Extreme metal in Brunei has remained an underground form of art. Given the country's stringent religious regulations on all things deemed as harmful to spiritual and moral well being of an individual, metal does not escape from being targeted by authority. Although the fact remains that metal has long seen its proliferation in this remote nation post independence, there has never been any act playing metal in its most revolting form other than Senjakala. Even the latter only made their debut at the gates of millennium where most Bruneians felt that local music industry literally sucked to the core. Shortly thereafter, Senjakala disbanded with members leaving the moniker to form different project; Amir, the original drummer of Senjakala joined Ouija which later changed name to Seraphim, its former guitarist by the name Yus decided to form a post thrash metal project by the name Reverance [sic], hiring vocalist from Singapore and recruiting former Senjakala drummer Adi (of Wan Long Kok fame) to lend a helping hand. The rest of the band, Jaz, Mawie, Sam and Adi pursued their musical career as Karacoma who finally released their debut album 'Shattered Mirrors' on July 2010.
Some of the bands mentioned above have earned themselves quite a distinctive fan base and following although the numbers may be considerably limited but people are quick to associate commercial rock / metal with Karacoma. However, beneath the glitters and away from the spotlight, a number of bands quickly gained notoriety among those who prefer to revel in something other than the superficial. The underground metal scene in Brunei has more to offer than meets the eye. One of these bands called themselves as Sahujja'Achra; a melodic death / doom metal band whose member includes Aslan (of NoirAtasya, Singhasari, and Anarni fame) and Amilin (formerly a member of kvlt black metal band Funerality). The band early manifestation however does not immediately recruit Aslan into the regiment. It is not until sometime in 2006 that he would eventually join Sahujja'Achra as studio drummer. In 2003, the band unleashed a two - track demo CD entitled 'Reflect and Belief' that has been pressed onto black CD-R and bound in paper sleeve. A session guitarist of Sahujja'Achra once told me that at least one of the two songs presented on the demo bear eerie resemblance to a song recorded by another metal band from the other part of this world. I have confirmed this allegation as true quite a few years back when he played both songs one after another. Could this have been a plagiarism? Or simply a collision of creativity that seems arbitrary? Whatever the answers maybe, this demo reflects what they do believe about their music. A hint of avant - garde element is thriving healthily on this demo and one can surely notice which direction the band in heading.
Tracklist:
1. The Wind 5:47
2. I'm Shadow 5:46
Total time: 11:33
Available with high resolution, 600dpi .tiff image scans
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