Indonesian pop music out of tune with creativity
By Helly Minarti
JAKARTA (JP): On the surface, the past year in Indonesian pop music has yielded hints of promising prospects for young musicians, many of whom have achieved dreams of having their creations recorded.
Their teenybopper fan followings holler and whoop on glitzy tours across the country. Soon, popularity is at hand, and they are sharing the stage with a MTV VJ to signal their arrival on the big music scene.
Onstage, Indonesian pop music may never have shone as bright as it does now. But the commercialization and industrialization of music here is no simple fairy tale.
There is an intriguing clash between goals of performers, motivated by love of music, and producers more concerned about the bottom line.
From a macro industrial viewpoint, there are continuing issues of pirated cassettes and the distribution of royalties. And while more musicians are getting their moment to shine, at the end of the day only a few have what it takes to remain in the spotlight.
The broadcast of MTV Asia on private TV station ANteve over the last two years has undoubtedly influenced the local music scene, not only in the speedier infiltration of information, but also in its exposure of different lifestyles and value systems.
"The good thing is that penetration of (music) information happens instantly," said noted musician and arranger Erwin Gutawa. But he added the danger of a loss of creativity.
Instead of treating the information merely as a reference to enrich their works, "our musicians now tend to 'adapt' their international idols to their works, from songwriting to singing style, not analyze them to come out with something of their own".
Still, some groups, such as the minimalist Potret, do buck the conformist trends. Their second album, Potret II released toward the end of the year, is a refinery of their musical concept.
Others had hits without exploring new territory. Among them are Lingua, a trio of vocalists adhering to the 1980s melodious pop-fusion trend with melancholy lyrics, and Base Jam, which once gained fans with easy-listening melodies about the ironies of teenage lives.
Individual skill in playing musical instruments, so important in the last decade, seemed to have slipped from prominence.
Nirvana
Dewa Budjana, 33, said this was "because the current music trend doesn't require a player who has really mastered the technique. It's more collectively oriented. The concept as a band is more important rather than the flamboyance of an individual."
Many young musicians absorb trends started by 1990s rock icons like the late Nirvana guitarist, Kurt Cobain, who fascinated audiences by his fingerpicking "from the heart" which defied established musical technique. Only a decade before, people had been stunned by the troupe of distinctive players with their own take on playing instruments.
Gutawa said three characteristics made for enduring success in music. "The artists have to possess a strong musical character, good musical skill and appreciation from the public as well. Dewa 19 and Gigi fit this category.."
The country is no exception to the musical trends riding the fast lane of punk, grunge, alternative music, ska to techno and electronics.
Soloists and bands from these genres made headway to more solid popularity after releasing their second albums this year. Nugie and his Alv Band, Netral and Pas were among them, although still struggling to make the magic 100,000 sales mark.
However only songs with heavy pop elements were commercial hits. Those melodious tunes of the married duo of Anang- Krisdayanti did very well -- their second album sold 750,000 copies, surpassing the 600,000 sales of their first effort.
"Maybe the Indonesian public has not changed that much, but probably this happened because our music does not offer anything really new," commented Gutawa.
Dewa 19 stands out from the pack, praised for its creativity and feted for its commercial success. Their three albums each sold more than 250,000 copies, and the most recent, Pandawa Lima, has reached the 600,000 mark.
Young musicians seemed to be tempted to follow the 1990s musical trends by exploring grunge, hardcore, alternative, electronic, even though these could be perceived as short-lived.
"If young musicians only base their music on these trends, they will fade soon," warned Gutawa, "..unless they include perseverance so they mature as musicians -- in skill, image and knowledge."
Perseverance seems the key in the increasingly competitive industry. Living proof are groups like Koes Plus and the Rollies, playing their nostalgic tunes, and others continuing to try new avenues. Several hitmakers from the 1980s like Chrisye, Fariz RM and God Bless released albums this year. The latter even threw a gigantic promo tour of several cities which brought together their old and new works into the set.
Major labels
If MTV Asia is ushering globalization in music, the presence of several international major labels is bringing capital into Indonesian music world. Sony Music, EMI, Warner Music Indonesia and Polygram are among those which have opened representative offices here.
Could this pave the way for good local musicians to tread the daunting path to international careers?
"Don't set your hopes too high," said Gutawa. Those major labels, according to him, are acting more as extensions to sell their international artists here.
"It's not true. We're here more to promote local artists," countered Jan Djuhana, artist and repertoire director of Sony Music Indonesia. Sony Music Indonesia intends to send samples of their local artists to affiliates in 10 Asian countries, including India and Malaysia.
"If they're interested in releasing them, they're more than welcome," he added.
Going international demands establishing more conducive conditions. "It's not only the artists who are supposed to be ready in term of professionalism, but also the industry," said Gutawa. " ... no piracy, the need of a clear rule of contracts between artist and producer, royalty, those sorts of things."
The year closed with the debut of the AMI (Anugerah Musik Indonesia) or Indonesian Music Awards. Unlike honors given by cassette producers such as the BASF Awards or HDX Awards, which appear biased by commercial interests, AMI is presented by independent organizations of the Indonesian Producers Association (ASIRE), the Organization of Indonesian Recording Artists (PAPPRI) and the Indonesian Creative Foundation, which collects and distributes royalties.
Held in November, AMI promised to base judgments on music creativity alone, divorced from sales or period spent in the charts. Seven hundred jurors from throughout the music industry chose in 47 categories.
Despite some poor preparation and controversy over several choices -- Chrisye got the best male pop artist by beating the younger Harvey Malaiholo and Andre Hehanusa, and Protonema's Adinda won over Edane's Borneo for best rock song -- AMI did spark hope that Indonesian pop music is may be appreciated on its own merits. This is a good start, but other longstanding issues, particularly over pirated cassettes and royalties, still remain to be solved.