Only five Indonesian bands have ever set foot on stage at Wacken Open Air, the massive German music festival that has hosted some of rock and metal’s most prominent names since it began 31 years ago. That number is set to increase in September next year, however, with the addition of Voice of Baceprot, a hijab-wearing groove-metal trio of women in their early 20s who hail from the region of Garut, West Java.
It’s undoubtedly a proud moment for many Indonesian metalheads, and a dream come true for Voice of Baceprot, who have yet to reach household name status at home. But the announcement has also prompted the resurgence of critics who’ve slung negativity at the band since they formed in 2014, many on the grounds that itâs unbecoming for hijab-wearing Muslim women to play rock music. Some have suggested their perceived lack of skill and onstage experience make them unworthy of that Wacken’s coveted global stage, while others have even insinuated the band did some backdoor dealing, paying to perform at the festival.
You donât have to be a detective to deduce that the sneering and speculation are steeped in old-school sexism, conservatism, and stale ideas about rock music as a playground solely for boys (and Satan-worshipping ones, at that).
As for the rumours that Voice of Baceprot paid to play at the festival, Wacken Open Air put those firmly to rest in a statement to NME: âA member of a booking team saw a report on them on TV, we got to know the girlsâ agent for Europe and decided to offer them a slot at our festival. Needless to say, weâre really looking forward to their show at W:O:A 2022!â
âTo slander is easier than to create, which is why it is not surprising to see many choosing to sneer and mock insteadâ
Indonesia has had its fair share of female rockers, but not many are currently active on a mainstream level â certainly not ones who headbang while wearing religious headscarves. Voice of Baceprot have become lightning rods in this landscape, and theyâve heard it all.
âTo slander is easier than to create, which is why it is not surprising to see many choosing to sneer and mock instead,â says Firddaâ Marsyaâ Kurnia, the bandâs lead singer and guitarist. Even some of their parents were confused by their âhobbyâ early on, she adds. Fortunately, they have since begun supporting Voice of Baceprot â rounded out by bassist Widi Rahmawati and drummer Euis âSittiâ Aisyah â after seeing how serious they are and after the band were booked for music festivals around West Java.
Voice of Baceprot will fire back at their detractors on their next single. Titled âGod, Allow Me (Please) to Play Musicâ, it directly confronts those still refuse to view women as equal to men. According to Marsya, it deals with the âsuppression of womenâ and âour common designation as objects and second-rate human beingsâ.
Itâs a defensive song, she admits, but one that needed to be written and sung.
Marsya doesnât say whether the prayer in the title is literal: if the band feel the need to ask permission from God to rock out. Still, she clarifies that Voice of Baceprot â all of them devout, but progressive-minded â will not tolerate being misjudged and derided for their faith.
âMaybe if we were not women, we would not feel the need to occupy ourselves with writing a song asking for permission from God to play music freely. If we were not women, maybe people will not say that we are an embarrassment to our religion because we were selected to perform at a huge metal festival that they deem a Satanic music festival,â Marsya says, visibly upset but still determined to prove naysayers wrong.
âWe were just a bit saddened when we realised that even a work of art could be categorized based on gender.â
Voice of Baceprot arenât naive: they know that as three Muslim women, wearing headscarves and playing metal music, they make strong talking points. But theyâre eager to prove themselves with their music and their socially conscious lyrics.
On their first single âSchool Revolutionâ, they sing about feeling imprisoned by the limiting studies at school, unable to express their passions. The lyrics mix Indonesian and English, with metaphors of school as a âprisonâ and an English verse in which Marsya sings: âAnd my soul is empty / And my dream was dying / My soul fall in the dark side / And I lose my lifeâ. Itâs dramatic lyricism, but âwe tried to bring forward themes that are closer to home,â Marsya says.
As the upcoming single and Wacken Open Air booking signal, Voice of Baceprot are ready to make big moves. Last year, the band moved from Garut to Jakarta, the countryâs capital and its entertainment centre, primarily to be close to their new management. They are also releasing a series of tracks from the live EP âThe Other Side Of Metalismâ. Two weeks ago, they kicked things off with a cover of One Minute Silenceâs âI Wear My Skinâ, and followed it up last Tuesday with a cover of Rage Against The Machineâs âTestifyâ. The band have shared several covers on YouTube, but âThe Other Side Of Metalismâ is getting a release on streaming services, as well.
Voice of Baceprot have also begun taking lessons with established Indonesian musicians, including guitarist Stevie Item from metal band Deadsquad and Indonesian bass legend Barry Likumahuwa. The trio are eager to expand their repertoire beyond hip-hop-infused groove metal.
âEarly on, we were influenced by bands like System of a Down, Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Linkin Park,â says Sitti, âbut on our new songs, weâd like to explore other influences that we’ve never tried before.â
Voice of Baceprotâs mentors teach the trio how to better their technical skills and onstage presence â but also how to promote themselves, especially on social media. Social media was, of course, how the band first shot to fame. In their early days, their live performance videos spread widely on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram â at first within Indonesia, and then beyond. Last year, Tom Morello retweeted a video of Voice of Baceprot performing Rageâs âGuerrilla Radioâ, which he pronounced âROCKINGâ, while enthusiastic supporter Flea has tweeted that he is âso down with Voice of Baceprotâ.
âWe are honored and overjoyed that our voice could be heard by these famous musicians who also happen to be our idols,â Widi says. Voice of Baceprot know, she adds, that they âhave been given this massive opportunity for our music to be heard not just by locals but also by people abroadâ.
And as for all the metalheads clamouring for a collaboration, Voice of Baceprot donât currently have any concrete plans to further their relationship with those rock stars, but Sitti says itâs something they hope can happen one day.
Thereâs still over a year before Voice of Baceprot take the stage at Wacken Open Air. In the meantime, the trio will hone their skills and channel their anger at sexist, conservative haters into their music.
âSexism is firmly entrenched in this matter because most of these detractors are either ignorant or do not know how sexist their remarks are,â Sitti declares. âBut weâve chosen to relax, pay no heed to them, and keep on making music.â
Voice of Baceprot are releasing songs from âThe Other Side of Metalismâ EP every Tuesday, with the full EP out in early August