That Saturday night at C2O Library and Collabtive Hi Mom!‘s ethereal and nuanced sounds, contributed to by the voice of Khukuh Yuda, helped the band become a major force in uplifting and encouraging Indonesia’s urban youths. The evening’s event SUB/SIDE Live: Hi Mom! was scheduled to begin at 6:00 pm but was delayed until 7:30 pm while the band and C2O volunteers rearranged the library’s furniture and conducted a sound check beginning at 3:00 pm. The majority of attendees were Surabaya locals who had not yet arrived at C2O library.

Before the event began I had the chance to speak with Hi Mom!‘s vocalist Khukuh Yuda. Khukuh spoke a lot about the obstacles that had challenged Hi Mom! during the making of their third EP, beginning with their search for a skilled sound engineer that could understand the soul of their music, to the different professions and commitments of band members which affected the productivity of Hi Mom! Khukuh then shared about his own personal taste and main musical influences, which stem from female singers such as Tori Amos, Janis Joplin, Bjork, Cocteau Twins, and She & Him. A fact that explains his unique feminine vocal style, a cornerstone of Hi Mom!‘s sound.

As the clock showed 7:15 pm the event began with a jamming session that served as both warm up and sound check for Hi Mom! Drummer Kokoh, one of Hi Mom!’s original members, followed by bassist Adhiel Alba and Keyboardist Eri Rukmana, armed with both a Roland Keyboard and Mini Korg synthesizer, managed to cram onto the narrow stage. The next ones to fill the stage were Khukuh and Vidyawati, a guest violinist, and finally guitarist  Indra Adi Surya who came late from his home in Trosobo, a long way from C2O. Indra had headed home earlier in the day after helping to prepare the venue, which merited Hi Mom!‘s manager Lauretha to suggest that next time he should bring an extra pair of clothes and bathroom kit be provided on location to prevent delays.

The evening began with Lick the TV, a classic from the earliest stages of Hi Mom!’s career. Khukuh’s soft vocals and the gentle strumming of Indra’s guitar continued through in Honey, another song from the 2007 era. The feeling in the room was calm and personal. The conversion to an acoustic format allowed for a more animated sound complemented by bassist Adhiel’s use of progressive chords. Khukuh focused solely on his singing, forgoing playing guitar for the evening, while Eri established the rhythm of the music, his synthesizer in harmony with Adhiel’s bass and Indra’s guitar.

Next came Another Piece and The Frequency I’m in, both in acoustic format, filled with the soft sounds of Eri’s keyboard alongside Kokoh’s steady drum beat, calling to mind the musical style of The Jesus and Mary Chain. Guest violinist Vidy added distortion and overdrive to the blues like mood, specialties of Hi Mom!’s which had been missing. The highlight of their performance that night came from Titik Balik Yang Sempurna, especially as fans sang along to the bridge and chorus. I imagined how perfect it would have been to have Hi Mom! perform at the British Invasion discussion held at Senayan City, Jakarta the previous night. The acoustic versions of Do me a Favor and Web Maze reminded me of music from Slowdive and the Dream Academy’s music, new romantic ballad bands from the 1980’s. Khukuh’s vocal internalization fit perfectly with the sound of Indra’s guitar and Eri’s Mini Korg synthesizer.

Time flew by and suddenly it was already ten to nine PM. The band still had three songs remaining from a set list of ten. Usually C2O closes at nine, but that Saturday night was special. Hi Mom! was able to keep going, performing next Menuju Rumah while the audience sang along. Every lyric of the song would remind the attendees of SUB/SIDE of Hi Mom!The layering effects from Eri’s synthesizer and Adhiel’s bass succeeded in provided a steady and ambient rhythm to the acoustic variation of the song.

After Menuju Rumah, the band headed back stage for a short break before the encore. During the break I had the chance to talk with Mery Yulistanty, ex bassist for Hi Mom! Mery was there when Hi Mom! head lined at Tuesday Out Loud.

“Hi Mom!’s music has come a long way from when I was with them… cooler. They’re the best!” said Mery who currently works at the Grha Wismilak office, close to C2O. Hi Mom! then returned with Hussein Harhara, the guitarist from Tic Band, and one of Surabaya’s senior musicians, to play Ramuan Penawar Rindu. Adhiel’s progressive performance in combination with Hussein and Indra’s guitars transformed Indo-Malay pop music to psychedelic-raga rock ala LOVE and The Byrds, psychedelic bands of the 1960’s.

Hi Mom! closed their acoustic show with Kosong and ended an ambient Saturday night at C2O. The band succeeded in giving a unique musical performance, blending together both a nuanced atmosphere with smart lyrics that presented social and humanist optimism. We are all anxiously awaiting the release of Hi Mom!’s third EP.

The album is licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA. You can freely download, reuse and share them as long as you attribute the source, use the same license, and not take any commercial gain from them.  Download the songs and cover from archive.org.
Translated into English by Vivin Nofrina. English translation edited by Emily Wallace. 

This post is also available in: Indonesian