In 2019, Liver & Lung, the Cammie award-winning British-Malaysian theatre company behind Kloud Fest and the Malaya Relived anthology, adapted Yasmin Ahmad’s iconic film, Sepet, as an immersive musical.
This weekend, responding to popular demand by fans, they have released the musical’s soundtrack on Spotify and all other music stores.
The production of the soundtrack was made possible after Liver & Lung were selected for the Independent Music Funding Programme, proudly facilitated by CENDANA!
The Sepet The Musicalsoundtrack is a thirteen-song album, telling the story of two teenagers in Ipoh – Jason and Orked. Jason is a 19-year-old Chinese VCD seller, while the bright Malay schoolgirl Orked loves John Woo films and everything Takeshi Kaneshiro. As romance blossoms between them, social and racial pressures slowly surface and come in their way.
According to Shafeeq Shajahan, founder of Liver & Lung and director/co-composer of the musical;
The show sold out in 2019 and it sold out again in 2020 in between lockdowns. We know that Malaysians are eager to relive Jason and Orked’s story again and again. Now, audiences can experience the musical forever, in the comfort of their own living rooms.
So just for you folks, the team is showering you with these beautiful renditions of the astounding album by Liver and Lung!
Liver & Lung is an award-winning, international production company founded by best friends, Shafeeq Shajahan and Hannah Shields. After winning three awards at the Boh Cameronian Arts Awards this year, Liver & Lung has been committed to upholding the arts in what has been a difficult two years.
The songs they have created are a beautiful homage to Yasmin Ahmad’s film. We hope it takes you back to a simpler time and that you love it,” Badrish, who also contributed as co-composer, adds. Both Shafeeq and Badrish were nominated for Best Original Score in Musical Theatre at the 2020 Cammies.
The soundtrack features critically acclaimed songs like Breathe, Jauh, Sayangku, Another Careless Day and Char Siu, all performed by Badrika Baluch and Joshua Anthony Gui who originated the roles of Jason and Orked in the musical. Irena Taib of The Impatient Sisters leads the production of the album.
The album showcases a folk-pop sound, influenced by the cinematic and dreamy texture of Yasmin Ahmad’s score in the original film.
It is a romantic, innocent and sometimes comic portrayal of the love that Jason and Orked shared. Breathe, an album highlight, reimagines the love montage in the film, using a gentle guitar motif to lullaby its listeners into a romantic daze, reminding us that love is transcendental and blind to race and all other differences.
