Celebrating its 25th anniversary, Shaggydog from Yogyakarta held “Be25ulang.” A party set from this legendary ska unit that took place on August 24 and 25, 2022 in Jakarta.

Taking place at Gudskul Ekosistem, South Jakarta, the band, which was born in the Sayidan area – Yogyakarta, opened a series of celebrations through the photo exhibition “Rudy’s Story” (Shaggydog’s 25 Years Archive) from August 24 to 27, 2022. Curated by Edwin Roseno, In collaboration between Ruang Mes 56 and Agen 56 through their representative Anang Saptoto, they digitized the photo archive that were collected from 1998 to 2006. Various memories from Shaggydog are neatly archived in this exhibition, truly an inspiration to many ska outfits in the country!

Quoting a brief explanation from Bandizt (bass), Raymond (guitars) and Yoyo (drums) at a press conference held on August 25, 2022 at M Bloc Space, South Jakarta. They decided to use “Be25ulang” after Heru (singer) came up with the idea, something that is closely related to “drink.” In collaboration with the Rajawali and iKonser event promoters in this event, Shaggydog has indeed become more prepared. This is agreed by Bandizt, “So, we are more focused on the song list and preparing them. Because, this is the first time we have performed with 25 songs.” Another note, the collective spirit of Shaggydog as one of the ska units which to this day is still kicking with the original line up, can be seen through lots of guests at the concert. They invited many Indonesian ska scenesters to share their energy on stage together. A classy yet a down-to-earth gathering spirit!

“Kecoa” and “Rudy’s Story” opened the show, which immediately set the dance floor on fire. Shaggydog’s line up on the screen behind the stage and the fancy lightning set add more spice to this preambule, which was previously opened to sing the national anthem “Indonesia Raya” together. Hadi, the frontman of Noin Bullet became the first guest and lent his vocal on the song “Bis Kota”, this collaboration worked out nicely to bring powerful infusion to the show. Shaggydog also played his own classic old repertoires such as, “Pesan Untuk Teman”, “Room”, “Oya” dan “Nona,” and they did it classy. Trisno (Tipe X) got his turn to lead the sing-along that night through one of Shaggydog’s hits, “Anjing Kintamani”. Then Lilik (Shaggydog’s pianist) took over the mic and sang “Joni Lint” and “Doggy Doggy.” Next, Danar (Souljah) joined the stage and sharing her charm on this “Be25ulang” party through the contemplative song ala Sayidan’s corps, “Pulau Impian.”

Shaggydog shows its class as one of the ska legends in the country through their meticulous preparation of a repertoire that always comes with a dancing guarantee to everyone on the dancefloor. “Lagu Rindu” and “Lagu Spesial” were beautifully performed and gave a big enjoyment to the crowd before they hit their dancehall crasher “anthem”, “Kembali Berdansa” with another injection of energy through their two guests, Dawny and Vicky (Jun Fan Gung Foo). It didn’t end there, the song “Jalan-Jalan” was so powerful, it made the sing-along even go wild. Next, it was Iwa K‘s turn to be a guest that night singing “Putra Nusantara” which had nicely boosted with several bars of the rapper’s classic song “Bebas”. Shaggydog then played a single that they will appear on their upcoming LP, “Koboy Kota” followed by the song “Hey Cantik”. Next, one of the Indonesian ska veterans, Boriz (Artificial Life) was a guest on the song “Rock Da Mic” before Shaggydog bring their own “Bersinarlah Kembali”, “Honey”, “Ditattoo” dan “Ambilkan Gelas.”

This 25 Years Concert, ended perfectly with the anthem “Sayidan” which is also one of the best songs of all time chosen by Rolling Stone Indonesia. Wiro (Sentimental Moods’ guitar player) was the last collaborator in this concert through Shaggydog’s powerful encore!

On August 25th, through 25 songs celebrating 25 years, indeed it’s a special moment. That night, Shaggydog conveyed an important and down-to-earth message, “Raise your glass again, friends!” and all of us agreed, and said “Be25ulang!”

(Keyko, Sam)