The Painful Experience is the 3rd full-length studio album by the Indonesian (then "progressive black metal") band Kekal. Kekal experimented greatly on The Painful Experience, and garnered mixed reviews. The album was praised by critics for its numerous experiments and emotional quality, but was criticized for Jeff's falsetto screaming on some of the songs, which drew comparisons to King Diamond. The diverse style of the album includes elements of black, thrash, power, and classic metal. In a recent interview with the band's Facebook staff, Jeff stated that he had forgotten how much energy and intensity he and the other band members put into recording the album. He also admitted that album contains a fair amount of Iron Maiden influence, and that he had been listening to a lot of Iron Maiden material at the time of recording. Release Dates: October 2001 (CD version - Clenchedfist Records) October 2001 (CD version - Fear Dark) October 2001 (cassette tape version - THT Productions) August 2002 (cassette tape version - HROM Records) Album Line-Up: Jeff : guitars / vocals Azhar : bass / vocals Leo : guitars Produced by Jeff Arwadi with KEKAL Engineered & mixed by Jeff Recorded & mixed at Vision Studio, Jakarta, Indonesia, and at The Dream Dome, Bandung, Indonesia Cover lay-out design by Jeff / Soundmind Graphics Severed face sculpture by Aris Darisman Additional guitars: Azhar & FXAJ Additional bass: Jeff Noises and samples: Jeff, FXAJ, & Doctor D Synth orchestrations: Jeff