Sounds & Sights of Silva - Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu, and Lots and Lots of Teh Tarik
Earlier this Spring, I was able to get away for a bit and spend a week in Malaysia, first in the city of Kuala Lumpur, then on the beaches of Kota Kinabalu.
Situated between Thailand and Singapore and with a colonial legacy of its own, Malaysia is a very diverse place. (My fellow American students maybe remember the significance of the Malaccan Strait from World History class.) No two streets or markets are the same and seemingly everyone can find a place of their own somewhere in the expansive city of Kuala Lumpur. This diversity, more than in any other aspect, is reflected in the food.
The flavors rush in from all different angles – needless to say, the dishes we tried ticked so many different boxes, as we devoured the sweet and savory and spicy flavor profiles of Malaysian cuisine. Whether it was the nasi lemak we enjoyed with several Malaysian music friends, or the morning bowl of laksa noodle soup before island-hopping, or the absolutely necessary stop for Black Thorn durian, or one of the many many cups of teh tarik, everything was satisfying in its own flavorful way.
A highlight of the trip, as is my tradition wherever I travel, was visiting a local record shop. This was one of the more unique locations however – we parked in the basement garage of a local wet market, then meandered our way up stairs, past locals selling their meats and vegetables. Eventually we located the storefront of Sputnik Rekordz plastered with artist posters and band stickers – the sign that we reached our destination.
The shop was a trove for deep cut Malay music, whether the songstresses of days past or more modern artists pushing the boundaries of what is actually a very long and robust history of Southeast Asian rock. Thankfully I had my friend Jin, a concert promoter based in Kuala Lumpur, as a guide to the region’s music history to help guide me to the releases closer to my taste. The owner was also patient as I requested “old-school, foundational rock and roll” Malaysian bands and proceeded to flick through tapes and 45s for the better part of an hour.
Malaysia actually shares a large island territory with both Indonesia and Brunei known by many as Borneo; but our next few days were spent in Malay territory in the coastal city of Kota Kinabalu, both on the mainland beaches and on the many islands just off the coast.
I witnessed the sunset almost every day on this trip, each from a different vantage point. The days usually pass quickly when I travel, but the sunset slowed everything down. I became absorbed in the golden hue and watched the half hour descent of the sun dipping into the ocean’s horizon.
It’s a feeling of completeness to set with the sun, guaranteeing with my own eyes that the day is done and feeling solace in the guarantee that the sun will rise again in just a few hours time, then it’s off to the next adventure.
Commemorate
Commemorate, a brand new Malaysian band, released their debut album during our trip to Kuala Lumpur and it’s a really refreshing blend of shoegaze and post rock written by a mixed group of newcomers and scene veterans. It’s an impressive start and hopefully a sign of more adventurous music coming from the indie scene in Malaysia.
Piri Reis
At a show in Guangzhou, China last week, I saw a young emo fan wearing a band t-shirt with the name “Piri Reis”. It might be unusual to see this in the wild, considering I was in a completely different region, but Piri Reis is one of the more legendary hardcore/screamo bands from Malaysia and the band had just visited mainland China for a string of well-attended concerts recently. Clearly they have international appeal as they’ll be headed to North America for a festival appearance this year.
hawa
Another young band, hawa came across the radar as the local opener for Grrrls to the Front!, a pop punk-adjacent music festival in Kuala Lumpur earlier this Spring. Among the likes of scene veterans Sobs, YONLAPA, and Grrrl Gang, hawa holds their own and adds to a really confident tapestry of bands making noise in Asian indie rock right now. With the understated fierceness of an Angel Olsen but the moody indie rock instrumentals, hawa have definitely made a big impression with their first singles.
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[Zach 2025 Travel Log #8]