School band contest planned

JAKARTA (JP): Freedom is the theme of a high-school band contest being organized by Levi Strauss.

Registrations will be open from Sept. 15 to Oct. 20 for high- school bands from Jakarta, Bandung, Central Java, Yogyakarta and Surabaya. Contestants are required to register at certain local radio stations.

Each registered band is required to enter a demo tape containing two songs, one its own composition and one on the selected theme, according to Levi Strauss marketing services executive, Kiki Rizki. Preliminary contests will be held in the respective cities from Nov. 5 to Nov. 8, to find the best 20 bands.

These will be narrowed down to 10 bands, which will perform on Nov. 29 at the Bengkel Nightpark discotheque, Central Jakarta.

Kiki said that they expected at least 100 bands to register.

The winner will bag Rp 3 million (US$260), second Rp 2 million and the third-placed band Rp 1.5 million. Separate cash prizes of Rp 1 million each, will be earmarked for the favorite band, the best guitarist, vocalist, drummer, bassist and keyboardist.

This is the second contest organized by Levi's. Last year's competition, which involved Jakarta high-school bands alone, cost Rp 150 million. This year, it's going to be at least three times bigger, according to Kiki. (ylt)