The internet is such a weirdly wonderful place. Not only does it help us learn more about current or upcoming movies, but also it has also helped us come across bands we never knew existed. Case in point, French rock band Mutiara Damansara.
The band recently caught the attention of local Facebook users and of course, no prizes for guessing why they went viral.
This French rock band found themselves in the spotlight after local Facebook users discovered that they ironically named themselves after one of the famed townships in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Earlier in May, they took to Facebook to announce that they’ve altered page name by adding the phrase “French band” behind their band name. Through the announcement, they said, “As you maybe saw, we changed our Facebook page name. We are now “Mutiara Damansara – French band” to avoid any confusion with a f***ing Kuala Lumpur commercial township.” However, the band later decided to remove the post, especially after a number of Malaysians began flooding their page.
Based in Caen, Lower Normady, Mutiara Damansara is 3-member rock band that comprises of vocalist/guitarist/programmer Charlize Ann Myers, guitarist Cyanure Nevermore, and bassist Grumpy Woodcutter. The band has released 3 albums so far, with the first EP titled “Annual Winter Depression” out in 2010. Their second EP, which was released in 2012, is a nod to their band name as it is titled “Pearls”, which means mutiara in Malay. They then released their first full-length album titled “Every Soul Is A Shining Star” via Seventh Crow Records.
According to their official Facebook page, “Pearls” consists of a strong blend of various music genres, including “post-rock, old school goth rock and dark wave, ethereal vocals of Shoegaze and dream pop”. The EP also came with “a few traces of black metal violence and electronic music.”
The band has always been aware of the township of the same name in Malaysia, even before majority of the Malaysians discovered them and pointed it out to them.
When asked why did they decided to name their band after the township, one of the band members simply stated, “Because it sounds beautiful!” The member added that they only came across the name while looking up some exotic-sounding names. However, they also admitted that they’re unsure how to pronounce the name as one of the band members said:
I do my best to pronounce it well, but I can only imagine I butcher Malay each time I’m saying it.
Now that they’ve gained more Malaysian fans, one question became inevitable: “Will they come to Malaysia to perform at Mutiara Damansara?”
The band said:
And for the question, “Will we play in Malaysia one day?”, as you can imagine we cannot afford such a trip. Buy if there’s a strong will of Malay metalhead fans to see us play in your country, there’s always the possibility. Contact your local promoters and metal associations, or even start a crowdfunding campaign to finance a few tour dates in Malaysia.
Whether or not you’re a metalhead, take a listen to one of their latest singles here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RdLIXWAl7Q
What do you think? Would you like to see them performing in Malaysia? Share your thoughts in the comments box below.
Source: The Rakyat Post, Says
