Spending the Night at PASIFIC

Saturday, Feb 22 marked the newborn festival in Bandung presented by Fakultas Ekonomi dan Bisnis Universitas Padjajaran. Abbreviated from the title Padjajaran Music, Festival, and Culture, PASIFIC aimed to combine music festival and cultural awareness. The biggest temptation from this event came from the line-ups which consisted of several Indonesian most prominent artists. Up first was HiVi! While the weather might not be all sunshine when it started, HiVi! performance had successfully warmed up the drizzled afternoon. Dea and Ilham, the vocal duo, always eagerly inviting the crowd to sing along, such a signature gesture from HiVi! Of course it’s hard to refuse their catchy songs like Curi-Curi, Orang Ketiga, or Mata ke Hati. The quartet’s rendition of The Groove’s Khayalan was also a good throw for people who had just seen them for the first time.

Raindrops were still falling when Tulus stepped on stage. The pop jazz soloist who had just recently released his second album, “Gajah”, greeted the audience with his trademark greeting, “Halo, perkenalkan nama saya Tulus…” With some brief story-telling about each songs he’s about to perform, Tulus delivered Kisah Sebentar, Diorama, Sewindu, Teman Hidup, Jatuh Cinta, and few numbers from “Gajah” album: Sepatu and Bumerang. His baritone crooning never failed to melt ones heart. We just can tell, for most of the audience were girls looking smitten, singing along wholeheartedly.

After the first two performances, we were given down time to enjoy surroundings: trying out Bandung’s culinary from the food tenants, meeting friends, or lining-up for a toilet break. The venue was getting even more crowded by the evening as the rain finally had stopped. Filling your tummy may not be a problem; the food tenants varied from the good ol’ nasi goreng to the hipster-ish all kinds of tea. But in such a cold and damp weather, toilet is a necessity, which was kind of insufficient in number it might burst your bladder.

Around 4 pm we shifted to the main stage where Project Pop scheduled to perform. Dressed in red and white attire, the six of them energetically entertained the audience with their comedic bits. Sundanese jokes are well received; an advantage as a Bandung based group in their own hometown. Other than songs like Pacarku Superstar, Gara-Gara Kahitna, and Metal vs Dugem, they parodied a currently popular dangdut song, Kereta Malam. After all the fun, Ingatlah Hari Ini made a memorable closing.

Tulus and HiVi! had been a feast for the girls, now it’s time for the boys and their awaited garage-rock band lead by Rekti, The SIGIT! Too bad there was some technical problems with Rekti’s microphone for several songs including No Hook and Clove Dopper, quite a bummer. For the next performance, the crowd automatically switched; front rows were filled with girls who then went screaming for Afgan’s name. It goes wilder when Afgan finally showed up, being all charming when greeting the audience. Even if you don’t really listen to his songs, you might found yourselves mouthing the words as Afgan sings, because it’s just impossible not to recognize his hit singles like Sadis, Bawalah Cintaku, Jodoh Pasti Bertemu, and Bukan Cinta Biasa. Whenever he bow down closer to the audience, high pitch screams will fill the air. He is indeed a real charmer.

The hysterical screaming did not stop there, for the next perfomance was the most awaited band from Yogyakarta, Sheila on 7. Existing since 1996, most of the audience grew up with their songs since the year of “Sheila on 7″ self-titled album. They seemed to understand our expectation, so the song lists mostly included singles from their early years such as Seberapa Pantas, Saat Aku Lanjut Usia, and Pria Kesepian. Duta never sang alone as the crowd known every words and all singing loud. The best part, of course, was Melompat Lebih Tinggi. This single from OST 30 Hari Mencari Cinta shook the venue as the audience literally jumping higher in accordance to the lyrics.

It might be exhausting after all the jumping and singing, but NAIF was definitely not to be missed. Continuing our nostalgia to the 90’s, NAIF started off with Mobil Balap, Televisi, and Posesif. Then, David the vocalist allowed the audience to request the next songs. The requests fulfilled were Air dan Api, Karena Kamu Cuma Satu, Benci Untuk Mencinta, and the one with the longest title, Dia Adalah Pusaka Sejuta Umat Manusia Yang Ada di Seluruh Dunia. Before the show ended, David took off his clothes and threw it off, triggering more scream from the girls. “Thank you!” David said as he’s leaving the stage, with last strum and stomp from Jarwo the guitarist, Emil the bassist, and Pepeng the drummer. As for the final performance, we could finally chill down a bit with songs from Glenn Fredly. The festival ended romantically with songs like You’re My Everything and Malaikat Juga Tahu.

PASIFIC has compiled a fully-satisfying set of artists with generous setlists as well. They are really what made the ticket price worth it. If only the concept of music, festival, and culture had been more elaborated and implemented, it would have the chance to distinct itself from other festivals alike. There are still several rooms of improvement that need to be taken care of before it’s able to make its way as a festival to be remembered. We believe it’ll only get better from here!

Article by Annisa Karnesyia

Photos by Dinda Kharisha