In Indonesian music, Slank are kings. Their loyal subjects gather at appointed royal appearances to wave flags bearing the royal crest and obediently to swear their allegiance to the once and future King.
Food of the gods: Slank’s lead singer, Kaka, gives a writhing, girating performance sans shirt, his sweaty skin glistening against the lights.
Their dynasty began in 1983 and despite periods of difficulty and internal conflict, they moved from the tumultuous reign of Uther Pendragon to that of the sovereign rule of Arthur and his knights, order being forged and civil unrest quashed.
Since 1990 they have released 18 studio albums and three live albums, have worked on the soundtracks to numerous films, collaborated with international artists and toured both in Indonesia and abroad.
It is difficult to characterize a band like Slank as anything other than a phenomenon. Their endurance, legions of fans, political activism are all strong points in the group’s arsenal. This despite earlier internal divisions which would have seen a lesser band succumb and fall in an ignominious heap as so many before them. But they have emerged stronger and now seem an unstoppable force of nature.
It is no surprise, then, that their performance at Java Rockin’ Land last weekend was greeted with more than a healthy dose of adulation from their fans, the Slankers, and punters alike. With lead singer, Kaka’s trademark bare, tattoo laden chest glistening with sweat in the warm evening air and his curly mane sweeping back and forth as if in slow motion as a royal train at a coronation, their royal status is complete.
With kicking guitar riffs announcing the arrival of the monarch, the fanfare excites the crowd: standard banners raised, cheers at fever pitch. The concert goes well over time as the band go through their enormous back catalogue of hits and the fans lap it all up as if it were ambrosia. Their call-and-response sections of their biggest songs are belted out by the crowd to a deafening pitch, the wild enthusiasm snapping back and forth like a giant whip.
The band greets the response with a little giggle and a look that says “this is the best job in the world”.
With such status comes enormous responsibility. Maintaining such a supporter base is hard work, they perform as much as they can and are constantly in the studio. Then there are the press interviews, the photographs, the constant attention and lack of privacy. But do they see it as such? “Not at all,” says Bimbim [drums], “for us, to be doing this is like a dream, so we love it”. So despite the age of the band, it seems they’ll keep going for a while yet.
An overtly political band, Slank have been outspoken against corruption in Indonesia. They believe that it is through young people that a solution is to be found. There is something endearing about a band who decides to take on a political cause. It is perhaps the very naïveté and erstwhile exuberance for their cause that makes their convictions so compelling to their fans.
A phenomenon: Slank plays at the Java Rockin’ Land festival last weekend, in front of throngs of Slankers and other fans.
Slank are avid anticorruption campaigners and despise what they see as endemic corruption.
They can turn rather nasty, of course, as Bob Geldof did when a BBC report alleged funds raised from the legendary Live Aid concert in 1985 had, rather than finding its way to the starving, huddled masses in Ethiopia as promised, were funneled into the pockets of rebel militia men and local war lords. He accused the BBC of dishonesty in an irate rant in The Guardian newspaper.
But it is this very conflict that is the problem with rock stars being involved at a political level. The issues which they are tackling may appear simple: “People are hungry, we can afford to feed them, let’s”, but history is addled with the corpses of the well-intentioned, fallen at the sword of unintended consequences.
Indeed, the 20th century was one which saw numerous social experiments based around the notion of Utopia try and fail, often catastrophically, such as Mao’s Great Leap Forward.
Politics and rock stars are a dangerous mix, but for Slank, the issue of endemic corruption in Indonesia is the issue they have decided is too important not to tackle.
“Young people look up to their elders. So our job is to change the mindset of the young people,” says Kaka, “because it has been so entrenched, it has been normalized,” says Bimbim.
“The only way to stop it is to start with a whole new generation and work from there up.” There is the possibility that there is something inherently corrupting in the holding of power itself, but this is perhaps an issue for a think tank or a committee somewhere to ponder. Even if they are kings, there’s not a great deal they can do but pump out their message and make the kiddies sit up and listen.
The band show’s no signs of slowing down and whilst they retain heaven’s mandate, they will remain Indonesia’s kings of rock as their conquering performance at Java Rockin’ Land displayed.
— Photos by JP/Ricky Yudhistira
