Namara Surtikanti and Ervin Syam Ilyas return to Cokelat with music video for 2002 hit ‘Bendera’

Vocalist Namara Surtikanti and drummer Ervin Syam Ilyas have reunited with veteran Indonesian rock band Cokelat, releasing a music video for their 2002 hit ‘Bendera’.

The reworked version of ‘Bendera’ was released as a music video on the band’s YouTube channel on August 20, which sees Namara returning to front the band she left in March 2010 followed by Ervin in June that same year. The video was accompanied by a patriotic message from the band, which reads: “I will make sure the Red and White is flown on all the tall poles in this country. A spirit that is timeless, that cannot be eroded by the days. Blessed be my Indonesia.”

The music video was also accompanied by the hashtag #COKELATKEMBALI, which reveals appreciative posts from fans of the band’s mid-00’s era.

Watch the music video for ‘Bendera’ below.

The duo rejoin guitarists Edwin Marshal Syarif and Ernest Fardiyan Syarif and bassist Ronny Nugroho, who went on to release three albums without Namara and Ervin as Cokelat. Cokelat have released a total of seven studio albums, with Namara and Ervin’s last contributions coming in the form of the 2002 repackage of their 2001 album ‘Rasa Baru’.

The band named Indonesian Idol 2007 finalist Sarah Hadju as their new vocalist after Namara’s departure in 2010 before recruiting ex-Garasi Band vocalist Aiu Ratna in 2020 following Sarah’s resignation.

Cokelat’s most recent release was the 2020 single ‘Agresi’, which followed their only other release that year, a collaborative single with Indonesian singer Astrid titled ‘Wajar’. The band’s last album came in the form of their 2008 effort ‘Panca Indera’, which notably featured a collaboration with Australian singer Angie Heart of pop-punk band Frente called ‘The Hardest Part’.

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