Asian Kung-Fu Generation in Jakarta
30 August 2023 11:44 UTC+0
Author: tima
On 18 August, a historical event took place – after so many years of waiting Indonesian fans could finally see Asian Kung-Fu Generation in Jakarta!
A little history
The first talks about a concert in Indonesia started back in 2011 when Masafumi Gotoh made a post on his Facebook page saying that he would like to go on tour to Indonesia and Latin America.
However, things didn’t go well for Indonesia. We know that the band went to Latin America and Europe a couple of times, but Indonesia – being a big part of Ajikan’s fanbase – was left out. This was commented on later in 2011 by Gotch:
It is known that Gotch is often very empathic when it comes to visiting other countries for concerts. He always tells how much he wants to go play live overseas when this topic comes up in an interview. And when the concert in Jakarta was set and getting near, he made a comment on his page apologising for making fans wait so long:
Concert
Before the concert
On 17 August (Indonesian time), Asian Kung-Fu Generation arrived in Jakarta.
Merchandise was available for pre-order, as well as on-site. It included the following items: T-shirts in three colours, tote bags in two colours and hoodies in two colours as well. Each of the items had its own design.
Before the concert, the band recorded a short Instagram Reel for the promoter KIG Live inviting people to the concert and congratulating fans on the Independence Day of Indonesia.
During the concert
There is some concert footage which fans shared on our Discord channel, we just present you with two short videos from there.
After the concert
Some people were able to attend a greet & meet. Here are some photos published on social media.
Indonesian fans presented the band with hand-made thank-you banners.
Additional info
Setlist of the concert was interesting. It included the band’s all-time hits, songs featured in anime, some later songs, and laso it included a song like N.G.S which is not a very often guest on concerts nowadays.
- Senseless
- Re:Re:
- Rewrite
- Easter
- Shukuen
- Solanin
- Blue Train
- Marching Band
- Siren
- Blood Circulator
- N.G.S
- Soredewa, Mata Ashita
- After Dark
- Nishikata Coast Story
- Demachiyanagi Parallel Universe
- Kouya wo Aruke
- Ima wo Ikite
- Kimi to Iu Hana
- Haruka Kanata
- Korogaru Iwa, Kimi ni Asa ga Furu
The band also shared a Spotify playlist with the setlist of Jakarta concert.
Moreover, the official TikTok accound of Sony Music Japan uploaded two clips from that live featuring Haruka Kanata and Rewrite.
Some official photos from the concert
Gotch’s diary
The following text is a rough translation of Gotch’s dictionary for 15/08 – 20/08 period, where he describes their visit to Indonesia.
15 Aug
Packing for a flight to Indonesia between work. In the band, I’m the most sloppy and carefree, so I keep to a minimum luggage. The other members seem to have some sort of routine and they take a certain amount of luggage when travelling. They are the kind of people who pull carts in an airport even if the trip is for a couple of days. I, on the other hand, put pants, socks, and a T-shirt in my rucksack, if it’s 2 days 1 night trip. Trunks are also packed, just in case.
16 Aug
A flight to Indonesia. The food on the flight was delicious. After eating, I fell asleep. But after some time, I woke up with a hurting right shoulder. It gets better little by little, but sometimes when I turn in sleep it aches. On the plane, I didn’t have Internet access, so I watched a film. From three Japanese films that were present, I had chosen ‘Sickness That Leads To The Death Penalty’. It was a bit difficult to watch on the flight. After arriving, we picked up our instruments and luggage and headed out into the city. The highway was heavily jammed. However, police motorcycles led the way and helped us to smoothly get through the traffic. I’m feeling a bit sorry that it looks like such a VIP treatment. Some other things also made me wonder; for example, when agents entered the border control booth to let us through vouching for us. I don’t know the rules.
17 Aug
It was an Independence Day, so the city was very quiet. The roads were clear. We went to the promoter company’s office for a promotion live and an interview. The interview took quite a lot of time. When I went to the toilet, there was no toilet paper but a hose was extending from the toilet bowl. It seems to be used to wash up a bottom, like water sprinklers in a garden. By the way, it seemed that the whole toilet could also be washed. I didn’t use it in the end because it looked difficult.
18 Aug
Concert in Jakarta. It was really fun. I heard that in the 2000s, Indonesian economics weren’t very good, so even if Ajikan came, not many people could come. After more than 10 years, thanks to the economic growth many people were able to attend the live this time. In Japan, when you can get almost everything, I get tired of being chased by the word ‘growth’. However, in a place called the Global South, such problems are occurring now. The temple-like hotel we stayed at was relatively cheap compared to Japan, but around the hotel, there were lots of poor houses which could be called ghetto and they were separated by a river that was not very clean. It’s difficult to pass by as a tourist without seeing those places. I was happy to see lots of people enjoy the performance. It was also impressive that people sang along to many songs. There is a problem with covering the travel expenses for overseas concerts, hence the ticket prices rise. I’m sorry about that, but I think people had a great time which cannot be converted into money. A family that came from India told me, ‘You guys are popular in India so you should come to Mumbai and Delhi’. I’m happy that our journey is still going on.
19 Aug
Local holiday. My throat is sore. I went to a big mosque that commemorates the independence, went to a supermarket, and then tried to recover my physical strength. On the night, we celebrated Yama-chan’s birthday, but I was so tired I couldn’t keep my eyes open, so I skipped the party. I couldn’t fall asleep due to aching shoulders and lower back, so I was able to sleep only after some dawdling. And then, I woke up to the music of the 4 a.m. prayer.
20 Aug
Recorded some video for a solo song there. When I went to a place called M Bloc, there were a lot of fans of the band. They all came from distant parts of Indonesia. We were chatting while giving autographs. It was nice to shop a bit in a local record shop. There are lots of interesting musicians and bands in every country, and such occasions allow getting to know them. A smartphone became a sample listening device. After returning to the hotel and resting a bit, we packed and went to the airport. Since we had 3 hours from the check-out to the boarding, after buying souvenirs like high-quality coffee beans collected from musk cat faeces, I drank some Bintang craft beer. All South-East Asian beer is palatable. I think it’s made to suit the food and climate. Unfortunately, the toilet wasn’t closed. Maybe I just sweat a lot.
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