Kekal

    Kekal

    Jakarta, Indonesia15 reviews across 5 releases

    ambientblack metaldeath metalprogressive metal
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    Kekal is an Indonesian extreme-metal band formed in Jakarta in 1995. Its early music placed black metal at the center of a broader mixture, with thrash and classic-metal riffing, shifting tempos, harsh rasps, death growls, clean singing, and occasional female vocals. The 1998 debut Beyond The Glimpse Of Dreams used a programmed drum machine, yet its blast beats and atmospheric keyboards supported songs that could move from violent intensity to piano-led passages and worshipful melodies. English Christian lyrics addressed spiritual conflict alongside the band's heavy sound. By The Painful Experience, released in the archive's 2002 discography, Kekal had added more progressive writing, industrial textures, melodic passages, and an unusually wide range of vocal approaches. 1000 Thoughts Of Violence pushed further, placing breakbeats and a hip-hop rhythm inside its black-metal framework.

    Leo Setiawan left before The Painful Experience was recorded, and by 2002 Kekal had been reduced to Jeff Arwadi and Azhar Levi Sianturi. The duo completed 1000 Thoughts Of Violence in 2003, after which Kekal played a short European tour in 2004. Setiawan returned for the recording of Acidity in 2005, while the band moved further toward progressive and experimental music; live activity then ended. Arwadi relocated to Canada, and on August 12, 2009, he and the remaining members announced their departure from the group. Kekal continued as a band without official members, with former members contributing to later recordings. It released 8 in 2010, followed by further studio work under the Kekal name, including Envisaged in 2022.

    5 releases reviewed