Punk's not dead, it's in Indonesia

Updated July 9, 2009 11:15:22

An explosive punk band, fronted by an Australian singer, is causing a stir in Indonesia.

Punkasila's combination of military hardware, camouflage gear and an arsenal of songs, such as KFC and Kopassas, have received mixed responses. Indonesian CD manufacturers recently refused to reproduce their album based on the belief that some of song titles are too controversial. But the band insists that its music is just misunderstood.

Presenter: Steve Holland
Speakers: Danius Kesminas, Punkasila singer and founder; Wulan Dirgantoro, Indonesian Studies teacher at the University of Tasmania

HOLLAND: Danius Kesminas' microphone resembles a hand-grenade.

The singer is flanked by musicians clad in Batik military uniforms and armed with guitars resembling AK47 and M16 machine guns.

But it's the band's songs from its latest album, Acronym Wars, that are causing controversy.

KESMINAS: Look it has, but it has also put smiles on a lot of people's faces as well. There are a couple of tracks on there, namely Kopassus, special force command, and TNI.

The names of those organisations prevented this disc from being pressed in Jakarta. There were three plants which wouldn't do it, so I had to get it done in Australia.

HOLLAND: Kesminas, an Australian, founded the band with seven self-taught Indonesian musicians in Yogyakarta in 2006.

The band has played numerous international concerts, including a recent tour of duty in Cuba - where Kesminas says the band's songs and militaristic presence were well received.

But he says the band's not as controversial as it appears.

He says acronyms are used for lyrics because his knowledge of the Indonesian language is limited.

He also finds the double meanings of some acronyms amusing.

KESMINAS: But in actual fact there are other organisations like Kentucky Fried Chicken, the Indonesian Arts School, ISI, religious organisations, military, bureaucratic and cultural.

And they're just the acronyms, so there's no actual commentary about these organisations.

HOLLAND: Indonesian Studies teacher at the University of Tasmania, Wulan Dirgantoro, says it's not only rock 'n' roll, but she likes it.

DIRGANTORO: From what I see from this band, from the negative reaction, even though the New Order Regime passed 11 years ago, there's still a big part of Indonesia that has not moved on.

We're still dealing with the aftermath. So that's why when Punkasila comes up and uses all these symbolisms it does stir up the pot, if you like.