Pop music's growing power

For those of you who don't follow the latest developments in the country's less than interesting mainstream music scene, it might be good to know about a rather unsettling episode that unfolded over the past two weeks, and it was not about music.

After a protracted row that involved a complaint to the Jakarta Police and the deployment of band of notorious vigilantes, rock group Dewa agreed to replace artwork that graces the cover of their new album, pompously yet cheesily titled Laskar Cinta (Love Militia).

For those of you who can't tell Dewa apart from any other band that appears on the small screen, Dewa is a five-piece band hailing from Surabaya, East Java, who shot to fame for their crybabies anthem Kangen (I Miss You). Over the years, they have mutated into a supergroup whose bread and butter have been Queen ripoffs and lyrics addled with Eastern spiritualism.

And it was their dalliance with Eastern spiritualism that had landed them in hot water.

A vigilante group that gained their reputation for regularly raiding the city's night spots, the so-called Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), accused them of blasphemy for the use of the word "Allah" written in Arabic calligraphy that adorned Laskar's sleeve.

The group was also angered by the band's act in trampling on a carpet bearing the calligraphy during a televised concert.

For this Islamist group, using such calligraphy in the entertainment industry -- an utterly mundane affair -- is an unforgivable sin, let alone treading on such a venerable symbol. It was blasphemy times two.

The purge against Dewa is absurd as band leader Dhani Ahmad had said repeatedly that the motive for using the calligraphy was in fact to promote the words of god to their fans.

Seemingly oblivious to the content of Dewa's album, FPI targeted its attack only on their artwork.

FPI demanded that the band and their record company apologize to all Muslims around the country for their "sinful" act, or face the law. To lend weight to their demand, members of the Islamist group were later deployed to patrol Dhani's house, a move that prompted him and family seek refuge in a hotel.

And now that their demands has been met, the champions of freedom must grind their teeth in anger witnessing hard-won freedom of expression once being shackled in the name of religion.

However, the row between Dewa and FPI reflected the growing power of pop culture and its offspring, in this case television and record industry.

By filing a complaint about the alleged blasphemous act FPI has unwittingly confirmed the power of the Dewa band, the very creation of mass culture, television and the record company, as the media by which the blasphemy was relayed.

It looked pretty damn surreal seeing sabre-totting members of FPI clad in their white Muslim apparel flashing Dewa's album cover and loudly denouncing it as if it meant a lot to their religion.

Never in the country's music history has album artwork been considered so dangerous ... - M. Taufiqurrahman