Indonesian Emotive Punk Bands Wreck and Vague Drop Massive Split Record

“Upon starting this label, I grew up with hardcore punk gigs in Java. I saw Wreck and Vague on the same show at a college basement in Bandung. I thought if I had my own label one day, I’d love to work with these people. And then what do you know? Both bands came to me two years after Héma started. Vague and Wreck are important to me because not only do they represent my hardcore punk background, but they’re also very much relevant to this indie label I’m running.” – Bagus / Héma

Yo…Bagus of Hema Label landed himself a spectacularly influential slab of music in his hands. Both these bands certainly harness their love for that “Revolution Summer” era of music instigated by the likes of Rites of Spring, etc yet also add elements of that emotive punk movement of the 90’s ala Braid, etc. Yet the bands both still maintain their own style (tracks sung in Bahasa, lots of amazing spoken word, for example) and elements thrown in to make these beautiful songs really their own. And these are all songs that we as Asians should be proud about.

Bagus continues, “The idea of doing this split EP came about in 2016 when Vague and Wreck toured together in Solo. Vague, a power-trio from Jakarta, formed in 2010 (Gary Hostage, Januar Kristianto and Yudhistira Agato) and Wreck, a Bandung punk rock quartet formed in 2013 (Heyipul, Firman D, Senjahari, Codename A) agreed to work together. On the split, both Vague and Wreck who are clearly influenced by the revolution summer sound have produced their own voice: a loose hybrid of punk and indie rock without sacrificing the energy of hardcore punk. Vague’s songs were recorded in late 2018 at Studio Kandang, Jakarta, and showcase dynamic arrangement of tunes that are both dissonant and melodic with touches of drone/noise. Wreck’s side, recorded in mid-2015 at Funhouse Studio, Bandung, is about catchy guitar lines and soaring vocals.”

The EP is released by Héma, an independent label based in Bali who has put out releases from Sunlotus (Blora), Annie Hall (Yogyakarta) and Cotswolds (Surabaya) and will be available on digital platforms accessed through Héma label. In early 2020, the 7” record of the EP will be available in limited quantity.

The album artwork is done by Bagus Purwoko, an art director and designer based in Bali, who also single-handedly runs the label. The photographs were taken using a 35mm film camera at an interior warehouse in Denpasar, Bali, and represent the EP and the bands: a bit unpolished, a bit of an outsider, but always bright and warm.

Get more info directly from the label: http://www.hemalabel.com/

Vague Photo Credit: Yogha Prasiddhamukti
Wreck Photo Credit: Alfi Fisrifan