American emo band Dashboard Confessional rocked the capital and wowed hundreds of fans during a concert last weekend.

Dashboard Confessional (from left) John Lefler, Chris Carrabba, Mike Marsh and Scott Schoenbeck. JP/Triwik Kurniasari

It was a sprightly Saturday night, and a perfect evening to enjoy an outdoor concert with friends. Crowds of urban teens, clad in stylish casual outfits, were seen heading to the Bung Karno Sports Complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta.

The much-awaited performers were Dashboard Confessional, a Florida-based band comprised of four musicians: Chris Carrabba on vocal, John Lefler on guitar, Scott Schoenbeck on bass and Mike Marsh on drums.

Dashboard Confessional shared the bill with several local pop and rock bands such  as Kotak, The Changcuters and Nidji at the Pond’s Teens Concert.

Hundreds of teens waited from the early afternoon for the American headliner to perform.

Teenage girls went wild when the band’s lead singer walked onto the stage, and they called out his name repeatedly, “Carrabba … Carrabba!”

The band opened the gig with Don’t Wait off their 2006 hit album Dusk and Summer which prompted the crowd to sing along with them,

”Don’t wait, Don’t wait
The road is now a sudden sea
And suddenly, you’re deep enough
To lay your armor down.”

 After the first song, Carrabba, who looked great in shirt, vest, jeans and a cap, greeted the cheering crowds. “This is Dashboard Confessional. How are you? This is our first time here. Thank you for inviting us. You are so beautiful. Cantik!” Carrabba said in an intermission.

The crowd remained enthusiastic throughout the 90-minute show as indicated by massive singalong when the band played a mix of old and new songs, including The Swiss Army Romance, Vindicated and their latest single, Belle of the Boulevard.

Teens swayed and sang along when Carrabba put down his guitar, sat behind the keyboard and serenaded them with the band’s pop single Boulevard.

“Don’t turn away
Dry your eyes, dry your eyes
Don’t be afraid
Keep it all inside, all inside
When you fall apart
Dry your eyes, dry your eyes
Life is always hard for the belle of the
boulevard,”

Cries of “we want more … we want more” were heard when the stage lights went dark at the show’s end. A few minutes later, the band came back on stage for an obligatory encore and played its two of their biggest hits, Stolen and Hands Down.

Dashboard, originally a side-project for Carrabba, started performing as a band 10 years ago and released their sixth album, After the Ending, in 2009.

“The record took a long time to make. We just feel fresh to get out and play it for people for the first time — and to play for the first time ever [in Jakarta],” Carrabba told The Jakarta Post before the show.

“It did not take a lot of time in the studio, but we did the record in two sessions,” he added.

He was grateful for staying with his bandmates for a decade.

“After many hours on stage and in rehearsals, we don’t communicate verbally anymore. There’s such a high level of trust,” he said.

“If I write a song, I never think of what [the band] will do. I know that what they will do will get me more excited than I thought.”

Dashboard remains a solid band because members live in different cities, he said.

“We live thousands miles away from each other. When you live in the same town, you tour together, go in the same bus and play together in the same stage … that’s your whole life, all the time. I think you can see the crash.”

The band does not think of rock ‘n’ roll as a competition or an industry. Carrabba said that the band was only competing with itself.

Carrabba hopes that Dashboard will still be together 10 years from now and beyond. “In the modern era, a 10-year career is so uncommon,” said Carrabba.

“We are famous enough. We always try to make an impact. Hopefully, we will have as great an impact as the people who raised us. If we get another opportunity to connect with people like this, I can’t imagine of a better 10 years.”

Dashboard’s did made an impact on fans in the city. Just like its hit song Stolen, the band has stolen the hearts of many teens.

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