Witching Hours Bids Goodbye with Several Folk Acts as The Regular Gig Comes to An End
Witching Hours is a regular gig held by creative youths from several cities which is supported by a renowned cigarette brand. The routine is considered fun since it showcases one of a kind performance from any other gig. The tenth volume was the last gig they held and the end of Witching Hours was caused by a renovation from the venue it usually took place which was at Vanilla Kitchen, Bandung. On the other hand, the team that created this gig might have some other business that they have to attend. Otherwise, we were fortunate enough to be able to attend its last edition of music performance. For the tenth celebration, Witching Hours invited Oscar Lolang, Sky Sucahyo, Pygmy Marmoset, and Bin Idris as the guest stars. We managed to arrive at the location at 7.30 PM accompanied with pretty heavy rain and Bandung’s cold weather. These folk line-up rarely come in one stage together, so we would not miss the chance to see them altogether. Several adorable rounded sofa were placed upon the stage, the decoration embodied a comfortable space so the audience felt right at home. A cup of hot drink was ordered to warm up our bodies and we took the front seat so we could enjoy the music to the fullest.
Oscar Lolang commenced his stage without much talk after the MC introduced him. The tall and slender musician started to pick his guitar and showcased his loud voice which was beautiful and warm. It reminded us of the music from Nick Drake or Bob Dylan, yet Oscar could put out his own characteristic in his tunes. On the next song, Oscar Lolang brought a rendition of “Day Is Done” from Nick Drake, one of our favorite folk musician and he pulled it off very well. He talked a little bit about his next album that he’s going to release in the next few months and his upcoming tour. “Eastern Man” that talks about people from Papua was chosen as his closing set. His compassion towards our country’s social issues through music makes us believe that he is the reincarnation of Leonard Cohen or Nick Drake.
Sky Sucahyo then followed after Oscar Lolang, and her attractive look caught the attention from the audience. Just like Oscar, she picked her ukulele right away without much beating around the bush. She was accompanied by her bandmates who played guitar and bass. She also performed a beautiful poetry musicalization from Taufik Ismail which was arranged stunningly. Our ears were very pleased and comforted by her tunes. One of our most awaited song from her “Lejar”, was a little bit disappointing since she performed it in a very simple manner, unlike the studio version of the song. “Doa Untuk Istriku” was last performed by her and the audience sang along as her set came to an end.
Afterwards, a video montage was shown and previous editions of Witching Hours were compiled in one short visual. Several indie musicians that have contributed to the gig were present on the video. Some of them also felt sad that the regular gig had to end and some others gave their support for the last edition. When the clock struck at 9, many people swarmed the venue and the place was filled up, forcing some of the audience to stand up. The third line up was an acoustic pop band from Bali, Pygmy Marmoset. It’s been a long time that the unit haven’t visited the city, and our longing was satisfied that night. Pygmy Marmoset offer a kind of music that awed us. Back in their homeland, this kind of music was widely spread, but Marmoset served it differently with their distinctive vocal and drum punches which were not complicated but exciting. They looked very comfortable on stage and the audience could feel it as they performed songs after songs without break.
Eventually, it was time for the last performer to sing. The audience did not move an inch from their initial position and we even witnessed a bigger crowd came into the place. Haikal Azizi with his solo project as Bin Idris was appointed to close the tenth volume of Witching Hours. The frontman of band Sigmun, was very timid and he entered the stage with a guitar only. “Dalam Wangi”, a single taken from his solo debut album started off his set and he played it without much gimmick unlike his persona on his band. Few songs from his album were played and the lyrics which talked about his daily life accompanied by his typical guitar pick managed to silence the audience, as we were engrossed in Bin Idris’ realm. Overall, the artists lived up to their names and we were sad to see Witching Hours had to conclude its routine. Hopefully, the gig would be resurrected one day with much better concept and line up.
Writer & Pic: Zakaria/Editor: Novita Widia
