Home-grown new wave rock group The Upstairs, have been doing just that - creating waves and in the process, proving that Indonesias underground music scene is alive and well.

The lead singer and driving force behind The Upstairs Jimi Multhazam is a charismatic cat. Hes been captivating audiences with his on-stage theatrics and electric energy, mimicking 70s punk rock legend Iggy Pop as he prances around the stage wearing white sunglasses and extra-tight black & white striped pants sporting a Mick Jagger hairdo.

Seeing the band kitted out in their chinos, spangly shirts and, pop art prints and white sneakers, you could hardly miss their retro credentials. Says Jimi, when the group was formed back in October 2001 we were heavily influenced by overseas bands like A Flock of Seagulls, Joy Division, and Depeche Mode, but we like to complement the synthesizers with heavy guitar lines.

The Upstairs beginnings were DIY in the truest sense. They produced and distributed their first EP, Antahberantah, in 2002 by themselves and simply through word of mouth and audiencde reaction it, sold like hot cakes. Known for their free form style of lyricism, eschewing rhyming, the band members include Kubil Idris (guitar), Beni (drums), Alfi Chaniago (bass & keyboard), Elta (keyboard & synths) and Dian (backing vocals). Looking at how the band came together, its clear that theyre not just a bunch of wannabes, copying big names acts like The Killers or Franz Ferdinand but genuine domestic pioneers with their own ideas. FYI, The Upstairs even had formed long before those two nu-wave international acts were born.

So why did they choose the new wave genre at a time when our local music chart is saturated with RnB and punk-rock? We did follow mainstream music at first and even played some rockabilly in our early days, Jimi explains. But we soon realized by the time we produced our album there would be thousands of bands out there doing the same thing Jimi goes on to explain that during their early experimental sessions he and Kubil, enjoyed fusing their music with synthesizers creating the weird sounds that would eventually lead to the bands current sound.

Jimi loves to imitate the James Brown shoe gazing move while wearing hilarious and outrageous outfits on stage. His tight ankle high jeans, striped shirt, scarf and white framed sunnies are the bands trademark. He says I was heavily inspired by the styles visible in the movie The Outsiders.

On Valentines Day in 2004 the band released their CD debut Matraman (also their second studio recording). At the launch party at the famous BBs Club Jakarta, 100 CDs sold out in just two hours. Their moment of glory finally came on the 19th September 2005 when they sealed a contract with Warner Music Indonesia and gave birth to their first major label album Energy with the lethal Disko Darurat (Emergency Disco) on its track list. Theres a certain symmetry to such a pioneering band supporting one of the men who made dance music what it is today. Thinking outside the box.


Management & Bookings:
THE UPSTAIRS
Modern Management
c/o Wendi Putranto (Personal Manager)
Jl. PLN Duren Tiga Raya No.37
Jakarta 12720, Indonesia.
Telp./Faks.: (021) 7980516
Hp: +62 21-8161437608.
e-mail : theupstairs1@yahoo.com