Beyond The Glimpse of Dreams (1998)
Debut full-length studio album
Release Dates
Original (1998)
THT Productions, January 1998 (Cassette)
Sonic Wave International, October 1998 (CD, Cassette)
1st Re-mastered Re-issue (2014)
Persetan Records, June 2014 (CD)
Kekal, June 2014 (Digital Download)
25th Anniversary Updated Edition (2023)
Sadist Records, December 2023 (CD, Cassette)
Kekal, December 2023 (Digital Download)
Track Listing
- Rotting Youth
- Armageddon
- Spirits
- Deceived Minds
- The Conversion
- Behind Those Images
- Reality
- Escaping Eternal Suffering
- The Day The Hatred Dies
- My Eternal Lover
Total Running Time: 51:07
Album Description
Kekal's debut full-length album "Beyond The Glimpse of Dreams" was originally released in early 1998 on cassette tape format by an Indonesian label THT Productions, and then on CD and cassette formats by Candlelight Productions / Sonic Wave International (Singapore) in October 1998.
"Beyond The Glimpse of Dreams" was recorded in 1997 and the only album that features original vocalist Harry with his distinct voice. This was the first experience for the band to record 10 songs in a professional studio back in 1997. The result is a more than 50 minutes of intense extreme metal music, combining strong stylistic elements known as black metal, death metal, classic/old-school heavy metal, thrash, doom metal, and even gothic and darkwave, all fused into one unique solid style backed with in-your-face lyrics, which is known later as the original Kekal style. This album received numerous great reviews and positive responses from metal magazines and fanzines, other publications, labels, and all the people in the underground scene, especially in their own region. "Beyond The Glimpse of Dreams" is considered by heavy metal critics in the late 1990s as one of the best extreme metal releases coming from Asia.
The original version of the album (CD and cassette tape formats) was sold for over 5000 copies and reached Europe, North + South America and of course Asia, aided by only underground distros & mail-orders with the help of mostly underground fanzines covering the band, until it became sold-out in 2002. The 1998 original version of the CD has become the sought-after 'collector's item', and at some point, some of the used CDs were listed for over $70 on eBay.
Release Notes
This album was first remastered in 2014 and re-issued by Indonesian extreme metal label Persetan Records as a limited-edition CD (with added 5 bonus tracks from 1996 demo) after 12 years of the original's sold-out status. The re-issue version gets a new cover artwork, courtesy of William Blake (1805). In 2023, this album was once again remastered in time for its 25th Anniversary, and is released physically by Indonesian extreme metal label Sadist Records as a limited-edition CD and Cassette Tape. Kekal handles the digital version that can be downloaded via the band's Bandcamp page.
Credits
Album line-up: Harry (Vocals), Leo (Guitar/Vocals), Jeff (Guitar/Vocals), Azhar (Bass/Vocals)
Produced by: Jeff with KEKAL
Recorded on 16-track analog at Yaski Studios, Jakarta, Indonesia. Tracks 1—5 recorded in April 1997 and tracks 6—10 in December 1997.
Engineered & mixed by: Habil Kurnia & Denny Andreas
Music & lyrics written by Kekal
Tracks 2 & 5 additional vocals by Julie.
Track 10 additional vocals by Hana & Vera.
Keyboards by Jeff, Habil, & Leo
Drums by The Black Machine
2023 Updated Edition:
Re-mastered digitally in March 2023 by Jeff Arwadi at Ideation Station
Front cover artwork courtesy of William Blake (1805). Digital layout by Jeff Arwadi.
Downloading + Purchasing Information
Digital Album - Download (25th Anniversary Updated Edition Remastered, 2023)
Direct from Kekal @ Bandcamp.
Lossless formats (FLAC, WAV, ALAC) or high-bitrate mp3 available for audio download, plus streaming from Bandcamp app. Download comes with a 5-page digital booklet in PDF format.NOTE: This album is not and WILL NOT be available on mainstream streaming platforms.
Physical Album - CD & Cassette Tape (25th Anniversary Updated Edition Remastered, 2023)
CD is a limited-edition factory-pressed, packaged in a normal jewel-case and comes with an 4-page insert. Cassette Tape is also a limited edition. Released by Sadist Records based in Bali, Indonesia. Go to Sadist Records Bandcamp page to order online.
Bundled options with T-Shirt and/or Long-sleeves available from Erase Store based in Jakarta, Indonesia. PayPal accepted for orders outside Indonesia.
Just go to www.erasestore.com (orders from outside Indonesia, prices in USD)
or www.tokopedia.com/erasestoreofficial (within Indonesia, prices in IDR)Please do not contact Kekal regarding physical releases.
Audio Streaming
Insight - Q&A with Jeff #1
February 2012
Could you tell us more about the studio experience when recording "Beyond The Glimpse of Dreams" album? It's in fact a debut studio album from Kekal!
It was fun recording that album. I remember it was the first time we recorded an album in a so-called professional studio, and it was all analog, we put everything to tape. We had to sleep in the studio during the recording session, as we booked the overnight recording shifts because it was cheaper. We got 2 extra hours for the same rate as the day rate, I think, and all of us had to work or study during the day. We had a very small budget, we used all the money we received from the sales of our demo tape plus from our own pockets, so the hours were very tight and we had to split the sessions into two, first in April 1997 and the second one in December 1997 after we could save enough money to rent the studio again. You can notice the difference in production between the first 5 songs and the rest. There were 2 studios in the property, both analog, and we booked the small 16-track one. We managed to get 3 guest female vocalists with their own different characters so that they would give some more interesting twists to the songs. It achieved a good balance between the extreme brutality, ethereal atmosphere, and naivety, I must say. Most of the songs were already old by the time we recorded them. Some of the riffs were written in the early 1990’s, even before Kekal was formed (both Leo and I had our own unused riffs we wrote before joining the band), while many of the songs were written during the demo period between 1995 and 1996. We once thought to re-write the songs with more advanced chords and riffs, but as it was a basic, simple debut album, I thought that it’s good to leave them as is, as close to the demo versions as possible. I’d say, overall it’s a good debut with, of course, less maturity level than Kekal’s later albums both musically and lyrically, but it has some fresh energy, particularly because we recorded the album on a 16-track analog tape, so the limitation of recording tracks made us to focus on the basic energy over the other elements. We did not expect anything from the debut, other than to have a proper sound quality for a CD release.
But the album (original 1998 versions) sold very good, 5000 copies until it was completely sold out, is that correct?
Yes, it was pretty good number for a self-produced debut album from a non-touring, obscure underground band like Kekal. But most of them, more than 3000 copies, sold within the Southeast Asian market, like Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, and they already knew Kekal since the 1996 demo tape because of the extensive tape trading circuits.
Insight - Q&A with Jeff #2
Excerpted from an interview with Fossorial Kollektiv, 2023, translated to English via Google
Regarding the early music of Kekal: sound, lyrics, etc.:
The desire to perform under the name Kekal actually started from the desire to play extreme metal music with fast drum beats and raw energy from 80s punk music, which was contrasted with the slow tempos of the doom metal elements that we liked at that time. Lyrically, there were things that we wanted to do by going against the tide in the context of extreme metal music trends at that time, especially within black metal and death metal subgenres. You could say we were inspired by the doom metal band Trouble, which is often referred to as “white metal” or “Christian metal”, but without necessarily being a band with a religious and holier-than-thou image. The 3 people who would later become Kekal’s core personnel, namely Azhar Levi, Leo, and I, only officially joined in 1996. Leo was a guitarist who decided to join Kekal because he listened to Kekal’s first 1995 demo cassette which was left at the house of vocalist Harry’s friend, who also turned out to be Leo’s football/soccer buddy. Leo’s presence in Kekal also brought new elements, because he was previously in a band that played covers of Metallica and Megadeth songs. In terms of technical guitar playing skills and musicality, Leo’s presence brings Kekal into broader musical aspects, which can be felt on the debut album “Beyond The Glimpse of Dreams”.
Related Albums
Get All Kekal Digital Releases
Get the entire Kekal digital album discography (a bundle of 19 Kekal digital releases sold on Bandcamp including 13 full-length albums and 4 EPs) for only $29 USD. That's a 50% off a-la carte price.
A great way to check out the music of Kekal.
