Log Zhelebour, 'father' of Indonesian rock music

By Bambang M.

YOGYAKARTA (JP): If there is a name that deserves mention when discussing the development of rock music in Indonesia, it is Log Zhelebour.

The chubby, friendly and modest man from Surabaya has organized numerous concerts featuring local popular rock bands, like Grass Rock, Boomerang, Power Metal, Kaizar and Jamrud.

Over the last three months or so, Log has been organizing rock festivals in 11 major cities across Indonesia, a series of events that he says costs about Rp 10 billion. The festival will culminate in a show in Surabaya on Aug. 4, where the best rock band 2001 will be selected.

"My ambition is simply to give the chance for new rock music bands to appear," Log told The Jakarta Post in Yogyakarta, one of the 11 cities in which the rock music festival has been held.

This is the ninth national rock music festival that Log has organized since 1984. The festival had temporarily stopped in 1997 until May this year due to the economic crisis.

Sponsored by a major cigarette company, the ongoing ninth rock music festival started in Denpasar, Bali in May.

Born in Surabaya on March, 16, 1959, Log has probably been the most faithful event organizer, promoting existing rock bands and looking for new talent.

"At that time (until early 80s), the only Indonesian rock musicians were SAS, God Bless, Super Kid and Mickey Jaguar," Log recalled the years when he was inspired to start the rock music festival in 1984.

Among the big names in rock music that have participated in one or more of Log's festivals are Nicky Astria, Mel Sandy, Slank, Ita Purnamasari, El Pamas, Adi Metal Band, Teaser and Modern Gank.

Not all of the singers or bands that have shot to stardom, such as Slank, Boomerang and Jamrud, were necessarily the best in the festivals.

The Festivals are also good for headhunters in the music industry.

"Eventually, it is the free market that will make popular singers or bands," said Log, who wants to prove that the loud music has nothing to do with violence as many believe.

Log is determined to dedicate his life to the development of rock music in Indonesia. He believes that the rock festival is the best way to popularize rock music in Indonesia. The best- known concert he has organized so far was the 1986 God Bless show in several major cities.

Log has also organized concerts for foreign rock groups which are popular in Indonesia, like Sepultura, Mr. Big and Peter The Wolf. The latest major rock concert that he organized under his company, Log Zhelebour Enterprise, was joint concerts of Boomerang and Jamrud in several big cities in Indonesia.

Being a rock concert organizer was not his boyhood dream. In fact he wanted to become a boxing promoter like Don King.

He became interested in the music industry out of his concern over poor rock music performances.

"I wanted to be a rock concert organizer because at that time rock concerts were poorly staged," said Log. So he spent several hundred million rupiah on stage equipment, such as powerful lighting systems.

His efforts brought results. The stage came alive thanks to the sophisticated technology and visual effects like fireworks became a standard attraction.

One thing that worries him are the unruly rock fans. Almost in every concert, they come in large numbers without tickets. They try to gate-crash to gain free entrance.

"They don't know that to stage a good concert it needs a lot of money. If they don't behave, how can Indonesia have good concerts?" he said.

The first major rock concert that Log organized was "Rock Power" featuring local groups SAS, Super Kid and singer Mickey Jaguar in Surabaya in 1980.

To help make his dream of developing rock music in Indonesia come true, he founded his own recording companies, Logiss Record, Logat Record and Logica Record. All rockers under the management of Log Zhelebour Enterprises have their music recorded by Logiss Record.

In the showbiz circle, Log is recognized as a good manager. Many of them want Log as their manager. Log has many strict requirements for a singer that wants to joint his enterprise. For example, Log will only pick those who really have the ambition to become the best and who are not involved in drugs.

Azis MS, Jamrud's guitarist, said that what is good about Log is that he is not only a good manager but also is a pleasant person to talk to. "Above all, he also pays attention to the future of our kids," Azis said.

Log married three years ago to a model in Boomerang video clips, Novi. "I was too busy (to think about getting married)," he will say when asked why he married when he was already 39.

The increasing popularity of local rock music is often credited to his name.

"Now they are proud to say that they are fans of Slank, Boomerang or Jamrud," he said.

Log still cherishes one obsession: making Indonesian rock music recognized internationally. The Indonesian language is no big problem for overseas audiences because many foreign rock groups popular in Indonesia use languages that Indonesians do not understand, he argued.