Timeline

Suarasama, which means ‘one voice’, is a small ensemble of musicians and ethnomusicologists from North Sumatra. Formed in 1995 by composer and strings expert Irwansyah Harahap and singer Rianthony Hutajulu, the ensemble fuses North Sumatran folk music with Malay, Arabic, African, Indian and some Western music into soundscapes that feature Harahap's amazing chops on the oud, guitar, gambus, mandolin and his self-built saz-guitar, and his almost scat-like rhythmic vocals with Hutajulu. The band's 1998 release – Fajar di Atas Awan – brought international fame, and a rerelease on Drag City in 2008. In 2013, the band released Timeline, which has since become something of a cult recording in Indonesia and with fans of Indonesian music. The album has its trancelike moments, but the best tracks have a Malay/Arabic groove, as on the opening track, ‘Untukmu Yang Berperang’ (To the Wars), and the epic ‘Journey’, which features the saz-guitar.

This new vinyl reissue is a fitting tribute to Irwansyah Harahap's life and work – the musician died in 2021, aged 60.