Theme in The Black Brothers ’ songs

Papua traditional folk song with popular music taste. They succeeded in bringing their culture and folk stories to the ears of other Indonesian fans. The audience seemed to embrace them because of the way they do it musically. When on live show they tend to play funk rock which creating waves in the crowd yet their recordings are dominated by melancholic pop songs. It somehow shows their two personalities or characteristics as a band.

2.1. Theme in The Black Brothers ’ songs

Following the main stream themes in popular music, The Black Brothers also sing about love falling in love, breaking up, and searching for love, leisure and pleasure party and dance. However, they would also inserted some social criticism, folks and cultural pride, and friendship. Since the The Black Brothers can be associated to Black power movement, it is believed that their supposedly love themes are actually political in some sense. It can be argued that The Black Brothers sees that music is the opportunity to break the negative prejudice of the media that Papua is a backward area with backward people. The band aims to promote their remote island to the rest of the country. This can be seen in their physical style on live performance big loose curly hair, and traditional costumes and be heard in their lyrics which voicing out the pride of their self identity and their homeland. Although many of their songs are sung in bahasa Indonesia, there are several songs sung in their natives language. Mainly those natives’ songs are about the beauty of the nature, love and friendships. There are sixty six songs out of eight albums produced by PT. Irama Tara Jakarta: Irian Jaya 1 1976; Derita Tiada Akhir Endless Sufferings, 1976; Lonceng Kematian Death Albatross,1977; Kenangan November November Memories, 1977; Kaum Benalu The Parasite, 1978; Misteri Mistery, 1978; Volume Perdana The Prime Volume, 1979; Hening Silence, 1979 see table 5 in appendix 1. These albums might be the life time achievement since until today The Black Brothers is the only band from Papua which successfully signed and launched a professional albums in Indonesia. They are the symbol of Papua popular music and one of Indonesia greatest bands. Generally The Black Brothers songs consist of three types of theme, i.e. 1 social criticism; 2 cultural pride and identity; 3 romance and dance tunes see table 4 in appendix 1. Specifically the writer constructed the theme into five categories: Irian Jaya or Papua; Romance; Social criticism; Pramuria prostitute; and other minor themes. The central theme of Irian Jaya or Papua designates self pride under the geographical reference like Jayapura, Gunung Syclop Mt. Cyclop, Danau Sentani Sentani Lake, Jalan Angkasa Angkasa Street, Pasir 2 sandy beach 2, physical appearance like hitam black and kribo curly. The inclusion of Irian or Papua native songs in almost every album is quite unique. Apuse 1st; Huembello 2nd; Amapondo 3th; Samandoye 5th and; Mangge-mangge 6th, Ino mote ngori in 7th album is a Ternate song written by Amry Kahar. The musical arrangement of those folk numbers is a combination of traditional chant and tunes with popular music style like pop, rock, jazz, and disco. The central theme of romance deals with love between man and woman under the issue of falling love, breaking up, and searching for love. The Black Brothers love stories mainly about sentiments of affection, sorrow, and romantic longing. However as the writer could see the dominant one is mainly about sorrow. The penchant for tearful sentimental wallowing in the longings and disappointments of frustrated protagonist seems to be the main characteristic of The Black Brothers’ love songs. The central theme of social criticism designates protest to corrupt government about corruption, poverty, and poor labor. Based on the short online interview with Jochie Pattipeluhu, the keyboardist who composed most of The Black Brothers materials said that social criticism is another important concern that they should put into songs. These are the things that rarely done by most bands and singers during that time. Specifically, The Black Brothers make their commentary upon social and economical degradation happened in Indonesia as a result of corrupt government and rich men wickedness. There are seven songs addressing the issue: Hari Kiamat The End of the Day; Lonceng Kematian Death Albatross; Gundik-gundik latah Talkative Concubines; Kaum Benalu The Parasites; Kuncup Putih White Buds; Tangan Hampa Empty Handed; Tanah Dosa Land of Sinner. The central theme of Pramuria Prostitute is a typical characteristic in The Black Brothers song that it exists almost in every album under specific terms beside Pramuria such as Juwita Malam Night Angel, Kupu-kupu Malam Night Butterfly, and Melati Plastik Plastic Jasmine. The persistent existence in every album makes the writer puts it as one segmented theme though it can be included into the central theme of romance. Written mostly by Hengky, the lead vocal, they are said to be his autobiographical love story. He wrote six out of the total nine songs addressing the issue, i.e. Kisah Seorang Pramuria Story of a Prostitute, Cinta dan Pramuria Love and Prostitute, Doa Pramuria The Prostitutes Prayer, Untukmu Pramuria To you, O prostitute, Balada Pramuria Ballads of a Prostitute, and Pramuria tapi Biarawati Prostitute but Nun, while the rest were written by Yochie Patipeluhu and Ian Antono, i.e. Juwita Malam Night Angle and Melati Plastik Plastic Jasmine. Hengky seems to be a true lover who positions himself as a pro-feminist who treats the prostitute in a more respectable way. He defies the tendency to use prostitute as merely sexual object that dehumanize women. There is a distinctive difference when Hengky’s Pramuria tapi Biarawati Prostitute but Nun and Ian Antono’s Juwita Malam Night Angel are compared. Pramuria a prostitute who is normally considered as a sinner can also have the pure and divine character of biarawati a nun. In “Juwita Malam” Night Angle, Antono sees a prostitute as a mere symbol of slick and sin as well as a sexual object to man’s satisfaction. In addition to that, the segmentation of pramuria prostitute theme in The Black Brothers songs also to show another implication of reading. Pramuria prostitute in this new layer of meaning can also symbolize the exploitation and degradation of Papua natural resource or a mere object of governments satisfaction. Here lies the political nuance which is discussed further in next chapter. The minor theme covers the less dominant themes other than the majority. It includes themes such as friendship or brotherhood, and the glory of God’s creation, and number of dance tunes. The theme of friendship discusses relationship between friends like in Sahabatku Angie My best friend Angie. Glory of Gods creation contains the praising of Gods blessings and grace like in Kurnia Ilahi Divine Grace. The theme of dance tunes covers songs which are written for leisure and pleasure which includes the issue of drinking, party, and dancing like in Musik Masa Kini Todays Music and Goyang Disco Disco Dance. Out of the five themes the two most dominant ones are romance and Irian Jaya with the significant numbers of twenty one and sixteen out of the total sixty six songs see table 6 in appendix 1. This is to prove the bands real characteristic as a typical popular band to sing of love song yet they might also lead to something deeper than just a romantic in the perspective of cognitive poetics which emphasize on the cognition of reading the lyric as a literary text by considering the context.

2.2. The Black Brothers Lyrical Style