Sheila on 7
Excitement filled the air as I entered North Points Sunbeam Theatre. I could hardly make my way through the frenzy of screaming girls and crowd security. On stage were the Indonesian rock band Sheila on 7, I cursed myself under my breath for sleeping in and missing the mornings Jam session.
Hailing from the artsy Indonesian city of Yogyakarta, Sheila on 7 has become a household name across Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore. With their humble beginnings as a neighborhood band, it is no wonder that front man Akhdiyat Duta Modjo walks with the air of a saint; he knows he is good, and is proud of it. Lead guitarist Eross Candra has an easily approachable child-at-heart personality. Bass player Adam Muhammad Subarkah is extremely down to earth and, the pleasure he takes in his art is easily read from the discreet smile wiped across his face while he is on stage. Guitarist Sakti Ari Seno couldnt be here as he was on haj in Mecca. On the previous day I had picked these guys, along with their Drummer Brian and Keyboardist Ferry up from Chek Lap Kok, and managed to get a few words from them.
What does the name, Sheila on 7, mean?
Adam: ah... Sheila on 7 means Sheila means music and Seven means seven notes.
Duta: Ooh. Lie lie lie!
Adam: Do Re Me Fa So La Ci, Do Re Me Fa So La Ti. Do. Yes Hope you know what I mean.
So how did you guys form, come together as a band?
Duta: We came from the same neighborhood.
Becky: Okay and it was like 1996, if I'm right.
Duta: Yeah
Becky: so were you guys still in school then?
Duta: Yeah, until 1998.
How did your parents and families react to deciding you wanted to make music for a living?
Duta: At first they felt that it wasnt a good choice for us, but uh- we kept on trying to convince them that this is really the right choice for us. And then
Duta: At first they felt that it wasnt a good choice for us, but uh- we kept on trying to convince them that this is really the right choice for us. And then
Becky: And then...
Duta: Now we're here.
What was the biggest struggle in getting to where you are today, from being a small band? What was the biggest hardship?
Duta: Okay, yeah, it was pretty hard to get a record deal; our band came from a small city in Indonesia, not from Jakarta, but from Yogyakarta. So the chance to make it would surely be much bigger for a band from Jakarta than for a band from Yogyakarta. Then we made a demo tape, and we tried to bring the record to a producer in Jakarta. We got lucky, they accepted us.
What was the biggest struggle in getting to where you are today, from being a small band? What was the biggest hardship?
Duta: Okay, yeah, it was pretty hard to get a record deal; our band came from a small city in Indonesia, not from Jakarta, but from Yogyakarta. So the chance to make it would surely be much bigger for a band from Jakarta than for a band from Yogyakarta. Then we made a demo tape, and we tried to bring the record to a producer in Jakarta. We got lucky, they accepted us.
They offered us...
Becky: a deal.
Duta: A deal. And it's a pretty good deal!
Do you have any plans to make any new CDs?
Duta: Um yeah hopefully, in the next two months our fifth album will come out.
Becky: So how is it, how does it sound?
Duta: It's lighter than the last album. We think that the contents are pretty good. Maybe because it's lighter than the fourth album- hopefully people can accept it more than the last one.
How was the fourth album taken by the Indonesian population.
Duta: The fourth album, we only sold 400, 000 copies.
Duta: The fourth album, we only sold 400, 000 copies.
Becky: That's quite a lot
Duta: Yeah, that's quite a lot but it has sold the least number from every album we've recorded. Can you imagine the comparison between the second album, which we sold 1.9 million copies of and then the fourth album where we only sold 400, 000 copies. We put as much as we could of our taste of music- into the album. Maybe we didnt pay enough attention to the consumers, the listeners. Maybe thats one of the problems why that album didn't really sell.
What do you guys sing about, or play about?
Duta: Oh you mean the lyrics! Okay mostly about love, usually our songs follow two stories, stories from them, the guys, the boys.
What do you guys sing about, or play about?
Duta: Oh you mean the lyrics! Okay mostly about love, usually our songs follow two stories, stories from them, the guys, the boys.
Becky: So we get to hear something about their love lives?
Duta: Yeah!
Adam: Sort of.
Duta: Maybe that's one of the strong points. It makes people feel the same as in the song. So they like the song, and they buy the album.
Do you write your lyrics together?
Adam: For lyrics, they come from one person, and what kind of song we want to make with the lyrics we do together.
Adam: For lyrics, they come from one person, and what kind of song we want to make with the lyrics we do together.
Becky: So you'd write the music first or the lyrics first.
Adam: In our experience it is easier to write while we play.
So your first CD went double platinum, how was that?
Duta: Yeah. Whoa, can you imagine on our DEBUT album that we could sell over one million? Thats, thats, that's an indescribable feeling for us. Can you imagine? We're from a small city in Indonesia, from Yogya. We tried with all our guts to get to Jakarta on our demo tape. Then we got lucky and they accepted our demo tape. They released the album, and we sold over one million copies. It's an indescribable feeling.
So your first CD went double platinum, how was that?
Duta: Yeah. Whoa, can you imagine on our DEBUT album that we could sell over one million? Thats, thats, that's an indescribable feeling for us. Can you imagine? We're from a small city in Indonesia, from Yogya. We tried with all our guts to get to Jakarta on our demo tape. Then we got lucky and they accepted our demo tape. They released the album, and we sold over one million copies. It's an indescribable feeling.
What influences has the band had?
Duta: Oh, so many bands, so many, so many bands. Because everyone in the band has different influences. I think that is what makes this band have a larger variety of music, a larger variety of songs, and a larger variety of arrangements.
Duta: Oh, so many bands, so many, so many bands. Because everyone in the band has different influences. I think that is what makes this band have a larger variety of music, a larger variety of songs, and a larger variety of arrangements.
Adam: I decided to play the bass because of the bass player (Billy Sheehan) of Mr. Big.
Has your music really changed from your first demo tape to your latest album?
Duta: I think that that's a natural process. If you ask me what the difference is, I cannot tell you exactly the difference. Hopefully we're getting better.
Do you have any side projects happening, are you guys going to go into the film industry, or do you have any plans?
Duta: Yeah, there are some side projects, but I mean, everyone in the band has a different side project. But the most important thing is the band. So the band is the priority for us, we're not gonna make our side projects our priorities.
If you weren't playing music in the band, what would you guys do?
Duta: I'd be a soccer player.
Duta: I think that that's a natural process. If you ask me what the difference is, I cannot tell you exactly the difference. Hopefully we're getting better.
Do you have any side projects happening, are you guys going to go into the film industry, or do you have any plans?
Duta: Yeah, there are some side projects, but I mean, everyone in the band has a different side project. But the most important thing is the band. So the band is the priority for us, we're not gonna make our side projects our priorities.
If you weren't playing music in the band, what would you guys do?
Duta: I'd be a soccer player.
Adam: Teacher.
Eross: Playboy! I'd be a movie star.
Adam: Good Luck.
Brian: If I wasnt a drummer I'd be a reporter!
(c) 2006 Rebecca Martyn All Rights Reserved
(c) 2006 Rebecca Martyn All Rights Reserved
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