DOMESTIC GROOVE ~ Celeb’s Chosen Nine 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.
THE SECRET AGENTS
Party Organiser
What music are you into at the moment?
Top Ten Songs for The Secret Agents at the moment:
“Never My Love” by The Shangri – Las, “Merry Barrack” by Deerhoof, “Pros Kangaroo” by The Cambodian Space Project, “Red Blood Sea” by Sigmun, “Angin Laut” by Koes Ploes, “The Man Has Come” by Backwood Sun, “L’Anamour” by Serge Gainsbourg, “This Wasted Heart” by Tenderfist, “Alexander” by Jirapah, and “Heart Painted Black” by The Experience Brothers.
Favourite albums at the moment: Superbad Soundtrack vol. 38: The Return of Setan Tete (compiled by Gooodit) and Superbad Soundtrack vol. 34: Super Suranta I (compiled by David Tarigan)
Favourite bands: Surfer Blood, Shimmering Stars, Dengue Fever, Pixies.
What was the first record you bought—any interesting story behind it?
Keke Tumbuan (KT): No interesting story behind my very late first whole-album-by-one-band purchase, which was Suede’s Suede. I just finally found The One sexy enough to be my first. Before that, compilation tapes from friends saved my early teenage years.
Indra Ameng (IA): I’m not so sure about this, but I remember one time my uncle brought me to a music shop when I was eight. I bought two cassettes. The first one was folklore story for children Cinde Laras by Sanggar Cerita, with the voice of the famous Hanna Pertiwi and Maria Oentoe, and the other one was a comedy recording by a famous comedian group, Jayakarta Group.
What are your all-time favorite albums? Why?
KT: Crazy difficult question. The ones I can think of right now are…
Sci-Fi Lullabies by Suede. Actually love all first three albums of Suede but this one just sweeps me off my feet.
Revolver by The Beatles. Love the cover. Love the tracks. Love George Harrison’s “Taxman” and Lennon’s “Tomorrow Never Knows”.
The Velvet Underground & Nico by The Velvet Underground (and Nico). Infatuation at first hear.
Combat Rock by The Clash. Why? Even Allen Ginsberg is in it.
Transformer by Lou Reed, a cool album.
Mojo Chess Classics by various artists. A compilation CD by my fave music mag, Mojo. This one celebrates Chess Records, with names like Bo Diddley, Howlin’ Wolf, Rotary Connection, Fontella Bass, and one of the best Chuck Berry’s song, “Night Beat”.
Bandempo by Bandempo. One of my top 5 Indonesian bands and a conceptually perfect album.
IA: The Velvet Underground & Nico by The Velvet Underground
Semua Bisa Bilang by Margie Segers & Jack Lesmana Combo
Mo’ Plen 1000: Easy Turbo Sound In A Trippy Deluxe by various artists
Oslan Husein by Oslan Husein
Bonnie & Clyde by Serge Gainsbourg et Brigitte Bardot
What was the worst record you ever purchased?
KT: No purchasing of bad music yet.
IA: Michael Jackson’s Bad. Cause it’s bad. It’s bad. You know it.
Who do you want to be, other than yourself, next time you reincarnate?
KT: Sofia Coppola. Making good works and hanging out with great folks in film and music.
IA: Serge Gainsbourg (Indonesian version) hehehe…
What book are you reading now and what’s the score (1-10)? Borrow or buy?
KT: Senja di Jakarta by Mochtar Lubis. Score: 10. Go buy it. Many of the so-called Indonesian “authors” around today should read this masterpiece before they publish their ‘post-blogging-period’ books.
IA: Senja di Jakarta by Mochtar Lubis. Score: 10. When you want to spend your hard-earned cash, purchase this book. It was first published in English titled Twilight in Jakarta in 1963, this book shows many kinds of characters that lived in Jakarta, from the lowest class to the upper class. The story is still relevant to the reality of Jakarta today. It has made me understand why this city and our nation is still a mess today. Mochtar Lubis is definitely one of the best Indonesian authors, especially if compared with the authors we have today.
What new movie should people see? Why?
KT: People will always see new films. What they should see is an oldie by Peter Jackson called Bad Taste.
IA: Postcard from The Zoo, directed by Edwin, a young promising director from the new generation of Indonesian cinema. This movie has entered the international competition in Berlinale 2012 (Berlin International Film Festival), and became the first Indonesian movie that was ever selected in the main competition at this highly respectable film festival.
Another movie is Somewhere directed by Sofia Coppola. In Somewhere Sofia’s directing style can transform the feeling of everyday life’s boredom into beautiful pictures. Fantastic!
What song or album do you choose to start your weekend?
KT: Milo Goes To College by Descendents.
IA: “Wave of Blood” by Southern Beach Terror.
And song or album you choose to end your weekend?
KT: Hastily Cobbled Together For a Fast Buck by Monty Python.
IA: “Candy” by Iggy Pop & Kate Pierson.
Keke Tumbuan and Indra Ameng a.k.a. The Secret Agents just got back from a winter wonderland working trip, France and Holland, and are now back behind the decks working on their legendary monthly live music event at Jaya Pub, Superbad. They are also in a process of finishing a video clip, editing a photo book, and prepping up a photo magazine.
💧Read also DOMESTIC GROOVE: LEONARDO RINGO.
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• This interview was firstly published on The Beat (Jakarta) #59, March 05-18, 2012
