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I was one among the many in a sea of human bodies — with a girl in a jilbab literally breathing down my neck. This was not how I imagined my concert experience would turn out.

British singer-songwriter Imogen Heap, one of my favorites, was in Jakarta on Wednesday night for her Ellipse tour. And there I was, in a standing-room-only pit at the back of Balai Kartini, packed to the gills and cruelly separated from the VIP section — which had comfortable-looking seats — by a metal rail.

The girl in the jilbab was singing into my ear and I could feel her every breath at the back of my neck. She alternated between hot breaths and singing every single lyric. At the start of the show, Heap said she didn’t realize that people in Indonesia were into her music until a few months ago. Now she knows, as did I.

Not content with the singing and breathing, the girl started slamming her body into mine while dancing. I could feel the heat and did not like it one bit.

I turned around and fixed her with a cold stare. “Please, don’t push,” I said.

“Sorry, sorry,” she replied. The slamming stopped for 30 seconds, then started again.

My fault, I know. This was obviously a concert, and inevitably those in attendance would be devoted fans. So there I was, excited, yes, but also praying that my blood circulation would not be completely cut off from my poor legs and that my toes would not go numb after standing for more than four hours behind bars.

I didn’t even expect to make it to the concert after my fruitless hunt for tickets, VIP or otherwise. I was only able to get mine off Twitter the day before because the seller had unexpected bad news and couldn’t make it.

The concert did not start at the listed time of 7 p.m., but instead got going close to two hours later. Heap tweeted a few messages before she took the stage to sing. “Traffic is bad. People late getting in so @backtednted, @timexile, Chris Vatalaro, @rachmannoor and I are gonna go on 30 mins later,” and “Yay! @backtednted looks great in the big screens here! First time I’ve had screens at my own show :).”

After the long wait, I was in physical agony even before the show began. I nearly walked out during the two opening acts — who were also Heap’s backup musicians — and whom I didn’t find particularly entertaining. The jam-packed crowd, however, prevented me from going anywhere and, by default, being a quitter.

And a good thing they did because the star of the show gave a spectacular performance. Her vocals were almost flawless. Classical instruments, like the piano and cello, along with electric guitar, drums, keyboards, beats and an unusual choice of accompaniments, including a glass of water and a stuffed bird, were candy to the ears.

In an era when pop stars lip synch during their supposedly live concerts, Heap is an entertainer in every sense of the word. In between songs, her spiel is not scripted and she revels in interacting with the audience. She even took time to explain how some of her songs came about and the inspiration behind them.

And though I adore the beats that have come to be identified with her music, my favorite moment of the show was when everything was stripped down, save for her singing and playing the piano.

Her set list was mostly from the “Ellipse” album, but she also threw in old songs that were more up my alley — “Headlock,” “Let Go” and “Good Night and Go,” which she said she had not performed in three years but decided to do so for this gig.

She was about to play another of my favorites, “Hide and Seek,” as her encore, when I spied a group of people wending their way out of the pit. I decided to follow, hoping to avoid waiting for a cab and getting stuck in traffic once the crowd left the building. I finally took the easy way out and left.

At the end of her concert, Heap tweeted: “With @rachmannoor backstage. Was a great gig! We all had the best time!! yay to those in the audience!” And the next day, “Goodbye Jakarta! It’s been fantastic! Hope to see you again soon. Sitting on runway about to take off!”

She said she would be back before the end of the year. Now if only I can snag one of those VIP tickets.

Amee R. Enriquez works as a copy editor at the Jakarta Globe.