Hujan: ‘Check Check Rock Rock’ review

By Adrian Yap

Rating: 7/10

The line separating hype from buzz-worthiness is often thin and indiscreetly biased. However, there is some degree of fallacy to this; hype bands are often worthy of some press anyway, if only just for the sheer peculiarity of their rather unique situation. This notion is amplified hundredfold if the band in question is a Malaysian one, and another hundredfold if it is a Malaysian indie one.

With that in mind, Kuala Lumpur-based Hujan can lay claim to being the biggest independent phenomenon since the heydays of the OAG/Butterfingers empire. Thousands of squealing and exclusive fans throng every show they play, hit singles are exploding over radio and TV and—catch this—a decently healthy torrent file of Check Check Rock Rock, their second EP, is in circulation. Hujan have more than adequate bragging rights. And while OAG and Butterfingers rode the wave of wonder and novelty in the mid-1990s, Hujan’s bubble to the top is even more remarkable given that it comes at the rear end of Internet desensitisation.

Yet the question burning on everyone’s mind is, are they worth the perks? After all, Check Check Rock Rock seems to be no more than a perfectly carved slice of sweet indie pop—crunchy on the crust, tangy and smooth when you bite in. The crusty buzzsaw guitars and the foggy bullhorn effect on the vocals are perhaps far too close rips out of Gordon Raphael’s textbook for comfort. Even frontman Noh’s lazy delivery is very reminiscent of Julian Casablancas—a fact not diligently hidden as well, seeing as The Strokes are listed as influences on the band’s Myspace page.

But should these be determining factors when assessing the band’s music? Perhaps not. Bite a little deeper and it becomes obvious that Hujan has more to offer than just grayish NY aesthetics. ‘Aku Skandal’, the perennial soda-pop cousin of ‘Pagi Yang Gelap’ off their first EP 1, 2, 3, Go?, easily tops the latter’s charm and melodic wit. Thematically, EP closer ‘Ludah Amerika’ may appear a little inappropriate given the sunnier proceedings prior, but it is still a snarling garage beast with biting lyrical wit. ‘Ku Mahu Kau Tahu’ plays a little too dangerously close to decaffeinated acoustic pop, but it should set the hearts of every girl in the room aflutter.

While their heroes’ influence on proceedings here is strikingly obvious, Hujan have also shrewdly played to their strengths. The entire EP is sung in Malay, and the jazzy lick that begins ‘Aku Skandal’ is hardly Albert Hammond Jr. And despite everyone’s fixation with originality, there is hardly any coercive push for the leftists’ attention here; just a couple of under-four minute pop songs being served the way they should be—concise, fresh and crunchy. While other bands emulate their heroes down to the swagger, fashion sense and lyrical voice, Hujan have taken a chic blueprint and placed a peninsular spin on it. And it is in this spin that Hujan find their niche, straddling catchy feel-good Indon pop and chic new-garage. Rest assured, it is a concept that sounds a whole lot yummier when heard than read.

HUJAN - CHECK CHECK ROCK ROCK
(Independent)

Track Listing

1. Sedih
2. Neon
3. Aku Skandal
4. Ku Mahu Kau Tahu
5. Lepas Kan Aku
6. Empayar Mu
7. Ludah Amerika