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 14th edition I went upclose-and-personal with Cholil Mahmud.
・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.
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
・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.
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.
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! 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 ♬♩♫
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! 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 ~ 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! 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! 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...
・ 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
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.
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.
・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.
Edition: Wednesday, February 16, 2011Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: TAUFIQ RAHMANIn Defense of Underdog:: Playlist, photos, intro, and song descriptions, handpicked and written by Taufiq himself ::
I have never become a number one. And it is easy to see myself as a member of some kind of underdog club, people who just muddle through in life without any aspiration to be bigger than what they are, a state of mind that allows me to live with only little amount of pressure. Enough about myself!
My championing of underachiever makes it easy to connect with bands who throughout their existence never achieve even a modicum of success---who never had a number one hit at the Billboard Chart or MTV videos. I hate to use this word, but these are some of the most "underrated" bands, who without the pressure of having to achieve success, could produce lasting work of art.
These are music from bands that are spoken in hushed tones and knowing wink from people who are willing to look away from the screen, pages of Rolling Stone or the syndicated FM dial. Having said that, pardon my deliberate omission of The Beatles, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Metallica or even The Strokes. Everybody else has put them on almost any list, so why bother?
Edition: Wednesday, February 09, 2011Rock-n-Roll Exhibition: PHILIPS VERMONTELagu-lagu Empat Musim:: Playlist, intro, and song descriptions, handpicked and written by Philips himself ::
Siapa tak kenal mahakarya komponis besar Italia, Antonio Vivaldi yang berjudul The Four Seasons (Le Quattro Stagioni). Mahakarya ini terdiri dari empat set orkestrasi biola dimana Vivaldi 'berkisah' tentang empat musim: spring, summer, autumn/fall, winter.
Menjadi mahasiswa di Amerika dalam lima tahun terakhir memberi saya kesempatan menikmati (juga mengalami derita) empat musim yang bergerak dari satu ekstrim ke ekstrim lain. Membuat list lagu terbaik adalah tugas maha berat. Maka, saya melarikan diri dengan memilih sekedar menulis lagu-lagu yang menemani saya melalui empat musim setiap tahun, selama lima tahun terakhir.
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.
