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Thursday, December 14, 2017

Rock Show

If you look at my CDs collection, you'll notice that I'm not really a big fan of rock music. Nevertheless, I'm certainly not immune to it. When it's good, it's really good. There's no denying it, therefore I still love bands such as Bon Jovi and Guns N' Roses. They had a lot of great songs that I grew up with, from Livin' on a Prayer to November Rain.

When I heard Bon Jovi was coming to Asia, I knew I got to go. I could have just attended their concert in Singapore, but the band was sharing the stage with other acts during F1 event. I reckoned it wouldn't be a full-fledged concert, therefore I opted for their concert in Indonesia instead. Together with friends from Singapore, we flew to Jakarta on September 11, 2015.

It was my first concert experience in Indonesia since Mr. Big came to my hometown 15 years ago. Jakarta's traffic jam was notorious, so we went to Pacific Place and had early dinner at Hard Rock Cafe, then walked from there to Gelora Bung Karno. It was not exactly near, but doable.

From left: Steven, Hendra, Anthony, Muliady and Franky, taking wefie in front of the entrance gate!
Photo by Hendra. 

The most memorable moment before the concert started was the queue to the entrance. It wasn't chaotic, but it was packed to the extent that we were literally stuck there for easily an hour. There wasn't a space to wriggle freely at all! It was so bad that I remember glancing at those with backpacks, half thinking if one of them was ever a suicide bomber, we would have died at the very spot where we stood.

But we didn't die and we got to watch the concert instead. When the lights were on and the music began, I look around to find Jon Bon Jovi, never realising that the white haired man on the stage was actually him! It was only when he started singing that I noticed he was Jon.

Bon Jovi, live in Jakarta!
Photo by Franky.

He looked much older than the last time I saw him on TV. It seemed like he also never expected that the night in Jakarta would be so hot and humid. I mean, he was sweating profusely from the start, gasping for some air at times that I cringed and hoped he wasn't going to faint.

It took him quite long to adjust and the new songs that I didn't recognise clearly didn't help. Richie Sambora was notably absent, so the concert featuring a struggling front man was rather boring. Jon also had this habit of shoving the mic to the audience when he was supposed to be singing the high notes. In hindsight, I jokingly told some friends that he might have regretted writing the songs that could tear his larynx apart. Jon Bon Jovi could belt out those songs easily when he was much younger, but he couldn't sing them anymore these days.

The singer only got back to the top of the game from Keep the Faith onwards, which was like the second last song before the encore. As Jon got himself busy with maracas, he transformed into this Bon Jovi we knew and loved. The concert was eventually ended with a brilliant performance of Livin' on a Prayer. The song started slow in acoustic, then switched into full band, rocking the stadium and giving us a satisfying closure. It redeemed Bon Jovi's reputation as a world class rock band.

After the concert.
Photo by Franky. 
Having gone through such experience, you'd understand why I was a bit wary of Guns N' Roses. First of all, the concert venue was like in the middle of nowhere. On top of that, we had this unknown opening band blasting their unrecognisable loud music from afar while we were lining up for the worst queue arrangement ever in 2017 for our... hotdogs, if I remember correctly. Then came Axl Rose, putting on so much weight and looking totally different from the young man I saw on MTV back in the 90s. I immediately had doubts that he could do what he used to do. I thought this was it, I'd been Bon Jovi-ed again.

That's when I was in for a nice surprise. Axl was not only very agile, but his voice was also still solid. He ran, he jumped and he sang throughout the concert. Duff McKagan was as cool as a bass player could be. Then of course there was Slash. His curly hair, his seasoned and battered looking guitar and his legendary guitar playing, he was everything you'd like your eyes to feast on. Both Slash and Axl were the very reason why GNR was so great. I couldn't get enough of them.

Getting ready for Guns N' Roses!

They did all the good stuff ranging from Paradise City, Live and Let Die, to Sweet Child O' Mine, but none was more captivating than November Rain. Axl was on piano and the moment he played the intro, I was transported back to that tiny studio in Pontianak. I remember my friend Hardy doing his best Axl impression and here was the real deal, singing right in front of me. It was so surreal to have your dream come true, really.

Just like Bon Jovi's concert where Always was curiously missing from the set list, I had no idea why GNR didn't perform Don't Cry that night. But it was still one helluva concert. When the concert ended, it was like waking up from a childhood dream, a very loud one at that...



Konser Musik Rock

Jika anda mengamati koleksi CD musik saya, anda bisa melihat bahwa saya bukan penggemar berat musik rock. Meskipun demikian, saya suka mendengarkan lagu-lagu populer dari grup-grup tersohor seperti Bon Jovi dan Guns N' Roses. Mereka menulis banyak lagu yang mengisi hari-hari saya di Pontianak dulu, mulai dari Livin' on a Prayer sampai November Rain.

Ketika saya mendengar kabar bahwa Bon Jovi akan datang ke Asia, saya tahu saya harus menyaksikan aksi panggungnya. Bon Jovi juga datang ke Singapura, tapi hanya sebagai bagian dari aneka artis yang mengisi acara Formula 1. Oleh karena itu, saya terbang ke Jakarta bersama teman-teman Singapura pada tanggal 11 September 2015 untuk menonton konser tunggal Bon Jovi di sana.

Dan tiket pun dibeli jam 17.29 waktu Singapura!

Ini adalah pengalaman konser pertama saya di Indonesia sejak Mr. Big datang ke Pontianak 15 tahun yang lalu. Mengingat macetnya Jakarta, kita berangkat lebih awal ke Pacific Place dan makan malam di Hard Rock Cafe, lalu berjalan kaki ke Gelora Bung Karno.

Ada sebuah pengalaman menarik yang terjadi sebelum konser. Kita terjebak di tengah lautan manusia satu jam lamanya saat mengantri untuk masuk. Suasananya memang tidak rusuh, tapi kita tidak bisa bergerak maju maupun mundur. Sambil memandangi mereka yang memikul tas ransel di punggung, saya berpikir, kalau saja ada di antara mereka yang merupakan pelaku bom bunuh diri, kita pasti mati di tempat.

Akan tetapi tentu saja kita tidak mati dan jadinya berkesempatan untuk menonton konser. Ketika lampu menyala dan musik dimainkan, saya langsung fokus ke arah panggung untuk mencari Jon Bon Jovi. Setelah dia mulai bernyanyi, saya baru sadar bahwa pria berambut putih itu adalah sang bintang utama! Dia tampak jauh lebih tua dari yang saya perkirakan. Selain itu, sampai hari ini, saya selalu berasumsi bahwa sepertinya dia tidak terbiasa dengan panasnya cuaca di Jakarta. Begitu konser mulai, dia sudah banjir keringat dan seperti kehabisan napas. Saya bahkan berharap bahwa dia tidak pingsan.

Bon Jovi membutuhkan waktu cukup lama untuk beradaptasi dan bagi saya, lagu-lagu baru yang dinyanyikannya tidak membantu menghidupkan suasana. Richie Sambora juga tidak datang sehingga kelangsungan konser sepenuhnya bergantung pada Bon Jovi yang terlihat lelah dan memaksakan diri untuk menyanyi. Jon juga memiliki kebiasaan mengarahkan mikrofonnya ke arah penonton ketika dia seharusnya menyanyikan bagian lagu bernada tinggi. Karena kecenderungannya ini, saya seringkali bercanda dengan teman bahwa Bon Jovi pasti menyesal telah menulis lagu-lagu yang memaksanya untuk berteriak. Dia dengan gampang menyanyikannya dulu, tetapi sekarang ia tidak sanggup lagi. 

Pose saat antrian masuk.
Foto oleh Franky.

Bon Jovi terlihat kembali prima saat mereka memainkan Keep the Faith, lagu kedua terakhir sebelum encore. Dia dengan lincahnya memainkan maracas, persis seperti Bon Jovi yang kita lihat di TV dulu. Tidak lama kemudian, konser pun ditutup dengan lagu Livin' on a Prayer. Lagunya dimulai dengan irama pelan dan akustik. Setengah jalan kemudian, terjadi transisi dan lagunya berganti menjadi elektrik seperti yang biasa kita dengar dari rekamannya. Dengan lagu andalannya, Bon Jovi mengguncang stadion dan memuaskan dahaga penggemarnya sekaligus kembali menunjukkan kelasnya sebagai grup musik kelas dunia. 

Setelah konser Bon Jovi ini, anda pasti mengerti kenapa saya agak cemas dengan konser Guns N' Roses. Pertama-tama, konsernya berada di tempat yang terpencil dan sulit dijangkau, sesuatu yang tidak lazim untuk standar Singapura. Selain itu, antrian untuk sebuah roti hotdog juga benar-benar parah. Kita mengantri satu jam lamanya sementara grup pembuka yang tidak terkenal memainkan musik sekeras-kerasnya. Kemudian Axl muncul. Dia terlihat gemuk dan sungguh berbeda dengan pemuda yang tampil di video musik GNR di tahun 90an. Saya langsung merasa ragu bahwa dia bisa menyanyi seperti dulu. Jangan-jangan penampilannya akan seperti Bon Jovi lagi.

Saat lagi antri isi kredit buat beli makanan.
Foto oleh Eday.

Namun saya terbukti salah dalam menilai. Axl bukan saja berjingkrak hingga akhir, tapi suaranya pun tidak memudar dan masih sebagus dulu. Dia berlari, melompat dan menyanyi tanpa terlihat lelah. Duff McKagan juga ada di panggung, dengan tenang memainkan bass-nya. Slash pun tidak kalah sibuknya. Dengan rambut keriting yang menutupi mata dan permainan gitarnya yang memukau, dia membuat kita serba salah, entah harus melihat permainannya atau menonton Axl. Perpaduan dua orang inilah yang menjadi alasan kenapa GNR adalah salah satu grup paling dahsyat di dunia.

Mereka memainkan tembang-tembang terbaiknya, mulai dari Paradise City, Live and Let Die, sampai Sweet Child O' Mine, tapi yang paling berkesan adalah November Rain. Axl duduk di depan piano dan tatkala dia mulai memainkan nada pembukanya, saya bagaikan terbuai kembali ke studio kecil di Jalan Cendana di kampung halaman saya. Saya ingat teman sekolah saya Hardy yang bernyanyi dengan gaya Axl Rose dan kini penyanyi aslinya melantunkan lagu yang sama di hadapan saya. Serasa tidak percaya, tapi nyata di depan mata dan tidak terbantahkan oleh telinga.

Sama halnya seperti konser Bon Jovi yang tidak memainkan lagu Always, saya juga tidak tahu GNR kenapa tidak memainkan Don't Cry di malam itu. Akan tetapi tidak bisa disangkal bahwa penampilan mereka sangat luar biasa. Ketika konser berakhir, rasanya seperti terbangun dari sebuah mimpi masa silam yang hingar-bingar...

Guns N' Roses, live di Singapura!
Foto oleh Eday.

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