Meet Raja Kirik, one of the most interesting duos I’ve stumbled upon recently:
Fusing their Java, in Indonesia, tribal drums with DIY instruments and electronic sounds, Raja Kirik makes some thrashing music. The duo recently rereleased their 2020 album ‘Rampokan’ on Nyege Nyege Tapes which caught my eye. It’s interesting because typically Nyege Nyege Tapes releases east African drum music, and so far they have plenty of great records under their belt. They’ve also garnered an international cult following, unique for their releases. Seeing them branch out to a new Indonesian duo was really eye-catching.
That’s the context for this release and even without that knowledge, this album is packed with some of the heaviest and thickest drum mixing I’ve heard recently. At some points, I’d argue it can get obnoxious such as the track Tana Prahara. Typically, I go for some loud noise music yet tracks and sections like these make this album difficult to enjoy. When this duo excels it’s when they texture their music, when they leave it barebones with this loud electronic bass it begins to almost be headache-inducing. Not to immediately dive into the negatives, I enjoy most of it but I wouldn’t expect all to enjoy it.
Overall though the record has more highlights than lows. Layered tracks like DOR, Kubro, Rampokan II, Tarian Maut Dari Gumung, and Barongan III make for some of the best moments on the album. When they use homemade drum kits that sound like wood drumsticks on plastic bins, it creates a very unique setting for the music. Even though it is an electronic drum album, I’d argue the music excels when it becomes much looser and almost inhibits a free jazz attitude. Such as the first track Bujang Ganong which has an out-of-tune horn section in the beginning before having an epic transition to an EDM passage. Listen below:
Now that I’ve highlighted the experimental and tribal electronic drums, what makes this album haunting is the synthesizers. Some of these tracks are designed to strike pure terror into the listener. DOR is the final track to the album and has one of the most terrifying shrieking sounds at the end. At points, I can imagine a horror movie playing and this being the soundtrack, it’s quite chilling. Yet I do think it offers a lot especially in learning about a niche and unique genre.
This album isn’t for the faint of heart but if you enjoy noise music I’d say you’d enjoy this record. Minus the moments of incredible bass and persisting drums with no real direction, the album shows a lot of potential for the group in studio efforts. Their previous projects show a much more stripped-back attitude, not nearly as electronically produced as this record is. Even tracks like Barongan I weirdly enough remind me of Aaron Dilloway loops.
Sound Check Chuck 