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#Showbiz: Make it havoc!

Kugiran Masdo is among several popular acts rounded up to perform at Havoc Midnight Concert on Sunday in Dataran Karnival in Shah Alam. TAHIR ALHAMZAH has the details

CONSIDERING it as the silver lining to the Covid-19 pandemic, Kugiran Masdo says there is no particular "formula" for its huge response in the neigbouring country of Indonesia.

The quartet — comprising Ali Sariah, Putu Ceri, Asmawi and Azham Ahmad — performed to an encouraging crowd in July in three Indonesian cities namely Jakarta, Bandung and Bekasi, says it was sheer luck that during the pandemic, its songs Dinda and Janji Manis went viral in the republic.

After international borders were opened, the band took the opportunity to perform in front of its new fans in July.

"While we initially did not have any expectation from the crowd there, they really surprised us," shares Ali Sariah of his experience performing in Indonesia.

"You would think, okay, may be you could see them sing along to Dinda and Janji Manis, but no, throughout our 45 minutes performance, they were singing and dancing all the way," he shares.

Due to some venue change, Kugiran Masdo's performance in Bandung was cancelled and instead, through the help of its Indonesian manager, the band found its way to perform at Festival Muzik Waktu Indonesia Berdansa in Jakarta.

"Among the artistes who performed at the festival were big names like Tulus, Rizky Febian and D'Masiv.

"Our turn was after D'Masiv. We didn't know how the audience would react to our performance after they had been entertained by D'Masiv.

"It also rained at the time. So we were really nervous from the get-go," recounts Ali.

But it turned out that their anxiety was for nothing.

The 10,000-strong crowd stayed on and seemed like they were having a good time.

"Their response made us feel very much at home, as if we were playing in front of fans who had been with us since Day One."

That experience opened more doors for Kugiran Masdo to continue expanding its music in the country.

According to its vocalist and bassist Ahmad Azanol Khushairie a.k.a. Putu Ceri, they were also invited by six radio stations for interview sessions while there.

The band is also thrilled to have signed up with Warner Music Indonesia.

"God-willing, under the label, we will have three new singles in the pipeline. There is also a possibility for us to embark on a collaboration with Indonesian artistes," he says.

On Sept 9, the band is scheduled to perform at the Anugerah Muzik Bandung.

Having had their music career put on hold like many others due to the pandemic, the band is glad to be back in action.

Ready to rumble

Kugiran Masdo is part of the music acts at the upcoming Havoc Midnight Festival this Sunday. Others include K-Clique, Noh Salleh of Hujan fame, Yonnyboii, Floor 88 and Zynakal.

"Although there seems to be a stream of concerts held in recent times, we are sure that this will be nothing short of fun and we promise concert-goers that we will give our best performance," promises Kugiran Masdo who will be performing 10 songs.

"After the pandemic, Malaysian music scene is now abuzz with renewed energy and all these concerts happening now are proof of that.

"Floor 88 too is looking forward to this concert with the promise of something better so that we could remain relevant in the industry," says Eric Fuzi of Floor 88.

Havoc Midnight Festival is the first concert held by organiser Havoc Event & Management Sdn Bhd.

"Havoc Festival was first organised as a food festival, and we've since included music. This will be our sixth time organising this event.

"However, to make this festival even merrier, we figured bringing in some music entertainment would be fun," says Havoc Event & Management's CEO, Firdaus Nadxaman.

He adds: "We hope that this music festival will be a night to remember by local music fans. Imagine an evening of music from various genres such as one popularised by Kugiran Masdo to hip hop and rap from K-Clique. Then there's Noh Salleh's pop retro music. There'll be something for everyone."

The concert, happening on Sunday, starts at 9pm.

Tickets, priced at RM55 and RM99, are available at www.ticket2u.com.

The organisers are also planning to bring the same festival to Melaka and Johor Baru in November and December respectively.

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