Local band’s song featured on Malaysian radio stations

Few local bands can claim their music has aired on radio stations across the world, but emerging local pop/rock band South Jordan has already had music featured on Malaysian airwaves.

“I went home after we recorded our EP, and I played it for a couple of my friends,” said band member and junior Mike Chan, who is from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “And the reaction we got was, ‘Hey, this stuff is really good. You should get it on the radio.’ It was a big shot trying to get on the stations, but we managed to get on some radio stations, particularly Xfresh.”

From there, a domino effect ensued, and other radio stations picked up the single.
Soon, South Jordan is going to re-record its single so that half of the song is in Malaysian.

The band got its start last year when juniors and recording arts majors Bobby Campbell and Chan had to choose one song to publish and record into a “Billboard Top 40” song in an IU songwriting competition.

Sophomore Michael Hall had a voice that stood out to the aspiring music producers. After a few jam sessions, Chan gave Hall the song “Fatal Flaw” to record, and the rest was history.

“Kids in this area are all classically trained, but I think the good thing about Hall is that he grew up trying to have that pop sound,” Campbell said. “His voice just fit perfectly with the type of music we wanted.”

At first, the group had its differences. Campbell and Hall didn’t have the same ideas for the band and needed to compromise.

“Without Mike, we wouldn’t be here today,” Hall said. “Bobby and I really hated each other when we met. We met in the studio and just butted heads.”

South Jordan recorded its first EP with the help of recording arts professor and IU graduate Jake Belser, owner of local Farm Fresh Studios.

All of the band’s songs are original, and Chan and Campbell agreed they strive to have total control of their album. Campbell’s fellow band members credited him for writing most of the group’s songs.

“He hears it all in his head as he writes it, so he knows the direction of the song even before he’s done writing it,” Chan said.

The group’s CD is now available on all major music Web sites, including iTunes, Amazon and Rhapsody. “Fatal Flaw,” South Jordan’s most recent single, is a free download on the Internet.

Currently, the group is trying to line up some gigs. The biggest to date is the IU Dance Marathon. They also plan to expand by playing in surrounding Midwest cities, including Chicago, Cincinnati and Indianapolis.

Following other music artists such as The Fray and John Mellencamp, South Jordan plans to record its newest songs-in-the-making at the local recording studio Echo Park. 

“People think pop is something written just for the girls, but each song we write has so much meaning,” Hall said.

Personal experiences heavily influenced the songs of South Jordan. The song “Heading For Mars” was written about Hall’s life before meeting Chan and Campbell, with lyrics stemming from his former doubts about a future in music.

“Hallelujah” was written about Chan’s mother, who died just a few months ago.

“We’re really fortunate our families have been supportive of everything we do,” Chan said. “Our friends and family are very much so the driving force. And, especially in today’s society, people are very driven by money. For us, we just want to play music, and that’s the bottom line.”