Roxette enthralls Jakarta enthusiasts in one-night show
Roxette enthralls Jakarta enthusiasts in one-night show
By Alice Akerman
JAKARTA (JP): The night Roxette played in Jakarta an
enthusiastic crowd had gathered anxiously at the doors of the
Jakarta Convention Center.
It is an impressive auditorium with a capacity to hold over
five thousand people. The floor at the front of the stage was
packed with patient fans content to stand for the entire
performance. Those lucky enough to have seats in the gallery were
the ones who benefited from the night's entertainment.
Having promised an 8.30 p.m. start, Roxette kept us waiting
with anticipation, finally arriving on stage at 9.40 p.m.
The lead singer, Marie Fredriksson, a petite, Scandinavian
blonde -- still sporting her trademark peroxide spiky hair --
appeared in a black shiny plastic outfit consisting of a tailored
jacket and skin tight pants. The black plastic jacket was shed
within five minutes of the opening song, which was not really
surprising. It must have been sweltering.
The stage, simply set, consisted of a black checkered
background illuminated with different lights. The only props of
the evening were four large plastic balls which were bounced
around the audience standing in front of the stage.
The attractive Swedish singer seemed to spend most of her time
jumping around the stage with endless energy so it is no wonder
she stays so slim. She was accompanied by her regular partner,
and fellow producer, Per Gessle and a couple of long haired
electric guitar players strumming along enthusiastically.
The good old rock song She's got the look was greeted with
delight from the audience, who joined in with the words to the
song: "What in the World can make a brown eyed girl turn blue,
when everything I do I'll do for you and I go la la la la la
she's got the look."
A popular trend amongst the audience, a mixture of young
Indonesians and expatriates, was to brandish lighters in the air
giving off disconcerting fumes of paraffin.
One band member leapt around the stage like an overfed genie
clutching what resembled Aladdin's lamp, whilst dabbing his
forehead with a pink flannel. Obviously this finished him off
because we did not see him again until the fourth to last song.
Delighted crowd
Marie Fredriksson joined in with the spirit of Jakarta within
half an hour. She asked the audience what the word was for thank
you in Indonesian. A delighted crowd told her and she even
mustered up a very sexy sounding Terima Kasih in response, which
impressed everyone, myself included.
Amidst the repertoire of songs, we had my old favorites, Get
Dressed For Success, Big Love and Joy Ride, to which everyone
joined in with a very effective hand swaying motion, made even
more surreal by the lighting engineer's swing of the lights
around the auditorium. These were followed by the heavier numbers
Hot Blooded and Harleys and Indians.
To rustle up a degree of romance a darkened stage was lit by
four candles and Marie sung a heartfelt rendition of Shine A
Light, Shine it on me. The screen at the back of the stage was
now a vast yellow sunflower.
The most touching song, I thought, was a lullaby. It was this
tune, Marie told us, she sang to her young daughter at night. It
was appropriately titled Before you go to sleep.
The concert was over within two hours, which appeared to pass
very quickly. Before this time, though, the crowd had begun to
thin, presumably because people were anticipating an early 4.30
a.m. rise.
Roxette approached the front of the stage for a good old-
fashioned bow, giving us all the usual comments of how much they
enjoyed playing in Jakarta and how they are looking forward to
playing here again soon.
As we left the auditorium and crossed the road to the nearby
Hilton Hotel, which was where the band were reported to be
staying, my main concern was how these unassuming Swedes would be
able to make it back to their rooms past the teenage groupies
already accumulating in the hotel lobby at well after midnight.