KUALA LUMPUR: Some 3,000 people experienced a glorious celebration of music and arts in the scenic confines of nature during the recent TAPAUfest 2022 which took place over a weekend at Tasik Raban in Lenggong, Perak.
The UNESCO heritage site that houses the region's best-preserved Stone Age skeleton saw a diverse group of people from all walks of life, from youngsters and rockers to nature lovers, campers and families, camped out next to the majestic lake.
Its breathtaking vista became an inspiring backdrop for the festival's stage that presented performances by some of the best indie talents from Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.
Feast and Margasatwa from Indonesia delivered the perfect soundtrack to a beautiful sunset at the lake before Singapore's Abangsapau showed why he is more than just a rapper or an entertainer but also a storyteller with a message to deliver during his night performance.
The Times then got the crowd jumping and singing along to their indie rock tunes before The Pinholes from Singapore took over with a performance fitting of their 20th anniversary as a band this year.
Just as Salammusik was about to enter the stage, it started to drizzle, setting up the perfect vibe for an epic closing performance for Day 1 at TAPAUfest with everyone getting up from their chairs singing and dancing along in the rain together celebrating the love for music, arts and nature.
The music then carried on late into the night with campers at the Santuy Campsite enjoying acoustic performances by the fire accompanied by coffee and conversations.
Day 2 saw Kungfu Heidi keeping the momentum going by delivering a high energy performance by mixing hardcore and hip hop accompanied by Serbuk Cheese.
The Dare then brought over their tropical twee pop wave all the way from Lombok to Lenggong providing another perfect sunset moment for festival goers.
The night performance began with the set that turned most heads at TAPAUfest with The Filters delivering a performance that even had the acts backstage cheering them on.
Sobs from Singapore then performed crowd favourites as well as fresh tracks from their brand new album Air Guitar.
Crowd surfers began to emerge as Sweetass brough on fuzz-grunge sounds to the TAPAUfest stage as the following act.
The finale in the form of Indonesia's Hindia did not disappoint as the crowd was clearly looking forward to the set by the Jakarta band.
It delivered a non-stop roller-coaster-ride of a show covering 12 tracks which was both engaging and electrifying.
Hindia frontman and songwriter Baskara Putra matched the energy of the crowd and showed why he is considered as one the best in the game at the moment.
The festival, which provided a shuttle transport by Majlis Daerah Lenggong for the convenience of festival goers, also featured a Woodstock-inspired-marketplace dubbed the Pasar Serba Serbi, filled with well decorated tents selling secondhand clothes, records, artworks and crafts.
The Warung area served plenty of affordable local street food, from keropok lekor to teh tarik and burger Ramly to ayam penyet, for everyone at TAPAUfest to enjoy.
There were also workshops and talks during the weekend in addition to several exciting locations that festival goers could head to via the shuttle such as the waterfalls at Lata Perahu.
TAPAUfest founder and director Ahmad Faris said in a statement that, "The response towards TAPAUfest this year has been overwhelmingly positive."
"From the festival goers, both our local and international guest performers and the indie community in general, everyone could feel the good vibes.
"Even though there's definitely room for improvements, we're very proud of how it all came together," he said.
Ahmad Faris added: "We truly appreciate Majlis Daerah Lenggong's continuous effort and active investment in making TAPAUfest happen in their own backyard."
"TAPAUfest would also not be possible without the support of CENDANA who really showed their faith in the indie community once again.
"Thank you as well to Waka, Ipoh Social Club, Santuy Travellers, Kadiak, Versussika, PBUY, Outsiders Bike, and PTT Outdoor for believing in us to elevate Lenggong and Southeast Asian indie arts, community and culture," he said.