A classically good time at Classic Rock<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): It was a Saturday afternoon at The Jakarta Post
\nand as usual, I was languidly doodling while eying the twelve
\nvoluptuous new hackettes who had just jetted in from the New York
\nTimes for a spot of on-the-job training (don't believe a word he
\nsays - Ed). Suddenly, the telephone nestling expectantly at my
\nelbow rang out shrilly. It was my editor, a cad and a bounder if
\never there was one. \"Get your ass over here,\" he bawled down the
\nline.<\/p>\n
\"What's up, Boss?\" I asked, trying to wrap submissiveness,
\nhumble-pie and temerity all into one (hopefully) acceptable
\npackage. \"It's not what's up, it's what's down -- our ratings,
\nm'lad,\" he replied shortly. \"And rumor has it that you're part of
\nthe problem.\" He followed this vicious insinuation with dark
\nmutterings about my (allegedly) having lost touch with the
\nyounger generation. \"So, what you're going to do this week is to
\nget out of your old-man pubs and head down to somewhere where
\nit's all happening, like, be COOL man -- groovy.\"<\/p>\n
Hmmm. It was then that I remembered an invitation from a group
\nof acquaintances (mostly of the Bohemian, if not downright
\nhedonistic variety) to go partying in the \"raunchy\" Blok M area
\nof South Jakarta, at the Classic Rock pub to be precise. Perfect!
\nNot only would I be able to keep the evil editor at bay, but I'd
\nalso have the opportunity to drink copious quantities of the
\namber nectar at the Post's expense. Talk about killing two birds.
\nEverything was going to be SO cool, man, like, yeah, dig it,
\nbaby.<\/p>\n
Location: Jl. Falatehan 1 No. 12, Blok M, South Jakarta
\n(phone: 7251440, 7251308). This is the same street as such old-
\ntimer dens of iniquity as Top Gun and the Sportsman's, so no need
\nto despair if you don't dig the Classic Rock -- there's plenty of
\nother watering holes to choose from.<\/p>\n
Hours: From 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., seven days a week.<\/p>\n
Bill, please: One of the main things that the Classic Rock has
\ngoing for it is it's prices. A glass of draft beer (Anker) will
\nonly set you back Rp 7,500, while a generous pitcher of the same
\nbrew will hit you for Rp 85,000. Astonishingly, one of the pretty
\nbarmaids told me without even blinking that a shot of Johnny
\nWalker Black at Rp 24,000 was the same price as a shot of Johnny
\nWalker Red -- surely some mistake here! As for cocktails -- \"No
\nhave, mister\". But they do have those strange kinds of beasts
\nthat have become known as \"mocktails\", i.e., glorified fruit
\njuices, all of which go for Rp 10,500. Could be a cheap night out
\nfor the teetotalers! And, by the way, there's no cover charge to
\nworry about.<\/p>\n
What's it got: As usual, a fully stocked bar, although by no
\nmeans as fully stocked as many similar establishments. In other
\nwords, don't go there expecting to find your favorite brand of
\nOuter Mongolian light ale.<\/p>\n
Here's looking at you: Alas, my expectations of a cool,
\nhappening place with million decibel techno music lifting up the
\nfloorboards, spaced-out nymphettes and an orgy in every corner
\nproved to be ill-founded. Yes, as so often in Indonesia, Saturday
\nnight means reggae night. And true to form, there he was up on
\nthe stage, Brother Bob Marley's long-lost Jakarta twin all decked
\nout in de rigueur multicolored floppy hat, dirty-looking
\ndreadlocks and \"power to the people\" T-shirt, prancing around for
\nall the world like he had a broomstick firmly planted up his ass.<\/p>\n
What is it about Brother Bob that appeals to so many aspiring
\nyoung local musicians that no matter where you go for a beer
\nthroughout the archipelago, you're almost guaranteed to end up
\nlistening to \"No woman, no cry\" for the zillionth time?
\nCould it be that the music is not so technically demanding?<\/p>\n
While I used to be quite partial to the odd bit of reggae,
\nafter a couple of years spent lurking in Indonesian bars, those
\ndays are now long gone.<\/p>\n
But I must admit, as reggae crooners go, this particular
\noutfit wasn't half bad. The Brother Bob look-alike was backed up
\nby an able female vocalist (who didn't look anything even
\nremotely West Indian) and, over in the corner of the stage, an
\nabsolutely wonderful pair of jack-the-lads playing the trumpet
\nand sax really knew how to jig up the scene and get the punters
\nout wiggling and wobbling on the dance floor.<\/p>\n
Other than the band, Classic Rock turned out to be a pretty
\nnondescript sort of place. Long and fairly narrow, with the bar
\nrunning along one side, it's the kind of dive that would be great
\nfor hosting a young band on the up.<\/p>\n
Dark and slightly seedy, it's not hard to imagine the joint
\nfilled with smoke and heaving with pushing, shoving and sweating
\nrevelers. But \"imagine\" here is the operative term for on the
\nnight I paid a call, there couldn't have been any more than 20 or
\n30 would-be revelers there at the max -- and I was there until
\nthe band called it a night at 2 a.m. Maybe I'm not the only one
\nin town who's had it more or less up to the gills with Indo-
\nreggae, even if the band is a cut above the rest.<\/p>\n
Odds and ends: Was informed, for some unknown reason, by one
\nof the bouncing babes on the dance floor that the cubicle in the
\nladies restroom lacked a lock, with the result that disaster
\nalmost ensued as she tried to hold the door closed while
\nendeavoring to take aim at the bowl. Most unfortunate, no doubt!<\/p>\n
Last call: Given the fact that reggae is already what could
\nfairly be described as \"old-man\" music, it goes without saying
\nthat Classic Rock is not exactly a clubbers' paradise, not the
\nsort of place that's so cool you're likely to catch a cold sort
\nof thing. But, having said all that, at least you can hear
\nyourself talk and get a beer in without too much hassle (and
\nwithout breaking the bank into the bargain). Much more my style,
\nI must admit, though I've no idea what the editor will have to
\nsay! He might even refuse to reimburse my beer bills. DISASTER!
\n(Bill Blade)<\/p>",
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