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Peterpan frontman Nazril “Ariel” Irham is still behind bars on charges of violating the Anti-Pornography Law, which is why his fans were left at a loss for words when a man who looked just like the pop star got on stage during a live performance on Antv’s music program “Mantap” in Cikarang, Bekasi, on Thursday.

His hairstyle, posture and gestures were so much like Ariel’s that some members of the audience actually started chanting his name.

The look-alike performer’s name is Mochammad Fachrul Azrullah, who goes by the stage name Aroel. He is a member of Piterband, a group created in March by Charly van Houten, vocalist of Malay-pop rock band ST12. Along with a number of other artists, Piterband is represented by Pangeran Cinta Management, a record label founded by Charly.

Consisting of only two members, Piterband was formed, in Aroel’s words, as a “tribute to an idol with no intention of replacing him in any way.”

“Ariel is such a charismatic star. His place in his fans’ hearts is irreplaceable,” the 26-year-old said. “I have admired Ariel for a long time and have always dreamed of doing a duet with him.”

“When Piterband performs, Peterpan’s fans often request that we play the band’s songs,” he said.

Piterband’s other member, bassist Farux van Houten, said what the band does is simply meant to entertain the crowd.

A musician for many years, Aroel is also a songwriter and a true fan of Britpop, a music genre that influences most of his songs.

“Peterpan also plays the same genre of music. You could say their music has also been greatly influenced by indie Britpop bands,” he said.

Despite the fact that Aroel has written a lot of music, thus far Piterband has only one official original song.

“Ada-ada Aja Denganmu” (“You and the Things That You Do”) has a slight resemblance to Peterpan’s popular song “Ada Apa Denganmu” (“What’s up With You”).

“At the moment, we only have one song. It is going to appear on a compilation album along with songs from all of the other artists from Pangeran Cinta Management. They’re planning on releasing it this month,” Aroel said. “But we are also planning to make our own album soon.”

Although new, Piterband has already appeared on quite a few TV and radio shows, sometimes doing up to three events per day.

“Last month was crazy. It was very hectic. There were only seven days when the band did not perform,” said the group’s road manager, Riefky Arie Irwansyah, better known as Kiky.

As expected, the band has already received a lot of criticism for its copycat ways. But it has “all been well-received,” according to Charly.

“From the very beginning, I have been aware of what the response from the public might be like. But we take it positively,” he said.

The band’s critics have called Piterband a “knockoff,” adding that it is trying to piggyback on Peterpan’s fame. A Facebook group called Gerakan Anti Aroel Piterband (The Anti Aroel Piterband Movement) has even been created to oppose the band.

Some videos of Piterband uploaded to YouTube have already been viewed thousands of times. The comments left behind by the viewers are a mix of compliments, criticisms and insults.

“We’ve been called, among other things, ‘a bunch of homos’ and ‘two pigs.’ I think that was written on Piterband’s Facebook account,” Aroel said. “It may be offensive, but really, we just take it in stride.”

For example, Facebook user Dadang Saputradireja posted a comment on the band’s page saying “Piterband is dancing on other people’s sorrow.”

Interestingly enough, Ariel, the man who has perhaps the most reason to oppose Piterband, has apparently given the group his thumbs-up. According to Okezone.com, the singer wrote, through his girlfriend Luna Maya’s Twitter account, “[Piterband] is a fun, non-offensive band project.”

Kiky argued that groups trying to mimic other popular bands is actually a gimmick used all the time by the entertainment industry.

“When you think about it, we are not the only group [that resembles a popular band or individuals]. There are plenty of people who play the Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson’s music. They even dress up like them, with all their accessories,” Kiky said.

Opi, a 34-year-old housewife, echoed his sentiment.

“I think it’s fine. It’s like a form of creativity reinterpretation. Indonesians are sometimes too quick to judge or label people,” she said. “If, however, some say this new band is taking advantage of other’s popularity, it’s their opinion. We can have different takes on the issue.”

Tiara, a high-school student and another Peterpan fan, defended them as “a cool group that cures my longing for Peterpan.”

“I don’t find them annoying. I think they’re pretty exciting. I miss Peterpan, but watching Piterband playing is sort of like seeing them perform again,” she said.
Wearing a white T-shirt and a pair of jeans, Aroel poses with some fans who have been waiting patiently to have their photo taken with the Ariel look-alike after his performance in Cikarang, Bekasi.

Aroel, whose real name is Mochammad Fachrul Azrullah, seems to enjoy playing the part of a pop star.

Born in Bandung, in June 1984, Aroel has been playing music for as long as he can remember.

After playing in numerous bands with friends, Aroel decided to take a different approach and started sending demo tapes to famous musicians, including ST12 frontman Charly van Houten.

Realizing that Aroel looked quite similar to Ariel and had a similar musical style, Charly decided to produce Piterband with Aroel as the singer.

Aroel admitted that, at first, he felt a heavy burden and a bit of shame for being in a band so similar to Peterpan.

“I think it’s human to feel that way. Peterpan is such a great band, and I know that people will directly compare me with Ariel,” Aroel said. “It was [Piterband’s bassist] Farux who encouraged me to get over those feelings.”

Asked if he personally thinks that he looks like Ariel, Aroel smiled.

“I have dark complexion, unlike Ariel,” he said with a laugh.

“And I can’t stand bright lights, so I often squint my eyes to protect them. Ariel often does that too, naturally.”

Aroel said the band’s critics no longer discourage him.

“I just want to focus on the music we play. I do take it seriously,” Aroel said.

“I know the criticism will never stop. But, just like I sing in one of my songs, I face it all with love.”