A Journey

A Journey by the next generation of jazz pianist, David Manuhutu, is a 40 minutes long album that asserts his name in the Indonesian jazz repertoire. Initially felt as a great backgroud-filling music companion due to its crisp and clear collaboration of the instruments, it unexpectedly turn into a comprehensive sound and a meticoulous recording.

Cerita Baru

It took Indro Hardjodikoro four years to produce his second solo album Cerita Baru that bears many similarities to the first album Feels Free. Both took inspiration from his personal life, and both took a simple mixture of jazz form and pop ballad. A significant distinction is in the involvement of his many friend musicians, such as Ricad Hutapea and Fabion (saxophones), Andi Zoel (vocal) and Indra Dauna (trumpet), Yoseph Sitompul (keyboard), Utox (guitar), including Yandi Andaputra (drummer), Indro's young protege at his band Indro Harjodikoro & the Fingers.

Gratitude

Robert's debut album with Robert M.R. Quartet reveals the classical American jazz style, influenced by blues, swing, and bebop characters at their heights throuout early to mid 20th century. With 7 original composition, each tracks summed up Robert's passion in jazz guitar and the music education he best grasped in the US. Playing conventionally in the otherwise modern, saturated music industry actually brings a new alternative to listeners in Indonesia.

Realitas Khayal

The first album of Aksan Sjuman And The Committee Of The Fest Realitas Khayal was recorded live in 2007, but it was not until March 2014 that they finally launched the album, citing the lengthy period it took to regroup and the timing they deemed ready for the listeners to accept what Aksan called the "21st century music" as the reasons behind the delayed release. The album is conceptualized as an experimental ground in which the songs were composed by different interpretations and personalities of each member. And the decision to make a live recording is to maintain the sponteinity and complexity in an album just like how they play it on stage.

Journey

This album contains six original compositions by pianist Boby Limijaya in collaboration with the Budapest Jazz Orchestra. Boby's encounter with the foreign group in Budapest, Hungary, resulted in a decision to work together in making the "jazzchestra" pieces seldom listened, or perhaps the first of its kind in Indonesia. The 1980, Tangerang-born musician had previously toured in several countries before choosing the Budapest's orchestra to help him make an orchestra album in his country.

Hidup dan Bernafas

After releasing a mini album Vol. 1/2 three years earlier, and having appeared in several prominent music events in the country such as Java Jazz, Jak Jazz and Soulnation, in 2012 Speakeasy launched their first full album Hidup dan Bernafas that turned out to be critically acclaimed. They funded the album by themselves from gigs earnings. The vocalist Randy SC together with Marshall Daniel Reynaldo Sianipar (guitar) and Padraic JB Rarumangkay (bass) perfected the mixture of pop and jazz to attract wider audience. The result: the eponymous hit single in the album became a radio hit. Vicky (drum) is the latest member to join the band.

Sacred Geometry

Sacred Geometry is the latest instrumental album by Krishna Balagita. It marked his comeback after releasing his first jazz album Sign of Eight in 2002. Popularly known as the keyboardist and indispensable composer and lyricist for Ada Band, many jazz musicians support his occasional venture in jazz recording, such as Indra Lesmana, Gilang Ramadhan, Dewa Budjana, Tohpati, and Indro Hardjodikoro, all of whom participated in the making of his first album. In Sacred Geometry there are Adityo Wibowo playing drum, Aditya Bayu on guitar and Dika Satjadibrata on bass. Krishna, who used to be Jack Lesmana's music apprentice, has made numerous radio hits throughout his career with a vernacular band. But he always keeps that jazz appeal up his sleeves.

Fenomena

The revival of the 80s era singer Fariz RM in his latest album Fenomena brings a number of new songs after a decade of absence in song writing. Whereas in the past his versatility were evident in the ways he produced song, from composing, singing, and playing multiple instruments, now he let young composers make songs in their own ways that reflect his energy.

Love Life Wisdom

Asked about coworking with the two young jazz musicians who possess a much higher degree of playfulness, Indra Lesmana preferred spontaneity rather than restraining their freedom with scores dictation. With nearly 40 years of experience, he knows how to conduct a three-way conversation on the stage, giving a natural disposition in a unity. It is not without a reason the LLW's first album is entitled Love Life Wisdom. The first track out the total seven in the album, Back Into Sumthin, for example, is written by Indra for LLW (read Double L Double U) with a consideration in making the most out of the band, rather than to stand out on his self-preferrence.

Sarimanouk

On April 2010, Julian Marantika, Sarimanouk pianist, said at the end of the concert in Teater Salihara that it will be their last concert prior the album launch. He pointed out the band's drummer Sandy Winarta's plan to pursue his master's degree and the saxophonist Talafaral's plan to leave the band to his hoem country as the reason. The concert played the entire song found in the eponymous album. Each of the nine songs contained the members' distinctive expressions in experimenting a modern music, yet maintaing jazz characteristics. Such is influenced by the 50's repertoire jazz style correlated with Duke Ellington, John Coltrane and Miles Davis plays.

Joged Kahyangan

Dewa Budjana’s second album with Moonjune Records, whom he met for the first time in 2013 and resulting in the first release of Dawai in Paradise, envisages a collaboration with West Coast renowned musicians out of his admiration of their jazz-nuanced spontaneity in interpreting all eight of his songs. Many think Dewa gets more mature by the way of writing the theme for Joged Kahyangan. He was fifty years old when this album was released.   
  

Serampang Samba

Jazz music has been taking many forms according to a variety of world society. Each represents distinctive characteristics and later assessments of the particular genre across continents, ethnic groups, and traditions. Surprisingly, the depiction encapsulates all the scents of cultural diversity. Tohpati therefore is conscious to sum them up in Serampang Samba. A line of breath-taking guitar strings races up as the first track begins. Mahabarata, as an image of its name, represents a picture of India out of the utmost vibrant environment. Either the use of the traditional Eastern Asia guitar or the representative background of Indian female’s vocal that enchants me personally; the first track introduces the album itself as a melting pot recording without speaking much toward the issue. 

Tohpati

This album marks the debut of Tohpati’s work as a versatile guitarist in jazz corridor. Well, jazz inevitably conforms a great deal upon his performance, to say the least. The song that takes an honor to be in the first queue is #1. Not only the title itself sounds very liberal, the composition has also a body moving taste. Jazz funk style pre-dominates the track’s musical orientation. The tension grows challenging as it is supposed to be in the first verses. #1 comes through its very determining part not until the chorus, where the melody, although sounds quite cliché, does not undermine the harmony people vote unanimously in almost every jazzy tunes. The chorus also marks Tohpati’s role in forming melodic acoustic line. To conclude this session only, it is very agreeable that the song choice to be the punch line is way perfect. 

It's Time

This album wouldn’t be possible hadn’t Tohpati reached the point of maturity, on account of his musical competence. He underlies the importance of long-spanned stage capability in order to enrich trait. In this album, Tohpati is very well referenced with sets of arrangement, in addition to a much wider scope to attribute instrumentation accompaniments. The dominant harmony is more playful, intricate, yet has not identified as complex. Meanwhile, he insists on tracking a sense of duty to implement various indigenous tonal lines, an authentic symbol of Tohpati’s way of delivering art of hybrid jazz.

Buat Kamu

Salute to Syaharani for releasing a groovy album made of entirely her-self composed and written songs. Nevertheless, Syaharani produces Buat Kamu by herself, with a major support of Queenfireworks Company. Various mainstream music style ranging from trance, lounge, techno, pop, and especially rock constitute the influence mainly toward the album, not to mention the frequent use of English lyrics. Like the growing trend of numerous jazz albums recently, Buat Kamu deals with less decisive decoration mentioning the prologue and epilogue entitled Overture. Highlighting lines of acoustic tones, each track is named differently according to the function, Hello in the starter, otherwise Goodbye in the last. 

Syaharani

Syaharani has everything it takes to be a jazz singer perfect image. Deep articulation, rich tonal color, sublime voice, accurate improvisation, and many more unspeakable jazzy charms, all of which attach her appeal immaculately to jazz music. If I am forced to pick one single Indonesian jazz talent who has an opaque capacity to mesmerize people more than everybody else could, how proud I am to admit that I won’t even think twice to favor her. This album of her shows the class of a true special one. Syaharani illustrates a picture of luxury that comes out of her very vocal skill. The cannot be more correct song pick over mellow jazz tracks makes this album seem so long nonchalant, very classy in terms of ambience.

Soulvibe

Soulvibe enhances a mixture of discrete music genres, spanning across hip hop, related to the frequent rap lines, RnB, pop, funk, and some other out of the box styles. But above all, jazz accounts its dominant influence, evident on the sets of chord progression formed throughout the tracks. The jazz alike composition is conclusive, and the vocal holds sway the main melody, generally speaking. Soulvibe bolsters two vocalists with middle vocal register. Despite contrastive, both voices sound synonymous, though they have already reached the consensus to separate themselves with different roles, one focuses on singing, and the other one undertakes rapping, while occasionally does the second voice too. 

Soul Emotion Bass 2

Soul Emotion Bass 2 by Harry Toledo begins with a steady beat oriented song, not long after followed by energetic funk bass pull. Etalase takes initiative in just a snap with attractive music outcome. The song gets sweeter as the chorus repetitive tone is brought by trumpet formidable rapid line of melody. For a reason, the first song is recorded in the form of live jam session. I suspect it is so in order to drive up the power of Harry’s acid jazz appeal. Aku Tergoda represents a regular smooth jazz composition. The song seems like intend to give an amiable listening experience for listeners, as decent as the unchallenging arrangement as well as composition. 

Talking to You

Soegeng Sarjadi is perhaps one of jazz musicians who have overcome a mountainous hard work. You can tell easily whether or not a person does an unmistakable dedicated job. With tremendous help of many reputable jazz artists, this album concludes fascinating artistic values in diversity. Nonetheless, Soegeng’s well accented acoustic play facilitates distinguishable influences to a delightful craftsmanship. However, I am still unsure if Soegeng fully considers himself as a genuine jazz guitarist, for he deliberately binds his listeners of this album with contemplative, melancholic to some others, state of feeling in the introduction chapter supposedly consists of the three songs. Sigh of Emptiness, Tears of Knowing You, and I’m Talking to You are good synonymous examples of it. 

Park Drive

The trend has become increasingly popular up to this day’s jazz orientation in Indonesia. It looks like nu jazz is the one that takes form, like what Parkdrive adheres to. The band, alongside many others, celebrates the contemporary depiction of the outgoing country’s jazz phenomenon. Mentioning Park Drive, the first thing that comes across my mind is that it exemplifies greatly the mild sense of nu jazz. The instances are quite clear. The composition does not go far from deliberate movement, meaning there is not any surprising element either the chord or rhythm. Even in some parts I find a difficulty in determining the music style, whether it is the contemporary art form I usually call “nu”, or is it a smooth jazz. Their musical preference is very straightforward, easy going, and tends to avoid daring improvisation, although they retain varied technique in every performance.