AS an artist, I have always supported causes that are close to my heart as much as those that are important for the public to be aware of.

I have also made it clear to some that I am not an activist; I am an artist who supports activism that I feel strongly for.

As such, I have worked with activists and civil society organisations in my 20-odd years in the arts and music circuit. In fact, some of my earliest gigs were civil society group gigs that were organised to raise awareness of something or supporting a cause.

However, as much as I admire activists, civil society groups and even politicians whom I share similar ideals for their gusto and resilience in making our world a better place, I wish there was one thing they could do better: their range of their music references.

As a folk singer-songwriter, I was early on pigeonholed into the “protest singer” in the mould of Bob Dylan by default, primarily because I had similarly unkempt hair and played the harmonica and an acoustic guitar.

Truth be told, there are better local songs with bite that transcend the clichéd “cause” or “protest” song.

In fact, in our contemporary world, such songs are more effective if they are satirical and parodic rather than the sort that were the soundtrack of the 1960s Boomer counterculture.

So, here’s my pick of five relatively obscure songs from the Malaysian and Singaporean underground circuit with uncommon panache and in-your-face sleight of hand that hits the spot with the adequate intellect to read between the lines (which most Malaysians unfortunately aren’t).

1. “Surf the Chinese Tsunami” – Panda Head Curry?

Written in response – at least I think it is – as a response to Najib Razak’s assessment of the 2013 general election results in which he dubbed the “Chinese tsunami”, this song an instant classic that broadens the canvas further to encompass also China’s growing influence in the region.

Panda Head Curry? is renowned for its theatrical live shows and satirical and parodic take of local politics and popular culture.

2. “I Woke Up Gay” – Shh…Diam

Malaysia’s queer punk pioneers’ song from their 2014 album “Attack of the Kongketron” spins the local discourse of being queer on its head with this less-than-subtle number that likens the usual narrative of queerness by conservatives and right-wing power brokers to coming down with the common cold.

3. “National Disservice” – Ben’s Bitches

Disclaimer: I am a member of this Subang Jaya-based punk band renowned for their politically incorrect and juvenile songs about all things politically incorrect during the pre-social media age.

I joined the band by default: I had intended to watch them play back in 2003 – frontman Ben Liew is a friend – but then ended up playing drums when their supposed drummer cancelled at the last minute.

This song is what it insinuates in the title: the now-gone national service is a waste of time. I remember playing an underground gig in 2004 with a group of post-high school teenagers in front of the stage enjoying themselves and agreeing with the song’s sentiment while also perplexed that one could actually criticise such a thing in public.

This song is the title track from the album of the same name released in 2004 – simpler times when one could get away with a lot more than now.

4. “Win Oreddy” – Laek1Yo

Laek1Yo is the stage name for a mysterious solo Singaporean troubadour who composes songs and makes music videos out of random video montages taken from advertisements that parodies common Singaporean habits and cultures that annoys him.

In this song, the target of his disdain (sung through a Singaporean character speaking to another Singaporean) are  materialism, impatience, “kiasu” culture, kowtow culture, busybodying, censorship and losing face – stereotypes but as they say there is truth in stereotypes after all.

5. “Strawberry” – The Singaporean Cowboy

Another mysterious Singaporean artist – I guess they have to maintain some anonymity in the notoriously censor-centric city state – whom I also had the pleasure to share the stage with when I performed there last year (he never revealed his identity and never took off the bandana and sunglasses which hid his face).

This song deals with the negative perception of the millennial generation through the lenses of a perceived Singaporean form of masculinity.

Taking off from the derogatory terms “strawberry”, which had its origins from Taiwan where those born from the 1990s onwards “bruise easily”. – July 21, 2023.

* Azmyl Yunor is a touring underground recording artiste, and an academic in media and cultural studies. He has published articles on pop culture, subcultures and Malaysian cultural politics. He adheres to the three-chords-and-the-truth school of songwriting, and Woody Guthrie’s maxim “All you can write is what you see”. He is @azmyl on Twitter.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.