Newly opened Retro promises modern music

By Emma Cameron

JAKARTA (JP): A new bar opened on Dec. 17 in Central Jakarta with promises of modern music from New York, Tokyo and London.

Retro, located at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Jl. Gatot Subroto aims to bring Progressive, Trance, Euro House and Acid Jazz music to a dance scene dominated by R & B.

"We will play a little bit of R & B but totally at the beginning of the night" said Andrew Santoso, Marketing Director and partner in the venture.

Retro is being promoted with the line "Future is now, the present is past". The name Retro with its connotations of the music and trends of the '60s and '70s is an interesting choice for a bar marketing itself as a modern music venue and Andrew admits that it has "confused people a little bit". However with a strong attachment to the name Andrew explained the link as "everything present is just a flashback."

The interior of the bar is described as Occidental, meaning aspects of the Middleeast (the circular sofa booths around the outside of the room each with their own netting curtains that can be drawn to create a cozier atmosphere), Europe (the long, centerpiece table) and Asia (waitresses wear traditional Chiongsam tops while light fittings are blocky and translucent white in Japanese style).

In phase one of the club with only the lounge/bar open, space is limited and dancing will be difficult, unless of course you take the advice of Andrew and use the solid, center table as a podium "if people want to get on the table and dance they can, just don't spill the drinks."

A big selling point of the bar is its easy ground floor access, not only for patrons convenience but also for their safety while the centrality of the venue is also a bonus for city dwellers or those in town on business.

The target audience for the bar is the young executive so the marketing team is attempting to recreate the cosmopolitan atmosphere they are exposed to in their business travels all over the world. This is not a club for the teeny-bopping set, class is valued over youth. "Eighteen and nineteen year olds spoil the atmosphere, although you do need them to liven the place up," Andrew said.

At the moment on a lot of issues the marketing team for Retro either has no idea what is going on or refuses to say. Memberships will be available but who will receive them is unknown. The bar serves lunch between 12 and 3 but the menu is not yet set.

There are plans for cocktails but their contents are still unknown. There are however, plans for a regular acid jazz night, cigar night, Mambo Jambo or retrospective night and a desire to promote a wine culture in Jakarta. Introductory prices for wines, coming from France, Australia, South Africa and California, average about Rp 40,000 for a glass and Rp 200,000 for a bottle.

All weekends (Friday, Saturday) have a cover charge of one drink, which could be a simple glass of Coke. Retro is open from eight until twelve. The deejay, Dennis Lee, is flying in from Kuala Lumpur. Music on weekends will feature Euro Music, London Underground and Trance.

Currently Retro shows potential more than anything else. Mid February the club opens and the bar extends to include a dance area, member's mezzanine, a second bar area and large windows overlooking Crowne Plaza's pool area. Stage Two will be able to hold 800 people comfortably and the view to the pool area with its fairy lights and tropical atmosphere should create a good ambience. There are plans to import a deejay from either London or Hong Kong.

The two people behind the Retro concept are Dan Q. Kwan, who heads Tribeca Asia, the architectural and interior design firm whose portfolio includes Peacock Cafe at the Hilton, Jalan-Jalan, Quantum Athletic Club and Mata Bar and Rudy Widjaja who set up the first live music entertainment complex in Jakarta, the Zen karaoke club and Marufuku Japanese restaurant.