NEW HITHEAD INTERVIEW: "I don't agree that police close Bandung pubs at 12.00am" (Sidoarjo Hardcore)

Left to Right: Rizal Nur Rokhim (HITHEAD band), Jack Frost (Busuk Chronicles), Dwi Yudha (OSIRIS / ANUBIS band), Agus (OVERDEATH band), unknown @ Sidoatjo.

My interview with Bimo and Rizal of Hithead (Sidoarjo Hardcore Pride), 27 January 2014

Interpretation Bahasa Indonesian / Bahasa Inggris by: Dwi Yudha (bassist of Osiris, Surabaya death-metal)

Extra questions by: Niza (vocalist Climaxeth / Osiris) & Dwi Yudha

Hithead is: Bimo (vocals); Rizal (drummer), Riza (guitar), and Bima (bass).

Jack Frost: Please tell us the history of your band.

Bimo (vocalist): We formed the band in 2011. I formed Hithead because I felt that hardcore in Sidoarjo was stuck. So I hoped that the band could bring new colour to hardcore in Sidoarjo. Because in Sidoarjo many people make hardcore bands just for fashion or image but they don’t have the ideology.

Rizal Hithead (fourth left) with Yudha, Niza, Jack, and SICKLES

JF: Who are your influences in hardcore?

B: Hatebreed and Kingdom of Sorrow (Jamey Jasta).

JF: Why do you like hardcore so much instead of metal?

B: I chose hardcore because of the sense of rebelling against the government. In Indonesia the poor is like shit because the government is kind of greedy and selfish. They just think about themselves and not the people.

JF: Do you know in Bandung the police close the pubs at 12 o’clock and have a curfew. What do you think?

B: I think it sucks, I don’t agree with this.

JF: Do you have any album or plan for an album?

B: We have a plan to finish the album at the end of 2014. We have three demo songs and for the album seven songs.

JF: Is the title of the album fixed?

B: The concept is fixed but we have not decided on the title of the album.

JF: What is the hardcore scene like here in Sidoarjo?

B: The scene here is weak. Many people in hardcore still think hardcore is a gang and not a music. The scene is not solid.

JF: What about Surabaya hardcore?

B: I think hardcore in Surabaya is great and cool. It is different from Sidoarjo.

JF: What are your comments about Devadata?

B: F***ing great, legend.

JF: What is your comment about Outright?

B: I think it is new-school hardcore with great music and concept. It is new-school and not really old-school like Devadata.

JF: What is your comment about Straight Answer (Jakarta)?

B: I like the band; they play old-school punk hardcore.

JF: What is the best scene for hardcore in Indonesia?

B: Surabaya.

Niza and Jack

JF: What does the scene in Sidoarjo need to do to improve?

B: I think hardcore in Sidoarjo should work together to remove the gap between new-school and old-school. They should change the focus from fashion to music. Hardcore is passion not fashion.

JF: Are you straight-edge?

B: No [smiles].

JF: Do you agree with what someone said that “hardcore only will work for you if you believe in it”?

B: Yes I agree.

Niza (Climaxeth / Osiris vocalist): Where did you play on the stage?

B: East Java. We think that our music is not good enough to move to any other province especially in Java Island. We still need some improvement.

Dwi Yudha (Osiris bassist): What was your father’s reaction to your love of hardcore?

B: My parents really support me for hardcore but there is still some bad perspective from the society. We come back home late after midnight.

JF: Is there any connection between hardcore and football hooliganism in Sidoarjo? I’m thinking about how Cockney Rejects was associated with West Ham United’s Inter City Firm...

B: Surabaya has a soccer team Persebaya and they have hooligans called Bonex Hardcore.

JF: Are some people in the hooligan scene also in the underground music scene?

B: Yes. There are hooligans from the hardcore scene. They are called “Wolf x Feet”.

JF: Will your band get a bad reaction in Malang because of the football factor?

B: For “Wolf x Feet” there is no problem for us to play in Malang because the people in Malang think music is music and football is just football.

JF: What is the relationship between hardcore and metal here?

B: I think hardcore and metal are in one family called “Underground”. There is no real difference because we are one family. They are just different music genres.

Dwi Yudha: What band would you love to accompany on the stage?

B: Foreign band Hatebreed and Indonesian band Serigala Malam.

JF: What do you think of the band Tengkorak? I was fortunate to be able to meet Samier in Surabaya...

B: They are some kind of radical band. I think they are too religious for a band. They can’t separate between religion and music. They are too radical for the metal society to accept. They can’t separate people’s religion from musical genre.

JF: Is there any hardcore band in Indonesia similar to Tengkorak?

B: Purgatory is similar to Tengkorak. For hardcore there is no similar band.

JF: What are your future goals and dreams for the band?

Rizal (Hithead drummer): We want to have an album and a tour with the bands we mentioned before.

JF: Do you want to play in Bandung Biersik?

B: Yes but mostly we want to play in Wacken Open Air!

Dwi Yudha: What target will you have?

B: We want the album to be accepted in Indonesia first.

Dwi Yudha: What songs do you want to cover?

B: Pantera, “Yesterday Don’t Mean Shit”.

JF: What is your comment about Busuk Webzine?

Rizal: It is a special place for info on underground music.

JF: What do you think that we include hardcore now as well as metal?

Rizal: We are very supportive for hardcore to be included in Busuk Webzine. Then we will not maintain a division between hardcore and metal. Let us unite as one.

JF: What is your message for the fans?

Rizal: The message for the scene is that we should unite as one.

Bimo: Hardcore is a passion and not a fashion. It is not about showing off the style or the clothes.  

Left to Right: Back row: Jack Frost (Busuk Chronicles), Niza Climaxeth, Arie Sickles, Rony Sickles, Haidir Sickles. Front row: Rizal Nur Rokhim (HITHEAD band), Dwi Yudha (OSIRIS / ANUBIS band) @ Bangkalan, Madura.