Bands: Navicula, Geekssmile, Scared of Bums, Ripper Clown (Denpasar), Morfem (JKT), Iksan Skuter (JKT)

Teater Kini Berseri, Mural Komunitas Djamur – ISI Denpasar, Painting exhibition Made Bayak.

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Recently, the Indonesian press has released shocking coverage of orangutans (pongo pygmaeus), which were hunted down in Puan Cepak village, Muara Ancalong Region, Kutai Kartanegara. The orangutans in the area were allegedly damaging palm trees, causing the palm oil harvest to fail, so villagers caught and tortured the orangutans.

Akarumput.com, WALHI Bali, and musicians such as Gede Robi (Navicula) and Made Bayak (Geekssmile) feel it is important to bring attention to these issues through a creative event in Bali. This initiative received a positive reaction from Edi Sutrisno of Sawit Watch, who offered to support it. This event will also be partnering with other organizations who share these concerns, especially those with a focus on orangutan survival.

Following an initial discussion, these groups agreed to collaborate in the event “Suara untuk Alam II” (Sounds for Nature II). Suara untuk Alam is an initiative started by WALHI Bali, the first in this series of events was held at Twice Bar, Kuta on August 19th, 2011. During the first event, hardcore band Geekssmile also launched a single titled Yeah Yeah Yeah Indonesia. Suara untuk Alam II will be held on December 17, 2011 at Seamen’s Center, Sanur.

The following is a short preview of the event agenda: 

Orangutan artwork auction: During the Bali Creative Festival at Grand Bali Beach in Sanur this 25-27 November, many artists created artwork with an orangutan theme. These works of art are paintings on chipboard, illustrations on paper, and woodcut prints. During the event, many people asked if the artwork was for sale. This gave way to the idea to auction the artwork for a bigger purpose. So these artists could contribute to an environmental charity, as well as raising awareness about orangutan issues through their art. The funds raised through this auction will be donated to an environmental organization based in Bali (WALHI Bali) and an organization focused on the survival of orangutans.

Launching Navicula’s new single “Orangutan”: Navicula is dedicated their latest track “Orangutan” to environmental conservation efforts in Indonesia. This new single will also make up a track of their upcoming album, due to be completed early next year. Besides the track Orangutan, Navicula has also recorded two other songs Harimau Harimau (which means Tiger in Indonesian) dedicated to the Sumatran tiger and Refuse to Forget a track for the campaign in rememberance of the human rights activist Munir who was murdered in 2004 and the case has still not been brought to justice.

Location: Taman 65, Jl. WR Supratman No. 193, Kesiman Denpasar (see the map).

Date/Time: Saturday, 8 October 2011, from 15:00-23:00:

• 15:00 – wood cut workshop with Taring Padi and Komunitas Pojok. Workshop participants are encouraged to bring blank t-shirts in light colors which they can have wood cut prints created on them during the event.

• 19:00 – 21:00 – Book discussion and film showing.

• 21:00 – 23:00 – Acoustic concert with Navicula, Geekssmile, and Dendang Kampungan (Taring Padi’s band).

Denpasar-based rock band Geekssmile takes a shot at mindless patriotism with their latest single, “Indonesia.”

Geekssmile launched their latest single, “Indonesia (Yeah, Yeah, Yeah),” in late August to a packed Twice Bar in Kuta, supported by punk band Devildice and grunge/psychedelic rock outfit Navicula. The small venue was filled to capacity with fans of the three bands. By the time Geekssmile took the stage fans had overwhelmed the floor-level stage area, nearly toppling over mic stands and amplifiers and forming a raucous mosh pit in the center of the bar.

“Indonesia,” an instant crowd favorite at the Twice Bar launch, marks a stylistic turning point for the group, who have pared down their lineup to one frontman and moved on from Indonesian hardcore (reminiscent of American rap/rock), in favor of a combination of heavy metal and progressive rock. The single comes on the heels of the 2010 release of Geekssmile’s second studio album, Upeti Untuk Macan Indonesia (A Tribute to the Asian Tiger), which was highly praised in national underground scenes and the music press.

Geekssmile’s lineup and sound have changed since their formation in 2001, when they played mostly Rage Against the Machine and other rap/metal covers in local rock festivals. After the 2004 release of their first full-length album, Jurnal untuk Perang Indonesia (Journal of Indonesia’s Wars), the band became active in Bali’s underground scene, playing alongside some of the island’s best-known rock acts. Since their recording debut, Geekssmile have gained notoriety for the radical criticism embedded in their lyrics. The band offers scathing critique of national and global social, economic, and political problems.

Their latest effort, “Indonesia,” takes a shot at mindless patriotism. Geekssmile vocalist Prima explains, “many people feel that this is a nationalistic song, but in a good way.” Rather than joining other pop bands that have recorded overtly patriotic songs celebrating Indonesia, Geekssmile’s song takes a critical look at how nationalism can blind its citizens to social injustices: “We’re not really proud of this country because we’ve never felt secure and peaceful in our own land. So for us this song is a criticism of the people who are actually running this country. Prima hopes “Indonesia” will command attention like a slap in the face: “Where other songs try to make you feel at ease, we will slap you. We are trying to make you realize what kind of world we live in. What kind of state we live in now.”

Geekssmile launched “Indonesia” as part of a concert put on by Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia (WALHI, the Indonesian Environmental Forum) to raise awareness about the infamous Bali International Park (BIP). BIP is a huge infrastructure planned for construction to accommodate the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit to be held in Bali in 2013. Walhi has publicly rejected BIP, pointing to violations of the province’s own master spatial plan.

“Indonesia” is available for free download here:

Lyrics “Indonesia” by Geekssmile:
(English translation,click here to read the Indonesian lyrics)

See this land through my eyes, not only red and white
There is black gravel asphalt, a history of silencing

Running to collide with reality, your mouth chews the stigma
Fall over the choices that are squeezed from our womb

Open your eyes

Pay your banker, pay your prostitute, pay your bookie; die again
Mortgage life, mortgage your land, sell the commodities as a hoax
This sound will reverberate when the trumpet arrives
This time the choice is yours, it’s slash and boundaries
I, if you

Chasing the shadow of a destiny that is not yours
Race toward the hope that rests in the idol called “country.”

Yeah, yeah, yeah, Indonesia, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I was blown away the first time I held the book Taring Padi: Seni Membongkar Tirani (Fangs of Rice: Art Dismantles Tyranny), just after it arrived from Jogjakarta. From first glance, the book is visually striking, designed with the bold colors red, black, and white with a cover made of cloth and pages printed on recycled paper.

The book cover is printed using a wood cut design, the signature style of the posters and banners produced by Taring Padi, an art collective based in Jogja that has been active since the Suharto era. By using this wood cut technique, Taring Padi demonstrates they have inherited the same community-based passion for grassroots organizing as the artist collective Lembaga Kebudayaan Rakyat (Lekra) or Institute of People’s Culture. Wood cut printing is an easy method of reproducing artwork, which makes it effective for achieving the propaganda goal of wide distribution.

In a twist of irony, however, the book is too expensive for the average Indonesian to purchase: Seni Membongkar Tirani is sold for over Rp. 200,000, a price that seems to undermine Taring Padi’s commitments to populism, anarchy, and art for change. However, the cultural and political action of Taring Padi continues, and manages to find alternative, less expensive means to spread the ideas expressed in this book.

This book is meant to mark the 10-year anniversary of Lembaga Budaya Kerakyatan Taring Padi, however it was released 13 years after the group was formed. The extra three years were required for compiling and reproducing the collective art in this book, including posters, banners, and murals.

Seni Membongkar Tirani is more than a medium for showing appreciation for Taring Padi’s community art or romanticizing their community-based movements; there are 12 articles in this book, a selection of which provide constructive critiques of the motivations and meanings behind Taring Padi’s artwork. Critical analysis gives the book more depth and creates a balance between the text and the strong visual appeal of Taring Padi’s art. For example, in his article, Wulan Dergantoro suggests that Taring Padi’s portrayals of women seems to favor a traditional housewife stereotype, particularly in how they illustrate women wearing kebaya, the traditional lace blouse worn throughout Java and elsewhere in Indonesia for formal occasions. He charges that Taring Padi fails expand beyond the patriarchal ideologies used during the New Order to keep tyrants in power. Without being aware of it, Taring Padi has reproduced conventions popular with the old regime to which they are opposed.

Antimilitarism, also a theme Taring Padi often explores is also critiqued in the book. Taring Padi focuses specifically on the state military, but doesn’t necessarily address true militarism. In fact, since the New Order’s collapse and the dual function of TNI (the Indonesian Armed Forces), there have actually been more militant civilian groups, especially sub-groups of political parties and mass organizations.

Another interesting controversy raised in the book is Taring Padi’s use of stereotypic slogans about horizontal conflict. Conflicts stemming from issues related to ethnic groups, religion, and race increased following the New Order collapse, which shows a failure to plant the seed of unity within the people. There are Taring Padi posters which display stale national slogans such as “Build unity in diversity” or “Together in our differences.” Unity is a hollow ideal overused for generations, despite the fact that many studies show that horizontal conflict more often stems from economic inequality.

The slogan “Build this nation without a drop of blood” also bears striking resemblance to New Order ideologies. This is actually iconic of one of the Five Cultural Demons which Taring Padi fights against, as stated in their manifesto when formed on December 12^th, 1998. The Five Cultural Demons are individuals or organizations which value art for art’s sake, socialize misguided doctrines to maintain their status quo, legitimize of art, or attack artistic morality because they have forgotten the value of the art of the people. New Order politics have caused economic value to dominate art.

Muhidin M Dahlan, the research head of Gelaran Almanak Seni Rupa Jogja from 1999-2009 notes how the populist values of Taring Padi are compromised when the members work with commercial galleries. In December of 2008, Surya Wirawan held a solo exhibit at the Kedai Kebun Forum Jogjakarta (a sister company to the Cemeti Art House, which Taring Padi strongly criticized as being one the five cultural demons). Arya Pandjalu not only held exhibits at commercial galleries, but from November 2006 to January 2007 he joined a residential arts program called Landing Soon #1 which took place in the Netherlands and was organized by the Cemeti Art House in partner with Heden, Den Haag.

Taring Padi’s first president, Yustoni Volunteero, held an exhibit of 17 art pieces at Biasa Gallery in June 2008. According to Muhidin, this Gallery in Jogjakarta has no history of financing farmer’s movements against global imperialism through art, a previous theme of Taring Padi’s activism.

These criticisms expose some of the biggest challenge for Taring Padi as an art collective fighting the capitalist systems and glorification of individuality on which the art industry is based. What remains to be seen is if Taring Padi can use the income from gallery exhibits to fund their collective movements. But perhaps they would benefit from regarding art as a commodity and creating works of art on gallery walls or collectors homes—especially since “leftist art” is more than ever sexy and sellable.

Taring Padi, Akarumput.com and Taman 65 are working together to hold the launching event and discussion for the book “Taring Padi, Seni Membongkar Tirani.” In addition there will be wood cut workshop with Taring Padi and Komunitas Pojok, followed by acoustic performances by Geekssmile and Navicula.

Location: Taman 65 Jl WR Supratman, Kesiman Denpasar
Date/Time: Saturday, October 8^th, 2011 at 3:30pm.

Workshop participants are encouraged to bring blank t-shirts in light colors on which they can have wood cut prints created during the event. Taring Padi’s book will also be available for purchase during the event.

“Cerita dalam Kaleng” a pinhole photo exhibition
Date: 27 September – 4 October 2011
Venue: Bar Luna, Jalan Gootama, Ubud – Bali
Time: 19.00 WITA – selesai

Event details:
• Presentation and discussions
• Film showing
• Music performances by Emergency Exit, Mercy band, Komang & Friends, and Geekssmile