DEMI MASA

	Demi Masa
	Produced by Riza Arshad
	Released on March 31, 2009
	no chart information
	Find it at GEMM
MJR024 cover [high resolution scan]

I ndonesia and out the other. That’s what I thought the first time I heard this. It was complicated free jazz that filled your head with possibilities and potentialities, the plunder of jazz potentates from some far-flung archipelago of islands. The second time, it was like stepping back into the 70s and watching a Fender Rhodes skillfully stabbed in a slow sacrifice to lost gods. The third time, the complex Western piano patterns and space guitar feedback proved more pungent than the Indonesian percussion. The language of jazz is universal, and the fluency of simakDialog in 70s post-bop fusion is occasionally astounding. While the band brings a unique twist to the Rhodes-fueled scholasticism of early fusion jazz, it’s not just the obvious novelty of dual Sundanese percussionists. It’s in the intriguing guitar work of Tohpati, alternating between crashes of space sounds and liquid guitar leads. And it’s in the fluid fingers of Riza Arshad, dancing up and down the keyboard in rich, mellow tones. Honestly, the Sundanese percussion is a pale imitation of the great Santana experiment; add Adhithya Pratama’s understated bass (shades of Dave Brown) and the comparison is complete. The primary musical dialog takes place between keyboard and guitar, with Arshad doing the lion’s share of the talking. Sometimes, the dialog is pointed and thought-provoking (“Trah Lor-Laras,” “Tak Jauh Pertama”), other times it drifts like smoke into strange lands (“Salilana Pertama”). Those who endured the more dry and intellectual passages of RTF, Soft Machine and Weather Report will find plenty on Demi Masa to kindle their interest. The masterful assimilation of Western jazz by these Eastern artists is the real story, an oasis of expression where none was expected. It’s not fourth world music but classic fusion transplanted into a new place and time, taking root and flowering boldly in petals that press opiate kisses.

TRACK LISTING

SALILANA PERTAMA (FOREVER PART ONE) 14:01
SALILANA KEDUA (FOREVER PART TWO) (Riza Arshad/Endang Ramdan/Erlan Suwardana/Emy Tata/Tohpati) 6:46
TAK JAUH PERTAMA (NOT SO FAR PART ONE) 7:42
TAK JAUH KEDUA (NOT SO FAR PART TWO) 9:11
TRAH LOR - LARAS (NORTHERN PEOPLE - VOICES) 2:28
TRAH LOR - RUPA (NORTHERN PEOPLE - FACES) (Riza Arshad/Endang Ramdan/Erlan Suwardana) 3:41
TRAH LOR - TAPAK (NORTHERN PEEOPLE - PRINTS) 3:46
KARUHUN (TO ELDERS) 9:06
DISAPIH (SEPARATE AWAY) 13:06

All compositions and arrangements by Riza Arshad unless noted

CREDITS

RIZA ARSHAD -- Fender Rhodes electric piano, Yamaha acoustic grand piano, Oberheim OBX analog synth
ADHITHYA PRATAMA -- bass guitar
ENDANG RAMDAN -- lead Sundanese kendang percussion, tambourine, claps, toys, vocals
ERLAN SUWARDANA -- Sundanese kendang percussion, claps, toys, vocals
TOHPATI -- electric & acoustic guitar
Dave Lumenta -- soundscapes (8)
Emy Tata -- Sundanese kendang percussion, claps, vocals (2)
Mian Tiara -- vocals (7)
Leonardo Pavkovic -- executive producer
Ary Sandy -- photo

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REGION	RELEASE DATE	LABEL	MEDIA	ID NUMBER	FEATURES
US	March 31, 2009	Moonjune	CD	MJR024

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