Photo courtesy the band
Sigmun's Crimson Eyes was one of the best albums of 2015. It was 11 tracks of fuzzed-out guitars and huge riffs that quickly cemented Sigmun as a band to watch. But singer/guitarist Haikal Azizi had a bunch of other songs on the back burner, softer, more somber songs written with Indonesian lyrics and an ear for classic Indonesian pop melodies.Haikal began to sporadically release these solo songs under the moniker Bin Idris (Idris is his father's name) on Soundcloud before releasing a self-titled album that comes across both gloomy and inspirational. VICE Indonesia's Marcel Thee spoke with Haikal about the difficulties of releasing a solo album and what it's like to write in Indonesian.VICE: Why did you decide to start a solo project?
Haikal Azizi: When I first started this, I never really considered releasing an album. My intention with Bin Idris was just to release any music I wrote that wouldn't work with Sigmun and to experiment. At first Soundcloud was the perfect platform for this. I also thought that an album would be too much work and wasn't really necessary. But after finishing Sigmun's Crimson Eyes, I realized that working on an album is way more than just gathering a couple of songs and putting them together. Working on an album gave me a sense of "pressure" that pushed me to meet a certain level of quality; it gave me the tension to take it seriously. Releasing an album also tells the public that this is not just some side project.Was there something specific that you wanted to try musically that you couldn't do with Sigmun?
I guess writing Indonesian lyrics would be one of the things that I probably wouldn't be able to do in Sigmun. After we finished recording Crimson Eyes, some people asked me 'Can you write lyrics in Indonesian?' and I took that as a challenge. Also, in Crimson Eyes, we were always trying to push for perfection and were always looking for ways to add depth, and other layers of complexities. With this album I tried to tone down those kinds of urges and kept it simple with a wabi-sabi kind of approach.The songs feel very connected. Was there a common theme here?
I didn't really set out to work on a certain theme, but I guess they all came out with a somber-kind of vibe. I can't really quite explain it, but it's more of a "vibe" or "mood" rather than theme. I had a couple of songs in my bank but I chose these 11 songs because I felt like they worked well together as whole album.Did the song writing process feel different as a solo artist? How was it not having any band members to bounce ideas off of?
It's harder and easier at the same time. It's easier when I've already figured out the whole song, but it's harder to finish a song when I'm stuck because I need to figure everything out by myself. In Sigmun, when we're feeling stuck on an idea, we could just jam and build the song from the ideas that came out during the sessions. To not be able to jam also means there are less surprises. Working alone means that the only boundaries are my own capabilities.Do you have any personal favorites on the album?
No, each song is loved equally [laughs].Is Bin Idris going to be an ongoing thing?
Of course. I still have lots of things that I'd like to try with both Sigmun and Bin Idris. One of the advantages of working solo is that it is easier to move around and to try something new, like collaborations. This project gives me the opportunity to be reckless and to experiment. It might not always work out well, but as long as I had a good time doing it I think it's worth a try.
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Haikal Azizi: When I first started this, I never really considered releasing an album. My intention with Bin Idris was just to release any music I wrote that wouldn't work with Sigmun and to experiment. At first Soundcloud was the perfect platform for this. I also thought that an album would be too much work and wasn't really necessary. But after finishing Sigmun's Crimson Eyes, I realized that working on an album is way more than just gathering a couple of songs and putting them together. Working on an album gave me a sense of "pressure" that pushed me to meet a certain level of quality; it gave me the tension to take it seriously. Releasing an album also tells the public that this is not just some side project.Was there something specific that you wanted to try musically that you couldn't do with Sigmun?
I guess writing Indonesian lyrics would be one of the things that I probably wouldn't be able to do in Sigmun. After we finished recording Crimson Eyes, some people asked me 'Can you write lyrics in Indonesian?' and I took that as a challenge. Also, in Crimson Eyes, we were always trying to push for perfection and were always looking for ways to add depth, and other layers of complexities. With this album I tried to tone down those kinds of urges and kept it simple with a wabi-sabi kind of approach.The songs feel very connected. Was there a common theme here?
I didn't really set out to work on a certain theme, but I guess they all came out with a somber-kind of vibe. I can't really quite explain it, but it's more of a "vibe" or "mood" rather than theme. I had a couple of songs in my bank but I chose these 11 songs because I felt like they worked well together as whole album.
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It's harder and easier at the same time. It's easier when I've already figured out the whole song, but it's harder to finish a song when I'm stuck because I need to figure everything out by myself. In Sigmun, when we're feeling stuck on an idea, we could just jam and build the song from the ideas that came out during the sessions. To not be able to jam also means there are less surprises. Working alone means that the only boundaries are my own capabilities.Do you have any personal favorites on the album?
No, each song is loved equally [laughs].Is Bin Idris going to be an ongoing thing?
Of course. I still have lots of things that I'd like to try with both Sigmun and Bin Idris. One of the advantages of working solo is that it is easier to move around and to try something new, like collaborations. This project gives me the opportunity to be reckless and to experiment. It might not always work out well, but as long as I had a good time doing it I think it's worth a try.