Tracks for Quality

Published in Sunday People, New Sunday Times
9 August 2009

Tracks for quality
MAX KOH




THIS is a man with a mission.

Audi Mok is geared to do what may seem an impossible task – to get more people to listen to Malay music.

Mok is no stranger to the local scene. As a music producer, he has worked with some big entertainment guns including Faizal Tahir, Datuk Siti Nurhaliza, Ning Baizura, and young ones like Suki.

His songs — including Cinta Datang Lagi by Dina, Generasiku by OAG and v by Nikki and Zahid — have enjoyed huge radio play.

Mok ardently believes that Malay music has the potential to reach out to non-Malay music fans and listeners.

How? Well, “make music that sounds new and current”, he says. “Something that anybody would listen to regardless of the language used.

“If you look at pop music in Japan and Korean, you can see that local music still outsell those from overseas. Why? It’s because their music sounds new and current. I believe that we can do that someday as well,” explains Mok.

The first step, he says, is to break ingrained perceptions about the local Malay music industry.

“The sad reality is that local Malay music often has bad connotations. Whenever you mention Malay music, old rock music and ballads immediately come up to mind. And why is that? Why is that Indonesian are associated with new, modern music while Malay music is associated with those old tags? I believe that we can produce good music that is on par or better than them.” “I want the Indonesians to one day say ‘Let’s make it sound Malaysian!’ instead of the other way round.” In other words, Mok wants to make Malay music sound “cool!” Mok, who recently tied the knot with singer Nikki, believes that production quality and keeping up with the times has to do with everything about it.

“I believe that there is a social-economic reason for this with the biggest challenge being language. Sad to say, it’s a reality that most of the newest technologies are taught in English. It’s really hard to learn the new stuff when there is a language barrier and technology is just too fluid.

“When it becomes overwhelming to learn new stuff, some just give up and stick to the old ways,” explains Mok.

The second step is to change the perception of Malaysians regarding local music.

“We Malaysians have no pride in our music. But I don’t blame the public because most of our local music lack in quality. That’s why I am hoping to break the mould so that the people can see that there’s progression in the industry with new sound and future.” To help him accomplish his mission, Mok was recently chosen as one of the celebrities under the Intel-P1 Industry Trailblazers Adoption Programme.

As such, Mok was given a notebook based on Intel Centrino 2 processor technology, a netbook powered by Intel Atom processor, a P1 Wiggy, and free P1 WIMAX subscription for 12 months.

Mok is only too happy to show off his new toys at his production studio in Petaling Jaya.

If you think that music producers don’t need all that gadgets, think again.

“As a music producer, we all rely heavily on our computers for recording and mixing. If you come into my studio, you’ll notice that all the physical soundboard is not there. We do it all on the computer,” shares Mok enthusiastically.

Well, if Batman has his utility belt, Mok has his new arsenal of gadgets.

Mamak Magic

Published in Sunday People, New Sunday Times
26 July 2009

Mamak magic
MAX KOH


Drums Talk saw four percussionists (drums, tabla, Malay drums, Chinese drums) squaring off playfully against each other- Pic courtesy of www.maxtography.com 

CHECK out any mamak joint and you will be sure to find patrons of different races eating and enjoying a cup of teh tarik. Such is the appeal of the quintessential Malaysian establishment.

I admit that I did not know much about Let’s Go Mamak… Again! when invited to one of the evening shows. I didn’t really look up the brochure but boy, was I in for a good time!

Presented by Inner Voices and the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, Let’s Go Mamak… Again! combined the elements of the three traditional Malaysian music, fused into frames of western and contemporary music styles such as jazz, pop, traditional and world music.

Featuring music composed by Ken Hor and under the guidance of musical director Julian Chan (who also plays the saxophone), the group brought together 13 prominent local musicians for three nights of fun, music and excitement.

Each song presented was preceded by a video presentation where the band members explained what the musical pieces meant to them. Their candid elucidation made the performance more personal and endearing.

Each member of the ensemble is an accomplished player in his own right. They took turns to showcase their skills and talents on their respective instruments.

The ensemble included New York-based violinist Fung Chern Hwei, much sought-after pianist Tay Cher Siang, bassist Daniel Foong, and renowned percussionist Kamrulbahri Hussin.

A highlight was the Drums Talk piece which saw the four percussionists (drums, tabla, Malay drums, Chinese drums) squaring off playfully against one another in producing different types of rhythmic patterns. It was really amazing to see how the fluid tabla emulated the powerful sounds of the Chinese drums, and KamrulBahri playing on a really small drum the size of a fist.

KamrulBahri was the soul of the show, playing a myriad of interesting percussion instruments and even dancing on stage.

At another time, different musicians would square off against one another, much to our delight.

But when all the instruments got together and created a wall of sound that not only massaged the ears but uplifted the spirit — that sounded truly Malaysian.

Let’s Go Mamak... Again! is the second instalment after its impressionable debut last year, also at KLPac. The ensemble bagged four Boh Cameronian Awards under the Music Category for Best Group Performance, Best Music Direction, Best Composition & Kaki Seni Audience Choice Awards.

Inner Voices was founded with the objective to find a new Malaysian sound. I guess it is no wonder that I would find them at a nearby mamak stall after the performance. Judging from their wonderful performance that night, I hope that they will return for another bout of teh tarik next year.

A Cut Above

Published in Sunday People, New Sunday Times
19 July 2009

A cut above



Surecut Kids is a two-piece deejay act that hails from the Gold Coast in Australia. They recently rocked the house when they performed for the first time in Malaysia at Laundry Bar.

Comprising Boozy B (Benjamin Honey) and Junior Kid (Mike Perry), the act uses four turntables and a MPC (a type of drum machine) to layer songs, scratch and create live remixes at the fly.

What sets them apart from other acts is that they play different genres – from party hip-hop, funk, reggae, rock, nu-breaks, R&B, and swing to the odd 80s hits.

The two are not afraid to make fun of themselves, and would often don gorilla suits and draw fake moustaches on their face to hype the party up. It’s pretty cool, check their MySpace out.

They met in high school when they were in the same surfing class.

“We weren’t really good friends in school. I didn’t used to like Benjamin at first,” says Perry with a grin.

“But after school, we became really good friends,” adds Honey. “We got ourselves some turntables and started throwing parties for our friends on weekends. And before we knew it, we were playing club gigs and for big festivals.”

At the beginning, the duo also used to rock the mics with rhymes, thus coming up with the initial group name, ShureCut Kids.

“Well, we basically came up with the name because we were cutting two records together and used to make rhymes on our Shure microphones. Both of them add up, and you get Surecut Kids,” says Honey.

Oh, and they dropped the ‘h’ and added the Kids to make it sound cooler.

Surecut Kids has performed with international artistes including M.I.A, Justice, Chemical Brothers, Donovan Frankenrieter and Vanilla Ice. Yes, Vanilla Ice.

“Oh yeah. That was weird. We were initially pretty excited about it, as we expected some cool retro music. But Vanilla Ice has become some serious hardcore metal band now,” says Perry.

“We were watching from backstage and Ice was screaming into the microphone backed by some crazy-loud drums and guitars. It was deafening,” recalls Honey.

The two will play anywhere. “It doesn’t really matter for us, as long as the crowd is awesome and jives along to our music.”

Surecut Kids is cutting its own tracks in addition to spinning popular hits. “We hope to put out a record soon enough. We just want to become bigger and badder at what we do.”

Young touch to old tunes

Published in Sunday People, New Sunday Times
26 July 2009

Young touch to old tunes
MAX KOH


Davis and Peters

Can the young hear the music of the older generation? The musical Kaki Blue is the litmus test, writes MAX KOH

THE musical, Kaki Blue, pairs 21-year-old singer-songwriter Nick Davis as the musical director, for the first time, with veteran Mervyn Peters as the chorus master.

Peters has 40 years of experience in the industry, worked in numerous local and West End musicals, and won a BOH Cameronian award in May for his work in Ismail: The Last Days.

Davis, an exuberant self-taught musician, is known for his role in Shanon Shah’s Air Con.

Kaki Blue is about our youths and their National Service experiences. To be staged at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre next week, the musical features a predominantly young and new ensemble of talents.

The show is Mark Beau de Silva’s maiden attempt at writing a musical, which he hopes will capture the “spirit of post-millennial youth”. After this, de Silva leaves on a three-month residency at Hooyong Performing Arts Centre in Korea.

“I’m really honoured that Joe Hasham contacted me to do this as it is something different from the things that I’m used to do,” says Davis who also has a small role in Kaki Blue.

“For the first time, I don’t have to do much writing as we are playing covers of songs of the yesteryears.”

The musical will feature songs of yesteryears such as It’s My Party, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, If I Had A Hammer, Walk Like A Man, Rave On, Monday Monday, and Come Together among others. However, these have been given an indie-rock twist.

“It was really fun researching, as I am not familiar with most of the songs. Take, for example, The Animals’ Gotta Get Out Of This Place. It has a very basic bass groove with a 60s feel to it. I rearranged it by adding some distortion, palm muting and power chords to give a modern-alternative rock feel,” explains Davis.

The arrangement process was fun for Davis as he was able to draw influences from bands of his school years.



“I thought a lot about the punk bands that I listened to in school such as Blink 182 and Sum 41. I feel Kaki Blue is different from the usual orchestra concept, so there will be a different kind of live band that plays really grungy stuff,” adds Davis.

And how does Mervyn find the new arrangements?

“He is very open to ideas. Obviously, I learnt a lot from just watching him because he has years of experience behind him.”

Davis, who actively gigs with his trio, The Snow Symphony, initially found the task of being musical director a little intimidating.

Despite that, Davis took it up because he “likes to do things that are impossible” and learn new things.

“Because I am a self-taught musician, Peters has helped me to understand music further. In fact, he is encouraging me to go learn music after this,” adds Davis.

“Peters is a cool guy to work with. He has a very interesting sense of humour because he tends to keep a straight face when telling you a joke. If you look past the funny comments, you realise that he is in fact trying to tell you something.”

“Davis has a lot to learn,” says Peters, “but I don’t mean it in a condescending way. It’s just that this is something new for him but he is very focused and dedicated.

“He’s really a good guitarist and knows what he wants in his head,” adds Peters, who first appeared on stage in 1975 as part of a choral group.

“What he needs to do is to take it further by studying more about music.”

Peters himself was a self-taught musician in the 1970s and used to conduct church choirs. “I didn’t know how to read music but I had a really good ear for music.”

He then made a conscious decision to study music further and developed from there. “I felt it was one of the best decisions I made because it opened so many doors for me. I wouldn’t be where I am today if not for the decision that I made then.”

Peters brought in some of the West End musicals in the 1980s but went backstage and focused on technical work such as lighting design in the 1990s.

He then returned to the “musical side” when he was roped as choral director for Broken Bridges in 2007.

He has since worked on award-winning musicals with the KLPac such as Tunku The Musical and Ismail: The Last Days. He is currently the personnel manager for the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.

“Davis is easy to work with because he can adjust easily to changes. He is really open to suggestions and a nice fellow overall, not to mention talented,” adds Peters. With the whopping 42-year difference between Davis and Peters, was communication a barrier at all?

“The age difference is not an issue at all because it really depends if the person is easy to work with. The difference between Davis and I is that I have experience while he’s at the beginning of the journey.”

Peters adds that he has still new things to learn.

“You know, I’ve never stopped learning. It is important to remember that no matter how successful a show may be, you have to do a personal postmortem and identify things that you can improve on.

“For Kaki Blue, it was a new experience working in a different style where music sheets are not prepared for the ensemble! It was challenging because there was no notations to determine how long you should hold a note for. Instead, everything is committed to memory only,” adds Peters who feels that notations would have made practice more productive and easier.

“But it was really refreshing to work with the ensemble. This group is particularly lively in the way they work. Sure, at times I found them unfocused and not used to the regimented practices and it took time to get used to singing as a unit.”

Seventy per cent of the cast are newcomers and most of the cast are still in school.

“But I suppose that is what makes them interesting. I know that some of them visited YouTube to listen to the original songs because they complained during practice, ‘But that’s not the way the original song goes!,’” says Peters.

“That’s the whole idea! We are not trying to be produce carbon-copy covers of the original. We are trying to bring a sense of originality to the songs,” he adds with a laugh.

Kaki Blue features 18 songs from the yesteryears with lyrics changed to suit the storyline. It is directed by Joe Hasham and features the choreography of Laskhman Balakhrisnan and set design by Yusman Mokhtar.

• Catch Kaki Blue at KLpac from July 30-Aug 16. Tickets: RM100, RM80, RM60, RM40, and RM30 (students, senior citizens, disabled and ex-NS trainees). Weekday (Tues-Thurs) tickets at RM30. Call 03-40479000 or visit www.klpac.org.