[Gigs Report] LA Lights Indiefest Final Regional Surabaya

 

Seringai barking at the audiences

Date: 15 Agustus 2008
Place: Lap. Basuki Rahmat Surabaya
Entry: IDR 10.000 (include a pack of cigarettes)
Finalist: Albert and The Product, Robert Davis Chaniago, Wai Rejected, Soulmate, Unda Undi and Pollypop
Bands: Burgerkill, Seringai, The Changcuters, Minerva, The Morning After, Cigarettes Nation
Good: Jam Revolution. Burgerkill and Seringai together with Minerva, neo-classic meet rock!
Bad: Two-sided stage!

Ini dia ajang show case bagi ke enam kontestan LA Lights Indiefest 2008 regional Surabaya untuk diseleksi menuju kompilasi tahunan LA Lights Indiefest. Pada edisi 2008 ini ada enam finalis, yaitu Albert and The Product, Robert Davis Chaniago, Wai Rejected, Soulmate, Unda Undi dan Pollypop. Ajang show case kali ini, dihadiri bintang tamu yaitu Burgerkill, Seringai, The Changcuters, Minerva, The Morning After dan Cigarettes Nation.

Sesampainya dilokasi, sesuai prediksi, memang ramailah ini acara, dengan hipotesis utama penyebab keramaian adalah kehadiran The Changcuters sebagai bintang tamu. yeah, lagu-lagunya yang merantak di RCTI setiap malam sebagai soundtrack sinetron membuat band ini begitu populer. Begitu masuk ke areal panggung, saya melihat tendensi “berinovasi” yang diupayakan penyelenggara, dengan mengunakan two-sided stage. Panggung yang memiliki dua sisi, depan dan belakang, sehingga penampil bisa langsung bergantian tanpa waktu menunggu. Sayangnya justru hal “inovatif” ini adalah yang paling mengganggu sepanjang acara, bagaimana tidak, kita harus berpindah sisi, setiap saat ingin melihat band berikutnya! Semoga konsep ini tidak akan dipakai lagi.

Oke, saya sempat menyaksikan Minerva, walaupun hanya sedikit. Empat cewek bersenjatakan biola (string section quartet) ini memainkan musik yang kurang lebih seperti Bond. Kemudian setelah itu, ditampilkan ke enam finalis regional Surabaya. penampilannya dibagi menjadi dua sesi yang berurutan. Sesi pertama ada Unda Undi, Pollypop dan Wai Rejected. Pada sesi ini jelas penampilan Wai Rejected asal Malang adalah yang paling stand out. Terasa sangat matang dalam aransemen lagu. Sesi kedua ada Albert and The Product, Soulmate dan Robert Davis Chaniago. Ketiganya tampil baik, namun banyak yang membicarakan Soulmate dengan electro-pop nya yang memang tidak banyak di kota ini. I don’t want to judge them, as I’m not the jury, but I predict, Wai Rejected and Soulmate would go through the compilation. Haha..

Bambang of The Morning After

Sampai pada penampilan bintang tamu, yang pertama tampil ada The Morning After. Band jebolan LA Lights Indiefest 2007 ini tampil dengan manisnya, dengan musik 90’s alternatif. Kemudian ada Cigarettes Nation, yang juga jebolan LA Lights Indiefest 2007. Tampil dengan menyanyikan salah satu soundtrack film Kill Bill pada lagu pertama, kemudian menghadirkan Lebonc (vokalis Apples in The Wonderland –band induk Cigarettes Nation) pada lagu terakhir, (The Curse of) the Downtown Dogz.

Setelah penampilan para alumnus, hadirlah serigala-serigala beringas berlabel Seringai yang siap membakar stage malam itu. Yeah, antusiasme anak muda di bibir panggung begitu bergairahnya, Akselerasi Maksimum yang menjadi lagu pertama langsung membuat moshpit, dan tubuh tubuh pun bertubrukkan kesana kemari. Seringai sukses memprovokasi audiens untuk menggila di moshpit, walaupun dengan sound yang tidak memuaskan. Suara gitar sempat kurang keluar dengan baik, namun para fans Seringai sudah bisa ber-ejakulasi dengan kehadiran band pujaan mereka. Oh, ya, penampilan Seringai ditutup dengan lagu Neraka Jahanam milik Duo Kribo –sempat dipopulerkan oleh Boomerang. Setelah Seringai selesai, langsung dihajar di stage baliknya (jadi harus lari ke stage sebaliknya, damn!) ada Burgerkill disana! Burgerkill langsung menghajar dengan dentuman trash metal yang menghajar anak-anak di moshpit. Kali ini sound sangat menggelegar dan terdengar seperti seharusnya. Metalheads akan merasakan double orgasm disini.

Setelah Burgerkill, ada The Changcuters, yang sedang sangat hype, thanks to television. Yah, seperti bisa diprediksi, antusiasme berlipat-lipat pada penampilan The Changcuters. lagu-lagu sinetron itu mereka bawakan dengan diiringi koor dari penonton. Setelah The Changcuters sebenarnya adalah puncak acara, yaitu Jam Revolution. dimana sebelumnya pernah diadakan juga dibandung menampilkan 5 band, antara lain, Koil, Mocca, Pure Saturday, Alone At Last dan Goodnight Electric, membawakan lagu milik Pure Saturday. Nah kali ini menampilkan Seringai dan Burgerkill bergantian diiringi oleh Minerva. Dan puncak kekesalan saya terhadap two-sided stage ada disini! Setiap selesai lagu, langsung berpindah set panggung ke sisi sebaliknya! Damn! Seringai dan Burgerkill juga tampaknya merasakan kekesalan yang sama, mereka pun berbalik ke sisi depan dan belakang bergantian. Yah, untungnya penampilan kedua band ini sangat memuaskan, Minerva juga berhasil memasukkan nuansa neo-klasik dalam musik cadas.

Sekian dulu laporan untuk pertunjukkan kali ini. couldn’t get enough of Seringai, sampai bisa menonton pada stage yang lebih kecil dan rendah. Hahaha… Selamat kepada para finalis indiefest, semoga sukses! kalo bikin album jangan lupa kasih nama Mellon Zine di ucapan terima kasih, hehehe…
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Sammy Seringai: pose andalan

Here is, the show case of six finalist of LA Lights Indiefest 2008, Surabaya region to be selected into annual compilation by LA Lights Indiefest. In this year, there is six finalists, Albert and The Product, Robert Davis Chaniago, Wai Rejected, Soulmate, Unda Undi and Pollypop. This show also showing Burgerkill, Seringai, The Changcuters, Minerva, The Morning After and Cigarettes Nation.

As I came on the venue, as I predicted before, there is so crowded, my hypothesis, main cause of the crowd is because the present of The Changcuters as performer. Yeah, their songs were played very often in the TV lately, as soundtrack of several TV serials. As I got inside, I feel some tendency of “Innovation” that being tried by the organizer. With its two-sided stage, back and front, so the audiences don’t have to wait performance after performance, because the performer could prepare its show, when the previous performer is onstage in the different side. Ironically, this “innovation”-things is the most annoying thing along the show. We must turn aside –which mean not a near distance to walk-, each time we want to see the next performer! I hope, this concept would never be used again.

Okay, I catch Minerva performance, although not much. Four lads with violin (string section quartet), they played music, much less like Bond. Then come the time for the six finalists to show their best. The performance divided into two sessions, first session there are Unda Undi, Pollypop and Wai Rejected. From this session, clearly Wai Rejected is most stand out compared the other two. They just so mature in song arrangement. The next session there are Albert and The Product, Robert Davis Chaniago and Soulmate. All of them showing very good performance, but many peoples talk about Soulmate with its electro-pop that not much counted in this town. I don’t want to judge them, as I’m not the jury, but I predict, Wai Rejected and Soulmate would go through the compilation. Haha..

Then, the time for the star performer, the fist performer is The Morning After. Band that its song compiled in LA Lights Indiefest 2007, perform sweetly, with tis 90’s altenative music. Next we have Cigarettes Nation, that appear in the 2007 compilation too. Sing a song from Kill Bill soundtrack in their first song, then appearing Lebonc (vocalist of Apples in The Wonderland –the origin band of Cigarettes Nation) in the last song, (The Curse of) The Downtown Dogz.

After that, Seringai came up, ready to burn-out the stage that night. Yeah, the boys is really enthusiast and passionate to see Seringai. Akselerasi maksimum, that came as the first song directly made a moshpit between the audiences, and bodies are slamming all around. Seringai successfully provoked the audiences to go crazy in the moshpit, although, the sound is not really satisfied me. Guitar sound seems didn’t came out rightly, but the fans is able to ejaculate with the present of Seringai. Seringai finalized their performance ith the song from Duo Kribo, Neraka Jahanam –Boomerang ever sung this song and made it popular too. After Serngai, in the opposite side (I must run to the opposite side of the stage, damn!), there is Burgerkill ready to rock! Burgerkill hit the audiences in the moshpit so hard with its trash metal. This time, the sound is really stand out! Metalheads would experience double orgasm here.

Next, after Burgerkill, there is The Changcuters, who is very hype right now, thanks to television. As expected before, audience enthusiasm is multiplied in The Changcuters show. That TV series soundtrack-song performed altogether with audience voice. Right after The Changcuters, could be the main show, Jam Revolution. Whereas previously held in Bandung, showing 5 bands, Koil, Mocca, Pure Saturday, Alone At Last and Goodnight Electric, play a song by Pure Saturday. But now, is showing Seringai and Burgerkill, each of them together with Minerva. And I’m very distracted by two-sided stage at that time! Right after a song played, the stage is turn aside! Damn! Seringai and Burgerkill seems rather distracted too, they turn back and face front, change side. Thankfully the performance is really great, Minerva success to fill in neo-classical taste in Metal-rock music.

Okay, this is the end of this gig report, couldn’t get enough of Seringai, until their smaller stage show. Hahaha… Congratulation to LA Lights Indiefest Finalists, good luck! Don’t forget to put the name Mellon Zine in thanks list, if you gonna make an album, hahaha…

*Reported and translated by: Jay
*Photo by: Ipunk'd