YAY – a band that sends a press release via Google Docs instead of PDF’s! Hallelujah! 🙂 Please bands…be like Enemy of Judas!
If we have to reminisce, Jakarta-based band Enemy of Judas (EOJ) originally consisted of four Junior High School students who simply wanted to look cool by playing in a band. But unlike other Junior High School bands in 2007 – who were choosing the path of punk rock, melodic punk, or emo as a genre, EOJ went with hardcore (HC). This genre, according to EOJ, truly represents their young souls who were hungry for more powerful music and lyrics. EOJ then grabbed influences from typical heavy-hitters like Terror, Madball, Hatebreed and First Blood.
Their decision was not wrong, in a short time, EOJ became a hardcore band that brought rad singles such as “Hardlife”, “We Are enemy”, “Popularitas Kelewat Batas” and of course; “Timur Jakarta”. Working relentlessly, EOJ did compilation projects called “Corner Street” (2008/2009) with older hardcore punk bands throughout Bekasi and East Jakarta, releasing a mini-album titled “Batas Waktu” (2010) and “Split Album” (2014) a collaboration with Grilled (Bekasi hardcore band) with its single “Timur Jakarta”. And in that time of course performed a whole bunch of shows including opening for their main influences Terror.
Conflicts and member changes did not bring down EOJ’s enthusiasm for music, but at the end of 2014, they decided to take a break. Not because of the growing competition between bands, but reality reared its ugly face and they needed to get their priorities straight; family and work. Who would have thought behind the fierceness of EOJ’s members, there is a businessman, state-owned enterprise (BUMN) employee, and even an airplane pilot in their midst.
But worry no more, this is not a sad story and there is no ‘farewell’ in EOJ’s dictionary. In 2020, EOJ finally returned to quench the thirst of hardcore fans with a comeback single titled Mati. EOJ’s music is now influenced by bands such as Code Orange, Sworn Enemy, Bury Your Dead, and Gideon. Still carries the heavy feel of OG Los Angeles hardcore, while incorporating metal and crossover elements that make their comeback music much fresher and more varied.
Check out the track below.
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