(Courtesy of Muhammad Asranur)

Naif, the country’s major alternative pop act, played a small club in Jakarta last month. Leaving their song list behind, their plan that night was to have no plan.

As part of the Friday I’m in Hell series, the gig took place at the Borneo Beerhouse, located in Jeruk Purut, South Jakarta. The five-piece played 13 songs in 57 minutes. No sound check was made prior to the gig; it was just a plug-and-play setting.

Naif, the fifth and the last act on the list of performers, started their set around midnight after a chaotic performance from BRNDLS, Jakarta’s own rock revivalists.

“So, where should we begin?” asked David, the funny frontman, while opening their set. Something was different about him that night; he played acoustic guitar throughout the performance, something that he rarely does on a big stage. Not more than 100 people saw the gig.

The stage was small. Keyboardist Khrisna even played off stage as his instrument was too large. Guitarist Jarwo was stuck in a corner while drummer Pepeng was hidden behind his band mates.

A fan called for “Rumah yang Yahud” (Cool House), a famous single from the debut album in 1998, and from there the band kicked off the jam.

Despite the limited instrumentation, the members were up for more fun that night. Popular for its signature retro sound, Naif left its comfort zone by playing rock numbers like “Walah” (Wow), a 1990s hit from local rock band Netral and Van Halen’s “Jump”.

There were apparent stutters when the band played “Televisi” (Television) from their 2007 album. Bassist Emir forgot how to play his part of the song.

After 12 songs, David had no intention of asking what kind of song the crowd wanted. He really needed to kill the set, so he played the intro to “Mobil Balap” (Race Car), Naif’s first hit which apparently always closes their performance. It was the only hit song that Naif brought to the stage that night.

The small jam was a nostalgic tribute to the band’s journey. Naif began in the Jakarta Arts Institute (IKJ) in the mid 90s. They performed from one underground venue to another, playing in front of small crowds which were normally filled with their friends from campus.

 — Felix Dass

*) At a Glimpse is all about the local music scene. Give us a shout at sundayglimpse@gmail.com. Also, become our friend at facebook.com/sundayglimpse and follow us at twitter.com/sundayglimpse.

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