Dear Friends in Music

6 years after their last studio album Trance/Mission and 2 years after their
international debut, live album Patahan, simakDialog is ready with their
outstanding blend of electro-acoustic, groove driven progressive-ethno-fusion.
http://www.moonjune.com/MJR024.htm

"This potent fusion of hypnotic Indonesian rhythms and cutting-edge progressive
ethno-jazz-rock improv, intense musical syncopation and textural sophistication,
stretches simakDialog's ever-evolving musical vocabulary. "Demi Masa" is
simakDialog's long-awaited global-fusion masterpiece." – Will Romano (USA;
rock/jazz/blues writer, essayist)

“Musical wizardry! A compelling voyage to exotic fusionland with a distinctive
touch of Indonesian magic.” - Greg Edwards (USA; contributor to Cadence
Magazine)

“A personal favorite of the year. Outstanding!" - Tom Gagliardi (USA;
Gagliarchives Radio)

Yours in Music
LEONARDO/MOONJUNE
NEW YORK
www.moonjune.com

Album Profile:

This is the fifth album from Indonesian progressive jazz ensemble simakDialog.
Led by keyboardist and composer Riza Arshad, the band also features guitarist
Tohpati and bassist Adhitya Pratama, working alongside the twinned percussion
thrust of Endang Ramdan and Erlan Suwardana. This latter pair are specialists in
traditional Sundanese kendang drumming. Arshad's compositional approach opens up
from a jazz-rock palette, but his Fender Rhodes electric piano is clearly
influenced by the crisp ring and shimmer of the Indonesian gamelan's array of
gongs, metallophones and double-headed drums. We can immediately hear the
similarities between the keyboard's percussive crackle and the sharp detonations
of tunefully struck metal. The percussionists soon enter, clattering out their
heavily organic patterns with roundly slapped skins, shaker bells and handclaps.
Arshad frequently pushes his solos (or are they ongoing themes?) up to
continually higher levels, urging
repeated climaxes as each piece steadily amasses intensity. Tohpati is also
attracted to resonant trebly zones, journeying from acoustic delicacy to a
subtly distorted friction. The guitarist's presence has a significance beyond
his role on this album, as Tohpati is one of the Indonesian music scene's most
successful (and ubiquitous) players. Another element is tipped in later, with
the percussionists chanting along to emphasise their dense structures. Arshad
might recline in a hazy contemplation, but it doesn't take him long to develop
an insistent pulse, invariably reaching a frenzied state. There's a clear
recalling of the classic moves made by Chick Corea and Terje Rypdal in the
1970s, but this is laced with authentic gamelan elements utilised as part of
this jazz-rock vocabulary. The result sounds both natural and fully integrated.
This a particular realm that couldn't be reached either by Western progressives
or a traditional gamelan ensemble. The
simakDialog involves a unique combination of both spheres, without making the
commercially tempting mistake of cultural dilution.

Artist Profile:

Keyboardist/composer Riza Arshad and guitarist Tohpati formed simakDialog in
1993. Living in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, this band couldn't avoid
being influenced by the traditional sound of the gamelan ensemble. As one of the
culturally richest and diversified countries in the world, Indonesia treasures a
vast variety of art and musical forms that have been a global inspiration.
simakDialog are unique in having an understanding of the ancient rituals of
temple music, as well as completely grasping the essence of those long-haired
psychedelic sounds of slightly less ancient times. Prior to Demi Masa,
simakDialog have released four albums: Lukisan, Baur, Trance/Mission and
Patahan. They have won two trophies from Anugerah Musik Indonesia (Indonesian
Music Awards 2003), for Best Jazz/Contemporary Jazz Album (Trance/Mission), and
Best Jazz/Contemporary Jazz Producer (Riza Arshad). Their international debut
(Patahan) was released in 2007 with
worldwide distribution by MoonJune Records, subsequently gaining enthusiastic
reviews in over 25 countries worldwide. The band has performed extensively in
Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Nepal. Tours, festival appearances and
seminars on ethnic percussion/music heritage are planned for 2009 and 2010, with
the support of the Indonesian government.
The simakDialog road band features seven players: five core members, plus a
guesting percussionist and female singer/keyboardist.