When I was a kid, growing up in a house with Cat Stevens,
Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkel, the first time I ever heard Kiss's
"Detroit Rock City,"
it was a moment of musical epiphany. It was just so vicious, aggressive and
mean. It changed the way I listened to music. I've had a few minor epiphany's
since then, when you come across a band that just brings something new and
revolutionary to your ears.
What have been your musical epiphany moments?
When we first heard Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats.
Talk to us about the song-writing process for you. What comes first, the idea? A riff? The lyrics? How does it all fall into place?
Neither. Rasyid writes all the riffs without lyrics in his head and bring them to the studio, I write the lyrics at my own time without riffs in my head and see what fits whatever Rasyid has written.
Who has influenced you the most?
Wes Craven.
Where do you look for continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?
Horror movies, sci-fi, crime, fantasy.
We're all a product of our environment. Tell us about the band's hometown and how that reflects in the music?
Drugs are incredibly illegal in Singapore so we’re a stoner metal band not allowed to make drug references in our content.
Where'd the band name come from?
Mari jannah means “come to paradise” in the Malay language.
You have one chance, what movie are you going to write the soundtrack for?
If Mandy starring Nic Cage had a sequel, that would be it.
You now write for a music publication (The Ripple Effect?). You're going to write a 1,000 word essay on one song. Which would it be and why?
Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart. It has everything doesn’t it. A catchy hook, a melodramatic build up, sick ass backing vocals, hard ass drums, a great instrumental bridge, there’s over-the-top reverb everywhere, its not overly theatrical like bohemian rhapsody. Perfect song. Cranberries’ Zombie and Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain are a close second and third.
Come on, share with us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?
I wish we had more but we once had merch printed specifically for a show, it got sent to the wrong address and a day before the show, we called the post office and they said the shirts are here in the country but in a holding area. We were told that we couldn’t drive over to get it and they will only reach us in 3 business days even though they were probably just a 15 minute drive away. Thats a really boring story, I fell asleep a little typing that, I apologize.
Tell us about playing live and the live experience for you and for your fans?
I hate playing live, its too tiring.
What makes a great song?
Substance.
Tell us about the first song you ever wrote?
Snakecharmer was the first song Marijannah wrote.
What piece of your music are particularly proud of?
1966 is the best song Marijannah wrote.
Who today, writes great songs? Who just kicks your ass? Why?
We do.
Vinyl, CD, or digital? What's your format of choice?
Digital for me personally because I hate owning physical things. Vinyl and CD for the band because thats how we make most of our money.
Whiskey or beer? And defend your choice
Beer, can go hours and hours without getting too fucked. Whiskey is for old people.
We, at the Ripple Effect, are constantly looking for new music. What's your home town, and when we get there, what's the best record store to lose ourselves in?
Singapore - Inokii, Hear Records and Surface Noise Records
What's next for the band?
We’re all on lockdown until May because of the coronavirus so we can’t do anything. We’re too lazy to come up with any ideas for digital content idea. Maybe we’ll write some music in the mean time and shoot a music video and play some gigs when this is all over.
Any final comments or thoughts you'd like to share with our readers, the waveriders?
Listen to Doldrey
