Hello boys, girls and those who are yet to decide. It's time for another extra juicy bite of Underground Hum, your weekly indie music column focusing on scenes here in Indonesia and the ASEAN region.

Thanks again for the really nifty emails you guys have been sending. Keep them coming.

And now, on to another fresh-from-the-oven installment of MAIN STAGE:

MAIN STAGE:

Nervous Breakdown: Caustic Hardcore Meltdown

The Indonesian hardcore and punk scenes are probably the strongest in the world -- at least in number. The scenes are massive and border on full-fledged fanaticism. It sometimes feels like every youth with a societal axe to grind has formed a punk or hardcore band.

I'll be completely honest. I think that the majority of hardcore bands in Indonesia (or at least the ones I've heard, and I've heard a LOT) aren't very good. Some of them (I'm so going to get mail for this) downright suck.

Because of this, I always get really excited when I come across a good hardcore band, one that gets it right.

Nervous Breakdown is one of those bands. They've got all the necessary elements down pat: loud, fast, yet melodic guitars mixed with hard-driving baselines, exuberant and sufficiently angry vocals, and the most essential element of hardcore (one that most local bands forget), masterful drumming. Timing is essential for all music genres, but especially vital to hardcore, punk and metal because the melodies are played at super high speeds. And the speed needs to be maintained, sustained and controlled throughout each song. Sloppy drumming wrecks timing and screws everything up. No amount of loud screaming vocals or screeching distorted guitars can cover up the mess that bad drumming can make.

Nervous Breakdown came into existence on March 5, 2006 when a group of depressed and angry musicians came together to turn their collective grievances into music. These angsty boys are Oyi (Vocals), Xeno (guitar), Freddy (drums) and Tommy (bass). Although the personnel remains consistent, the roles often change. The boys often switch instruments just to get a different feel and maintain freshness in their sound. This method works.

In June of this year, Nervous Breakdown got a leg up from Yogya-based net label Yes No Wave when they released a six track EP called Never Green. They have also appeared on several compilations released in various countries.

Just to give you an idea of good these guys are, they have been signed to BITE ME Records, a label based in Seattle, and they will release their first full-length album through Bite Me early next year.

For now you can download their EP from www.yesnowave.com or go to their MySpace page at www.myspace.com/nervousbreakdown2006.

That about does it for this week's Underground Hum. Don't forget to read next week's edition of Reverb.

See y'all next Sunday!

If you have any questions or suggestions for this column please contact me at undergroundhum@yahoo.com.

For all of you indie bands or artists out there, let us know if you have a gig coming up so we can include it in Reverb. Be sure to include the name of the event you're playing, what other acts are billed, time, place, date and entry fee if any.

--Paul Agusta

Popular

Furniture exporters decry new quarantine rule

EV industry urges govt to reinstate two-wheeler subsidies as market slows

BRICS shows internal rifts as ministers fall short of joint statement