The Umpteenth Journal Attempt

Went to the Hard Rock Cafe for Universal Music's sneak preview of their upcoming releases. What this amounted to was two guys - one from the UK division, one from the Asian division - put on a slide show presentation, with the occasional music video thrown in for good measure. But the surreal part for me was having Adrie Subono (head of concert promoters Java Musikindo) as a drinking buddy. Here's how it went: I was sitting down on a stool waiting for the presentation to start, and at one point, I looked to the side and saw him. He saw me, waved, and walked over. The thing is, I only know the guy from attending his gigs and press conferences. He's a friendly guy at all those events and manages to sneak in a few minutes of chat time with anyone who's game. But in this instance, he came over and sat right next to me. He even walked to the free drinks table and got me a Sprite! Of all the people in the room! Did I mention he's a friendly guy?

And so I took the opportunity to chat and get some inside dish. He admitted that he was feeling rather downbeat, since the Kuningan bombing meant that two of his gigs had to be cancelled. It wasn't a matter of money, but more of trust and assurance for the various parties involved (artists, sponsors, the public). As you know, Indonesia isn't exactly a hotspot for visiting acts, so it's an uphill battle to get them to come over, even without bombings. At this point, Adrie's willing to snap up just about anyone who'll be up for it. I mentioned that Ash (whom he had brought over in 2001) had just released a new album, and logically would go anywhere to promote it. I don't know if my persuasion worked, but if several months down the line they do come, then you read it here first...