820 Band: From Backstage to School Headliners

The Beginning

Ever since I was in secondary school, I have always had this idea of forming a band. Not just a casual jam group, but something real. Something loud. Something that echoed the dreams we saw in American sitcoms growing up, where misfits became legends in their garages and cafeterias. Everything traced back to 2018, my love for rock bands is growing louder with every beat, every lyric, and every memory. I also started learning the guitar during that time. Bands like Queen, Toto, The Beatles, Oasis, Green Day, and My Chemical Romance all inspired me during the early stages of my guitar learning.

My Struggles

I was a very shy person. Being on the stage is a real challenge for me. I had stage fright, low self-esteem and no prior performing experience. These factors completely crushed my confidence. So what I did was to be an audience in the auditorium. But my passion for music never stops. I was then sent to the sound control room, where I began my audio engineering journey. I was part of the team whenever there were shows.

It was 2019 (Year 8), I was so sick of looking at these bands playing the same songs over and over again on the stage. Guess what song it is? Counting Stars by One Republic. 6 times a year played by 3 different bands? Come on, get a grip, and there is something better to do than playing the same song. I was telling this to our then school's vice-principal, and she was like: "Hey, you know how to play guitar right? Why don't you wanna be a part of the stage?" Then I gave her the same old reply, but in a better way: "I got nobody to go on with me."

Later that year, one of our juniors came to my class and asked: "Who wanna play the piano for us?" I knew they were preparing for the 'Paragon's Got Talent' thingy (happens every year). So my best friend (De Luen) and I reached out to him and see what they are playing. It was a Chinese song (I forgot the name of it), and we both took a look at the piano sheet that he gave us. I was like: "Damn, that's hard. You go, you're a better pianist than me." "Nah, man, I'm not ready for this." He said. So there was a bit of push and pull. I asked that young dude: "Will there be a place for the 2 of us so we can go together?" The answer was no, cuz they only need one person. So, we both gave up the chance.

I sat at the corner of the classroom and started reflecting on myself. Why am I not able to go through that barrier? I couldn't come up with an answer.

The First Turning Point

I finally decided to step out of my comfort zone and make a debut on my own in 2020 (Year 9). If this thing worked well, then other people would join me, right? Then we can start a band! (Hopefully). I thought everything would go well. But unfortunately, COVID-19 hit. Everything went virtual, and staying at home was completely unbearable. However, I never stop my journey. I learned how to produce songs during that time, and I came up with a few of my recordings (not that good tbh).

The Second Turning Point

After more than a year and a half of lockdown, COVID cases started to drop (after the vaccines). The school announced that we can go back to school now. Yay! (Why this sh*t even happened man, urghhhh). We went back group by group, so let's say in a class of 18 students, we will be split into two groups, Group A and Group B. Group A will come to school on the first and third week of the month, and attend online classes in the second and fourth week. Group B will attend online classes in the first and third week, and come to school on the second and fourth week. Just nice, my homie and I were in the same group (Group B).

One day, we were having our usual chemistry class. Our teacher informed us that our principal is stepping down from his position. "Does anybody here want to do a farewell show for him?" She said. I was like "hell yeah" without any hesitation. So I asked De Luen if he wanted to play piano for me. At first, he was a bit sceptical, but he still got a yes. We started looking for the most suitable song to play. 'Friday I'm in Love' by The Cure and 'Don't Look Back in Anger' by Oasis came to my mind first. However, we had less than 2 weeks to practice. So those songs wouldn't work. Suddenly, I was like "Oh yeah! What about 'Hey Jude' by The Beatles?" At that moment, everyone brightens their eyes. But now it's only the two of us; we need a drummer. And I know my homie is always a "I know a guy" type of person. He said, "Zachary from next door knows how to play drums." He hooked me up with Zach and asked if he was okay to play drums for us. Of course, he was cool with that. So we split up the work, and we started practising the song.

On the actual day of performance, we were in the music room. We recorded a video instead of inviting our principal to come and see us (cuz he was away). Everything went well that day. This was my first proper performance in front of two teachers and a few of our classmates. I haven't felt this good amount of joy and gratitude in such a long time.

The Forming of 820

I thought that performance was the first and the last that I had ever done. Until one day, our chemistry teacher walked into the class and said, "We are having Open Day this year (2022), who wants to join?" Of course, De Luen and I are in, and he told me some guys next door are going as well. So I was thinking, this is a good chance to form ourselves together.

We created a Facebook Messenger group and started sending in song suggestions. One thing that caught me by surprise was that they love anime and J-rock. Which was great, because I love J-rock (but not so into anime). At first, they wanted to do Into The Night by Yoasobi. But the piano part of this song is crazy. So, we scrape it off. After a few discussions, we decided to perform Uchiage Hanabi by Daoko and Kenshi Yonezu. I felt on top of the world every day just by thinking that we are going to perform in front of more than 500 people. Despite having an overwhelming amount of adrenaline, I knew that I had finally reached my goal.

Also, I even bought a new guitar, a Squier Stratocaster. To honour the importance of this performance. I took a picture of it and sent it to our group, and everyone was like, "WOAH, how much is this?" "RM820 it is," I said. Then, De Luen gave us a suggestion, "Why don't we name ourselves 820?" And yes, that is how our band name was found. What a brilliant idea by De Luen, and the rest is history! This name carried fortunes for us, too.

(The exact photo I sent to the group back in 2022)

(Everybody had their masks on during COVID period hahaha)