Heymun has described her record ‘HYMN’ as a book, with each track a different chapter. The metaphor may seem innocuous: the Malaysian-born, Australian-based artist was in a dark place emotionally while she was writing ‘HYMN’, and experimenting with modular synths while completing this record helped her find a way out of it. The beauty of the conceit, though, lies in just how accurately it captures the record, not just thematically, but also sonically. Written, recorded and produced by Heymun, ‘

Not that the omnipresent troubadour ever left. Unlike others who blitz through seasons and fizzle out without a trace, Azmyl has plugged away for the last two decades, never turning down any stage that would have him, from brightly lit malls to watering holes across the South China Sea. Azmyl is not back because he’s been away, but he’s made a return to form. ‘John Bangi Blues’, his fourth full album, is in many ways, the proper sequel to his 2005 lo-fi EP ‘Tenets’. The last 15 years has seen h

“Our hope is that this book would inspire more people to come join the fight,” says Adly Syairi Ramly, writer, web-show host and co-creator of book-and-music compilation project Psyche Oh! A Go Go, before correcting himself. “I mean, for more people to join the fun.” To be officially released on August 29, Psyche Oh! A Go Go details some of the forgotten songs and musicians of the Malaysian and Singaporean pop music scenes from 1964 to 1974. Freudian slip? No matter. Adly’s initial sentiment e

Ara Damansara’s liveability is off the scale today and here are some reasons why. Ara Damansara is one neighbourhood that feels like it has gone from heading towards the path of mediocrity to being quite a buzzing place to live in recent years. These days, it’s one of the top neighbourhoods that people who are looking to live around the PJ area go to because of its nice balance between affordability and great amenities. So, what exactly were the things that have transformed this neighbourhood

This is what the new normal would look like after the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) for those living in apartments and condominiums. Covid-19 pandemic has reshaped and reoriented many aspects of our lives. The ‘new normal’ is something we have to contend with post-pandemic. Just what exactly does this new normal look like after the lifting of the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO)? It probably looks different for people in different walks of life, locations and occupations.

The advent of the Covid-19 pandemic has forced a lot of us to reevaluate what we consider to be our workspace. Many of us have gone from working in an office block to working on our kitchen counter. This has in many ways changed many individuals as well as businesses’ way of defining what a workspace could be. Where more traditional business leaders in the past would be uncomfortable with a decentralised model of a workspace, this pandemic has shown in a lot of cases that not being in the offic

Did you know that where you live can affect your health, too? There are many things that can affect our health and when our health is affected, our lives can change. Did you know the neighbourhood you live in can affect your health too? We consider many things when we are picking homes, like price and location but we mostly do not consider the health aspect. Depending on where you live, the neighbourhood you’ve chosen to settle in can have an impact on your health. What are some aspects of a n

They would eat, sleep and play in PJ all their life if they can! The running joke about PJ people is that their biggest nightmare is heading into KL. They would much rather eat, work and play in PJ rather than head into the ‘big bad’ city. Granted, there is some truth to this joke – you’ll find out why below. → Navigate Covid-19: Property knowledge, stay at home articles and tools. Get started now. Since its establishment in 1954 as a satellite township for KL, Petaling Jaya has been playing

This is for those who are thinking about purchasing or renting a residential property in this quaint neighbourhood! Taman Desa is just one of those suburbs that a lot of people seem to know consequentially. Whether it’s because of its food or because you took a wrong turn on Jalan Klang Lama, Taman Desa has become a suburb that is really loved by people who live there over the years. But that doesn’t mean that its residents don’t have to stomach some annoying things as well… 1. Bugged by frien

Take advantage of social media and digital marketing to compel more people to buy-in. Even in an extremely competitive space such as the fashion industry, Oxwhite has proven that you can still find a niche and grow from there. Oxwhite is a disruptor in the local fashion landscape. The company uses an online pre-order concept – shirts are made to order and customers receive their shirt 120 days after payment. The pre-order model allows Oxwhite to cut out excessive costs often associated with ph

Lights can really make or break your dream home so take note to avoid these oversights. Lighting can make or break a living space. Having gorgeous, expensive furniture doesn’t mean much if your home has poor lighting. If you wish to plan your home’s lighting and construct a warm, cosy and inviting space for you and your family to live in, lighting is something you should be giving quite a bit of thought on. But where do you start? How can you know what is the best way to approach lighting desi

There is a certain energy about Budapest in Hungary. This might have to do with us arriving from Vienna, a city in Austria known for being pristine and generally well-curated. Immediately out of the train station, things felt different. There was a buzz, a spontaneity that I had not felt in Vienna, and probably in large parts of the country as well. Budapest is essentially divided into two large portions, Buda and yes, Pest. The dividing line is the Danube river, the second-longest in Europe,

Although it’s not what you think. Malaysians have always been apathetic about seasons, mainly because we perceive we have none. We know of their existence sure when we see them plastered on the shop fronts of fashion boutiques but other than buying a nice scarf to wear in a cold air-cond room, there is often not much practical reason for Malaysians to embrace clothing for different seasons. There is an almost hoity-toity notion about seasons, in that we embrace that as something other countries

Your go-to guide before visiting the tropical paradise we call Malaysia. Like most countries, Malaysia has its idiosyncrasies. They are not always ideal and can sometimes be a pain but those of us who call this mudball home, we have come to embrace and love them. That said, it’s probably useful for you to be made aware of some of these fun facts which makes Malaysia unique. Here are the top 8 things you should know: 1. You will never be lonely as KL never sleeps If Kuala Lumpur were a person

Well, it is exactly what it sounds like, a home made from a shipping container. Yes, the same containers you see on the back of trucks and loaded on to ships. These containers are prefabricated into various living spaces and configured into a complete home-based on your design. No, we’re not asking you to just live in an existing shipping container without any modifications. That would be a nightmare. The concept is of course not novel. We do see cafes, hotels, and restaurants around that are m

In the spirit of Malaysia Day, let’s take a look at the rare black and white images of the nation’s most historical structures – all of which are still standing today! Malaysia has a rich, hotbed of diverse architectural influence over the course of its history. The many colonies and foreign influence that had resided in Malaysia in the past, strongly influenced the architectural style of Malaysian buildings. From Dutch to Anglo, to local Malayan – the amalgamation of these distinctive influen

Selecting a Greek island to travel to can be like picking a nice-looking needle from a stack of nice-looking needles. Any which one you choose is likely to be beautiful, charming and loaded with lovely beach touchpoints overlooking the gorgeous Aegean Sea. There are about 6,000 Greek islands recorded and while many of them might be too small to be worth a visit, there are still a significant number of islands that you can check out. Most people would usually select the popular Santorini or Myko

Securing your home doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are some simple ways to do it. For those owning a home, security will always be a huge concern when considering where to stay and how to design your home. Security is one of the key reasons (besides affordability) driving more people to live in condominiums. Most newly developed high-rise units offer a host of built-in security features and protocols to deter burglars. But what about those who live in landed properties or older high-rise

It’s amazing what you can learn from playing a computer game Ever heard of the computer game Sims? There’s probably a good chance you have given the game a try since it reportedly sold 200 million copies worldwide since the series was first launched back in 2000. That’s a staggering number, made even more staggering when you consider the premise of the game – it neither involves you being a part of a global marine unit shooting down aliens nor you running around town chasing down cute magical

Living next to the sea is no longer just a dream. A beach is a common symbol in a lot of our getaways. We may slog at our daily jobs and routines in a concrete jungle, but in between all that hustle and bustle, we’d retreat to one of nature’s most enriching wonders to wind down and relax. Most of us would have watched TV shows with characters who live on beachfront properties or home improvement TV shows which features houses with a beach/sea view – something we never considered as a possibili