Azhar Levi Sianturi

Azhar Levi Sianturi is an Indonesian musician and mechanical engineer. He is mainly known in the music scene as the former bassist for avant-garde/progressive metal band Kekal. He also has his own grindcore project called Mournphagy. His professional occupation is a mechanical engineer where he makes a living from, and he is also known lately as an avid coffee enthusiast and runs his own coffee roastery and brewing shop in Jakarta called Orkidé Coffee.

Kekal

Azhar Levi joined Kekal on 1996, the same year that the band released their official demo, Contra Spiritualia Nequitiae. Throughout the first 5 years, the band developed their style by incorporating many diverse elements from outside metal. This distinct style became most prominent in their third album The Painful Experience, which marked as a starting point for the band to step more and more into progressive and avant-garde metal and make further experiments with their music. In the year 2003, Kekal released 1000 Thoughts of Violence and received positive media reviews which led to their first international tour in 2004. Shortly after this success, Kekal was back in the studio to record their official reunion album, Acidity, which was released in 2005.

In March 2009, Azhar Levi decided to step down from Kekal. Front man Jeff Arwadi said that although this closed a door, Kekal would continue as a musical unit. However, later that year, Jeff himself stepped down, along with remaining member Leo Setiawan, but it was decided that Kekal as an institution would remain in existence.

Despite the fact that the band is now member-less, Kekal has continued to function as a musical unit, with all 3 former members including Azhar Levi contributing to the band's eighth studio album, entitled 8 in 2010, and ninth studio album Autonomy in 2012. Azhar Levi did not write or play any music in those albums, but he made hand-drawn illustrations and photography for both albums' covers.

Discography

With Kekal

Beyond the Glimpse of Dreams – 1998 Embrace the Dead – 1999 The Painful Experience – 2001 1000 Thoughts of Violence – 2003 Acidity – 2005 The Habit of Fire – 2007 Audible Minority – 2008 8 – 2010 Autonomy – 2012

With Mournphagy Thy Word Abideth (EP) – 1997 For You – 1999 Thy Word Abideth (re-release by Noise Squatch) -2000 Self Krusher compilation: 5th Anniversary THT Productions – 2001