Modern Noise, Fluid Genres: Popular Music in Indonesia, 1997-2001 (New Perspectives in Se Asian Studies)

What happens to “local” sound when globalization exposes musicians and audiences to cultural influences from around the world? Jeremy Wallach explores this question as it plays out in the eclectic, evolving world of Indonesian music after the fall of the repressive Soeharto regime. Against the backdrop of Indonesia's chaotic and momentous transition to democracy, Wallach takes us to recording studios, music stores, concert venues, university campuses, video shoots, and urban neighborhoods. Integrating ground-level ethnographic research with insights drawn from contemporary cultural theory, he shows that access to globally circulating music and technologies has neither extinguished nor homogenized local music-making in Indonesia. Instead, it has provided young Indonesians with creative possibilities for exploring their identity in a diverse nation undergoing dramatic changes in an increasingly interconnected world. Ultimately, he finds, the unofficial, multicultural nationalism of Indonesian popular music provides a viable alternative to the religious, ethnic, regional, and class-based extremism that continues to threaten unity and democracy in that country. Contents......Page 8 List of Illustrations......Page 10 Preface......Page 12 Acknowledgments......Page 14 Introduction: A Brief History of Popular Music and Society in Indonesia......Page 20 Part One: Sites......Page 42 1 Indonesian Popular Music Genres in the Global Sensorium......Page 44 2 In the City: Class, History, and Modernity’s Failures......Page 59 3 Cassette Retail Outlets: Organization, Iconography, Consumer Behavior......Page 84 4 In the Studio: An Ethnography of Sound Production......Page 108 5 On Location: Shooting Music Video Clips......Page 138 6 Offstage: Music in Informal Contexts......Page 156 Part Two: Genres in Performance......Page 186 7 Onstage: The Live Musical Event......Page 188 8 Dangdut Concerts: The Politics of Pleasure......Page 207 9 Rock and Pop Events: The Performance of Lifestyle......Page 227 10 Underground Music: Imagining Alternative Community......Page 243 Conclusion: Indonesian Youth, Music, and Globalization......Page 264 Appendix A: Notes on Language in This Book......Page 282 Appendix B: Other Indonesian Popular Music Genres......Page 284 Appendix C: More on Nonstandard Speech Variants......Page 288 Glossary of Indonesian and Jakartanese Terms......Page 296 Notes......Page 298 Works Cited......Page 316 Index......Page 332 CD Track Listing......Page 345 What happens to “local” sound when globalization exposes musicians and audiences to cultural influences from around the world? Jeremy Wallach explores this question as it plays out in the eclectic, evolving world of Indonesian music after the fall of the repressive Soeharto regime. Against the backdrop of Indonesia’s fitful, chaotic transition to democracy, Wallach takes us to recording studios, music stores, concert venues, university campuses, video shoots, and urban neighborhoods. Integrating detailed, ground-level ethnographic research with insights drawn from contemporary cultural theory, he shows that Indonesia’s access to globally circulating music and technologies has neither extinguished nor homogenized local music-making in Indonesia. Instead, it has provided young Indonesians with creative possibilities for exploring their identity in a culturally diverse nation undergoing dramatic changes in an increasingly interconnected world. "The book is divided into two parts. The first half examines the cultural dynamics of particular sites for the production, mediation, and reception of popular music, including record stores, recording studios, video shoots, roadside food stalls, and other public and private spaces where music is performed, consumed, discussed, and debated by Indonesians form all walks of life. The second half of the book investigates spectific live performance events as occasions when musical production, mediation, and reception processes occur simultaneously. The chapters in that half focus on three major youth-oriented popular music genre categories: dangdut, pop, and 'underground' rock."--Preface Contents Of Accompanying Cd: Hanya Cinta Yang Kupunya = I Have Only Love / Sonny Js (manis Manja) -- Cinta Terisolasi = Isolated Love Or Love Stuck Like Cellophane Tape / Hawadin And Lilis Karlina (lilis Karlina) -- Mungkin = Maybe / Patty -- Cinta Hanya Sekali = Love Happens Only Once / Dino Sidin And Iksan Arepas (iyeth Bustami) -- Bunuh Diri = Suicide / Eternal Madness -- Hijau = Green / Puppen. Jeremy Wallach. Originally Presented As The Author's Thesis (ph. D.)--university Of Pennsylvania, 2002. Accompanying Compact Disc Contains Examples Of Popular Music In Indonesia As Discussed In The Book. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 299-313) And Index. What happens to 'local' sound when globalization exposes musicians and audiences to cultural influences from around the world? This book explores this question as it plays out in the eclectic, evolving world of Indonesian music after the fall of the repressive Soeharto regime. "This book is an ethnographic investigation of Indonesian popular music genres and their producers and listeners during a period of dramatic political and cultural transformation."--Introduction