Written by Amal Murni
For this week’s spotlight, we are introducing to you a Bruneian dream pop and shoegaze band, Surf Vampires. The band started off as a hobby studio band that the multi-instrumentalist and founding member created when he was 19. Now, Surf Vampires is a four-piece band consisting of Adrian, Niyaz, Daniel and Akram.
In a span of 3 years, Surf Vampires made a total of 3 EPs, 1 Single and 1 Album. Their first EP ‘Lush’ consisted of 4 tracks that to this day people still listen to, such as ‘If So’ and ‘Helena.’ The second EP ‘Cohabitation’ was released in June 8th 2016 bearing 7 tracks that received an estimation of 30 international supporters on Bandcamp. ‘Absolutely Nothing’ was a 5 tracked EP released in August of the same year that has 16 supporters on Bandcamp and a euphoric element that can easily be played on road-trips or the beachside. Additionally, ‘Summer Heart’ is such a notable anthem for Surf Vampires’ audience. Lastly, the multi-instrumentalist mastermind of the band successfully combined, recorded, remastered and produced their first 13 track album, ‘Girls, Cats, Grass and Other Stories’ on January 1st 2018 with the prominence of 14 supporters on the album on Bandcamp and the locals as well.
We have reached out to the man behind the shoegaze band with questions that avid listeners and perhaps, future listeners would want to know more about their music and the band itself.
How did Surf Vampires happen or came to be?
Surf Vampires at first was just a hobby studio band thing I made when I was 19 years old. At the time, a lot of people were doing music performances and signing in to local labels and I thought I wanted to be a part of that just for the sake of being inclusive.
But I was anxious to tell my friends (who are now my band mates) to perform dream pop stuff because we doubt we’ll ever be popular in Brunei. So we sent our first EP to a major Bruneian radio station which didn’t garner a favourable reception but we got positive stuff coming from international blogs and indie circles so we decided to just go with it. And at that point we completely ignored our local music platforms.
Why 'Surf Vampires'? Does it have to do with the Vampire Weekend-era and surf rock?
I wanted something to sound like Beach Fossils. So I just took the name Surf and combined it with Vampires, because we thought it was kind of funny to see a Pontianak (vampire in Malay) surfing at the beach. It was goofy, but it got stuck.
Who are your inspirations and do you aim to sound more like them or create your own?
Initially bands like Hibou and DIIV. Then guys like Wild Nothing and Craft Spells came in, which led me to discover post-punk and twee pop bands like the Wake, New Order, Field Mice, Northern Picture Library, Cleaners from Venus and Cocteau Twins. Chillwave folks like Washed Out also encouraged me to put in more synthesizers and pads inside the mixes.
But My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive are always big influences for me because they create such a lush wall of sound in their recordings without getting too overwhelming.
But as far as sound is concerned, I just compile all these things together and just try to make something which was still accessible to people.
What are the common misconceptions of Surf Vampires?
Someone’s mom thought that Lush was porn because of the half-naked lady on the cover.
How long has it been and how many albums or EPs have you accumulated?
3 years. 3 EPs, 1 Single, 1 album and one upcoming sophomore album.
What would you like to tell our readers about the "hidden gems" or quirks of the band?
We're geeks and introverts. We love video games, Monster Hunter, anime and Japanese pop culture. We’re also big car enthusiasts.
Will there be any gigs from the band in the near future?
Definitely not in Brunei (lol). But as far as gigs are concerned, we can’t really give a straight answer.
When will your next album be released and would you like to talk briefly about it?
It’ll be on May 2019. A lot of influences coming from Japanese artists such as Anri, Toshiki Kodamatsu, Hiroshi Sato and Tatsuro Yamashita. The Bilinda Butchers is also a big influence in the overall aesthetic of the release.
Where do you see yourself in a year?
Hopefully we can do more live stuff and go to shoegaze festivals around Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.
How can the music scene in Brunei grow and expand? You are free to give any advices/ two cents.
You do you.
More on Surf Vampires:
Bandcamp:
Soundcloud:
YouTube:
Instagram: @surfvampires
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