Roars. Rants. Raves. Rambles. Rebel. Rock-N-Roll

About

A music journalist, writer, radio presenter, vinyl DJ, socio-political activist, creative industry leader, band manager, and library diploma holder heavily draws inspiration from punk rock philosophy. Often tagged as the Indonesian version of Malcolm McLaren—or, as Rolling Stone Indonesia put it, the grand master of music propaganda—he is perhaps best known for previously managing Bali’s two biggest bands, Superman Is Dead and Navicula, who have gone on to become two of the nation’s biggest rock bands. The band he now manages is The Hydrant, the pioneer of rockabilly in Indonesia.

Maklumat Galau Themilo

・Versi Bahasa Indonesia silakan klik di siniThe last time people heard news about Themilo was in 2003 when they released their debut full-length album, Let Me Begin. Now, 2011, this Bandung quintet is back presenting their newest composition: Photograph. The album consist of eight songs; one in Indonesian, six in English, and an instrumental. Two songs have been chosen as singles, "Do Not Worry for Being Alone," and "Daun dan Ranting Menuju Surga". Two guest stars participate in vocal department, namely: Maradilla Syachridar ("For All the Dreams that Wings Could Fly") and Grace Sahertian ("Apart"). Photograph has an interesting concept, where Themilo imagines they are holding a photo camera and using the viewfinder to capture their surroundings, with the lyrics being the result of the shooting. Themilo friends share stories about life, love, separation and introspection. Themilo was founded in 1996 by Ajie Gergaji as his side project. The first time they attracted public attention was when they released a song called "Sianida" in May 2001.

Queens of Noise and Riot Grrrl: Yesterday and Today

Di edisi BlokRokinBeats kali ini saya bawakan tema emansipasi perempuan di blantika berkesenian--utamanya musik rock---serta saya bagi menjadi dua: era para pionir (Queens of Noise) dan masa generasi penerus (Riot Grrrl). Agar punya gambaran lebih lengkap, saya pilihkan tembang dari artis-artis yang baik secara langsung memang terlibat di skena Riot Grrrl macam Bratmobile, Bikini Kill, Team Dresch, dan Heavens to Betsy; juga kumpulan seniman perempuan yang masif menginspirasi gerakan persamaan derajat di Rock-n-Roll semisal Suzi Quatro, Patti Smith, Chrissie Hynde (Pretenders), Poly Styrene (X-Ray Spex), The Slits, Exene Cervenka (X), Wendy O Williams, Joan Jett, pula Lita Ford; serta sosok-sosok wanita yang walau tak terkait langsung dengan fenomena Riot Grrrl namun tersimak punya peran menonjol, kental kesan pemberontak, in-your-face, bingar lagi bising, di blantika musik seperti Peaches, Brody Dalle (The Distillers), Lesbians On Ecstasy, Kittie, Le Tigre, Shonen Knife, plus lainnya.A movement formed by a handful of girls who felt empowered, who were angry, hilarious, and extreme through and for each other. Built on the floors of strangers' living rooms, tops of Xerox machines, snail mail, word of mouth and mixtapes, riot grrrl reinvented punk - Beth Ditto

The Hydrant: Dirty Thirty

・Versi Bahasa Indonesia sila klik di siniIndonesia's rockabilly ambassador, The Hydrant, are here again and in full swing. After more than a year since releasing Bali Bandidos, the pompadour contingent have come back dandy and fully pomaded via their newest album, Dirty Thirty. The Bali quartet with the latest formation Marshello (singer, harmonica), Wis (guitar), Adi (contra bass) and Christopher (stand up drum), have a specific reason naming the album Dirty Thirty. The motor of the band, Wis and Shello, just turned the age of 30 years old and both agreed to step into the phase of being "dirty" to rock 'n' roll attitude which is getting married and having kids. This is the third full-length album for them since forming on August 14, 2004; and consist of 9 songs which are devoted to Americana and rockabilly-o-rama. The lyrics still talk about social issues ("Race to Nowhere" and "Boogie Cadillac") and the love, dynamic life of the personnel ("Wild Wild Boy", "My Baby", "Don't Cry"). They also have one guest guitarist, Krisna, participating in the swing-infected song, "Shake, Rhythm & Jive". Meanwhile Wis experiments a bit with Yngwie Malmsteen-cum-rockabilly in "Kuta Beach Terror" plus an instrumental composition, "The Outlaw Song". An album for all fashion-conscious rockers not to miss.

Bloodbuzz Ohio

Matt Berninger maybe not the best (dexterous?) dancer ever. But he's got charismatic baritone + elegant beard---not to mention magnificent mid-tempo pop. Oh, and nice trench coat, of course.

38 (Infamous) Punk Rock & New Wave Anthems You Must Hear Before You Die

The Block Rockin' Beats Edition: March 23, 201138 (Infamous) Punk Rock and New Wave Anthems You Must Hear Before You DieIn case you kiddos don't know or easily amazed by Fat Mike cheap talks and still think the owner of Atticus clothing label---what's his name again---is the 3-chords prophet, well, you must listen carefully to this playlist. These songs are in the category of "not widely popular but uber influential" among Punk Rock and New Wave scene. These are kickass anthems you must hear before you die. Oh, first thing first: give away your Macbeth shoes to your lovely punk wannabe little brother, and you, put back on your Doc Martens. Show some respect to Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood. Download the whole playlist here

Tonite! 33 Lagu Penusuk Jantung!

Tonite! Wednesday, April 06, 2011; 8-10 PMR-n-R Exhibition [mini version]: OOMLEO33 Lagu Penusuk Jantung, Tiada Jenuh Ter-putar-rus-menerusIntroduction and playlist, written and handpicked by Oomleo Himself.Inilah dia, 33 (kebetulan gua baru ulangtaun yang ke-33, so, dengan senang hati gua pilih angka tersebut.. hehe..) lagu favorit yang paling sering gua putar di playlist MP3 player gua "sepanjang masa"! Permohonan maaf sebelumnya tentang "ekspektasi". Sangat jauh m'lenceng dari kalimat "Rock-n-Roll Exhibition"; pilihan lagu gua terlalu "slow". Jazz-jazz standar dan slow-slow gitu, lah.. ("Sok-sokan jazz luh, oomleo! Najis.. Tokai kucing!") ...Cuek aja lah ...Sikat! ...Fisik dan mental tetep rock, tapi kalbu berkata lain. Silakan di-enjoy!Alm. bokap memperkenalkan The Beatles ke gua---sejak gua masih berbentuk janin---hingga gua menginjak status kanak-kanak. Pesan moral terselubung dari beliau saat itu adalah: "Kamu cukup mendengarkan The Beatles. Band-band lain setelah The Beatles adalah peniru The Beatles." Terlepas dari keadaan tersebut, koleksi kaset yang ada di lemari bokap hanya berisi jazz dan jazz, serta jazz. Selepas kanak-kanak hingga ABG, gua kepincut untuk membeli album kaset Ebiet G Ade, Benyamin S., Heli Gaos, Pengantar Minum Racun, Vina Panduwinata, Doel Soembang, D'Bodors, New Kids on the Block, Color Me Badd, dan (berbagai) berantakan lainnya. Saat itu gua nggak tersentuh metal dan variannya. Langsung skip ke arena Nirvana beserta adik-adiknnya. Sementara, nggak ada kontribusi apapun dari bokap di fase ini. Berbalik arah ketika menginjak usia muda ke dewasa---pra-wafatnya bokap---beliau mulai sharing soal musik; memperkenalkan nama musisi (rata-rata pemain jazz), menyebutkan nama-nama musisi favoritnya, mengajak gua buat kenal dengan temen-temen mudanya yang sering kongkow bermain musik, dan sebagainya. Gua kulik semua kaset yang ada di lemari milik bokap; genre, dan bobot musik yang ada. Pilihan gua cuma jatuh sama koleksi jazz standar milik bokap beserta varian jazz yang "mudah" diserap. Selain itu, sisanya cukup didengarkan sekali lewat dan/atau cukup mengenal nama musisinya saja. Saat itu, gua masih menikmati The Beatles (dan turunannya), yang menurut gua adalah sejenis tesis "anti-jazz"; yang bertolak belakang dengan keadaan setelahnya: Hampir semua musisi jazz pernah meng-cover satu/beberapa lagu The Beatles, namun tidak sebaliknya. Penikmat segala jenis musik pasti akan mafhum dengan keadaan tersebut. Demikian halnya dengan gua. Sekarang gua udah mulai tau, musik yang tepat buat gua, dan bisa memilih jenis musik yang bisa gua nikmatin sendirian. Buat nemenin kerja, dan sebagainya. ♪♬♫ Radio streaming live http://army.wavestreamer.com:6356/listen.pls ♬♩♫

DOMESTIC GROOVE: APRILIA APSARI

Upclose and personal with the frontwoman of White Shoes & the Couples Company.

Tonite! Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: HENRY FOUNDATION!

Tonite! March 30, 2011Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: HENRY FOUNDATION30 Bands That Told Me to Buy Guitar:: Playlist, intro, song descriptions, and (most) photos, written and handpicked by Henry Himself :: Sejak 20 tahun yang lalu saya tidak pernah bercita-cita menjadi pemain gitar handal, hingga kini pun tidak. Hanya berpura-pura seolah sedang memainkan gitar di kamar dengan penggaris panjang sambil mendengarkan beberapa koleksi musik yang dikutuk oleh Ibu saya. Hasilnya saya hanya cuma bisa menyanyi---itu pun seadanya. Gitar pertama saya adalah gitar akustik merk Yahaha (Yamaha palsu), beli bekas dari teman saya Iyus pada tahun 91. Lebih dari cukup untuk mempelajari chord dasar dengan bersusah payah. Setelah saya kuliah dan tidak lagi tinggal bersama orang tua, Ibu saya diam-diam membuang gitar tersebut. Sangat mengecewakan memang, walau pada waktu itu passion saya terhadap gitar telah hilang. Setelah menikah dan beberapa tahun berkonsentrasi dengan musik-musik sintetik, tiba-tiba passion terhadap gitar muncul kembali dan saya berfikir bahwa ini adalah saat yang tepat untuk membeli gitar. Fender Jaguar menjadi pilihan gitar kedua saya pada akhirnya. Walau tidak handal bergitar, paling tidak kali ini saya bisa berpura-pura memainkan gitar di kamar bukan lagi dengan penggaris panjang dan tanpa sepengetahuan Ibu saya. Playlist yang saya buat berikut ini adalah beberapa band yang saya dengarkan dan sebagian lagi saya idolakan hingga men-trigger niat saya untuk membeli gitar. Bukan karena teknik shredding atau sound gitarnya yang extravaganza, lebih kepada sesuatu yang memasuki alam bawah sadar saya, proses kenikmatannya, lagi dan lagi---kalau kata Necrodeath---Bah! Radio streaming live http://army.wavestreamer.com:6356/listen.pls

Tonite! 38 (Infamous) Punk Rock & New Anthems!

Tonite! Wednesday, March 23, 2011; 8-10 PM38 (Infamous) Punk Rock and New Wave Anthems You Must Hear Before You DieIn case you kiddos don't know or easily amazed by Fat Mike cheap talks and still think the owner of Atticus clothing label---what's his name again---is the 3-chords prophet, well, you must listen carefully to this playlist. These songs, most of them, are in the category of "not widely popular but uber influential" among Punk Rock and New Wave scene. These are kickass anthems you must hear before you die. Oh, first thing first: give away your Macbeth shoes to your lovely punk wannabe little brother, and you, put back on your Doc Martens. Show some respect to Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood. ♬ ♪ Radio streaming live http://army.wavestreamer.com:6356/listen.pls ♫ ♬

Domestic Groove: BONGKY MARCEL

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 12th edition I went upclose-and-personal with Bongky Marcel.

Tonite! Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: CHE CUPUMANIK!

Tonite! March 16, 2011Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: CHE CUPUMANIKInkubator Rock Kotor:: Playlist, intro, song descriptions, and (some) photos, written and handpicked by Che Himself :: Playlist yang saya susun ini, bukan tipe lagu yang sengaja saya telusuri, karena lagu ini ada di zaman saya, dia datang melalui rekomendasi kawan atau dari terpaan media. Dulu dan kini, mereka menjadi teman akrab, penanda perjalanan hidup dan tapak-tapak jejak langkah. Lagu-lagu ini meski berasal dari tahun 90-an, mereka masih ada dalam daftar lagu yang sengit diputar saat ini, mereka masih terdengar modern. Dan bisa dipastikan, mereka membentuk selera dan cita rasa musikal saya. Bercak ekspresinya mungkin berantakan ada di dalam musikalitas yang saya bikin, disadari atau tidak. ♫ Radio streaming live http://army.wavestreamer.com:6356/listen.pls ♬

Tonite! Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: WAHYU NUGROHO!

Tonite! March 09, 2011!Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: WAHYU NUGROHO aka ACUMThe 70's Soft-Folk-Rockin-Tongkrongan Beats:: Playlist, intro, song descriptions, and (a few) photos, written and handpicked by Acum Himself :: Era 70-an: Berambut gondong, brewok, celana cut bray, memakai kaus band-band kesayangan. Aktivitas: Pergi ke konser, hang out di halaman belakang rumah, membakar jagung bakar, minum bir murahan, ditemani teman-teman, dihiasi gitar bolong dan menyanyi lagu-lagu favorit. Atau hanya sekedar nongkrong sendirian di atas balkon atau teras depan rumah... Berikut 33 lagu-gitar 70-an favorit saya...

Bottle Smoker: Bright Lights, Big Cities Tour

・ Versi Indonesia klik di siniGoing on a tour overseas, especially Asia Pacific region, has become very much a business-as-usual thing for Indonesian musicians. Not only for big name bands, but also independent acts like this electronica group from Bandung called Bottlesmoker. Angkuy and Nobie began their career in 2005, and will start their journey on February 26, finishing up on March 16. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, is going to be the first stop, and then continuing to Gadong, Kuala Belait & Bandar Seri Bagawan (Brunei Darussalam), Shanghai & Beijing (China), Wan Chai (Hongkong), with the last gig in Medan. Actually, this is the fourth tour outside of Indonesia for Bottlesmoker. On the first one they performed in Malaysia in 2009, and then the Philippines in 2010, Malaysia again in 2010, and this year to several countries for their biggest tour ever. Stay informed about the tour by regularly visiting http://bottlesmoker.tumblr.com and listen to their unique bedroom music songs via http://www.myspace.com/bottlesmoker

Melepaskan Progresi Mental Secara Digital dan Gratis

Gejala-gejala sosial di Indonesia selalu menjadi alasan sebagian besar bangsanya untuk bersikap apatis terhadap lingkungan sekitar karena terkadang membuat masyarakat terbelit dan terpojok dengan kebijakan-kebijakan aneh yang lahir di tengah-tengah mereka. Sementara itu polisi-polisi moral menjadi arogan dan self pretentious dengan alibi-alibinya agar bisa terlihat peduli dan bekerja atas nama negara Indonesia dan kepentingan institusi atau organisasinya. Sajama Cut mungkin salah satu di antara jutaan orang dan ribuan band di Indonesia yang melihat fenomena ini dan mengkritik lewat double single "Twice (Rung the Ladder)" / "Poral Molice" yang dirilis serentak secara digital melalui beberapa situs online yang salah satunya adalah rudolfdethu.com di hari Kamis, 24 Februari 2011.

Tonite! NWOBHM, Iron Fist, Denim & Leather!

The New Wave of British Heavy Metal (frequently abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a heavy metal movement that started in the late 1970s, in Britain, and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. The movement developed as a reaction in part to the decline of early heavy metal bands such as Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. NWOBHM bands toned down the blues influences of earlier acts, incorporated elements of punk, increased the tempo, and adopted a "tougher" sound, taking a harder approach to its music. It was a scene directed almost exclusively at heavy metal fans. The era is considered to be a major foundation stone for the extreme metal genres; acts such as the American thrash metal band Metallica cite NWOBHM bands like Saxon, Motörhead, Diamond Head, and Iron Maiden as a major influence on their musical style Reviled or ignored by many mainstream critics in both the UK and the US, the NWOBHM nonetheless came to dominate the heavy metal scene of the early-mid 1980s. NWOBHM was musically characterized by fast upbeat tempo songs, power chords, fast guitar solos and melodic, soaring vocals, with lyrical themes often drawing inspiration from mythology and fantasy fiction. The early movement was associated with acts such as Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Saxon, Motörhead, Angel Witch, Tygers of Pan Tang, Blitzkrieg, Avenger, Sweet Savage, Girlschool, Jaguar, Demon, Diamond Head, Samson and Tank, among others. The image of bands such as Saxon, consisting of long hair, denim jackets, leather and chains, would later become synonymous with heavy metal as a whole during the 1980s. Some bands, although conceived during this era, saw success on an underground scale, as was the case with Venom and Quartz.

JFCC Charity Jam

Back by popular demand, the JFCC Charity Jam will be held in less than three weeks! That's right, what better way to spend a Saturday night than listening to some of the best indie rock in the country while at the same time raising money for a good cause? This year, the line-up features three acts---KOIL, Efek Rumah Kaca and Sajama Cut---at a sweet, new location in central Jakarta - the Akmani Hotel on Jalan Wahid Hasyim, in Menteng. On the first floor of the hotel is an airy, outdoor/indoor terrace called the Terrazo Bianco, which we will have to ourselves starting at 8 PM on Saturday, March 12. An adjacent lounge will also be available for those who want to chill and have drinks, though tickets are needed for both.

Jeruji: Menolak Mati, Menohok dengan Warlock

・versi Indonesia silakan klik di siniAfter six year without releasing an album, the hardcore veterans Jeruji are finally back with their newest creation, Warlock. Consisting of 13 songs, this Bandung outfit still as heavy and non-compromise as ever: aggressive, in your face, anti war, so strongly against injustice. In this latest work, Themfuck (vocal, mastermind), is supported by Sani (drums), Aleandre (guitar) and Pengex (bass). The addition of Aleandre (also a member of Full Of Hate) and Pengex (still official personnel of Take A Stand), make Jeruji even more solid and colorful, with a more New York/old school hardcore feel. If you are into heavy protest music, this charismatic and very respected band from Bandung will be right up your street. Stay connected with them and join their Facebook page (search: Jeruji). Or simply turn on your radio.

Terrifically Derelict

This small yet unique question and answer between Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom was originally published on Uncut mag, Take 164, January 2011; right after Newsom's Have One On Me won Uncut's Album of the Year.

About

Music journalist, writer, radio DJ, socio-political activist, creative industry leader, and a qualified librarian, Rudolf Dethu is heavily under the influence of the punk rock philosophy. Often tagged as this country’s version of Malcolm McLaren—or as Rolling Stone Indonesia put it ‘the grand master of music propaganda’—a name based on his successes when managing Bali’s two favourite bands, Superman Is Dead and Navicula, both who have become two of the nation’s biggest rock bands.