Tomcat and Jerry Will Give You “Something” Nice to Listen
We were pretty pessimistic at first with the new release of Tomcat and Jerry, considering the genre would be reggae. It is something that we do not usually listen to, even though we’re aware of its existence and large amount of supporters in Indonesia. With that conscience, we listened to “Something” over and over and guess what? We absolutely love it. This is not something we make up to gain more traffic or anything, it’s just that the music that they play is pure bliss to our ears. Ears that have not been trained to listen to reggae music. “Something” started with a melancholic keyboard tune, then the signature reggae sound with the heavy bass and guitar kicked in. The hazy vocals add relaxing feel to it and it does not require a highly skilled technique or that thick Jamaican accent to sing “Something”. The addition of wind chimes and percussion also play part in perfecting the sound. Some of you might not classify this as the Indonesian reggae we used to listen, because Tomcat and Jerry stated that they choose Jamaican reggae as its roots and it’s different than Indonesian reggae acts in general.
The band, which hails from Bandung, is made up of Lazu (vocal), Izmal (guitar), Ichwan (bass), Sidik (drum) and Aslam (keyboard). “Something” tells about enjoying me-time that is often found in our daily life. Having no plan, no friend, and nothing to do on the weekend sometimes make you feel more at ease and happy. They want this song to be the soundtrack for everyone who wants to spend some time alone in happiness. Moreover, Tomcat and Jerry also cite Prince Buster, Dandy Livingston, Toots & The Maytals, Alton Ellis, The Melodians, and Desmond Dekker as few musicians that they look up to in terms of musicality and they want to create that nostalgia feeling to those who listen to their music.
“A great hope is placed upon the release of this single. If the distribution scope is wide and it is appreciated by many poeple, this will be a turning point for reggae scene in Indonesia, especially in Bandung. Besides, we were not born and raised within the community (of reggae scene). This experience will be awesome,” says Luthfi, Tomcat and Jerry’s manager on this single. The single launching will be done online through several streaming-based social media and there will be a release party dedicated for this single in collaboration with micro-gig show “Mulyono” (Musik dan Lagu You Know) that was initiated by ITB students. We wish them luck and please do give “Something” a listen, you won’t regret it.
