Text and interview: Lennat Mak

The Temper Trap are on a roll. With the release of their self-titled second album in 2012, the band – Dougy Mandagi, Lorenzo Sillitto, Jonny Aherne, Toby Dundas and and new member Joseph Greer – has been on a whirlwind tour around the world.

With their first appearance in Philippines for Wanderland 2013 and their first acoustic show in Singapore for MTV Sessions, we did a quick dial to guitarist Lorenzo Sillitto to see how the band is prepping for their forthcoming shows, their experience with music festivals and more!

So carrying on my ramble about FMFA… Day 2! The festival grounds during the day honestly weren’t as pleasant as during the night before. It had just rained hard before the gates officially opened so the air was humid and stinky from the porter-potties. The crowd was definitely friendlier and younger. Instead of ravers, the grounds were swarmed with hipsters. We saw people with Mohican feather head-dresses, Aussie boys with themed get-ups, plenty of red lips, dark shades, clunky heels and high-waisted skirts and shorts.

Relentless rain, cloying mud and uneven grounds – that certainly do not sound like it’s the most comfortable setting for an outdoor live music festival. But if Glastonbury can do it, what’s stopping Southeast Asia’s first St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival, held on the historic slopes of Singapore’s Fort Canning Park on January 29, 2011? The 11-hour indie music festival saw a 6000-strong crowd of music lovers singing and dancing to the beats of nine critically-acclaimed bands from the likes of Beach House, Foals, and The Temper Trap.

Since releasing their debut album, Conditions, in 2009, London-based Australian band The Temper Trap has been wowing about music fans and critics alike with their soaring and atmospheric tunes such as “Sweet Disposition,” “Love Lost” and “Fader.” Cutting their mettle in London, the band – Dougy Mandagi (vocals, guitars), Jonathon Aherne (bass), Lorenzo Sillitto (guitars) and Toby Dundas (drums) – has played various major music festivals in both the U.K. and U.S. and at the 2010 ARIA Music Awards, the band also bagged home Best Group and Most Popular Australian Single (“Sweet Disposition”). Suffice to say, The Temper Trap has definitely arrived in their own terms.

Indie kids, here’s a music festival that will truly make you go ga-ga for – Australia’s St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival is set to hit Singapore shores come January 29, 2011 at Fort Canning Park