Listening to a musician like Jonny Ong make music is truly a timeless experience.
Throwing it back to the golden era of psychedelia are the noodling guitar lines and the lyrical displacement, but firmly stuck in the present era are the neo-soul elements, the reappraisal of New Orleans jazz and that alt-rock breakdown. Listening to a song such as (latest single) ‘Taking Silence’ is like touring through some of the best moments of musical history, brought to a satisfying and euphoric conclusion as the song builds.
Jonny Ong is gearing up to release an EP in the coming year, bringing together some of his most exciting musical endeavours over the last few months. Not much is known about this enigmatic man, but his influences are far and wide, from his home country of Singapore and the Western music he discovered while he was growing up.
During his teenage years, Jonny found a deep obsession for psychedelic music and how songs layered unconventional instrumentation into the mix. Working in tandem with his producer-band mate Callum Rose, Ong has crafted distinctive, timeless pop songs, where massed strings that sweep you up in their beauty and are artfully blended with modern production touches and unexpected stylistic swerves.
Ong’s music comes with a philosophy. “… I’ve realised that if you have something negative in your life, try and do something positive to get over it. No matter what happens, there’s always light at the end of the tunnel.”