(L > R) Syaiful, Irfan, Edwin, Wan, Toya // Image Credit: Khalil Makata
The quotes in this article is mostly translated from Malay
Written by Zim Ahmadi
On M. Nasir, Mainstream, & Dad Rock
At a listening party of their debut EP, members of the band Toko Kilat share some of the stories behind the makings of the album.
The band has been at it since 2016, having released their first single “Pemacu Api” that same year. The individual members of Toko Kilat however, are not newcomers. Far from it. Vocalist, Edwin Raj, was in the noise pop band, They Will Kill Us All. Drummer, Irfan, has played for several bands including Bittersweet, Da Vagabonds, Relay & The Times. Bassist, Wan, was in the Singaporean indie jazz band, Moods. Initially, the band also included guitarist Khairil of the band Moods as well, but he was eventually replaced by Toya, who used to play for legendary indie band, Laila’s Lounge (now defunct).”I think Mawar Khayalan is one of the best songs ever, and to have Toya play for us is like having Johnny Marr be our guitarist”, said Edwin, referencing the guitarist for the band The Smiths, Modest Mouse and The Cribs. Khairil is still involved in the album as the producer of the guitar tracks. There’s also Syaiful who plays the keys.
“A lot of people have taken to calling us a supergroup, but I consider this more of like a mid-life crisis”, joked Edwin at the listening party that was organised to give the public their first exposure to Toko Kilat’s full EP. A documentary made by Haziq R about the band’s journey was shown at the party, called “Toko-mentari”. It’s an overview of how far they’ve come and how Toko Kilat was formed, separated into chapters headed by their song lyrics.
Tokomentari Part 1
When asked to explain briefly what the documentary is about, Edwin stated metaphorically that it was basically a process of how the album moved from the “intensive care unit” into a “normal ward”.
Bassist, Wan also quipped about the fact that the band members having children now acts as a motivation. “At our age, if we want to start a new band, we better not f*** up.”
Toko Kilat has a very humble view of themselves as band despite being mostly seasoned players of the indie scene. However, they are highly aware of how they choose to position themselves. In a question asked by the event host regarding how Toko Kilat sees themselves in the music scene, Edwin said, “We have to realise that the music scene in Malaysia is not just ‘indie’. We have to get ourselves out of that box. We grew up listening to bands like Iklim or Search who were themselves mainstream. When is the music community going to be the successor for bands like them? We have to stop thinking of the word “mainstream” as a bad word. Get out of our “indie only” mindset”.
Image Credit: Khalil Makata
Drummer, Irfan, also added that there is a great number of bands out there right now who are rocking it out. “A lot of the new bands performing right now are also becoming an inspiration to us”.
On the topic of benchmarks and inspirations, Edwin Raj mused: “Our benchmark is ourselves, first and foremost. If whatever we hear from our songs feel natural, that’s we go for”
“But if we had to choose a benchmark from someone else it’d be people like Zainal Abidin. We want to create that feeling we get when we hear Hijau. That timeless feeling or “oomph” you get from artists like Sheila Majid or Hujan, even”.
The Songs
After an overview of who they are and how far they’ve come, Toko Kilat played their song on speakers and explaining a little bit about each song after each track ended.
The first song on the self-titled album is Gema. Although in itself a very riveting track with an epic static transmission introduction to draw you in, the story told by the band about the track was very short. “Gema was actually the last track we recorded. It all happened very organically and spontaneously”, said Edwin.
Pemacu Api
The second track is Pemacu Api. In a previous interview with Rojak Daily, Edwin has stated the song is about an arsonist. (It’s pretty clear from the lyrics, but clearer once you know the context). In addition to that, Pemacu Api is also really interesting since it was mastered by Frank Arkwright of Abbey Road Studios, whose resume reads like an encyclopedia of music legends such as the Smiths and Joy Division. Edwin said: “He finished it within two or three days”.
Nahas
The first words that came out of Edwin Raj’s mouth after the song Nahas were “dendam mendalam (or deep-seated vengeance), reflecting the “murder-mystery” vibe of the track. “Actually, Toko Kilat is especially challenging to me as a songwriter because I’m not Malay and I was brought up in an English-speaking household. It was especially hard for Nahas because the emotions that I wanted to convey were complicated. I hope that it translates well in this track”, said Edwin. The band also pointed out that they showed Toko Kilat songs to Malaysian music icon, M. Nasir, and Nahas was the track that he found most interesting.
Ratu Malam
Ratu Malam is their latest single release, launched with a music video that exudes a murderous femme fatale sound and aesthetic. “Fun fact: the person playing the sax in the music video is not actually playing the sax. The saxophone in the track is played by Sheila Majid’s saxophonist (credit in Toko Kilat’s website as Kevin Choo)”. Edwin Raj also cites the band Komplot as an influence for this song, considering that Komplot is one of the few indie bands that uses horns to elevate their sound.
Kabur
Kabur is where the album takes a slightly different turn with an almost psychedelic atmosphere and a wholesome feeling to its message. Edwin Raj clarified: “Last time, I would always give the songs I made to my father so he could tell me what he thinks about it. During the process of recording the EP, my father already passed away. With Kabur, what I did was I used my dad’s bass in the track. He was a musician; a bassist. The song is really about unconditional love”.
Wan adds that Kabur is probably the one most representative of the “dad rock” sound. “When we were recording it, songs like The Drugs Don’t Work by The Verve came to mind”.
After the last track, Satu Suara, an anthemic track about overcoming great odds and setting aside differences, Edwin Raj suitably thanked the crowd of people involved in making Toko Kilat who they are today. “Like they always say, it takes a village to raise a band”.
Listen to Toko Kilat on Spotify or order their cassettes and CDs at tokokilatband.com
