The musical life of Bandung
The musical life of Bandung
Paul Agusta, Contributor, Bandung
Bandung, a name synonymous with indie, non-mainstream music,
with bands such as Kubik and Pure Saturday changing the face of
Indonesian music in the mid-90's, may seem less active and
perhaps stagnant on the surface, but that is far from being true.
Granted that many of its movers and shakers have spread their
wings and flown down Jakarta way lured by the exposure and the
vaster opportunities inherent in mainstream music, but most of
them have remained and continue to be active in keeping the
scene.
Since the mid 90s when the indie boys and girls woke Indonesia
up from the stagnant slumber it was in with their bold and brash
sounds, the map of the mainstream music has changed. The borders
shift, what used to be indie is now mainstream. Many of them are
still trying to push the envelope, but now within the studios
instead of in the clubs. But despite what you may have heard, the
Bandung scene hasn't died, it's simply not as well exposed as it
used to be. There's also a lack of regular venues where these
bands can perform, simply because club owners are reluctant to be
regular hosts of such events. The reason for their reluctance
being that these gigs can get a bit rowdy.
They're still there, people still seek them out, but you have
to dig a little to find the city's musical jewels. There are no
longer places in which you can catch indie bands play regularly,
but there's almost always something going on every week or so.
The venues that these sporadic events take place in tend to be a
few clubs or bars, colleges and foreign cultural centers such as
Centre Culturel Francais, which hosts bimonthly indie music
shows. The best place to find out when and where these events are
taking place, are the many distros spread around Bandung where
you'll most likely find pamphlets or notices about upcoming gigs
or events.
Here are some of the places where these events tend to take
place:
Classic Rock Cafe
Address: Jl. Trunojoyo no. 38
Phone: 022-4216800
Frequent venue for indie rock gigs. It has a cool bar atmosphere,
not too dark, not too smoky. The bands that play range from more
poppy fare to garage rock to punk and hardcore.
Amsterdam Bar
Address: Jl. Braga no. 71A
Phone: 022-4214221
Your average live music bar. Nice bar atmosphere. It's clientele
tend to be of the over 30 crowd. The music fits the crowd, as the
place mostly plays top 40 stuff, unless of course an indie band
is booked to perform. It used to be the home of a monthly Indie
rock show, but the owners are now reluctant to keep it going.
Laga Pub
Address: Jl. Asia Afrika no. 72
Phone: 022-4236004
A frequent venue for concerts and gigs. The first floor is a pool
hall, but upstairs is where it gets interesting. The 2nd floor
has a stage, a fairly spacious dancefloor (or in most events, a
fairly spacious moshpit), and a bar in the back with decently
priced drinks. Can get very dark and very smoky.
Cellar
Address: Jl. Diponegoro no. 10
Phone: 022-4505602
A small, but comfortable lounge, that frequently hosts gigs for
the more poppy side of the local music scene. The bands Mocca and
De Milo are scheduled to perform on May 15th
Fame Station
Address: Jl. Sersan Bajuri no. 100
Phone: 022-2004667
A more barlike equivalent to cellar, not as loungy.
Centre Culturel Francais
Jl Purnawarman no. 32
Phone: 022-4212417
The Bandung branch of the French Cultural Center has become one
of the few places willing to hold regular indie music events.
Here are a couple of upcoming indie events scheduled at CCF :
April 23, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., an indie music show, the April
installment of their bimonthly indie show. And later on June 25,
there will be an all day musical blow out featuring 11 bands
starting from 10am till late in the night.
For more cool hangout places, simply go to the areas of Dago and
Jl. Braga , where you'll find most of the nightlife is
centralized. There's a vibrant musical life to be found in
Bandung, you just have to know where to look.