and a half hours, like her previous concert.  Fortunately, she emerged from the stage after half an hour’s wait.  When she did, the crowd was euphoric.  The screaming was so loud that I could not hear what Avril sang or said.  Like her last concert, we booked the seats at the premium area.  Cost us S$165 per ticket but it was money well spent!  The mood was fantastic.  Everyone was on his or her feet and screamed like there was no tomorrow.  The dude beside me attempted to record the entire concert with his e-pony (that’s how the folks in my Spanish study group pronounce that phone made by Apple).  Initially I was apprehensive as in whether or not I should let go my emotion and screamed out loud.  It would be quite bad if he plays back the recording some days later and all he hears is my off-tone screaming.  But then, he was screaming just as loud, singing just as toneless directly into his e-pony.  So I joined him, together with a stadium full of people, we sang each and every song, like an army of true Avril fans.

There were no dancers on stage this time.  And it felt like more of a rock concert.  Avril played the guitar and the piano.  One song, she sat on top of the piano singing “Alice in Wonderland”.  The smoke effect at times was so intense that we could not see anything on stage.  After the song, she coughed a little and joked that she couldn’t see a thing.  That was funny.  And that was also the only time she said something other than “Singapore!”  I wish she would interact the crowd more (like Jolin did).  I wonder if she knows that people in Singapore can actually comprehend English.  Maybe she is not the chatty type.

The concert lasted for about 1 hour and 20 minutes (compares Jolin who performed an extra hour longer).  Especially for those who know nearly every song and every note, time flies.  I hope that Singapore still holds a special place in her heart and she will be back for her next world tour.  For sure, I am grabbing that Black Star Tour video recording when it is out.