Kulkul Band– Welcome to Bali (2010) by Jazzuality.com

Submitted by Riandy K on April 14, 2010 – 3:38 am

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Artist : Kulkul
Album : Welcome to Bali
Released Date : April 9, 2010
Label : Indie

Welcome to Bali, the land of gods and one of the most stunning and beautiful place in the world. Bali has been known as the most favorite holiday destination in Indonesia because of its magical and mystical nuance, the exotic beach and richness of culture. The various kinds of Balinese dances have been quite an attraction for tourists. And don’t forget about the Balinese traditional music. It’s extremely vibrant and complex and the main purpose is to support the religious beliefs and the cultures. The set of traditional orchestra of Bali usually consists of a set of gamelan, various forms of percussions with the notes criss -crossing among them. The typical pentatonic sound of Balinese music is very unique and you will recognize it right away.

Jazz is a music that always welcomes every kind of music elements from any genres including the ethnical music and one of them is Balinese. There are many attempts to mix jazz with the traditional music of Bali made by both national and international musicians from time to time, and I can never get tired of it. Exotic and audibly soothing and relaxing, it never fails to bring a different feeling whenever you hear it.

Kulkul (picture taken from Kulkul’s facebook)

Meet KULKUL, a phenomenal band with a group of youngsters who have the vision to bring the mystical Balinese music into the modern sound. Holding the same spirit and supported by their high skills, Demas Narawangsa (drums), Didiet (violin), Awan (bass), Adit (keyboard) and Faisal (guitar) established KulKul in 2005. The mission is simple, to keep the specific taste of exotics carried by Balinese music as a part of Indonesian heritage. The mission could sound simple, but certainly it wouldn’t be easy to carry. Then this mission grabbed the interest of Lembaga Kesenian Bali Saraswati (The Balinese Art Foundation of Saraswati) led by I Gusti Kompyang Raka. Soon this foundation helped Kulkul to create their unique and specific style of music. A fine blend between the modern jazz fusion and the authentic traditional Balinese music was created, a very strong music character of Kulkul that will be easily recognized by the listeners. The Magical, mystical and artistic jazz style of Kulkul should bring you to meet the Balinese spirit in no time.

I’ve been waiting for their album to be released for at least 2 years. They were busy performing in various events, including Jazz Merah Putih, Jazz Goes to Campus, Jakjazz and also Java Jazz Festival to say the least. Even without the album they managed to grab the attention of music lovers in every gig they performed. The ear-catchy melodies with a specific taste from Kulkul are able to reach the interest of listeners from various genres. I must say that it’s a pop side of fusion with the spirit of Balinese aura all over it. It’s not difficult to listen at all. It’s stunning and very highly entertaining.

Finally we heard about the launching of their debut album. This is the kind of album that I believe will be able to speak louder for a long time to come. “Welcome to Bali”, that’s the title of Kulkul’s debut albumconsisting of 9 songs that are ready to stun you in awe. The cover itself is interesting. The minimalist concept but designed very well successfully describe what’s inside. You can clearly see that the band wants to send the message that they were born from the art and culture of Indonesia. And yes, that’s what Kulkul is about, original, authentic and artistic one.

(picture taken from Kulkul’s facebook)

Before scrolling down to see the tracks inside, better for us to see the musicians behind this phenomenal band.
Demas Narawangsa (drum) is the youngest personnel. He’s still 17 years old now but he has made many tremendous achievements since he was still a child. He won Indomusic Expo Drum Competition 2000, Yamaha Drum Competition 2002, the best drummer of Asian Beat 2003 and 2004. Besides being active in Kulkul, Demas is also the drummer of Indro Hardjodikoro Trio. He also plays music together with Tohpati.
Sigit Aditya (violin), better known Didit, has played violin since he was still 5 years old. He performs regularly with many top musicians in Indonesia, including Addie MS, Purwatjaraka, Erwin Gutawa, Elfa Secioria, Krisdayanti, Rossa, 3 Diva, Yuni shara and many others including the late Bill Saragih. The way he plays the violin reminds me of Luluk Purwanto, the amazing female jazz violist who now resides in Nederland. He’s also currently finishing his study majoring in music at Universitas Negeri Jakarta.
Adman Maliawan (bass) or Awan has started his bass career since 1991. Besides playing music with Kulkul, he’s also active as a music teacher in an international school at Serpong.
R.M. Aditya Andriyanto (piano/keyboard) is recently pursuing his magister degree in Institut Seni Indonesia Yogyakarta. Many of Kulkul’s arrangements are created by him.
Faisal Fasya (guitar) also called Faiz is one of the young and talent musician in Indonesia today.

Besides those names, Kulkul also involves a set of original Balinese musicians.
I Ketut Budiyasa (kendang, suling and gangsa) is from Klungkung Bali. He’s highly skillful in playing kendang (the traditional drum), suling(flute) and gangsa (the kind of Balinese gamelan/traditional percussion). He has performed around the world with Sanggar Saraswati and some Indonesian musicians such as Elfa Secioria.
I Wayan Sudarsana (gangsa and ceng-ceng) is the ritual leader of Kulkul in every performance. He’s very familiar with all kinds of Balinese traditional instruments such as kulkul (a traditional instrument made from bamboo), ceng-ceng kopyak (the kind of cymbals), and gangsa kantilan (percussion). Besides playing these instruments, Sudarsana is also great as a dancer.
I Wayan Sudiarta (gangsa and ceng-ceng) is always stunning in every gig. He always turns Kulkul’s music to be more joyful, energetic and interesting to see with his style of playing.
Kadek Setiawan (gangsa and ceng-ceng) is a young Balinese instrumentalist and expert in bridging the gap between traditional and modern music.

Together as a unit, this combination of amazing musicians from different backgrounds is able to create a modern form of jazz fusion with the thick Balinese aura through a set of real traditional instruments.

The album opens up with an uplifting track that will immediately show you what Kulkul is all about,“Datanglah”. Didit shows his accuracy on hitting the notes while playing in full speed. Besides Faisal’s roarin’ guitar and energetic drum beat by Demas, you will also meet the spirit of Bali without having to be there at all through the amazing play by the set of Balinese traditional musicians or Karawitan Bali. This track is simply the musical showdown that will leave you breathless. The next song carries on exactly what’s left from the first track. It’s “Uluwatu”, taken from the name of a beautiful site in Bali located at the South end of the island. Again you will see the amazing blend between jazz and Balinese pentatonic scales presented with the original traditional instruments. The title track “Welcome to Bali” follows the pattern of the first two songs. This song describes Bali through its melody. It’s an invitation song for everyone to come and visit Bali.

“Melancaran” is the next. This is a Bali language means “Taking a Trip”. You will get more jazz fusion pattern in this song by Adit’s keyboard. Faisal gives his electric guitar touch once again before Didit’s violin comes in. “Bali Dance” is a fast and furious track picturing the haunting Balinese dance. I can feel the fight between Barong and Rangda, between good and evil that has always been one of the most popular dances for the visitors through this song. The beautifully ambient “Chandra” (means “Moon” in English) appears acoustically. You will love this song just like how you love watching the sunset in Bali.“Mecanda” (“Play”) fills with syncopative sets of melody that resembles teasing and playing between friends.

Kulkul’s album launching party

The next song, “Janger” should be familiar to those who know some Balinese traditional song. Kulkul focuses on the beautiful melody and delivers it slow before it goes wild in the last minute, especially by the busy-bee gamelan playing on the background. The last song is another case of interesting mixture.“Wina” has a smooth jazzy piano playing but watch out for the typical “kecak” beat as we usually find in Kecak Dance. It even includes the kecak chants with Brazilian samba in the middle. What an interesting song! And the album reaches the end with this very special track.

Raunchy rockin’ guitar in ear catchy jazz pattern combining with the ethnical touch of Bali, the mixture between modern and traditional instruments, a harmonious marriage between East and West, all packed in this brilliant album that won’t fail to amaze you. The fine blend among all elements is simply stunning and unforgettable. What’s more about it is that Kulkul can pack everything in the perfect way. It’s the modern fusion serves in the very current way. It carries the traditional style of Balinese ethno-musicology but it sounds up to date. Kulkul’s “Welcome to Bali” is one of the most impressive album I’ve listened lately. This album is ready to bring you into the magical and mystical world in Balinese spirit just when you hear the first note. It’s a musical journey that you will never forget.

Welcome to Bali, guys.

Kulkul are:
DEMAS NARAWANGSA (Drum, Kempluk),
DIDIET (Violin),
AWAN (Bass),
R.M. ADITYA (Keyboard),
FAISAR (Guitar)

Bali Traditional Musicians / Karawitan Bali :
I KETUT BUDIYASA (Kendang, Suling, Gangsa Pemade )
WAYAN SUDIARTA (Gangsa Kantilan, Kulkul, Ceng Ceng Kopyak),
WAYAN SUDARSANA (Gangsa Kantilan, Kulkul, Ceng Ceng, Ceng CengKopyak),
KADEK STIAWAN (Gangsa Pemade, Kulkul, Ceng Ceng Kopyak)

Tracklist:
- Datanglah
- Uluwatu
- Welcome to Bali
- Melancaran
- Bali Dance
- Chandra
- Mecanda
- Janger
- Wina

For more info please log on to Kulkul’s official website and myspace

Reviewed by Riandy Kurniawan
Proofreader: Alhenri Wijaya

If you are interested with Kulkul Band’s performance, please contact the following address, or send an email.

Kulkul Management
Arya Teja: 0811860507
Bill: 081319816464

Email: info @ kulkulband.com or indra @ kulkulband.com