Astreal

Astreal are a female-fronted shoegaze band based in Singapore. Formed in 1992 as Breed, the band was originally comprised of Pagit Yong (vocals), Muhammad Alkhatib (guitar), William de Silva (bass), and Alwyn Lim (drums). This lineup recorded a couple demo cassettes (Dive Gemma, Chlorine Explosion) before Yong departed in 1994. Once new vocalist Melissa Lim was recruited, the band changed its name to Astreal in 1996 and proceeded to record the full-length album debut Ouijablush (1997). In subsequent years the band's lineup underwent further changes. The extensively reconfigured lineup of Ginette Chittick (vocals, bass), Muhammad Alkhatib (guitar), Nick Chan (guitar), and Redzuan Hussin (drums) recorded the second Astreal album, Fragments of the Same Dead Star (2006). ~ Jason Birchmeier