Cerebral rock

Cerebral rock

Artist : Sajama Cut

Album : The Osaka Journals

Label : Universal Music Indonesia

Rating : *** 1/2 out of *****

Standout tracks : Fallen Japanese, Lagu Tema, Alibi

There's been many times in the history of rock music when a
groundbreaking act pops out of a vacuum -- a band or performer
bursts out of nowhere, owing nothing to their predecessors or the
music scene around them.

Take Detroit punk progenitor The Stooges or punk's pioneer
romantics Television, for example. Both created fresh new sounds
that went against the grain of their contemporaries. The Stooges
introduced punk when the world was immersed in acid rock, while
Television played cerebral rock when punk's minimalism had
reached a zero-crescendo in the mid-1970s.

Jakarta's quintet Sajama Cut takes the road once traversed by
those rock greats.

Sajama Cut is part of the blossoming indie-music scene
inhabited by bands such as The Brandals, Sore and The Upstairs.
They cut 11 tracks for this impressive debut in January 2005 and
the album's release has coincided with the growing popularity of
local bands.

The band's country sound in the debut album The Osaka Journals
has little connection with the less-than-interesting mainstream
music scene in the country.

If only more local bands honed their songwriting craft to
conceive polished, radio-friendly songs, Peterpan and Dewa for
example -- Sajama Cut's music has a wonderfully loose charm, out-
of-tune vocals and undecipherable image-rich lyrics, mostly in
English.

The band's signature is the warm sound of jangling guitar,
reminiscent of Peter Buck's sound in R.E.M's early days. Another
strong point is the eerie vocals of singer Marcel Thee, which are
at times muffled deep in the mix. Aside from R.E.M, the band
admitted that indie pop heroes Bright Eyes, The Fall and Guided
By Voices were their biggest sources of inspiration.

A combination of the two elements was best captured in the
first single Fallen Japanese, which has a happy-sad melody that
will not wear thin after repeated listens. Ornamented by lush
choral harmonies from band members, the song is the album's
crowning glory.

In spite of Sajama Cut's indie inclination, The Osaka Journals
bears traces of tunes from mainstream rock radio. Alibi borrows
the riff from Coldplay's Yellow whilst Less Afraid could easily
be mistaken for an outtake from The Strokes' album.

In the ocean of fake performers with rock-star attitude,
Sajama Cut is a much-needed breath of fresh air. -- M.
Taufiqurrahman