Aksara Records was a

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

-based

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...

concentrated on

indie music Independent music (also commonly known as indie music, or simply indie) is a broad style of music characterized by creative freedoms, low-budgets, and a do-it-yourself approach to music creation, which originated from the liberties afforded by in ...

, founded in 2004 by Hanindhito Siddharta and David Tarigan. The variety of music carried by artists under the Aksara Records label is centered on music such as genres that are rarely known in Indonesia, such as

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

, and

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...

. Its logo was a cartooned crow holding a beamed notes in its mouth. The label name came from Indonesian word "aksara" which in English means "

alphabet An alphabet is a standard set of letter (alphabet), letters written to represent particular sounds in a spoken language. Specifically, letters largely correspond to phonemes as the smallest sound segments that can distinguish one word from a ...

". In early 2009, a few days after Aksara Records released Efek Rumah Kaca's second album Kamar Gelap, Aksara Records experienced financial problems until finally, the company stopped operating in December 2009. All the remaining masters in the label were given to the artists. Aksara Records is one of the largest independent music label in Indonesia. One of the co-owners of Aksara Records, opened another independent label called Raksasa Records.

Background

According to

The Jakarta Post ''The Jakarta Post'' is a daily English-language newspaper in Indonesia. The paper is owned by PT Bina Media Tenggara and based in the nation's capital, Jakarta. ''The Jakarta Post'' started as a collaboration between four Indonesian media ...

after an interview with David Tarigan, Aksara Records started with its efforts to document the development of indie music in Jakarta. From here this record label developed so that now it has established relationships with many local and foreign artists. Aksara Records' first release was the compilation album JKT: SKRG in 2004 which featured 12 indie music groups from Jakarta, such as

Sore Sore may refer to: * Ulcer (dermatology), a sore on the skin or a mucous membrane * Sore, a mild pain or ache * ''Sore'' (album), by Buzzov*en * Sore (band), an Indonesian rock band * Sore, Landes, a village in the Landes département of France * ...

, C'mon Lennon, The Upstairs. The album eventually began distribution in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

where grunge music was very popular, and was also broadcast on several university radio stations there. The album then began to penetrate indie record stores in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, where Aksara Records has established its own indie music distribution network. The company's first achievement came when Tarigan was asked by

Nia Dinata Nurkurniati Aisyah Dewi (born 4 March 1970 in Jakarta, Indonesia), better known as Nia Dinata, is an Indonesian film director. Her movies are known for tackling subjects controversial or "risky" in Indonesia such as homosexuality, migrant workers ...

, producer of the film Janji Joni to compose the theme song for the teen comedy movie. With the publicity that followed the film Janji Joni, the album eventually became a smash hit. According to Tarigan, the success of the theme song Janji Joni is also an indication that materially, independent record labels like Aksara can compete with bigger record labels.

Artists

* The Adams * Ardhito Pramono * Bilal Indrajaya * The Brandals * Efek Rumah Kaca * Goodnight Electric * Meda Kawu *

* Stereomantic * Superglad * Tika & The Dissident * Velo Band * VOX * White Shoes & The Couples Company

External links

Official site

Aksara Records on MySpace

References

{{Authority control Indie pop record labels Rock record labels Pop record labels Indonesian independent record labels Record labels established in 2004 Record labels disestablished in 2009 2004 establishments in Indonesia 2009 establishments in Indonesia

Background

Artists

See also

External links

References