'aLi @ No Black Tie - 10th Annivesary

Listen ...

by RADIN SRI GHAZALI
He has created some of the finest entertainers in the country and has rapped those in the business without fear or favour. Music guru Roslan Aziz speaks to RADIN SRI GHAZALI about the current state of affairs in the industry and his band, aLi.

HE drives a Kancil and dresses in faded T-shirts and
baggy jeans.

He is music guru Roslan Aziz, hailed by many as the maker of music icons, including Sheila Majid, Zainal Abidin, Amir Yussuf, Prema Lucas and Afdlin Shauki.

“I am a simple man. I do not splurge on unnecessary things such as fancy cars. I do not even have credit cards,” said the 47-year-old composer with a laugh.

Where does the money go? “Here,” he said pointing out his studio, situated near Bangsar.
“I spent most of my time and all of my earnings on RAP (Roslan Aziz Productions). I invested a lot on the studio’s development and on taking care of the artistes who are signed under us,” he said.

Established in 1988, RAP has made a mark in the Malaysian music industry by producing timeless albums including Ratu, Gamal, Ikhlas and Hijau.

“I believe in grooming the artistes to achieve the best. When there is potential, I will take them and develop them. It is not an easy thing to do. You have to spend thousands of ringgit on them for training, album productions and more,” he said.

“Now, most people are too caught up in popularising their artistes rather than grooming them to be better entertainers,” he said.

As a composer and music producer, Roslan is no stranger to awards for his outstanding contribution to the music industry.

He won the Best Album award for Gamal at AIM in 1995, Best Album for Ratu at AIM (1996), Best Album for Emosi at BASF Awards, Indonesia in 1987, and Most Promising Producer at the Music Producers Awards in the United States in 2002.

When asked the five most listened-to albums, Roslan immediately said: “Hijau, Ratu, Ali, Gamal and M. Nasir’s Solo. Obviously most of the albums were made by me.”

After 25 years of being behind the scenes, Roslan finally is taking the limelight as one-half of the band, aLi.

“I am doing it for self satisfaction and of course, nak cari makan,” he said referring to the musical partnership with fellow rap artiste, Mukhlis Nor.

“aLi is different. aLi represents our interpretation of what music is about. It has its own appeal to the masses,” he explained.

aLi-The Album consists of Nonterro, Benar, Bebas, Mata Hari and Merong, written and composed by the duo.

The album was launched digitally on Aug 8 after being postponed for three months.

“We want to see the response on our digital sales before releasing it in the physical format. It is a great way to introduce the album to the people,” he said, adding that the digital release is in support of Universal Music’s website for digital downloading called Music Myne. The website will be officially launched at the end of the year.

“Even if there are only 200 people buying it, I would still be happy. It shows that there are people out there who listen to us,” he said.

However, the mainstream radio stations have not been giving the much-needed support to aLi.

“We have distributed the album to several radio stations including the big ones. They have yet to play our songs,” he said.

As for the future, both Roslan and Mukhlis have big plans for the band.

“I want to bring back the good old days of RAP where we travelled around the globe. I want to bring aLi to that level of success and we are ready for a tour.” Roslan plans to hold aLi’s album launch in Singapore later this year.

“The launch is a gift for our fans there,” he said.

Roslan also expressed his dismay at the current scenario of the local entertainment scene.

“We need to be more musically literate. Singers and artistes should pursue higher education. Most of the younger generation of artistes are too ignorant and they will have trouble sustaining themselves in the industry,” he said.

Roslan also hopes that the media will give the right coverage to the deserving artistes.

“There are a lot of singers and artistes who are doing more than the mainstream. Look at Laguna Records, Butterfingers, Love Me Butch and Sasi The Don who have braved their way through the industry with their hard work,” he stressed.

“We have a lot of talents here, but there is not much coverage on them. It is time to change that mentality,” he said.

“Only then, readers and fans will be able to see the real musicians and singers who are producing the goods,” he said.

A curious mind would wonder what inspires a music genius like Roslan to create countless hits including Lagenda, Gemilang, Wanita, Sinaran and more.

“Honestly, my kids inspire me. I would be paralysed without them,” said the father of five.

And when asked what life would be without music, he said: “According to my mother, music has been in me ever since I was born. I can’t imagine my life not making music.”

Lohan spoke to Mukhlis Nor

1. What is the big picture for aLi and what are the long term plans like? Continue to make what we make for a long time to come hopefully.. finish the second album and work on the following soon after. We reckon we will be doing this all our lives in some form or other, who knows where aLi will take us in the future. With passion and excitement as the driving force we figure can go on forever.

2. What is the common bond that holds you guys together as a working unit? Music. We share ideals, philosophy and principles in finding solutions to our equations. Equilibrium of the sciences and arts. Creative processes not bound by convention. So we can continue to reinterpret and redefine the work we do.

3. How did this collaboration begin? What continued for us as a routine day to day exercise of songwriting and music producing "took a turn for the purse". Our collaboration has gone through at least 4 or 5 incarnations over the last 22 years. Same approach, different concept each time.

4. What does this collection of songs represent? Unity. Faith and Relationships (So as to be optimistic). It's actually mostly about sex and politics but don't tell anyone this. We always love versatility and modern styling, where they're deep-rooted in traditions yet sophisticated. A narrative rich in moral values and judgments not unlike what we as humans make, keep and adhere by everyday.

5. How do you hope the listening audience would view this? As the farthest visible point to date. We get very serious when we prepare our presentations. Therefore we stretch and compress our resources limitlessly. Most often we come up with the most brilliant templates, master plans and blueprints for the strong and faint-hearted alike.

BEBAS

"...Search out sustenance.
It is guaranteed to one who looks for it..."

Taman Lestari

Ladang angin di segenap pelusuk benua dan laut lepas maju berdiri tegap bagai prajurit
Beratur membarisi perbatasan setaat tenaga, sepadu daya menjana nur sejuta umat
Murni dan hampa kesan, sepele perselisihan gas karbon dan bahan bakar fosil
Sisa mikro radioaktif dilupus sel-sel pintar loji suria pesisiran pantai
Mengitar semula timbunan sampah harian warta, bukan cerita
Berkepercayaan yang sesuai rahasia, bukannya alasan dusta
Yakin lancar bersuara - yang fasih petah berpemikiran
Berbahagi matlamat bak cendikiawan merdeka
Menghalusi stokastik - meneliti suffrage
Mahir berpengetahuan sahih
Tiada bayangan keganasan putih
Sesiapapun diberi hak tanpa berselindung
Tauladan mulia memimpin alam semesta
Menimba seri ilmu di telaga sejagat
Persis ukuran pasifis manusiawi
Sajak suatu pendorong
Keujudan pasca
Malapetaka

Wind Turbines

Bebas ("The Album" Version)

Ku duga jadi begini
Bila kau tiada di samping ku
Kedinginan di hati yang selalu merindui mu
Kini dakapan mu ku rindu

Kau yang telah lama aku nanti
Kesabaran ku direstui mu
Tapi pertemuan yang sementara ini
Hanya menduga hati ku

Semalam ku termimpi diri mu di sini
Terjaga ku seorang diri kini
Lama ku menanti diri mu selama... selama ini

Ku bebas di awan dapat diungkap
Kau di lautan melayar jauh
Di kala ku selam masih bebas ku rasakan dari mu
Bersamalah semula

Doa mengiringi mu bersama
Setelah jatuh kepada diri
Cuma harapan semoga masanya hampir
Dikau kembali

Semalam ku termimpi diri mu di sini
Terjaga ku seorang diri kini
Lama ku menanti diri mu selama... selama ini

Ku bebas di awan dapat diungkap
Kau di lautan melayar jauh
Di kala ku selam masih bebas ku rasakan dari mu
Bersamalah semula

Ku bebas di awan dapat diungkap
Kau yang di lautan melayar jauh
Di kala ku selam masih bebas ku rasakan
Ia bebas curahan dari mu
Bersamalah semula

Song and Lyrics by Mukhlis Nor


Adhicipta (M) Sdn Bhd. Semua Hakcipta Terpelihara.
Artwork/XHTML © 2008 Troka Estate. [All Rights Reserved]

leon bernstein...

"...original & great, ...proof that no matter in what language, great MUSIC, will always come through."

....leon bernstein.....independent music journalist, New York

08-08-08

'aLi
Inaugural aLbum
RELEASE NATIONWIDE
08-08-08
AVAILABLE ONLINE
WORLDWIDE
produced and mixed by roslan aziz
all songs written by mukhlis nor

presented by
roslan aziz productions

&
universal music malaysia

Roslan Aziz Productions is a trademark owned by
Adhicipta (M) Sdn Bhd. (Semua Hakcipta Terpelihara)
All Copyright Recordings/Artwork/XHTML © 2008 Troka Estate.
[All Rights Reserved]

RELEASED 08-08-08

Creative quest

By N. RAMA LOHAN

Roslan Aziz has completed, much to his joy and satisfaction, a musical project of his own.CONTRARY to popular belief, Roslan Aziz isn’t just some opinionated dude in a bunch of talent-based reality shows. Neither is he the local equivalent of American Idol judge RandyJackson. Sure, he shares record production credits like the African-American but Roslan has way more going than meets the eye.He could roll out a lengthy résumé but Roslan has, through the years, remained a class act in the Malaysian music industry and prefers to let his work do the talking. Following critically-acclaimed productions for Street Lights,Sheila Majid and Zainal Abidin, right down to Datuk Siti Nurhaliza more recently, the home-grown talent has remained ahead of the competition in the music scene.His latest endeavour, aLi, is scarcely a surprise. Record producers, such as Alan Parsons and Pharrell Williams (of The Neptunes’ fame), have been known to embark on musical projects of their own, and Roslan has embarked on the same path.The forces behind aLi are Roslan and his long-time collaborator Mukhlis Nor, a songwriter who’s remained the “silent” driving force behind Sheila Majid and Zainal Abidin’s successes.“There are two versions of the album ... a more concise variant of about 42 minutes and the full 72-minute version, which we plan to market via the Internet. The longer version will feature quite a few extras ... the songs are also extended versions. For the shorter version, listeners still get the whole album, just minus two songs.”

The album, titled aLi, for the normal release and The Box for the expanded version, features a musical potpourri of slick rhythm and blues, as well as jazz and pop vibes.Music listening, as an experience, isn’t what it used to be anymore. In the digital age, music is now simply downloaded for a fee (or illegally, in many cases) from host sites and a large number of listeners enjoy their music via the computer. Thus, aLi is logically cashing in on this technological advancement.“The music will be available as downloads . This is definitely the future for marketing music . After that, we plan to release the cds, following which the expanded edition will be made available,” enthuses Roslan. The expanded edition will feature more literature and even a souvenir programme.As an added bonus, listeners can log onto aLi’s recording sessions on Pro Tools (recording software) and mix the songs to their own liking. “We’re thinking of having a competition for this where we gauge the quality of the mixes that are submitted to us, but concrete plans for this have not been finalised. Basically, we’d really like to develop our website for networking.”The album took a year or so to be completed, teething issues notwithstanding. “If you factor in the composition process, songwriting and getting into shape, it all took about two years. We had started recording in 2005 but my involvement with the musicals , Puteri Gunung Ledang and P Ramlee set us back a bit, Akademi Fantasia also kept me busy and also the Haru Biru soundtrack. But the actual production process took about a year.”It’s Roslan’s philosophy that there’s unity in diversity, which is what gives him faith in the varying tastes of the Malaysian public. “I have a lot of Chinese and Indian friends. My brothers are Chinese and Indians. That’s why we consciously wanted to make sure this wasn’t a Malay album, by Malays for Malays. There are no racial boundaries at all, and please, no religion, either. Honestly, the opportunity to make this album is a dream come true for us.”Roslan is realistic about this music catering to a more niche. “I always think about how people will view this. I would love for people to listen to it and like it, of course. This is a producer’s album,naturally,aesthetics won’t be much of an issue.. I can assure you there’ll be a second, third and fourth.”

After toiling in the studio for years for the benefit of other artistes, it was only natural that Roslan directed his creative talents into a product, and while it may have taken awhile, the results obviously seem worth it. Not only am I happy with this release, but I’m also relieved, because if I were to die tomorrow, I’d peacefully ... at least I have left something behind for our children.”

08-08-08

'aLi
Debut aLbum

RELEASE NATIONWIDE
08-08-08

AVAILABLE ONLINE
WORLDWIDE

produced and mixed by roslan aziz
all songs written by mukhlis nor

presented by
roslan aziz productions
&
universal music malaysia

Roslan Aziz Productions is a trademark owned by
Adhicipta (M) Sdn Bhd. (Semua Hakcipta Terpelihara)
All Copyright Recordings/Artwork/XHTML © 2008 Troka Estate.
[All Rights Reserved]

Nonterro

Mengupas Syair: "Nonterro" seperti yang dipersembahkan oleh 'aLi.

Profile: Anwar Ibrahim

Anwar Ibrahim is well aware of the perils and pitfalls of Malaysian political life.

Once tipped for the country's highest office, he fell out with top leaders and was beaten, jailed and disgraced. bbc.co.uk

"...Often a mighty man is the humblest of creatures and a humble man is the mightiest of creatures..."

Ike

Nonterro (New Radio Edit)

Menggelar nonterro
Gua kira menggelar nonterro
Sesaja gua tak perdaya
Betul-betul macam cerita hero
Gua jajah gagah bermaya

Gua kira menggelar nonterro
Hiburan bila serasa
Caranya kuasai menjaya
Berhabisan, mana ada sisa?

Hey, gua menggelar nonterro
Semuanya gualah penjagal
Bila lu berhajat mencari
Silalah lu menolak gagal
Nonterro!

Inilah anugerah puas gua merasanya
Apalah ijazah?
Tipu menipu merbahaya
Apa pun terjadi gua tanya siapa pun berani
Selama ini gua pun mana ada membayang bersusah-payah perasannya

Itulah...

Ey, gua kira menggelar nonterro
Sesaja gua tak perdaya
Betul-betul macam cerita hero
Gua jajah gagah sekadar di maya
Pertaruhan menjadikan gua selera
Hiburan serasa

Terjadi penawar, puasnya gua dari bahagia
Penawar sakti bergilir meresap di dalam kebosanan
Adapun kalau gua merasakan hanya gembira

Itulah gua kira menggelar nonterro
Hiburan bila serasa
Caranya kuasai menjaya
Berhabisan, mana ada sisa?

Hey, gua menggelar nonterro
Semuanya gualah penjagal
Bila lu berhajat mencari
Silalah lu menolak gagal
Nonterro!

Hanyalah pengaruh puas gua merasa bahagia
Sedia lu jadi berceria dan mengatakan gembira
Carilah ubatnya selalu gua merasa sentuhan
Mainan melayan sejati pabila kejemuan
Betul-betul nonterro... nonterro!

Gua rasa confident dia orang yang gementaran, gelisah
Selama ini jadilah pedoman
Hidup gua yang selalunya bersenda

Itulah...

Jalan apa ada?
Dengan mudah saja kenalah lu nonterro
Lubang apa ada?
Gua tahu saja di mana
Tanya siapa yang hero?
Jalan apa ada?
Dengan mudah saja kenalah lu nonterro

Nonterro! itulah... gua kira gua hero macam McGyver

Lubang apa ada?
Gua tahu saja di mana
Tanya siapa yang hero?

Macam Sean Connery

lagu Roslan Aziz
Liriks Mukhlis Nor

Adhicipta (M) Sdn Bhd. Semua Hakcipta Terpelihara. Artwork/XHTML © 2008 Troka Estate. [All Rights Reserved]

Sebalik Lagu Haring yang Nyaring - aLi !

IKAN HARING

Umur: 37 hingga 54 juta tahun
Lokasi: Kemmerer, Wyoming
Formasi: Sungai Hijau
Zaman: Eosen

Ikan-ikan haring dari masa 54 hingga 73 juta tahun silam tidak berbeda dengan yang hidup hari ini. Ini menyangkal pernyataan-pernyataan para evolusionis dan sekali lagi menegaskan fakta bahwa mahluk-mahluk hidup diciptakan Allah.

Sumber info & gambar : www.harunyahya.com

Assalaamua’laikum & Salam cinta…

Saya sekarang betul-betul ter”tekan” untuk memberikan yang terbaik untuk Cari Idol 2. Ini kerana ramai pengkritik-pengkritik tepi jalan yang ingin menjadi pengkritik level angkasa seperti Roslan Aziz. Itu baru realiti di internet yang bukannya komersial.

Pernah dengar lagu “Haring” atau Kenal tak aLi ? Pernah dengar dan kenal nampak ? Kalau tak tahu biasalah … aLi ni tak perlu gosip-gosip untuk popular. Tapi kalau sebut Roslan Aziz kenal tak ? Komposer yang menaikkan nama Sheila Majid, Zainal Abidin dan ramai lagi. Bekas pengetua Akademi Fantasia. A ah …. yang mana telah diperdebatkan tentang satu “quote” darinya yang agak kontroversi baru-baru ini. Nak tahu lebih lanjut tentang kontroversi ini, sila ke Blog R.A.P.

Baik, selepas mengupas “Aduh Saliha” dan “Jentayu”, kedua-dua karya daripada pelirik “penulis lirik” yang telah meninggalkan kita, maka, dengan beraninya saya akan mengupas lirik lagu aLi iaitu Haring.

Menggunakan genre muzik yang masih “aneh” pada segolongan orang di Malaysia, lagu ini pada saya berjaya memberi satu ideologi baru ke dalam dunia seni tanah air. Saya pasti lagi ini tak akan mengungguli carta radio kerana pendengar lebih sukakan melankolik dari artistik & realistik. Walaupun ia bukan muzik metamorfosis yang sepenuhnya namun ia pasti membuat anda ingin berayun-ayunan.

Saya tinggalkan dulu liriknya, dan insya-Allah akan saya kupas malam ini (*Baru sahaja dikupas tengahari 29 Julai sesudah mengedit beberapa jam lagu untuk CI2). Saya ingin ke Warung Kopi Mak Teh untuk meminum Teh yang berharga 50 sen secawan sambil bersembang dengan otai-otai kampung saluran satu. Kelas pagi ni terpaksa ponteng lagi kerana tidak mampu untuk membeli minyak dan EX5 belum diperbaharui cukai jalanannya. Saya terpaksalah jadi orang tepi jalan kerana saya juga belum memperbaharui lesen memandu. Oh ya ! Tahun 2020 saya ingat cam best je nak amik lesen memandu roket. Dah bosan duk kat dunia yang buat ku hampir muntah hijau dan nak jadi orang bulan pulak.

Permisi !

Haring (”The Album” Version)

Peringatan : Ini hanyalah interpretasi saya dan mungkin tidak melambangkan maksud sebenar penulis lirik ini.

Ku usik kenangan lama
\\ Membuka kembali lembaran sejarah
Bermusim yang hujan dan kering
\\ Semasa senang dan susah
Helang seraya membisik kepadanya
\\ Ketua lanun memberikan arahan kepada orang bawahannya
Adapun ini khabar yang penting
\\ Tugasan ini amat penting untuk keterusan kelanunan kita

Kemuning berbunga
\\ Kemuning adalah sejenis pokok herba untuk mengubat penyakit kelamin & lain-lain. Bunganya tidak digunakan untuk perubatan, mungkin hanya untuk hiasan. Cuma perlu diingat, tanpa bunga tidak dapat dibuat proses pendebungaan dan seterusnya pensenyawaan.

Di musim dedaunnya kering
\\ Sinis menyindir bagaimana boleh berbunga (dapat duit) sedangkan orang lain yang dilanuni merempat dan sengsara.
Helah ku bertanya tetapi mengah
\\ Ada suara protes tetapi sesiapa yang bersuara jelas pasti akan dicantas pantas
Mengapa yang ku terbau haring?
\\ Terbau akan penipuan yang berlaku (Haring adalah burung pemangsa)

Lain ayunan
\\ Ayunan adalah benda yang selau diulang-ulangkan. Bila selalu diulang-ulangkan, orang ramai biasanya akan terpesona. Boleh juga dikira sebagai alasan untuk menutup kelemahan diri-sendiri.
Terjadi lagi
\\ Plot dan strategi yang sama dipergunakan lagi.

Orang bulan, orang tepi jalan
\\ Orang bulan : Orang yang mempunyai ilmu agama, beramal soleh
Orang tepi jalan : Orang yang berniaga iaitu mempunyai premis perniagaan.
(Mungkin juga orang yang suka dengar ceramah & juga orang yang suka berjalan kaki ?)

Dapat memahami keadaan ini
\\ Akan faham apa sebenarnya berlaku. Siapa yang benar. Orang beragama hatinya bersih dan senang menafsir sebalik kejadian manakala peniaga selalu berinteraksi dengan pelanggan yang terdiri dari guru, peguam mahupun penggubal undang-undang.

Ku usik kenangan lama
Bermusim yang hujan dan kering
Helang seraya membisik kepadanya
Adapun ini khabar yang penting

Kemuning berbunga
Di musim dedaunnya kering
Helah ku bertanya tetapi mengah
Mengapa yang ku terbau haring?
\\ Haring juga merujuk pada ikan Haring yang ditemui fosilnya puluhan juta tahu yang silam tetapi tidak pernah berevolusi. Maka nyatalah Teori Darwin hanyalah sampah (aLi menyindir teori ini melalui grafik manusia beruk). Juga terbukti DNA tidak pernah berubah dan saintis telah mengkaji DNA dinasour menggunakan DNA dari fosil yang pastinya berusia jutaan tahun.

Lain ayunan
Terjadi lagi
Orang bulan, orang tepi jalan
Dapat memahami keadaan ini

Lain ayunan
Terjadi lagi
Orang bulan, orang tepi jalan
Dapat memahami keadaan ini

Lain ayunan
Terjadi lagi
Orang bulan, orang tepi jalan
Dapat memahami keadaan ini
\\ Korus yang sama diulang kerana menekankan bahawa hanya orang-orang tertentu sahaja yang dapat menggunakan hati dan akal mereka untuk keadilan.

S & J : Orang bulan itu Sheikh Muzaffar ke ? Bukan .. “Ultraman & Superman” !
Nota : Berminat untuk membeli “Haring” secara on-line ? Sila ke blog R.A.P.
Nota 2 : Masih belum lengkap ya. BZ masih melanda !

musicians in the aLbum

'aLi

Mukhlis Nor - Vocals and Words
Roslan Aziz - Drums Basses and Sound Design

Formed in the year 2000
Record Label - Universal Music Malaysia / R.A.P.

Discography

1 - Nonterro Singles - 2003
2 - UNA - 2004
3 - the radio - 2007
4 - the downLoads - 2008
5 - the aLbum - release 08-08-08
6 - the BOX -2009

All Songs and Lyrics by Mukhlis Nor except nonterro and ahl bayt by roslan aziz and mukhlis nor
Published by adhicipta (M) Sdn Bhd & Universal Music Publishing

Adhicipta (M) Sdn Bhd. Semua Hakcipta Terpelihara. Artwork/XHTML © 2008 Troka Estate. [All Rights Reserved]