Finally, a post about music. We’ve not done this yet, but we should. It’s about pop music though, so any of you interested in gamelan orchestras will just have to wait.
The biggest band in Indonesia, without a doubt, is Peterpan. (Yes, one word.) Their sound is pretty standard pop-rock, and there is no real reason why they should be popular instead of any number of other cookie cutter mass produced bands, but they are the ones. Whereever you go in Indonesia, in any shop or any internet cafe, you can here their latest album being played. It’s called Bintang di Surga, which means "Stars in Heaven." It’s even popular in Malaysia–we were at a mall a couple months ago and heard it being played on the loudspeakers. Their biggest hit is "Ada Apa Denganmu?," which means "What Is It With You?" This is like the "Hey Ya" of Indonesia; not that it sounds anything like it, but rather that it is a song that is pretty inescapable. Naturally, it’s become so ingrained in our head that before we left, we had to buy the album. As far as mass-produced pop-rock goes, it’s pretty listenable.
Here are the lyrics, with our best guess as to the translation. We should admit that we can’t really figure out the meanings. We know all the words, but the sentences seem semantically weird.
Ada Apa Denganmu?, by Peterpan
Sudah maafkan aku, segala salahku,
Dan bila kau tetap bisu ungkapkan salahmu.
Dan aku sifatku, dan aku khilafku,
Dan aku cintaku, dan aku rinduku.
Sudah, lupakan semua: segala berubah
Dan kita terlupakan kita terluka.
Dan aku sifatku, dan aku khilafku,
Dan aku cintaku, dan aku rinduku.
Kutanya malam, dapatkah kau lihatnya
Perbedaan yang tak terungkapkan?
Tapi mengapah kau tak berubah
Ada apa denganmu?
Oh…hanya malam dapat meleburkan
Segala rasa yang tak terungkapkan.
Tapi mengapah kau tak berubah
Ada apa denganmu?
What Is It With You?, by Peterpan
Pardon me, it’s all my fault
And if you are still mute, please tell your faults
And me, my characteristics, and me, my mistakes,
And I love myself, and I miss myself.
We’ve already forgotten everything
Everything’s changed
And we forget that we were hurt.
And me, my characteristics, and me, my mistakes,
And I love myself, and I miss myself.
I ask you tonight, can you see
The difference that cannot be mentioned?
But why won’t you change?
What is it with you?
Oh…only the night can wipe away
The difference that cannot be mentioned.
But why won’t you change?
What is it with you?
See…lyrics don’t make a ton of sense, so far as we can tell. If you want to hear the song, send us an email and we’ll hook you up.
Remember too that we are leaving for NZ today, so we may not have much email or blog access for awhile. We’ll talk to you soon.
Tom Pepinsky 