By Taylah Eastwell
Talented vocalist and frontman for hit Aussie band Taxiride, Jason Singh has announced his first tour since 2019, and Belgrave performance has made the list.
Bringing a set of solid 90s nostalgia to Sooki Lounge, Mr Singh will perform the hits that were once the most played songs on Australian radio on Friday 16 April.
Bidding wars, exotic overseas studios and years of international touring established Taxiride as one of Australia’s biggest musical exports, with Jason Singh and his impressive set of pipes and sky scraping pop sensibility at the helm.
Speaking to the Star Mail, Mr Singh said he is looking forward to performing to a “relaxed” hills crowd.
“I have played at Sooki Lounge before. It’s a great little venue and perfect for what I’m going to do with this tour,” he said.
“It’s about the same distance out of Melbourne that I am in Ocean Grove, so the people are a lot more chilled. The food is unbelievable too, but I like the kind of people that live in the hills.
“They are very much like us beach folks, much more relaxed, so I’m looking forward to being able to talk to people from the stage like they are up there with me because that’s the type of crowd you get in the hills,” he said.
Mr Singh will play some of Taxirides biggest hits, which include “Get Set, “Everywhere You Go” and the most played song on Australian radio in 2002, “Creepin Up Slowly”. He will also perform a selection of his solo material and other classic favourites.
Reflecting back on his time at the top, Mr Singh described it as “a crazy whirlpool of madness”.
“It was crazy. It felt great and looking back on it we had an amazing run,” he said.
“The little moments are the ones that stand out for me. I remember standing at an ATM machine and the guy in front of me was whistling “Get Set” and it took everything within my power to not tell him that it was me singing that song,” he said.
Mr Singh said the reason he wanted to put this tour together was to “pay complete homage” to “such a great time” in his life.
“Especially coming out of the year we just had. I was doing 200 shows a year and then none with Covid so in a way it gave me time to dream this show up and gave me that time to reflect on the first 20 years of my career,” he said.
Taxiride formed in 1997, with the bands first song released on October 25 1999.
“We were all in separate bands around Melbourne competing for the best gigs in town, so we all knew of each other. I was introduced to the two Tim’s in the band (Tim Watson and Tim Wild) who asked if I wanted to come and sing with them. We put our forces and heads together and worked on some tunes that eventually became Imaginate – our first album,” he said.
Taxiride began in a small studio in Mt Waterley before being signed to Warner Bros.
Mr Singh said there was “a bit of a battle to sign the band” back in the day, with 11 record companies competing to sign the popular foursome.
“I remember being woken up by management saying our album had debut at number one and we were going to America. It was a pretty fun life for a 20-year-old,” he said.
The band has since been “on and off” after having a “big hiatus after 2010”.
During the hiatus, Mr Singh began working on his solo music, including work with Charles Fisher, music producer for Savage Garden, and eventually released his solo album Humannequin.
“I’m excited about playing these shows and getting to play a collection of songs I’ve rarely, some never, played live,” he said.
The Hits, Bits and Beyond Tour will see Mr Singh perform all the iconic hits from the Taxiride catalogue and a variety of his solo material which has seen him tour extensively with a long list of accomplished artists including Mariah Carey, Rick Astley, Hanson and John Farnham.
For ticket information head to www.jasonsingh.com.au/tour.
