Backyard Pub hosts the kick-off to The Sun Music Festival a week-long music event to showcase Malaysian artistes and promote performance venues in the city.

Akademia Fantasia fans can catch AF2 favourites Edlin, Zarina and Fitri to show up along with AF1 finalist Azizi. The event starts at 7.30pm on Saturday, Sept 4.

Backyard's own Saturday resident band Albert, Vijay & Bada will be performing their brand of funk, R & B, blues and jazz to spice up the evening.

What's up this week:

WEDNESDAY, Sept 1:
7.30pm: Prize-giving for the Merdeka Pool Competition held between Aug 16-26. As consolation a one-round knockout will be held for the poor sods who didn't win a prize. Click on Pool for results and how it was played out.

9.30pm: Music: Amizan & Leonard. This duo have been together for only eight months but are a crowd-pleaser and combine well for classic songs from 70s to the 90s and occasionally surprise with a contemporary hit from Black-Eyed Peas or This Love from Maroon 5.

THURSDAY, Sept 2:
Music: Viji & Fasy: Viji and Fasy are probably the most under-rated duo in the country. Viji is the veteran journeyman of the local pub scene having performed solo for 15 years and collaborated with many others -- most successfully with Alex Peters for the inimitable Flower Power!!

With new partner Fasy on the electric guitar, Viji has re-emerged with a powerful blend of his growly voice, scintillating solos and a repertoire that harkens back to the guitar-driven days of 70s. Most patrons of Backyard find themselves blown away by their tight combination, Fasy's energetic playing and some surprise lesser-known blues and mellow rock numbers.

Fasy, 30, who hails from a musical family from the Maldives first came to Malaysia in 1996 as a student. He currently runs a recording studio, DigitalTones and has a self-recorded instrumental album on the market called Cruising, which is available at the Backyard counter.

Expect some Deep Purple, CCR, Bob Dylan, Santana, Muddy Waters, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Simon & Garfunkel and James Taylor.

FRIDAY, Sept 3:
Music: JERICHO: This trio is an incredibly versatile band that came together in the Backyard Pub about nine months ago and have since garnered a loyal following.

They comprise: Jason, as lead singer and acoustic guitarist, Colin on electric guitar and Raymond on keyboards. All three can hold their own as soloists but together they really rock the place on Fridays.

From the camaraderie on stage and the rousing ovations they get you know Jericho knows how to have fun and transmit that energy to its audience. "Many of the popular songs we play were actually requests from the Backyard crowd and have now become standards for the band," said Jason.

Some of the crowd-favourites include Eddy Grant's Gimme Hope Joanna, Bee Gees' Staying Alive, EWF's September, Bon Jovi's It's My Life and Bed of Roses, and Guns N' Roses' Sweet Child O' Mine. Watch for it when all the pool players drop their cues to do a line dance during Achy Breaky Heart. You don't need lessons to join in.

Raymond also has a country bent and croons Garth Brooks' If Tomorrow Never Comes while Colin rips the place up with his fiery guitar solos and his version of Paul Simon's You Can Call Me Al.

SATURDAY, Sept 4:
MUSIC: Albert, Vijay & Bada: Albert Sirimal and Vijay David are back the Backyard after a three-month hiatus. The top-billers of Backyard have added percussionist Bada, formerly from Headwind, who brings a new rhythmic, Latin-flavoured dimension to their repertoire. Their music ranges from the 60s to the 90s including rhythm & blues, rock, funk and jazz and when Vijay is in the mood anything from rap to opera.

Vijay and Albert were the Top Of The Pubs winner and runner-up respectively in 1989 and since then have forged a partnership that has spanned almost 15 years. "God has given us a gift, and everywhere we play we're a hit with the audience," says Vijay. The trio acknowledge that playing in Backyard is always enjoyable because of the "discerning regulars" who are great listeners and always motivating and appreciative. Expect some mellow rock and light and easy numbers in the early set, and some raunchier, rousing stuff as the night proceeds.

BACKYARDPUB.COM: BackyardPub.com is up and running. Check out news, events and photos at http://backyardpub.com.

Backyard Pub & Grill is your friendly, neighbourhood pub for live music and live sports events located at No.28, Jalan Sri Hartamas 8, Taman Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur. We have live music every night from Wednesdays to Saturdays, two English pool tables, a big screen, four TVs and two Astro decoders for live English Premier League matches. Our kitchen serves up great Western and local dishes and we also cater to special functions. View the latest goings-on through our website at backyardpub.com or call us at 03-6201-0318.