Our hotel of the month is a resort on a tropical island, surrounded by lush rainforest. It’s also in Singapore, one of the most densely populated places in Asia. Read on to see how The Capella on Sentosa has created a tropical island hideaway, less than 15 minutes from Singapore’s downtown financial district

The arrival

It’s slightly surreal. We got in our car, having finished meetings in Singapore’s hyper-urban financial district, near the landmark Marina Bay tower. Barely 12 minutes later, raising our heads from our phones, we were heading up a winding driveway lined with lush green foliage and surrounded by a tropical forest.

a pool surrounded by green plants in a rainforest

One of the Capella’s three outdoor pools. Photograph by Darius Sanai

We were greeted by a striking, long, whitewashed colonial era building – built for British army officers in the 19th century. Whisked through reception, we were in a garden leading to another long building, modern and curvy – Sir Norman Foster‘s creation, more than 100 years later.

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Through the arches in Foster’s building we saw glimpses of swimming pools, more foliage and the sea.

The Room

The juxtaposition of old and new British – colonial and Foster – was notable, but our room was something else. We were in a kind of Zen rainforest retreat, the vibe as tranquil as a Balinese yoga hideaway. Open plan yet cosy, it had a bedroom with bed facing the forest and sea through picture windows; the living room had a similar view, and there was a small sheltered (from the frequent tropical rains) balcony to one side.

a sitting area with blue and wooden chairs and sofas

The Colonial Manor sitting area

The bathroom ran the length of both rooms, with a bath overlooking the forests, and a striking sculpture made of a rainforest log as a feature. The art all over the hotel is memorable: the owners are among the most respected art collectors in the region.

Exploring

Landscaped grounds drop down from the back of the hotel into the sea. Mostly, they are occupied by rainforest trees and exotic birds, although there are also three showpiece swimming pools each built on a terrace at a different level. The lowest one, the lap pool, is almost completely surrounded by thick foliage.

A bath by a window with a view of the sea

Our bathroom overlooked the Singapore Straits

You can chill on the terrace (very attentive wait staff and Aesop Factor 50 suncream in glass bottles await) around any of them; above the top pool is the broad terrace of Fiamma, a new Italian restaurant. We recommend the seafood carpaccios, delicate and beautifully done. There is also an excellent list of Italian wines, including some expertly-chosen Franciacorta, the ideal sparkling wine for a hot climate and often much better than champagne, which can taste gooey in the heat.

Read more: Hôtel Plaza Athénée, Paris Review

Above Fiamma, on a broad terrace, is Cassia, a contemporary Chinese restaurant with light laquered interior designed by the peerless Andre Fu. It also has an expansive bar terrace where you can sip on a grower champagne and ponder the greenery.

a table at a restaurant with a lantern light over the table

Cassia restaurant serves contemporary Chinese food amid interior splendour designed by Andre Fu

We had a very reviving revitalising treatment at the Auriga spa, which has a delightful little private garden outside its relaxation room: we too several turns of the lawn, enjoying the solitude and greenery.

Drawbacks

Sentosa, the island the Capella is located on, is 15-20 minutes by car from the Marina Bay business district and a little further from the Orchard business and shopping district. So it’s away from the heart of the action, but that’s price worth paying for staying in such a sophisticated tropical island resort, we feel.

Rates: From £740 per night (approx. €840/$915)

Book your stay: capellahotels.com/en/capella-singapore

Darius Sanai

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Joel Isaac Black, a.k.a. Hazy Pockets, is the curator of the legendary playlist for Zermatt’s eco-chic hotel CERVO. In the panoramic terrace and restaurant of the hotel, which is decked out entirely in vintage market finds including a well-travelled camper van, guests and visitors will hear tunes from Benin to Bolivia. Isabella Sanai speaks to Black and photographs him in his adoptive hometown of Berlin.

LUX: When did your interest in music begin?
Joe Isaac Black: My father is a fantastic blues guitar and harmonica player, his organic sounds permeated every moment in my childhood home. Some of my very earliest memories include positioning a small stool in front of a quite temperamental vinyl record player, stepping up and learning to balance coins for weighting on the tone-arm, and dropping the needle on a remarkably diverse collection of records. Hearing the dusty crackle of the needle in the groove, and sprinting to the sofa to perform an improvised dance routine in my underwear was where the lifelong musical love affair started. I suppose I am still reliving this moment to this day.

A restaurant with barstools and high tables and copper lamps hanging from the ceiling

Bazaar restaurant at Hotel Cervo Zermatt

LUX: You describe seeing music in 3D spaces/shapes – what does that mean?
JIB: I would describe it more as my ability to project myself into hypothetical sonic spaces, to really “hear” and “feel” what it might be like to be in a certain room with certain music or sounds. I can often slip into my own imagination, and have a very powerful and tangible gut feeling of what needs to fill these spaces.

a man pulling a record out of his bag

I essentially audition a few prospective musical ideas with quite a bit of clarity and specificity with this process, and usually end up manifesting versions of these ideas with clients in my music curation activities. In some regard, every artist has some parallel practice, however, mine is this well-honed sonic voyage.

A man with a moustache and black hair wearing a black jacket and white shirt

LUX: You mentioned you were first drawn as a child to the geometry of percussion. How did your affinity with rhythm evolve into music curation?
JIB: This can be understood in a bit more of a dry and scientific manner. I am a drummer, DJ, and dancer, all pastimes that at their best have an inherent coordination and swing to them. Symmetry, repetition, the quiet spaces in between … This rhythm is an essential human energy, a level or mood that affects every individual in a room whether they know it or not.

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The architecture, dimensions, and materials of a space reflect the sounds and music, and are factors in that basic rhythm. Curating music is an imperfect attempt to match that geometry with a beat that makes everything feel just its proper place.

A man sitting on a bench next to plants wearing a trench coat

LUX: What do you think makes a DJ successful?
JIB: The right song at the right time is the most powerful tool in the universe. Knowledgeable channeling of shared moods meaning more right songs at the right time helps with the success. I sound like a grumpy gate-keeper, but a deep understanding of music genres, strains, traditions, and histories allows one to make those choices. Also, personality, character, and presence sell the songs, but in the end, it’s elemental synchronicities lining up that make a DJ magic and thus memorable and hopefully building momentum to a crude definition of success.

A factory with pipes

Along the Rummelsburger Bucht, a few minutes walk from Black’s first studio

LUX: Do you feel your music taste is influenced by your surroundings?
JIB: Absolutely. I am a compulsive integrator, imitator, absorbing everything around me and consciously or subconsciously mixing this up with all of my older instincts.

A man wearing a white shirt, jeans and a denim jacket over his shoulders standing by a willow tree

LUX: You mentioned your involvement with Allah Las. What do you think of this rebirth we’re seeing of psychedelic rock?
JIB: I was close with them from their infancy as a band as we were colleagues at the record store. The boys are just sweet and genuine west coast surfer golden children. Rock and psychedelic are slippery words these days. Kids are becoming more genuinely open-minded, factually-driven, and informed about altered states and beneficial psychedelic experiences, and thus they really need the right soundtrack. Set and setting. The bold experimentation and indelicate purity of 60s rock psychedelia and guitar music must be very very appealing to kids coming of age in an era of digital overload.

A man wearing a blue jumper and jeans standing with his hands in his pockets

LUX: Are there any new projects on the horizon?
JIB: I am dedicated to launching my agency, Wild Mountain Honey, a unique address for sourcing and building immersive music experiences and collaborations for the finest luxury hotels, restaurants, and unique clients world-wide. It’s really an exciting culmination of my music curation and event-building activities, a highly-refined expression of all of my network and skills, a chance to work with incredible talent from live music, to DJs, to culinary stars, and create unforgettable magic moments.

Read more: Henry Lohmeyer on the impact of words and photography

My work with my home base, True Blue Music Berlin continues to provide thrilling soundtrack, sound-design, and studio production undertakings…and as the germans would say, I am a ‘Rampensau’, a shameless slave to the stage, so my live band Tegel Boys will release new music and tour, while my true love, my endless DJ voyage continues as Hazy Pockets.

A man wearing a denim jacket looking up at the sun

LUX: What advice would you give to young creatives?
JIB: Own your talents and flaws, and refine and shape those into a form that is irresistible to your patrons and clients and still fulfilling. Unhitch the trailer of ‘giving a f*ck’ what peers, competitors, or critics think of you and your work. Repeat it. The show must go on!

Find out more:

www.wild-mountain-honey.org

www.instagram.com/hazypockets

Photography: @sheherazade_photography

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