Flash Canadian dancers wow punters at BATS
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Clad in black, the opening act -- two women -- went on stage. Singer Hening breathed into the microphone and her friend, Ratna began playing the keyboard.
The night was still young but there was a steady stream of people filling the club early to get the best seats.
A Western man and his companion, a svelte Indonesian woman, chose a candle-lit table in the corner to have a romantic dinner as other visitors chose to assemble around the large main bar in the middle.
The Jakarta Post was at the Bar At The Shangri-La (BATS), taking part in a special gathering to introduce the live music club's new act -- the Flashdance Band.
"We are here to rock Jakarta. This place will be jumping, I tell you," drummer Sebastien Cote said when the band came on stage.
Billed as one of the top Canadian top-40 cover bands, Flashdance consists of four singing and dancing young women and three equally youthful blokes who play the instruments. They are Izabelle Gagnon, Emily Levesque, Marie Cournoyer and Valeri Peterson, Sebastien (drums), Francois Laperle (guitar) and Alexander Brancaud (keyboard and saxophone).
On their first show that night, the cheerful Canadians performed a string of popular Western hits along with two local ones, Ekspresi and Separuh Nafas from Titi DJ and Dewa.
What set this group apart from their Indonesian counterparts was their singing and dancing. While the band rocked out, the four women really managed to get down, wearing sexy dark pants and Madonna-style bustiers that tied their audience up in knots.
Like other BATS bands, Flashdance will perform at BATS for three months.
While the mainstream entertainment is undeniably professional, it is not the only attraction of the club, which offers a full dinner menu amid what it calls a "New York Underground Bar" atmosphere.
"We are opening earlier to accommodate executives after office hours. We push our image: Great food, premium drink and a nice ambience," assistant manager Daniel Priambodo said.
Red bricks are the dominant feature on the walls and red stains the pillars inside, while one back wall is covered with caracitures, a hall of fame of BATS-goers from times past and present.
"They are the faces of our loyal customers. This is kind of how we appreciate them," Daniel said grinning.
The menu features a range of appetizers from beef carpaccio to French onion soup, while main courses include Mulawarra beef fillet or prime Australian sirloin plus a glass of house wine.
With space in the restaurant for 88 people and a hundred more in the bar, BATS is definitely a place to go with a large group of friends.
The club also takes care of its patrons in more ways than one. Visitors go through at least three security checkpoints entering the bar and there is an enforced dress code.
"Not everyone can meet the conditions of entry. This automatically filters our guests," he said.
And if BATS' healthy turnout was any judge, then expatriates -- many of who admitted to being foreign embassy staff or employees of multinational companies -- feel comfortable there.
They also won most of the door prizes, while the Indonesian women had the hippest moves on the dance floor.
BATS Shangri-La Hotel, Kota BNI, Jl Jend. Sudirman Kav.1, Jakarta Phone: (021) 574 8401
Opening hours: Seven days a week
Bar 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Dinner 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Happy hours 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.