Seeming to come out of nowhere, Stars and Rabbit made a splash in the music scene late 2011. The group masterminded by Elda Suryani and Adi Widodo originally formed in Yogyakarta early 2011 but soon created a buzz for themselves when they performed in Jaya Pub’s monthly event, Superbad!, in December 2011. Since then the group has been the focus of many’s attention, and deservedly so. Elda’s approach to both her vocal projection and performance stands out as her voice, which recalls Bjork and Joanna Newsom, towers over Adi Widodo’s introspective guitar strumming and plucking, while her body moves frantically as if possessed by the music. Whiteboard Journal had the pleasure of having Stars and Rabbit perform 3 songs at W_Space Kemang, and we hope you enjoy the performance!
Worth It
You Were the Universe
Man Upon the Hill
Elda's approach to both her vocal projection and performance stands out as her voice, which recalls Bjork and Joanna Newsom, towers over Adi Widodo's introspective guitar strumming.
The Jakarta-based band Swimming Elephants, a group of young people formed by Rizki Yogaswara (vocals, guitars, keyboards), Gilar Di Aria (keyboards, guitars, percussions), Wisnu Anditta (drums, percussions, vocals), Saras Juwono (vocals, keyboard, recorder), Aprillia DH (keyboards, glockenspiels. percussions) and Ranggi Mukti (bass). Finding their name after watching The Fall by Tarsem Singh, Swimming Elephants’ music reflect the members love for film as their brand of pop-folk is cinematic with arrangements that often snowball into dramatic parts, vocal harmonies that swell, Rizki Yogaswara’s voice soaring over the music, and lyrics that convey stories of longing and nostalgia. Whiteboard Journal had the pleasure of having Swimming Elephants perform their songs at W_Space, our gallery in Kemang, showing us (and you, of course) why they are a group that deserve our attention. Enjoy!
Sarah
Digicam 2
Marion
Formed in 2002 by Rio, Sari, Saleh, Mela, Ricky, and John—then students at IKJ (Art Institute of Jakarta) White Shoes & The Couples Company's self-described "Chamber Pop" brought a new and exciting style to then the current Indonesian music landscape. The band launched their self-titled debut album in 2005 under Aksara Records. In 2007 White Shoes and The Couples Company released an EP (Skenario Masa Muda) as a joint effort with Kineforum (Jakarta Arts Council's Fim Committee) and Sinematek Indonesia (Indonesian Movie Archives) to raise awareness as well as fund for the preservation of Indonesian old movie archives.
Gaining worldwide recognition, their lively performances has been enjoyed not only by their fans in Indonesia but also overseas. The album, distributed by Minty Fresh Records, is also sold in Canada, Mexico, Australia, and Japan. After recently releasing their second full-length, Album Vakansi, W_Music had the privilege to talk to them about the album and travelling in general. Enjoy!
[featured caption="W_Music Series Vol.04: White Shoes & The Couples Company"]
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Son of another Indonesian great, multi-instrumentalist-Jack Lesmana, Indra Lesmana is a child prodigy who learned how to master the keys at a young age, with his first performances done at the age of ten to an audience of hundreds and thousands, and his first album released when he was 12 years old. From child to adulthood, Indra Lesmana has dedicated his life to music.
With currently over 50 albums released, his musical endeavors are not restricted to jazz, Indra Lesmana has also released a multitude of critically acclaimed pop records, winning a BASF Award for his meaningful pop numbers. Currently busy promoting the first LLW record, LLW being his modern jazz trio with bassist-Barry Likumahuwa and drummer-Sandy Winarta, Indra Lesmana spared some time our of his busy schedule to talk to W_Music about some highlights from his three decade-long career, LLW, and leaves the viewers and aspiring musicians some words of wisdom. Enjoy!
[featured caption="W_Music Series Vol.05: Indra Lesmana"]
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Episode ketiga Loka Suara Live menampilkan rapper Matter Mos di mana ia bercerita tentang bagaimana ia berangkat dari vokalis band metalcore menjadi salah satu nama penting di skena hip-hop hari ini.
Memperkenalkan salah satu seri video terbaru di Whiteboard Journal, Loka Suara Live. Pengembangan dari channel W_Music yang kini lahir kembali dalam format video.
Polka Wars, which joined the dynamic Jakarta music scene in the beginning of 2010, is one of the bands that attempts to present something new. And though their music is not the kind that would be perfect to accompany you on a slow, Sunday afternoon, the volume of the combined sounds of guitars, drums, and recently, a saxophone, evokes strong emotions without draining your energy. Though they've been active for over two years, in 2012 the group consisting of principal members Karaeng Adjie, Giovanni Rahmadeva, Xandega Tahajuansya & Billy Saleh gained a lot of attention from the media, concert organizers and avid music goers.
We invited Polka Wars to perform at Studio Taman on a Sunday afternoon. Enlisting the help of noisemaker Sawi Lieu to play the synth and Gerinov to play the saxophone, Polka Wars performance brought a full and lively rendition of their momentum-driven music.
[featured caption="Setlist Vol.06: Polka Wars"]
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Influenced by The Who, The Beatles - among several other legends of the 1960s and 1970s - these two brothers are recognized in the independent music sphere of Indonesia for their brand of rock and roll. Perhaps the comfort of performing with someone you are tied to by blood has also impacted the way The Experience perform their songs, all of which are in English. The casual, but confident vibe of this two-man band is what makes their performances memorable. Their debut album, Summer of Love, was released in 2007 and their second album, Eye Contact, made it to the third rank on Rolling Stone's Top Ten Charts in 2011. We invited the duo to practice and recording space Studio Taman in Kemang a month ago and they showed us why they are a group that everybody has their eyes on.
[featured caption="Setlist Vol.05: The Experience Brothers"]
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