NEW INTERVIEW: My second interview with Samier Tengkorak (Jakarta Death Metal), @ Surabaya, 30 May 2025.

My interview with Samier of Tengkorak, Inferno Music Studio & Rock Shop, Surabaya, Friday, 30 May 2025 (corrected by Samier via Instagram on 31 May 2025)

(Note: Samier is based in Surabaya but the other members of Tengkorak are based in Jakarta) 

Samier: Tengkorak disbanded in 2016. We are not active. We do not practice. We do not play the gigs. Last year (about November-December 2024) they want to reform. I told them that I can’t go in like before. But I still join in their management but not as a performer again. 

Kieran James: Why don’t you want to join again?

Samier: I feel I can’t one hundred percent anymore because of my lifestyle now. I’m not sure that I can join this band. In the future I don’t know. Right now I’m not in the band anymore.

KJ: You still play with the band G.A.S.? 

Samier: G.A.S. disbanded in 2017. 

KJ: What other activities do you do? 

Samier: Nothing. I just manage my studio. I have comic book store. I have simple lifestyle with my family. I’m still listening music. I still support new bands in Surabaya. I’m still watching gigs. 

KJ: Do you still follow OFM?

Samier: It’s not active. It’s just a statement. Yes, it’s a movement but it’s more of a statement. We still have our beliefs. We love metal but we stay with our belief. Because, at that time that you came before [January 2014] that statement came because so many young fans thought that if you are metal you should not have the beliefs. But it’s wrong.

KJ: You still contact Ombat [Tengkorak vocalist]?

Samier: Yes, we have WhatsApp group. I went to Jakarta last December and we met.

KJ: What are some of the young bands in Surabaya?

Samier: CPG (grindcore); Daging (death metal); Decrown (death metal); Fordity (death metal); and Gerogot (death metal). 

KJ: What is the size of the scene now?

Samier: I think the scene got bigger. Hardcore gets the young people. There is regeneration in the hardcore scene in Surabaya.

I had a motorbike accident in 2018 and my leg is broken. I need one year to recover my leg.

We had a plan (G.A.S.) to come back in 2019. And then COVID came. We had a break of three years. After that we were so excited to perform again, to come back in the band. I don’t feel so excited anymore. As a player we should practice every day, we should go everywhere for gigs. I feel not comfortable with those circumstances given my age. I don’t want to continue. They ask me to come back but I said to them I can’t do this anymore. 

KJ: How do you feel? Sad? 

Samier: Happy. Because in 1990 I joined a band (no name), a university band; we just play on the campus. We changed the name at every gig (laughs). We just play Metallica or anything we like, it’s not a serious band.

1993 I am the founder of Slowdeath. This is my first serious band. We have three albums. It is deathgrind. We have Napalm Death in Harmony Corruption style. And Slowdeath 1993-2003 (?) Then I joined Tengkorak. 

KJ: Are you the first generation of extreme metal in Surabaya?

Samier: Yes. Nendy is the first and then Edy from Wafat, Yayan from Venduzor, then Jagal. Jagal is a newer band than us. But the players come from the first generation. Endro and Deddy came from Fear Inside.

KJ: Keep going back to when you joined Tengkorak.

Samier: I joined in 2003 and made an album with them, Agenda Suram (2007). This is the fourth album from Tengkorak.

KJ: Did you join Tengkorak because of the beliefs?

Samier: I wanted Slowdeath to be bigger. I wanted Slowdeath to be a national band but to stay in Surabaya. I had a plan to relocate the whole band to Jakarta. It’s crazy at that time. Because Slowdeath when we played gigs in Jakarta we got a good reaction. Jakarta is more simple, it’s the capital, not like Bandung. Bandung community is a very closed community, just like Surabaya. When we play in Bandung we do not have a good impact. It’s possible to move to Jakarta and have an opportunity. But the other members don’t want that. This is why I joined Tengkorak. Suddenly Tengkorak lost their guitarist. I knew them for a long time, we became friends. I called them. I said: If you want a guitarist I want to join you.

KJ: But you still stay in Surabaya? 

Samier: I stay two weeks in Jakarta, two weeks in Surabaya, sometimes by train, sometimes by plane. My sister stays in Jakarta. It depends on Tengkorak activity. When we release my first album with Tengkorak, I stayed in Jakarta or two or three months to rehearse and practice and record the album. Because when we did the record, we changed the drummer two years before, in 2005. We changed the drummer. And I join with Tengkorak until 2016.

KJ: Did the band continue with the younger players? 

Samier: The persons in the first or second line-up joined again. The bass player, the founder, rejoined again. Ombat is still the vocalist. Ombat (vocals), Yoyo (guitar), Danang (bass), Rony (drummer, joined 2005), Donny (second guitar). Donny is actually the drummer from Tengkorak in 1998 and the bass player from 2012. Right now he is the second guitarist. The new line-up has one single just released. 

[Tengkorak--Zionist Downfall (video), featuring Ombat daughter on vocals.]

Samier: Donny is a good songwriter--actually he can play drums, bass, guitar, he is so productive.

Deddy and Sari (G.A.S. vocalist) have a new band Decrown, they just have one single. 

KJ: What is the lyric about in the Tengkorak video? 

Samier: The lyric is similar to the other Tengkorak songs. It’s about Zionist. It’s time for the Zionist downfall.

We in Islam we believe the Zionist downfall is coming. It’s written in Al-Quran how Israel ends. Maybe for some people outside Muslim they can hardly believe what is written in Al-Quran. There is a big war at the end of the days, Israel and Islam. So we know exactly that in the end it will be the end of Israel. Right now we are heading to that event. We know exactly what Israel is. We have a long story about them, from Moses. They betrayed Moses. We know exactly what they are doing in the first Islam era. They always betrayed. If you read the books about Mohammed, it is about what Israel people did in that era--they always betray. 

KJ: Did Tengkorak get any recognition from other countries? 

Samier: Yes, especially from Japan. There is a Japanese label that always support Tengkorak.

KJ: Is there any interest from Muslim countries?

Samier: No (smiles). Tengkorak--we are not good to promote ourselves. I have a family in Bandung. In school they are taught the teacher will support you if you have arts or music talent. The Bandung mentality is special.

[Top picture: Samier (left) with Nendy of Fear Inside, Surabaya death metal.]

*****THE END*****

NEW INTERVIEW: Our first interview with Ombat TENGKORAK, 4/3/2016 (English Version)

Kieran James aka Jack Frost1: Hi, could you please explain the history of your band?

Ombat TENGKORAK: Tengkorak was actually established in 1991. We were named Skull. We started to use ‘Tengkorak’ as our band name in 1993. For further details, you guys could read on sources on the internet or Wikipedia.

KJ 2: How was the people responded to your demo/mini album/ or your albums?

Ombat2: Well, it was positive so far.

KJ 3: Which bands influenced you the most?

Ombat3: Initially, we were very influenced with Napalm Death. But recently, we were absolutely had defined our own concept.

KJ 4: What’s your future plan with the band?

Ombat4: Releasing album.

KJ5: Does your song using both English and bahasa Indonesia?

Ombat5: Yes, it does.

KJ 6: What stories would like to tell in your lyrics?

Ombat6: Heterogeneous… It’s mainly the reflection of several information (or news?) at the specific time.

KJ 7: Why do you like death metal?

Ombat7: That’s our passion. Especially grind core.

KJ 8: When was exactly you guys are being metal fans?

Ombat8: Between 1988 – 1989.

KJ9: What would you say to the people who asked why do you play western style music?

Ombat9: Almost all of the popular music in Indonesia came from the West. It's not only metal but also pop. But it doesn’t mean that we should take for granted. It was also other factors such as the media, which often emphasized the information (or trends?) from the West. Basically, we just want to play the music that we like. It was by chance that grindcore is coming from the West. Although, for example, if it came from Zimbabwe it is still not a problem for us.

KJ 10: Does your wife or girlfriend support you?

Ombat10: They are basically supportive as long as we are doing positive things.

KJ 11: Is there any good side or bad side in regards to the communities in your city?

Ombat11: They all have the good and bad sides. But we have to learn from the past or the (bad things) will occur repetitively through the generations.

KJ 12: What is your future plan with the band?

Ombat12: Same question as KJ 4

KJ 13: What is your most memorable gig?

Ombat13: It was Jakcloth in 2010 because it was the moment when our band declared a new concept that is being positive, keep educating both for ourselves and everybody else.

KJ 14: Anything you want to say to your friends?

Ombat14: Keep being positive and istiqomah (being good in religious way).

KJ 15: Do you call your music ‘white metal’ and if yes, why?

Ombat15: NO! We do not know what White Metal is.

KJ 16: Does One Finger Movement still exist?

Ombat16: Yes, it does. It is even got many followers and being more solid. Also, they are also Istiqomah [smile emoticon] (being good in religious way).

Band Contact:

https://www.facebook.com/TENGKORAKGRIND/?fref=ts

[Translation from Bahasa Indonesian by Ms. Okky from Glasgow University, Glasgow, Scotland, UK.]

You can also read our interviews with TENGKORAK (Samier), KODUSA (Jakarta), and G.A.S. (Surabaya) on this website.

CLASSIC INTERVIEW: "Believe in Satan but not God, that's ridiculous man" (Samier Tengorak Interview)

TENGKORAK band with guitarist Samier second from left.

My interview with Samier of Tengkorak, Inferno Music Studio & Rock Shop, Surabaya, 26 January 2014

Interpretation where necessary by: Dimas (Valerian Guitarist) & Verrell (Valerian Drummer)

Expert Comments and Questions by: Dimas & Niza (Climaxeth / Osiris Vocalist) 

(Note: Samier is based in Surabaya but the other members of Tengkorak are based in Jakarta)

Jack Frost (Busuk Webzine): First of all tell us your life story, just a short introduction...

Samier: Love story?

JF: The history of Tengkorak then, just briefly...

S: The band was established in 1993. I joined in 2002. At that time Tengkorak just wrote some political lyrics, corruption – not about jihad or anything like that. We started writing about Islam and jihad and topics like that in 2007. It’s in our third album Agenda Suram. We write about jihad because we feel lots of westerners believe that Islam equals to terrorism.  It happened because of 9-11. We started to think how to counter that statement; Islam is not equal to terrorism.

JF: OK, please tell us more about the band’s philosophy and vision?

S: It comes from our [personal] philosophy itself. We have faith in Allah, we believe Islam; it’s a good religion, not a terrorist. We should tell about the truth. A lot of kids in Indonesia, especially in Jakarta, at that time were starting to doubt their beliefs so we counter that. A lot of bands say they don’t believe in God; some of them are fake you know. If they don’t believe God they don’t believe Satan. If they believe Satan but don’t believe God, it’s ridiculous, man! So we tell the truth. We want the kids who watch us to continue to believe their religion. Although they like metal they should not accept the lifestyle.

JF: What are the things wrong with metal lifestyle and what things are OK?

S: A lot of metal fans here say that you are not metal if you are not drunk; you are not metal if you are not tattooed; it happens over the years. If you live in Indo you don’t have to take that lifestyle if you like metal. You have your own lifestyle. As a child you studied your religion, you prayed, it was like that. If you like metal you should not leave what you believe. If you believe it is not correlated with your music. Music is just entertainment. If you like horror movie it does not mean you are a killer or something like that. Don’t adopt the western lifestyle. If the lifestyle doesn’t match with your religion don’t take it.

JF: What about black tee-shirt and long hair?

S: It’s OK for me; it’s not OK for some. In the end we realize the music has power to state our message. If people have a bad message in their music the metal fans think it’s OK. Why then is the good music not OK? In Indonesia it’s different to other [western] nations, you still have religion.

JF: Do you think Indonesia is too easygoing about the religion compared to, for example, Malaysia?

S: Maybe in Malaysia the government is based n Islam but in Indonesia it is a secular government. We are a Muslim majority here but the government is not Islamic; it is too American you know...

Samier Tengkorak and Jack Frost (Kieran James)

JF: Do you know about the Christian metal scene and what do you think about it?

S: I think it’s good. They do it for the Christian people; to help the people to still believe. Metal does not have to have a correlation with your belief; it’s a different thing, it’s just your hobby maybe. Lately metal has had a message which a lot of kids have adopted.

JF: What is your comment about the band Deicide?

S:  I read an interview with Glen Benton; he said he was not serious with the lyrics; it’s just a gimmick.

JF: At least the early lyrics seemed to be quite serious?

S: Maybe he changed as a person you know. He said you should pay for your rent, for your family. He said the lyrics are not serious. I don’t know if he lied or not. I think the music is good but the lyrics are not good for me.

JF: OK, I want to ask are you musician first or preacher first?

S: I’m just a musician [laughs] but I realize that music should have a good message. It becomes our responsibility - to our audience especially; it’s important for us.

JF: Do you aim to convert the non-Muslims to become Muslim?

S: No, never.

JF: What do you think of Niza wearing jilbab [hijab] on the stage?

S: It’s difficult to say you know [laughs].

Dimas (Valerian Guitarist): For me it’s not important Jack.

JF: What is the reaction to your band?

S: We had a lot of negative feedback in Jakarta especially thinking we want to...they say don’t mix religion with metal.

JF: What do you think of Jihad, for example, singing about Islamic philosophy and also saying “we are secular band”?

S:  It’s stupid you know. Are you afraid to say what you believe? Why are we afraid to say what we believe?  

Samier Tengkorak and Jack Frost (interview @ Inferno Studio)

JF: What bands are you most influenced by?

S: There are a lot of bands you know. The main influence is Napalm Death for the music.

JF: What are the future plans for Tengkorak?

S: We should make a new album. Our last album was 2007 you know. It’s been too long. We continue to deliver an Islamic message; we continue to proclaim the message that Islam does not equal terrorist. We hope our audience can still believe what they believe even though they still like metal music.

JF: What do you think of Indo metal musicians dedicating their albums to Allah but using 666 number and pentagram symbol?

S: It’s stupid; they don’t know what they believe. They say “in music don’t believe Allah”, why?

JF: How is Purgatory different from Tengkorak?

S: Purgatory lyrics have a message from the Al-Quran; it puts quotations into the lyrics, but Tengkorak does not.

JF: Do you want to tour in the Middle East and did you get any feedback from there?

S: Not yet.

Dimas (Valerian): In your opinion what do you think about the metal scene in Surabaya?

S: A lot of the community people here do not know the meaning of community itself. They think it is like a gang. A community should un by itself. If you are a writer you should write about your metal scene or maybe you have a label... 

  

JF: What do you think about the Ariel Peterpan court case?

S: People like Ariel; it’s a new phenomenon.

JF: It copies from the west as well, yes?

Niza (Climaxeth / Osiris Vocalist): Yes.

S: He is very popular right now, more than before. He is more successful with the new band. It’s a prophet’s name Noah. They go to imam and say “what is the best name for my band?” It’s true.

JF: What do you think of the culture of hardcore genre?

S: I think it’s good because if we learn religion you will find that you should respect family, parents, mother, sister, etc. All the good things come from our religion, your religion...I think a hardcore band should say about religion. Our culture came from religion. If they don’t say that a lot of people think hardcore is a religion. I read that it says metal has become a religion. Wendy of Rolling Stone magazine said hardcore lyrics are inspiring. Wendy is a Muslim. I told her that if you want inspiration you should read Al-Quran.

TENGKORAK with Samier first on left

JF: John Yoedi and I took the 666 out of the Busuk Webzine URL, what do you think about that?

S: Congratulations [smiles]!

JF: Do you have any political philosophy about left-wing or right-wing?

S: No, I don’t know much about that.

JF: What are some good young bands in Indonesia?

S: Climaxeth, Valerian, lots of good bands...Full Fontal (hardcore)

JF: Do you hope for new young bands to follow the philosophy and style of Tengkorak?

S: I hope so. If they are Christian or Muslim they should talk about their religion, it becomes about responsibility. Indonesia is not western; we have a religion; stay true to your religion.

JF: What do you think of Jasad singing about Sundanese culture on Rebirth ov Jatisunda album?

S: Jasad also wants to rise up their culture; I think that it is a good thing. They want to make traditional music more popular. I think it’s a good thing to mix metal with traditional music.

JF: What do you think of use of inverted cross symbol by Indonesian metal bands?

S: It’s stupid. We should respect the other religions. Those people just follow; they don’t know the essential meaning of the symbol.

JF: Do you feel the same way as some Christian metalheads who feel caught somewhere between the church and the world?

S: Metal is metal and music is music. It does not mean if you have a faith you should not like the metal music. You have the right to like the metal music.

JF: Did you ever use an imam or theologian to advise you on the lyrics?

S: No.

JF: So to record the new album you will have to go to Jakarta?

S: Yes, I must go to Jakarta for a couple of months to do the rehearsals.

JF: Ok, that is all, thank you very much for interview! Best wishes for the new album.

S: Thank you!

Samier's new grindcore band G.A.S. (SURABAYA).