THE OTHERSIDE ORCHESTRA

[uzair]

While privy to this photoshoot, a thought struck me: It's funny to think that seven people on one stage could possibly bring a breath of fresh air to a crowded Malaysian gig. However, popular consensus is saying that is just what The Otherside Orchestra does.

Formed over two years ago, the band's current lineup has recently been taking Malaysia by storm with their brand of danceable disco party rock. Lead singer Dhiya Izwin, guitarists Angah and Wan, Haizal on synth, bassist Azan, keyboardist Syah and drummer Rashid have been playing extensively in Kuala Lumpur as well as hitting up Johor Bahru, Penang, Ipoh and even Singapore.

So it was little surprise that it took awhile for me to get all seven to sit down and talk. When we finally do, of course, the conversation repeatedly steers back to playing live. Their live shows were something that they had always been thinking about. They made the decision to invest in strobe lights and experiment with a sound effects rack “found lying around in Azan's studio”. Now, friends Rifal and Izzat accompany the band to every show as lighting technician and vocals effect controller respectively. “Izzat will program the effects, like robot voices or just voices that a normal human would not make,” Dhiya says before joking, “The boys are so gagah (strong), so I appreciate having extra powers.” Wan adds, “We also wanted to experiment with it because so far in Malaysia, we have only noticed vocal effects used in recordings, not live.”

Their efforts seem to have paid off. Media and blogs alike constantly gush about happy dancefloors, insatiable fans, their onstage chemistry and of course, the crazy lights and sounds. “Now people talk about our lights as much as our music. It's become something of a trademark. Sometimes fans even request the venue to turn off their lights before we play,” Dhiya laughs. Haizal adds, “It's the song and lights together that form our music.”

Speaking of the music, what are their songs about and who writes them? “The boys come up with the music and I write the lyrics to almost all the songs,” says Dhiya. How are the boys with this arrangement? “They don't have a choice,” Dhiya quips, which makes the band burst out in laughter. “It's true, even my mother doesn't get a chance to write any,” Haizal whines, and the boys laugh some more.

Dhiya’s talent certainly lies in songwriting. She draws inspiration from whatever she’s feeling at the time–whether it’s being possessive, being punished or (offers as the rest of the band) “being experimental with her love life”. But the process could take anywhere from two days to a month to write and finish a song. And the band have already begun collecting new tracks with the hopes of getting a new EP out before they play at the Baybeats 2008 festival in Singapore this month (more on Baybeats in the Junk August issue).

Make no mistake about it, The Otherside Orchestra loves to dance. And they love to make people dance. In fact people were dancing at a gig they played just yesterday, and they are still grinning from the thrill. “We genuinely enjoy ourselves onstage everytime we perform. We make music we like and enjoy, so it's always satisfying to see people enjoy themselves too,” says Dhiya. “We once played at a place called Taat House and even though it wasn't full, it felt full when we played because everyone was one with the music.”

The Otherside Orchestra certainly get a rush from performing for any kind of crowd, whether giving an intimate performance to a small audience or to a full mall of fans. “The first time we played in Johor Bahru was at City Plaza, and we had never had so many people standing in front of us like that before,” says Azan. But more than crowd numbers, the band just want people to enjoy their shows and get their money's worth. “Even if it's 20 people, as long as it's 20 people sweating and dancing their hearts out,” finishes Dhiya.

They've taken to making people dance in their cars and homes too; they are currently on the Fly FM Campur Chart and their debut CD Electromancetasy in 2007 is still enjoying hype and high ratings of danceability. The band's MySpace is currently over 7000 friends strong, and they've even gained a fan base in other countries by word of mouth and CD trading. “The attention we have now, we didn't even aim for. We just wanted to have fun onstage and try to be fresh. For that, we're always thankful for our fans,” Wan tells me. “One of our fans even wrote us saying he dreamt of our basslines,” Azan exclaims.

There are of course other sides to The Otherside Orchestra. The band members are no strangers to multitasking: Dhiya also sings for Plush, Azan is in Jeopardice, Haizal in EVOL, Wan is in Man Under Zero Effort and Rashid plays drums for Quest of Quasar as well as Odd Stars. Furthermore, Wan also founded Rockstar Entertainment and Azan runs a studio in Setiawangsa called Audiomass (formerly Dhabooqa Studios). But they report no problems with balancing their double (or triple) lives. Most importantly, their family supports them “all the way”. “My family members often come to watch our shows,” beams Dhiya. Even though they seem to be doing a million things at once, the band hangs out almost everyday. Haizal sums it up, “We're all friends in our own little world.”

I have doubts about how little their world will continue to be–this is a promising year for them with performances in Penang for the Fly FM Campur Chart, Melaka and Johor Bahru besides Baybeats. They also plan to play in East Malaysia and tour Indonesia (“At least Jakarta and Bandung!”) by the end of the year. “We want to do so much and perform until we're old or just cannot perform anymore,” declares Wan. Now that, para dansawan, equates to a lot of dancing.