Domestic chaos and prolonged internal problems in Indonesia has inspired The Brandals to write and release DGNR8 (read: degenerate). The latest album after a drought of for four years is a tribute to the great nation of Indonesia, and how the band feels that the country has lost its way of life.
The rather cynical viewpoint from the group that now prefers to call themselves "BRNDLS" is further strengthened by the design of the album cover, which is in the shape of the form of drug packaging. According to the band, DGNR8 is a kind of drug offered to the sick people in the dilapidated condition of the nation.
Also with the progressive statements, the music direction has changed somewhat as well. The explosive approach of earlier efforts is now more controlled as the quartet grow older and more mature, but the foundation is still rock-n-roll. In one song, "Abrasi", Eka Annash & co. even invited the hip hop living legend, Morgue Vanguard aka Ucok Homicide to rap.
Other than audio disc, this album has an interesting bonus, too, DGNR8: The DVD, which is a documentary movie about the making of the album, including the "behind the screen" story about the music and the dynamics of these angry young men.
Dari sebegitu panjang lebar kiat yang telah saya paparkan, baik internal maupun eksternal, selain merapikan urusan dalam negeri juga membangun imej serta kepercayaan pihak luar, perjalanan merintis karir di skena musik tampaknya tinggal menentukan keputusan nan menentukan alias paling final: melebur ke industri atau mendekat ke komunitas.
Adalah memang, benar sekali, harus diakui bahwa menetapkan tujuan, membidik sasaran, mematok incaran, bukanlah bak memainkan dua sisi dari keping uang logam, atau semudah membalik telapak tangan. Sebab ini soal hidup mati, tentang masa depan. Jadi penggarisan takdir bagi diri sendiri jangan sampai salah, kudu super diseriusi. Untuk itu, mari saya beri perbandingan kelebihan dan kekurangan atara industri dengan komunitas.
• Versi Bahasa Indonesia silakan klik di siniAfter releasing an album with the theme of women's emancipation in 2010, Oppie Andaresta is back again with Dengan Hati Senang. Released in April 2011, this newest composition is quite easy listening and more radio-friendly compared to the last offering. As Oppie puts it, "Wider segment: commercial-oriented, more footlose-and-fancy-free."
The album, with "Mau Have Fun" as the first single, consist of nine songs which talks mostly about daily life and social issues. In "Matahariku", for instance, she sings about her beloved husband (without him even realizing it), while "Jangan Bedakan (Ayah Bunda)" points at the distorted relationship between parents and their children.
Despite the photos that expressing her more "modern" look, the ambassador of Peduli Perempuan (women's rights), has asserted that she's still the same Oppie inside. The urban cosmopolitan look is only a fun experiment initiated by her photographer. She's not into manufactured images, she's still into simple and natural images, just as she's always been.
Currently, Oppie is busy promoting Dengan Hati Senang to the radios around big cities in Indonesia with a tour following in July.
Sejauh ini kita melulu bicara soal eksternal, soal bagaimana menyenangkan pihak luar, apa yang harus dilakukan agar pihak sekeliling hatinya gonjang-ganjing. Lalu, urusan internal, perkara domestik, mau dibiarin tandus tak terurus?
Konsolidasi ke dalam jelas tak kalah penting. Sebab jika ihwal kerumahtanggaan dalam sebuah organisasi (baca: band) keropos maka cahaya yang menyebar terpancar juga biasanya otomatis kurang benderang. Jadi, sekali lagi, selain persoalan jejaring sosial, menyenangkan penggemar, segala gono-gini pencitraan, fondasi pendukung selain personel Trio Kiamat Raya semata adalah penting juga.
Agar konstruksi sebuah kelompok musik makin sakti mandraguna memang idealnya---maksudnya ideal dalam skala minimal ya---di orbitnya ada elemen pendukung kayak manajer, soundman, dan crew yang ngurusin instrumen masing-masing pemain band. Dengan support sedemikian rupa maka orang per-orang anggota Trio Kiamat Raya bisa fokus ngurusin musik aja. Trio Kiamat Raya bakalan nyaman konsentrasi dalam berkesenian.
DOMESTIC GROOVE ~ Celeb's Chosen Seven is my biweekly column in The Beat (Jakarta) mag. Basically it's an interview via e-mail which focuses on small, intimate, domestic stuff; what Indonesia's public figures are really into, musically speaking.
For the 18th edition I went upclose-and-personal with Rio Helmi.
・Versi Bahasa Indonesia silakan klik di siniBayu Risa has made impressive moves since he was a kid. At the age of 10 he traveled around many South East Asian countries and even to the USA to sing with his vocal group.
During his high school era, this Jakarta-based singer actively performing in cafes and school shows around town. He went to Bandung after he graduated and got busy with a band called Ever Nine. After quite a long break due to illness, he was asked to join Pasto which helped develop his reputation on the Indonesian music scene significantly. While he was still in Pasto they released an album produced by Glenn Fredly in 2007. Despite Pasto's ever growing fame, Bayu Risa decided to quit to pursue a solo career.
In 2009 he released his first single, "Inner Beauty", which attracted a good amount of success. However things really started moving when he met Joseph Saryuf in 2010. Joseph then became his producer and helped him to release his first full-length solo album under Sinjitos Records called Rise and Start Again. The ten composition on the album are an eclectic mix of musical genres, from beautiful pop melodies to funk beats, from sexy R&B grooves to spaced out disco. The single "Percaya" performed well in many prestigious music charts across Indonesia. The single also helped Bayu to secure a position at the two major national music festivals, 'Playground' and 'Soulnation'.
Recently, one of the song from Rise and Start Again was used in an ad campaign by a national mobile phone network operator.
DOMESTIC GROOVE ~ Celeb's Chosen Seven is my biweekly column in The Beat (Jakarta) mag. Basically it's an interview via e-mail which focuses on small, intimate, domestic stuff; what Indonesia's public figures are really into, musically speaking.
For the 17th edition I went upclose-and-personal with Jamie Aditya.
・Versi Bahasa Indonesia silakan klik di siniAfter playing classical piano since he was as young as 12 years old, Luky Annash ended up going down the 90's music path rather than sticking to the classical tunes. Nirvana and Tori Amos give him more freedom for interpretation than Mozart and baroque composition where he felt limited.
In 2005, the younger brother of Eka and Rully Annash (The Brandals), made up his mind, and decide to dive in completely in contemporary music and starting to join bands like The Brandals, godmustbecrazy, and Tika and the Dissidents.
Finally in April 2011 he released his debut album called 180º under Demajors in which he talks a lot about life's adventure how things can be be changed 180º if you are willing to accept both the dark and the bright side. The influence of his favorite artists like Tori Amos, Harry Nilsson, Jerry Lee Lewis, Björk, Apparat, Phillip Glass, Danny Elfman---even Slayer and Motörhead---can be heard on the album.
rudolfdethu
[instagram-feed feed=1]
