“Support Our Local Acts!” is actually a 2 CD set compilation album featuring 20 of the finest bands coming from Malaysia’s local indie music scene. Even though few of the bands featured are more mainstream these days, you can’t denied their indie roots.

The compilation is a joint venture between Malaya Records and Universal Music, with bands like, ACAB, OAG, The Pilgrims, Butterfingers, Project AK, They Will Kill Us All, Komplot, The Suspect, Koffin Kanser, Gerhana Ska Cinta, FlopPoppy, Hujan, Couple and many more. It is a good mix of different genre in Malaysia local music scene and ranges between old and the new upcoming bands.

There is an interesting write up on the album CD sleeve. Yes I buy original CDs, supporting our local acts. The write up, in Malay, by Aidil of the Couple, tells the once unwritten history of the local indie / underground music scene. It brings back memories.

My experience in discovering music starts around the 90s. A time when 28.8Kbps internet dial-up modem was considered bearable. The idea of trading music (mp3s) online seems far-fatched. MySapce, YouTube and blogs are unheard of, apart from some animated-GIFs infected Geocities and Angelfire web page.

This is the era when we trade fanzines, shared international music magazines and exchange mix tapes, just to get by. The analog age.

The first mix tape I got from a friend of mine is a collection of Nirvana tracks. This is when it all begin for me. Although Nirvana can hardly be called ‘indie’ right now but back then it offered something different from whatever that is on our local radio stations. The first cassette album I bought was a Nirvana album, Nevermind. Played it repeatedly on my Sanyo walkman, can’t afford a Sony at that time.

Just when I started getting into the band Nirvana, I found out that their lead man, Kurt Cobain had just killed himself. My collection of music then grows from bands like Marcy Playground to Stone Temple Pilots.

One day I stumble upon a mix tape with bands that sounds just like those bands that I like. To my surprise they are all local, Malaysian band. This was my introduction to the local indie music scene. Butterfingers, Infectious Maggots, Dead Mushrooms are a few of the band on my radar at that time.

For a couple of years this was the scene, at least for me. Then came the digital age, the era of high speed internet access. IRC is where we talk and exchange mp3s, DCCing all the way. Next along came Napster and it change the way how I discover new music.

Napster is not a pirating tool as how the music industry label it to be. Not only you could search millions of music file on music fan’s computers worldwide, you can even interacted with them. Chat and make friends while you search their hard disk and download tracks from them. This is where I discover new music.

Although they, the evil corporate America, manage to shut down Napster, the Internet still is the place to find new music. MySpace, as much as I despised their design practice, has been the ‘it’ place for musicians to get notice. People are also getting notice through YouTube. Things will only get better as more advance technology is put into the hands of passionate people.

I never had any strong opinion with indie versus mainstream music. Good music is just good music, either it was manufactured by recording companies in some high tech recording studio or just something someone jamming in their garage.

I plan to write on this more, this is nothing but a short introduction. Getting back to the topic, here are some songs featured in ‘Support Our Local Acts!’.

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OAG – 60′s TV

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A.C.A.B – Unfairground

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The Suspects – Kami Yang Disyak

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Couple – Tentang Kita

Four tracks from four different bands. Each with their own style.

If you are an indie band, send me you stuff.