Date: 11 September 2004 | Venue: Bukit Kiara
Indoor Arena, Malaysia
Disclaimer: If you wish to use/link my concert photos, I'd appreciate it if you would write me first. Thanks!
Date: 11 September 2004 | Venue: Bukit Kiara
Indoor Arena, Malaysia
Disclaimer: If you wish to use/link my concert photos, I'd appreciate it if you would write me first. Thanks!
Lip-smackingly sexy! That is my expression of choice if I had wanted to write a three-word review of this amazing concert by Bandung band Cokelat. Formed in 1996, this female vocalist-led rock alternative Indonesian band started out singing covers by Alanis Morissette and The Cranberries before being discovered by Sony Music Indonesia and soaring up high with melodic rock songs of their own. To date, they have three and a half albums under their punk-gothic leather belts. On September 11 2004, Cokelat landed on our shores to blow our minds and ears away with cool and refreshing variations of guitar strumming, bass plucking and drum beating and of course singing! In short, the band left us all a bitter-sweet chocolaty aftertaste that we will remember for many nights to come. |
INDONESIANMUSIC.com |
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Kikan and the boys sang and played 17 songs,
9 of which were from their second album, Rasa Baru
(2002). Karma was undoubtedly the most anticipated song from them,
given that it the second last song performed. It is possibly the only song
that most first time Cokelat concert-goers know the band by. When Kikan asked if there were Indonesians in the Malaysian audience, half the crowd who were mainly located closest to the stage confirmed their presence with hoots, screams, shrieks and roars, giving new meaning to the term zoo-like. |
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Kikan had two costume change. She dressed in black in the first part of the show, only to change into a black tunic patterned with red flower motifs in the second half. How did she look? Deliciously spiffy! |
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The band performed a most entertaining drum and percussion number which I can only describe as orgasmic! It reminded me of Stomp. |
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| When Kikan was done with her gebukan dram yang cadas (fierce beating of the drums!), she kissed her drum sticks before throwing them into the air and to her anxious fans, who were at this point scratching each other's eyes out to catch them. |
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As if she hadn't already, Kikan went to further win the hearts of her Malaysian audience: she confesses her admiration for Malaysian diva Sheila Majid. Like topping off vanilla ice cream with chocolate rice, Kikan took to the keyboard, played and sang Sheila Majid's Lagenda. The crowd melted into a pool of warm chocolate syrup and happily sang along. Shortly after, Kikan crooned Penantian, which she wrote for
her new baby. |
| Cokelat fans badly wanted the band to sing Bendera.
The song is the soundtrack to an
Indonesian movie released in 2002 with the same name. Because Eross
of 'Sheila on 7' originally wrote the song with Indonesian patriotism in
mind, Cokelat had to sing the chorus about the Indonesian flag to suit the
Malaysian environment. Political correctness at its best: |
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| Original chorus: Merah Putih teruslah kau berkibar Di ujung tiang tertinggi Di Indonesiaku ini Merah Putih teruslah kau berkibar Ku'kan selalu menjagamu |
Version at Bukit Kiara: Benderaku teruslah kau berkibar Di ujung tiang tertinggi Di bumi indahku ini Benderaku teruslah kau berkibar Ku'kan selalu menjagamu |
| Edwin (lead guitar) was most generous with his guitar picks. He flung at least a dozen of them into the frantically flailing hands of the screaming audience. I learned that it is harder to catch guitar picks than drum sticks. |
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Edwin finally scampers over and joins his friends for a finale bow.
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"Who's your daddy!" :-D
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Some of us live to hunt and salvage the song list from the audio technicians
after concerts.
I do have one gripe about the Cokelat concert though; they didn't sing Bunga Tidur!
Big thanks to KC Ismail for the opportunity.
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