Quintessential enigmatic Kembara reunites for a concert at Istana Budaya

Following the success of his concert "Konsert Ekspres Rakyat" at the Esplanade, Singapore last year, Malay iconic rockers from Kembara will be rocking out at Istana Budaya in a three-night performance starting Friday.

Merely three days before the opening night of "Konsert Hati Emas Kembara", the band – which was one of the pioneer rock bands responsible in shaping the Malaysian music landscape – is all set to wow Kembara diehard fans in the performance.

It is understandable as the band founder/singer/composer Datuk M. Nasir said in an exclusive interview with Astro AWANI that the concert aims to be a memorable and a feel good event as well as to relive the nostalgia of the Kembara heydays.

"I'm excited to see what will happen during that concert, there will be some surprises for our fans there. We (Kembara) want to bring back the nostalgia and the vibe when Kembara was known in the 80s," M. Nasir said.

When asked about his formula to staging a sold-out performance, the 57-year-old candidly explained that he believes in sincerity in everything he does,which translates into a winning performance that will leave audiences satisfied.

During another interview at the band's practice sessions at the BYSNC Studio in Petaling Jaya, M. Nasir said he is grateful to be able to get together with the band members for the special concert.

He also said the "Konsert Hati Emas Kembara" provides the opportunity for the younger generation to know the band.

"I thank God for granting my wish to get together with almost all of the original band members, especially for our supportive fans from all over the country.

"Apart from performing for our fans from the 80s, it is also a chance for the new generation to know who we (Kembara) are," he said.

The tale of Kembara started with the harmony band which performed largely folk songs. In the beginning, this band comprised M. Nasir, A. Ali who also plays the guitar and S. Sahlan (Roslan Tajuddin).

While recording the third album, A. Ali and S. Sahlan left Kembara. M. Nasir invited his sessionist friends during the recording, Shahrum Basiron (drum), Rahman Suri (bass), Md Shah Othman (keyboard) and Ahmad Arkib (keyboard) to form a new band using the name Kembara.

To round off the outfit, M. Nasir invited Zulkifli Mohamed or Zoul as the lead guitarist and vocalist.

For the concert, however, Shahrum will not be participating and he will be replaced by Ujang Exist.

The members of this band remained until Kembara was disbanded and everyone went separate ways. Kembara has recorded 65 songs – composed by M. Nasir, S. Amin Shahab and A. Ali.

Reminiscing, A. Ali or his real name A. Ali @Hamdan Atan explained that Kembara was formed at the end of 1979 after he befriended M. Nasir who used to watch him play at a night club in Singapore.

He said, M. Nasir suggested that they form a vocal harmony band playing mostly folk songs.

"At the time when Kembara was formed, I was playing at a nightclub. M. Nasir was a patron of the place until one day when he invited me to join this vocal harmony band.

"M.Nasir and S. Amin Shahab at that time often hungout out at Wisma Indonesia in Singapore, and possibly slept there too.

"So, when he said he wanted to form Kembara, I told him to find a song. Then we set out to find songs which saw M. Nasir and Amin working together to produce songs like 'Hati Emas' which we did not expect everyone to like, even until today.

"Then when all the songs are there, M. Nasir said we need to find another member from Malaysia, and that was when we discovered Sahlan," he told Astro AWANI.

For Ujang Exist, the opportunity to play for Kembara is like a dream come true as the band has been an idol for him.

"When M. Nasir called me, I thought he was joking. I didn't expect he meant it when he invited me to play for the concert at Istana Budaya.

"It is like a dream, the band that I admire since I was little asked me to play with them!" he gushed.

Kembara also re-recorded their songs and produced new songs to be included in an album, following-up to their Istana Budaya reunion concert.