OCBC Titanium presents Timbre Rock & Roots 2013

The fourth edition of this much-awaited, two-day festival has been touted as the ‘biggest and best’ thus far. It’s moving to the lush greenery of Fort Canning Park (instead of Marina Promenade, where it’s been held previously) and features an impressive line-up of music giants across a range of genres (with a combined 30-some Grammy Awards in the bunch). Most acts need little introduction – the first night (Thursday) sees indie star and cult favourite Rufus Wainwright starting things off with tunes from his albums like All Days are Nights: Songs for Lulu, House of Rufus and Out of the Game, followed by headlining act Robert Plant (former lead vocalist of Led Zeppelin) and his latest group, The Sensational Space Shifters, so expect a psychedelic blend of blues tunes and edgy rock riffs. The Tedeschi Trucks Band, an 11-piece blues band headed by husband and wife team Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi closes out the night with full-bodied, blues-rock tunes from Everybody’s Talkin’ and Revelator.

Folk-rock songstress and blues guitarist Bonnie Raitt leads the way on day two (Friday evening), with her classic chart-topping tracks like ‘Something to Talk About’ and ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’, before Paul Simon hits the stage – he’ll likely play a mix of timeless tracks going back to his Simon & Garfunkel days (‘Sound of Silence’, ‘Mrs Robinson’) as well as hits from his 30-year solo career (with albums ranging from 1986’s Grammy-sweeper Graceland to 2011’s So Beautiful or So What). Jamaican reggae legend Jimmy Cliff – known for iconic tracks like ‘The Harder They Come’ and ‘I Can See Clearly Now’ – wraps up the festival. No matter if you’re a hardcore rock fanatic, soulful R&B lover or a stalwart indie supporter, there’s something here for everyone. Also look out for local opening acts on stage from around 6.30pm each day to get things started. Benita Lee

Image: From @rufuswainwright on Twitter