KUALA LUMPUR: Popular Indonesian rock band Gigi is excited about returning to Malaysia on Nov 5 after 14 years.
The 28-year-old band comprising vocalist Armand Maulana, guitarist Dewa Budjana, bassist Thomas Ramdhan and drummer Gusti Hendy last set foot here in 2008 for the Sunburst KL International Music Festival.
Gigi will rock Malaysians at the state-of-the-art Zepp KL in Jalan Hang Tuah for two hours in a concert dubbed, Gigi: Nakal Di Kuala Lumpur, presented by Tanjak Adventure & Tour. YOLO Malaysia and Udzir Harris Projects.
In an online interview today, Armand said that the band had a "great time" at the music festival and greatly appreciated the warmth and love of Malaysian fans.
"Best of all, our Malaysian hosts treated us to some scrumptious satay, nasi lemak and teh tarik. We will have a special order of all these on our big day, and these will be delivered backstage together with our musical equipment!" said Armand.
Thomas said: "We will be performing about 20 songs at the concert, from our 18 studio albums to date. As a special surprise for fans, we might premiere some new songs, and perform a cover version of a Malaysian song."
Dewa said that they had been performing in many Indonesian showcases over the last three months.
"It's been hectic but we are happy now that the pandemic has subsided.
"We are rehearsing five days a week to prepare for the KL concert," he said.
Thomas said that their concert would have "more songs than usual" as they wanted Malaysian fans to "enjoy Gigi to the maximum".
"Many Malaysians contacted us online and said that they missed us. Your wait is finally over this November, let's have a good time!"
Gusti said that the two-year Covid-19 pandemic had a silver lining to it because it gave them a lot of time to rest, spend time with their loved ones and "re-energise for 2022".
"We did a bit of recording from home, and it was fun. Thanks to the wonders of technology, we wrapped up some new songs!" he said.
Armand said that the band was working on a new album which will be ready next year.
"We believe that our strength as a band is the result of coming up with new materials at least once a year. Equally important is being nice to fans."
Armand added that their songs appealed to rock lovers as they spread positive messages. Even their most famous song Nakal was about being "naughty" in a good way.
Thomas described Zepp KL as an "awesome venue". He said: "This new concert hall has a superior sound system, yet it also gets us intimate with the audience."
Executive producer Haniff Hamzah of YOLO said that the company was honoured to bring Gigi to town, as the band had a strong fan base in Malaysia.
"Gigi is an evergreen rock band that reaches out to fans beyond its borders. What endears them to many is their showmanship, professionalism and down-to-earth ways," he said.
Haniff added that even though Malaysia was currently in its "election season", he was confident that fans would still flock to Gigi's show since during the 2018 polls, American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars had a concert in town which was well-received.
Tickets are priced at RM200, RM250, RM350 and RM5,000 (SVIP box with meet and greet). Guests pay an extra RM250 for the meet and greet session. They can be obtained at www.yoloasia.com.