“Our first concert was during the pandemic and our audience were houseplants,” says Angkuy. Even if you think he is joking, he adds, “In keeping with the rules, people left their potted plants at the venue and went home. After the program we got positive feedback from many people.”
Angkuy is one half of Bottlesmoker, an Indonesian electronic music band with Nobby Adjani. The two met in 2006 while they were studying broadcasting, a course which introduced them to music for television, radio and films.
Today, he is known for his music created using biofeedback from nature and was in India to participate in the Echoes of Earth music festival. Although they had been a band for nearly two decades, Angkuy and Nobby had found their “earth sound” before the pandemic.
rooted in the past
“While working on a project in 2008, we collected several empty bottles; one of them had cigarette smoke coming out of it. That’s the story behind our name.”
Angkuy says the first phase of his musical journey began in 2008 and lasted until 2015. “At that time we were using toys to make music – game boards, toy pianos and glockenspiels.” Since their first concert abroad in Malaysia in 2009, the Bottlesmokers have been touring every year since.
Indonesian band Bottlesmoker in an opening concert using toys. Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Nobby says that when he completed his master’s in cultural studies in 2015, he became aware of the musical and cultural traditions of his hometown. “We are from the Sundanese tribe of West Java. As we learned about the local traditions and ritual ceremonies of our ancestors, we realized that there was a lot of wisdom in what they practiced.”
Angkuy admits, “We thought that by using technology we were creating something futuristic and that these traditions were backward, but we soon realized that many ancient practices were ahead of their time. They create balance in life, a connection between man and nature.”
The duo began to fuse traditional sounds with electronic music and had great success when the pandemic hit, putting their plans for concerts abroad on hold. During his research he learned about several Sundanese cultural practices, including the playing of ceremonial or ritual music for plants, for example, at rice festivals.
Angkuy says, “We believed that the pandemic was a time for nature to speak to us humans and we wanted to respond to that moment. We wanted to make music for nature, starting with the many plants we had in our studio.”
“We also realized that many plant owners are protective of their plants. And in our quest to make music specific to plants, we didn’t want to stress or upset them. We spent a lot of time researching what kind of music has positive effects on plants.”
Indonesian band Bottlesmoker in action Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
After the lockdown, there was a demand for Bottlesmoker’s music and plant owners wanted to get involved, “but we realized that music for plants is not always at a frequency favorable to human ears.”
It was Nobby’s idea to introduce music for plants with a people-friendly score. “When we started studying what kind of technology could translate data from plants into musical notes, we learned about biofeedback and worked on translating it into musical notes.”
He created a device that “linked plants and our musical instruments like a synthesizer,” and was amazed by the results. “It changed our perspective about plants and nature,” he says, adding, “We found the connection with plants and their music led to meditation, well-being and holistic feelings.”
Today, there are two sets of Bottlesmoker concerts: plant music for meditation, and dance music with pineapples.
Indonesian band Bottlesmoker in action Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
common melody
Her visit to participate in Echoes was her third visit to India, having previously attended concerts in Mumbai and Kolkata. Nobby says the pair would love to explore collaborations with Indian musicians using wind or percussion instruments.
“A lot of the cultural practices and mythology of our tribe are derived from Hinduism and our dialect has similarities with Sanskrit,” he says. He further added, “We have seen that many Indians appreciate and enjoy our music. We, too, are inspired by many Indian musicians and their work.”
Another aim of the Bottlesmoker is to bring awareness to environmental conditions. “Many natural disasters like floods and landslides are caused by large-scale mining and deforestation. We hope that our music will inspire listeners to protect our forests and our environment.”
published – January 27, 2026 10:24 PM IST