The Sarawak Cultural Village came alive with pulsing lights, pounding bass, and an electrifying atmosphere as thousands gathered for the Borderland Music Festival — a homegrown EDM spectacle that has quickly carved its place in Malaysia’s music scene. During the opening act, multi-instrumentalist Belle Sisoski delivered an energetic performance that left the crowd wanting more.
Heritage, Heart, High Energy
Thousands gathered at the Sarawak Cultural Village, Kuching, recently for the annual Electronic Dance Music (EDM) event, the Borderland Music Festival. The festival, Sarawak’s very own homegrown EDM event, has grown significantly in popularity since its inception in 2023 in Miri.
Held on September 5 and 6, the festival opened with multi-instrumentalist Belle Sisoski’s electrifying set, featuring over 10 tracks, including her latest singles “The Revival” and “The Resistance”.
Alongside these tracks, Belle highlighted Malaysian traditional instruments such as the sape, tapi, kompang, rebab, turali, bungkau, nose flute, sompoton, piano, violin, 24-season drum, and jaw harp. Her performance blended genres, ethnic instruments, and cinematic electronic elements.
A versatile performer
Backstage, Belle revealed that her performances and energy vary depending on the event.
“Since this is an EDM festival, the vibe and energy cater to the audience. But if it’s a gentler event, I would bring a softer vibe.”
Blending traditional and contemporary sounds, the artiste believes music must evolve with society. She added that without growth and evolution, both as individuals and as a community, there can be no progress. Music, however, remains highly subjective in her view.
Belle’s career began with simple recordings on social media before progressing to major stages. Both her music and the number of instruments she plays have expanded over the years. Though she considers it slow and steady progress across three years, it has been a journey of taking things one step at a time.
“My career has been growing at a pace that I enjoy, and I really want it to continue further. I hope I can do this for the rest of my life, because I am truly passionate about music. This is what I love doing, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Performing on stage
Belle gives careful thought to her outfits for each performance, most of which are crafted by House of Antara. This time, her edgy ensemble combined Bornean and Chinese elements.
“Since I am performing in Sarawak, my outfit reflects just that. Its colours are inspired by the Burung Kenyalang — red, yellow, and black. My top is made of red sequins and sewn with Orang Ulu motifs, while my belt carries Chinese oriental geometric designs.”
To accessorise, Belle often pairs her outfits with silver jewellery, which complements her fair skin tone. Her outfit of the night exuded a strong, powerful look that matched the intensity of her performance.
Much like her songs, with their fast beats and high energy, Belle’s stage presence speaks volumes about her passion. She attributes her stamina to her background as an avid tennis player.
“Since I was young, I’ve always trained in stamina and cardio. My childhood was spent in an environment filled with cardiovascular exercise. Even today, I train by climbing stairs up and down while jumping and singing simultaneously.”
This training, she added, is essential to sustaining her high-energy performances, which involve rapid instrument changes, running, jumping, and keeping pace with the crowd.
“I used to do a lot of weight training too, but now I just focus on cardio exercises to train the heart muscles, because that’s important to me right now. I also don’t smoke or drink. I just want to keep everything very healthy.”
Marching forward
Having mastered over 30 musical instruments, Belle is still determined to learn more. Next on her list are Chinese instruments such as the guzheng and erhu.
“Right now, I have the yangqin at home. But it takes a lot of work to practise and learn it. European classical instruments have their own techniques, which are different from oriental traditional instruments like Chinese, Japanese, and Indian ones.”
As she continues her journey of exploring different instruments, techniques, and styles, Belle is ready to embrace whatever challenges come her way.
When advising young and rising talents, Belle urged them to find something unique that reflects their personality.
“Everything in the market is already overly saturated. Even when you apply for a job, you have to stand out in a certain way. You have to know who you are as a person, and to do that, you must expose yourself and gain as much experience as possible.”
She added that regardless of age, self-discovery is a lifelong pursuit.
“Everybody has their own journey to embark on. Everyone has something within them that stands out differently from the crowd.”
