Cr: Sopian Permana
RIDE Triumphed with Stellar Performance on Super Generation Fest 2018!
BANDUNG (11/24) – Super Generation Fest 2018 has successfully held its first installment in Bandung last night. Boasting performances from RIDE, DIIV, Under The Big Bright Yellow Sun, and Rock N Roll Mafia, the music festival garnered more than 3,500 attendees for its one-day-only celebration. Taking place at El Dorado Dome, the venue was transformed into a festival area completed with two F&B and Lounge Area, LED-filled tunnel, as well as various sponsored booths. Under The Big Bright Yellow Sun became the first act that performed on stage. Bringing four songs in total, the Bandung based post-rockers warmed up the night that only got better from there. Rock N Roll Mafia brought their all-new visuals to the stage. The electronic band has just released an EP called “Unison” back in March. They translated the colors on that album on their lighting design dominated with red and magenta colors. It was mesmerizing and suited their mannerism on stage well. They performed songs like “Never Give Up”, “Body Won’t Stop”, and “Intoxicated” among many others. Their set was packed with upbeat songs that required the attendees to get up and dance.
Super Generation Fest 2018 applied breaks in between performances, so right after Rock N Roll Mafia waved goodbye, the visitors could take their smoking break outside the main stage. Earlier that afternoon on a press conference, it was revealed that Zachary Cole Smith and co. are currently recording a new album. They also said that working on each album has its own appeal, and their third one will have different charm than their debut and sophomore album. After 20 minutes break, DIIV went on stage but didn’t perform right away. There seemed to be a little bit of trouble with their instrument’s setting, so they went back to the backstage while waiting for the crews to sort it out. They greeted Bandung and kicked their set with “Bent (Roi’s Song)” that was greeted with warm delight from their fans. Besides performing songs from “Oshin” and “Is The Is Are?”, DIIV also performed several new songs that have never been performed before. Accompanied with pretty magnificent lighting, sadly DIIV’s stage was troubled with several technical setbacks. The sound that came out wasn’t very clear and balanced, resulting in a not-so-fun experience throughout their set.
RIDE who had little to no expectation for their performance turned out to deliver the best show of the night. Andy Bell and co. didn’t hesitate to cleanse our ears with their songs starting from “Lannoy Point” from ‘Weather Diaries’ down to their golden records like “Vapour Trail”. They also picked up some local words like “hatur nuhun” (re: thank you) after the crowd cheered on their performances. Mark Gardener also unveiled a little-known fact that he has been corresponding with Helfi, one of FFWD Record’s co-founder. So, albeit not knowing much about Bandung, RIDE acknowledge the high enthusiasm from the listeners in Indonesia, especially Bandung. They also uttered their excitement of being on stage with younger bands like DIIV, since it enables their listeners to overlap and gains new ones in the process. Their sound production was one of the best we have heard throughout our festival experience. Whether you were watching their performance right in front of the stage, or a little further to the left-back, the sound was balanced and clear enough to be heard until the outer gate.
After we thought that they were finished performing, they returned once again to deliver 3 more songs before officially wrapping up the night on a high note. RIDE truly showed their expertise, experience, and class that made the young generations could learn a thing or two from them. Super Generation Fest 2018 managed to bridge the gap between two generations using music as its glue and it worked well on the first installment. It would only get better if there was more education regarding the whole festival’s experience, by not only putting the music as its main selling point, so the visitors could engage in more wholesome activities. Can’t wait to see what they will offer in the future!
