Ikang's new CD gives no clue to his past fame
Ikang's new CD gives no clue to his past fame
M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Rock singer Ikang Fauzi said that before recording his first
album in more than a decade, he decided he would follow in the
footsteps of poodle-haired metal veteran Jon Bon Jovi by
following the latest trends in music before distilling them into
a new album.
In the more than twenty years of their musical career, Bon
Jovi and his band have managed to stay relevant by always riding
the wave of every new trend to hit the music business. Hence, Bon
Jovi's music evolved from hard rock through heavy metal to
grunge.
"I've learned a lot from Bon Jovi. He always manages to adjust
to new conditions in the music scene. His music always sounds
new," Ikang told The Jakarta Post during a recent interview.
The forty-year old singer, who scored big in the mid-1980s
with the rock song Preman (Thugs), applied the lessons he learned
from the New Jersey-born rocker by hiring young musicians and
trying new sounds for his album Dua Sisi.
Ikang collaborated with young musicians such as Dhani Ahmad of
the pop group Dewa and Ipank of rock band BIP during the
recording of the album. Scores of seasoned musicians, such as
session drummer Gilang Ramadhan, veteran guitarist Ekki Soekarno
and violinist Hendri Lamiri, also joined in.
However, all his efforts seem wasted as the album ends up
somewhere between the singer wanting to revisit his past glory
and his desire to move ahead. What comes out is merely his past
signature given a new sound.
Ikang's cocky yet brattish singing style is still there, even
in some adult-oriented rock songs.
In the opener, Preman Berdasi (Thug with a Tie), which is a
sequel to Preman and an immediate reminder of the hit, Ikang
sings the tune earnestly as if begging for attention for the
message contained in the song.
The ranting against corrupt politicians is delivered amid a
seesawing one-note guitar line, which is the song's only
attractive feature.
The song hits the dirt, however, when Ikang sings the chorus
"We hate you, we fight you, we are the power." It's like a radio
transmission beamed from an alien mothership.
Prior to the release of Dua Sisi, Ikang wanted Preman Berdasi
to be the first single from the album, but his record company
decided otherwise arguing that the song was too politically-
charged.
Preman Berdasi gives way to Tak Kuasa (Can't Help it), a
ballad which might have been culled from any Indonesian rock
record from the 1980s.
Ikang's penchant for staying tough takes its toll in Terlanjur
Cinta (Already In Love), where he insists on performing a
supposedly lovelorn ditty as a hard rocking foot-stomper.
The album reaches a new low with Tragedi Anak Buangan (Tragedy
of the Abandoned Child), a street life saga which turns out to be
unexpectedly hilarious as a result of the vocal delivery and big
guitar riffs that could be borrowed from any Limp Bizkit song.
The first single Salam Terakhir (Last Goodbye) should have
been the album's biggest draw, but instead it is a throwaway that
lacks any of the ingredients that could go together to make a
memorable song.
A light string orchestration that seeps through acoustic
guitar picks actually provides a lustrous background for Ikang's
vocals, but campy female backing, frequently out of tune, quickly
leads to disappointment.
The only decent and reasonably listenable track is the album's
closer, Rumahku Surgaku (Home is Where the Heaven is), where all
the instruments are nicely balanced and superbly played, although
the lyrics could, appropriately enough, be found in any real
estate ad.