T

he smirking, torn-jeans clad princes of the Indonesian rock scene said hello to their “sweet-smelling” fans through a 28th birthday bash ballroom concert last week.

 Rock band Slank’s shows usually resemble something slightly short of a political party’s campaign
rally — sweaty, noisy and slightly chaotic outdoor affairs with shirtless young men waving flags bearing the band’s logo.

Those affairs might be fitting for Slank’s fans — often referred to as “Slankers” — who are game for dust clouds rising from the bare ground due to the stomping feet and being scorched in the midday sun while soaking up the audience’s body odor.

However, the band’s tongue-in-cheek lyrics and playful rock and roll sounds’ appeal extends beyond those who enjoy feisty outdoor gigs, and their concert “Journey to The Blue Island” last Friday targeted what the band dubs as “sweet-smelling Slankers” who prefer a more comfortable setting to listen to their music.

Priam Soesetyo, the director of promoter MAMLive, said that the idea of making a comfortable Slank concert came to him when he listened to an acoustic session of a band in a café.

“When the band played Slank songs, everyone in the audience sang along,” he said.

Priam then began exploring the playlists of the people around him. He was surprised to see Slank songs appearing in those of people he had thought were unlikely to be fans of the band.

“I looked at their iPods, their iPhones, looked at the ‘s’ section and there was Slank’s name,”
he said.

Priam then began preparing for the concert. He first gathered local artists to pay a tribute to Slank. “[The artists] don’t have to be famous, but they have to have their own characters,” he said.

The music directors chosen for this project were Aghi Narottama, Bemby Gusti and Ramondo Gascoro – both associated with the band SORE.

At first, the performers included drummer and singer Marcell and jazz singer Andien. However, a change in the event’s venue and date around a week before the show caused the organizer to alter the lineup.

The concert was initially slated to be held in Mata Elang International Stadium (MEIS) in Ancol, North Jakarta, but Priam said that the location’s distance from the city center made him reconsider the possibility of gathering around 8,000 to see the show.

Another factor he considered was the fact that MEIS is still a new venue and many people were unaware of the indoor stadium.

Priam said that after moving the show to the Ritz Carlton Ballroom in Pacific Place, Sudirman, the speed of ticket sales began to increase. However, the ballroom had a smaller capacity and some ticket prices had to be raised to limit the quota to around 3,000.

According to him, the move was a success. The non-sponsored concert was a sold-out affair and the audience was more or less what he envisioned them to be: well-dressed, carrying all sorts of gadgets, and knowing Slank’s songs by heart.

Tributes to the band made up the event’s first half. Although several artists had to cancel their appearances this time, those who did go on stage presented various performances according to their own styles.

Naif, for example, performed Slank’s songs with a quirky, retro color, while singer Dira Sugandi sang a soulful, jazzy version of the ballad “Foto Dalam Dompet.”

Meanwhile, the birthday boys sat in a special section facing the stage looking like rock and roll royals in top hats and draped chairs.

“There is one Indonesian band that has always had a place my heart since I was in the sixth grade of elementary school, that is Slank,” said singer Kartika Jahja, who sang the ballad “Kirim Aku Bunga”, during her performance.

A choir singing a medley of several Slank songs preceded the band’s onstage appearance, which was greeted with hearty applause from the crowd. The band’s performance that night, which was the show’s second half, was backed by an orchestra conducted by Indra Perkasa.

 The energetic “Bang bang Tut” and “Tong Kosong” caused the floor of the ballroom, which is located on the building’s 4th floor, to shake even though not all of the crowd was jumping to the rhythm.

Kaka, Bimbim, Ridho, Ivan and Abdee added several unique touches to the show that night, such as a brief acoustic session, a passionate duet with Kartika Jahja for the song “Reaksi” and including the bleak “Lorong Hitam”, which singer Kaka said has not been played for over 10 years, in the playlist.

Longtime singer and composer Titiek Puspa made an appearance on stage to sing “Orkes Sakit Hati” with Kaka and playfully chiding him on the subject of his jeans, which appeared as if they were inches away from falling apart.

Virtually all of the songs played that night were received warmly with sing-alongs. Several technical problems, however, such as microphones failing to function and feedbacks, did arise and one showgoer lamented that he was supposed to be in the tribune class but due to the venue change had to join others in the festival class.

Agung and Echi, who came to the show that night, said that they had long waited for Slank to do a gig that they could enjoy in comfort.

 “It’s nice to watch the band like this, without any flags blocking my view,” he said.

Agung said that he had liked Slank since he was in elementary school because his older sister used to listen to the band. He has finished higher education and also plays in a blues band.

Tia, another audience member who came with her husband to see the show said that she had liked the band since she was in junior high school. The couple’s dates included one of watching Slank perform in Bandung. She is now a housewife.

According to the band’s website, Slank’s history has its roots in playing covers of Rolling Stones and Van Halen. However, their performances “somehow were never like the real bands”.

Their attitude got the schoolmates, who were paid with a bottle of drink to help support their performances, labeled as slenge’an, which roughly translates as having a “don’t care” attitude or paying little heed to strict rules. The term slenge’an eventually found its way to the band’s name.

Over the years, the band, one of the first indie bands in the country, has struggled with several problems, such as drugs, line-up changes and recording pressures.

And although some of their most memorable songs tell of broken hearts and being judged negatively thanks to their grungy style, Slank has certainly come a long way from being the skinny teenagers playing music with their high school friends decades ago.

Apparently, so have some of their listeners and perhaps it was about time for a reunion.