Ultraelectromagneticnight

The End

2009-03-15T23:30:00.000-07:00

Photo from Jasper Lucena's Multiply

The reunion of an important rock band is laden with enough emotional and literal baggage to crash an airplane. In the Philippines in the 1990s, the Eraserheads were the Beatles. Whether you bought their albums or not, you know their songs. They came at you from all sides, they got their hooks into your brain. You may not even be aware that you know them until years later you get stuck in traffic and one is played on the radio. Why do you know all the words, including the backup vocals? “I should’ve gone with you to the reunion concert,” a friend told me last year. “It turns out they’re in my subconscious.”

The melodies were fairly simple but insidious; they were viral before viral went... viral. The lyrics were also simple — the kind that is difficult to replicate. There’s a topic for a thesis: “The Deceptive Simplicity of The Eraserheads Oeuvre.”

Every other Tagalog song is about thwarted love, but which one nails it like the band’s first hit, Pare Ko? The narrator addresses the listener directly, as a friend and confidante. How can you not like a band that addresses you in this manner? To seal your imaginary shared history he adds, “Wag mong sabihing ‘Na naman.’” (“Don’t say ‘Again.’”)

Then he expresses bewilderment, that universal human condition, and declines a drinking session, chiding you and himself for your beer bellies. By the time he gets to the chorus, you have lived his entire relationship with the girl who gave him this misery (and you feel like thanking her for providing the material).

Ah, that chorus that offended the guardians of morality. Thank you, guardians, for kicking up a fuss that generated free publicity and sold more albums. But isn’t it the most natural thing in the world to cuss when you’ve been dumped? It’s not a literal description of anyone’s mother. “I look like a fool. She gave me false hope. Screw this love.” That’s the nice translation.

Later these upright citizens would express outrage over another Eheads song, Alapaap. The offending lyric: “Hanggang sa dulo ng mundo/Hanggang maubos ang ubo” (“Until the edge of the world/Until this cough goes away”). All right, the whimsical lyrics about clouds did imply being high, and cough syrup may have been involved. However did you know that?

A writer friend notes that more than any other lyricist, Ely Buendia gets the meter, phrasing and internal melody of Tagalog. The problem with many Tagalog pop songs is that the syllables seem to have been squeezed in or drawn out to fit the melody, with awkward results. In Eheads songs, the melody seems to derive from the words themselves.

“Kamukha mo si Paraluman” (“You looked like Paraluman”) begins their best song. That name suffices to recall afternoons spent watching old movies on black and white TV. Ang Huling El Bimbo is an ode to childhood, innocence and first love, then regret, bitterness and death. A complete lifetime in three minutes. It ends with a line that sums up all the disappointments of adulthood: “Sa panaginip na lang pala kita maisasayaw” (“Only in dreams can I dance with you now”). In the wonderful music video directed by Auraeus Solito, memory is a ghost rising out of a pile of dead leaves.

These lyrics were written by a notoriously difficult interviewee, one who deflects questions with quips, wordplay and unconcealed boredom.

Getting Ely to open up is like squeezing vodka out of a rock. Raimund Marasigan, Buddy Zabala and Marcus Adoro aren’t exactly chatterboxes, either. If you think about it, the Eheads attained mind-boggling fame while managing not to gut themselves in public. Despite the intense curiosity about their personal lives, they managed to hang onto much of their privacy. What an amazing concept: celebrities famous for the work they produced.

I have this theory about why Ely decided to be the interviewee from hell. Apart from the fact that not everyone is thrilled to reveal his innermost thoughts to the media. It’s like this: Ely has already put the contents of his life out there. They’re in the songs. If you really listen, you will know more about him than you can possibly need or want. Here lies his evil genius: he’s made you think that the songs are about you. And the songs are true, not in their specific facts — you may never have hung around Tandang Sora or lived next to a videoke — but in their sensibility. He’s presented you with chunks of his life; what more do you want?

This is not to imply that Ely alone is the Eheads. Their songs are true collaborations. The initial draft of Ang Huling El Bimbo bears little resemblance to the one that haunts us. The opening chords, the hypnotic arrangement — all four of them took a crack at the material, as they did on all the other songs. Of course there was a lot of tension in the band. Any group in which everyone agrees on everything is doomed to be forgotten. Forgotten bands don’t summon tens of thousands of fans to an open concrete field by the bay.

There were fights, unspoken arguments, unresolved quarrels and divisions. These led to now-classic songs, and they also led to the band breaking up. The collaborative creative process is not a picnic.

Ely left the band. He has said that he felt enormous pressure as the frontman to connect with the audience, and he didn’t have the stamina.

The stress of being a hit-making factory probably contributed to the decision. It’s a fact that after their juggernaut “Cutterpillow,” the Eheads began turning out more musically adventurous, challenging material. The comforting melodies that anyone could sing were almost gone; the words alluded to experiences unfamiliar to the audience. Album sales declined.

Buddy, Marcus, and Raimund kept the Eheads going, hiring a new vocalist and performing the Eheads catalogue. This heightened the ill will with the original vocalist, who for years refused to sing any Eheads songs. The band eventually broke up. There was an air of anticlimax to the disbanding. They never said a proper goodbye to their fans. This reunion is in effect the long-delayed farewell concert.

In the post-Eheads era it’s Raimund who’s really blossomed as a performer. Since being liberated from behind the drum kit at the back of the stage, he’s gone on to front the band Sandwich and engage in a host of side projects. Buddy, doomed to be the resident adult, plays with The Dawn and other bands and composes music for the movies.

Marcus, who has always been his own person, goes surfing and releases his own albums. Ely fronts the band Pupil, writes stories, and has just made a short film. In 2006 during a Pupil gig, he suddenly felt very tired and weak. He went on playing. After the show he went to the hospital and was told that he’d suffered a heart attack.

Maybe I’m being a Lit major about this, but when one is faced with his own mortality as a non-abstract concept, it just doesn’t seem worth it to carry around all that baggage from the past and pay the extra charges.

The reunion concert was organized, with all the attendant drama — legal issues with the sponsor, cancellation, change of venue. Two days before the show Ely’s mother Lisette Buendia died of cancer. Halfway through the concert Ely felt very tired and weak and was rushed to the hospital. He required another angioplasty.

With Ely healthy again, take two of the concert was scheduled. The day before the show the band’s friend and guest star Francis Magalona died of leukemia. Farewells piled on farewells; if the reunion were a work of fiction it would be rejected for lack of plausibility. But this isn’t just their story anymore. The Eheads have written themselves into our story, and really, who cares about plausibility at a time like this? The gates are open. It’s time for your last goodbye.

--Written by Jessica Zafra for The Philippine Star

A Farewell to Remember

2009-03-15T23:23:00.000-07:00

Bittersweet moments are made of these.

Fittingly, for a band whose songs’ lyrics make it open season for armchair metaphor-hunters, the Eraserheads: The Final Set was one big irony crammed into a three-hour celebration.

Take the four members of the band. Individually, they may turn heads or draw here-and-then shrieks of recognition. Put them together—Ely Buendia, Raimund Marasigan, Buddy Zabala and surfer dude Marcus Adoro—and all they have to do is say jump and the SM Mall of Asia’s reclaimed foundations receive a severe test from a hundred thousand pairs of stomping feet.

And then the ultimate irony. The four, who had previously taken separate career paths after a sudden and suddenly messy divorce several years ago, took the stage one last time to say goodbye.

That was what the Final Set was, after all. A chance for the Eraserheads to give its loyal following a formal and final farewell.

“Ito na talaga ang huling El Bimbo,” frontman Buendia yelled during what was supposed to be the final song in encore.

I had already written a review about the Final Set and I don’t know what else to say about it. Besides, high school pal Gerry had already blogged poignantly about it too.

The best thing to do is to be thankful that this time, we had the chance to finally say goodbye to en era. The Eraserheads was a voice for a generation. That generation has grown up and must now learn to speak for itself.

Three hours and close to 30 songs after they got together one last time, the Eraserheads dispersed into four different roads again; four different career paths. And as the crowd filed out of the Mall of Asia open air concert grounds for good, there was an air of finality that flavored the evening sea breeze that swept the coastal venue.

Near a beverage booth, a fan sang lines from Fine Time: “I hope we can spend much more time together/A few hours is better than never/If we could only make it longer/A whole day would be fine.”

But see, this was it. This was the few hours that was better than never. And when the Heads, including honorary member Jazz Nicolas, gathered at centerstage for their version of the group hug, fans realized this was, in every sense of the word, the final set.

Goodbye, Eraserheads.

And while we’re at farewells, allow me to say goodbye to Francis Magalona. It’s sad how people had to say goodbye to two musical icons in the span of two days.

--Posted by Francis T.J. Ochoa

Ten Greatest Moments

2009-03-15T23:10:00.000-07:00

Photo from Jasper Lucena's Multiply

It wasn't a group hug but it was pretty damn close.

After failed attempts by the audience to cajole the members of Eraserheads into doing an embrace (Ely Buendia told the crowd, “Kayo muna!”), Ely, Raymund Marasigan, Marcus Adoro and Buddy Zabala (and the Itchyworms’ Jazz Nicolas) walked to the front of the stage, put their arms around one another, and took a bow.

It was just one of the great moments of the Erasherheads concert last Saturday. The others:

9) Souvenirs for the crowd. Many fans went home with souvenirs. The boys threw all sorts of stuff at their captive audience—water bottles, picks, drumsticks, even Ely’s shoes. (He was poised to throw his socks, which made everyone laugh. He didn’t.) Ely also gave away his jacket which, to the horror of countless fans online, was eventually cut up by the six people who caught it, so each of them could take home a piece. One crew member joined the fun—after the concert, he hurled at the crowd the container of lighter fluid Ely used when he lit up the piano. And people actually caught it.

8) Marcus singing a reggae version of “Huwag Mo Nang Itanong,” to the delight of the crowd. Raymund letting Jazz take over the drums so he could sing “Slo Mo,” “Alkohol” and “Insomnya.” It was funny to watch the crowd react every time Raymund teasingly approached Ely (of course, the whole world knows why). Buddy finally giving in to the crowd’s requests to take over the mic too, by singing two lines from “Fine Time”— “I don’t care if we sleep all day/Basta kayakap ka ay okay.” The ’Heads were more playful this time—it became clear they were more relaxed in this concert than in the previous reunion. They were actually having fun. It’s always been said that the Eraserheads aren’t big on connecting with the audience and talking to the crowd, but not this time.

7) The sala set. After the first break, the boys emerged onstage in a more intimate setup, with Ely sitting on a couch and the others wielding acoustic instruments. That part of the concert felt so intimate—strange, given the crowd that numbered a hundred thousand. That brief moment, it didn’t feel like we were in a huge concert venue; it felt like we were in a small bar watching our favorite band. Ely deadpanned, “If you have any requests, pakibigay sa waiter.”

6) Ely singing the word “t---ina” when they played Pare Ko. I don’t think a cuss word has received that much applause, ever. When a guy shouted, “I love you, Ely!” Ely replied, “I love you too, pare,” without missing a beat.

5) The insane fireworks of “Overdrive.” They came as such a surprise that some people in front actually ducked.

4) The crowd singing “Ang Huling El Bimbo” while waiting for the Eraserheads to go onstage again. That was a goosebump-moment.

3) The tribute to Francis M. On the day of the concert, people were still trying to come to grips with the news of Francis Magalona’s death. He had been due to perform in the concert. The Eraserheads prepared a tribute instead— “Sumigaw tayo para kay Francis!” Ely said. The crowd broke into a deafening chant, “Francis! Francis!”

Raymund held up a sign that read, “Rock Ed Salutes The Man From Manila.” The band played “Superproxy” and “Kaleidoscope World,” with Ely rapping, instead of Francis. Many people online have written that the teleprompter set up in front of the stage must have been a big help when Ely had to rap “Superproxy.” Truth is, the lyrics of the rap were not on the teleprompter. Yes, Ely knows them by heart.

2) The burning of the piano. There was a confetti storm when the Eraserheads finally played “Ang Huling El Bimbo” but there was a bigger thing happening onstage. Before a shocked audience, Ely set the “Sticker Happy”piano on fire. It was Ely’s old piano which had been at ’70s Bistro for a long time, the piano featured on the “Sticker Happy” album cover. “We actually wanted to use the piano pero sira na ’yun. I don’t know if it was too expensive to repair or we just didn’t have enough time,” Raymund said. Did he know Ely would burn it? “He kinda mentioned it as a joke. He really wanted the piano onstage. But I guess he knew he’d do it; he had lighter fluid.”

1) Three for the road. The Eraserheads had done an encore, the show was over, or so everyone thought. People started to spill out of the concert grounds, the crew took over the stage and started packing up.

But then, Raymund returned and said, “Gusto ninyo pa ba?”

The crowd went wild. “Tawagin niyo si Ely!” “Tawagin ninyo si Marcus!”

Soon, the four were back onstage, standing in a circle. Ely asked the crowd, “Kaya ninyo pa ba?” Everyone was still going wild. “Okay. Three for the road,” he said. They played “Ligaya,” “Sembreak” and “Toyang.”

Ely finally left his comfort zone behind the mic stand and actually went down to the crowd, making people sing parts of Toyang. Asked later why they decided to play more songs, Raymund said, “Sobrang bitin pa kami ni Buddy! Gusto ko pa nga ng sampu eh!”

The extra songs may have been unplanned (and unrehearsed) but they did not come as a surprise. Apparently, in the last rehearsals, Ely said, “’Pag hindi tayo tinigilan, dire-diretso lang tayo.”

This part of the show resonated so much with the crowd not just because they played three well-loved songs, but also because it gave fans hope that maybe, just maybe, like the fans, the Eraserheads didn’t want the night to end

--By Pam Pastor for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Final Set: A Near Death Experience

2009-03-15T22:26:00.001-07:00

Those who have gone through a near death experience tell of one common vision. That of a long dark tunnel with a bright light at the end.

They also relate of one common feeling. That of overwhelming joy and peace. So soothing is the experience, N.D.E. survivors have come to view death as something to look forward to rather than something to be feared.

Many neuroscientists have dismissed such experiences; explaining them away as hallucinations brought about by the lack of oxygen in the brain as a result of traumatic injuries.

Others have speculated that it is part of the brain's shutdown protocol. That N.D.E.'s result from the massive flood of feel-good hormones to shield a dying person from the pain of death.

Whatever the explanation for N.D.E.'s, that's exactly how I felt when confetti rained down and the last few lalalala's of Ang Huling Bimbo were belted out by Ely Buendia.

It's an overwhelming, peaceful kind of joy that you don't want to end. I didn't see people crying at that moment, as might be expected.

But why should anyone cry?

The 'Heads made it easier for everyone. They were playful, they were loose and they jammed. Just like old times. No, there was still no group hug but what the heck? The mere sight of them iteracting was heaven.

I liken the first concert in August last year to the heart attack (pardon the allusion to Ely's health condition) before the near death experience.

August 2008 was an adrenalin rush. You felt your heart racing--almost exploding from the sheer excitement as the fab four rose from the stage and Alapaap blasted from the giant concert speakers.

March 2009 was the N.D.E. itself. There was a palpable sense of calm. Almost a complete surrender to the inevitable. That yes, this was the "Final Set." The last time everyone would see the 'Heads performing as one.

The 'Heads knew it, too.

There was an obvious sense of relief that that was the last time they were ever going to put up with each other. All the bitter feelings were swept away and they just rocked.

Rocked 'til the very last moment.

There were no tears nor sniffy farewells. It was a lighthearted goodbye, made even bearable by the ceremonial burning of the Sticker Happy piano and Ely's Bush-Baghdad-inspired shoe throwing stunt.

The Eraserheads Final Set was a near death experience.

It gave us a glimpse of the inevitable. Of how it must be like when Eheads fans have all but died and are ultimately together again with the 'Heads in rock and roll heaven. For all eternity.

--Posted on A Gout Stricken Pilgrim

Inside the Eheads' rehearsal

2009-02-15T20:36:00.000-08:00

THE word is out. The post-script to the phenomenal August gathering of the Eraserheads is on in a few weeks—it is confirmed and now terribly anticipated. With the show ending so abruptly the last time, it’s no big surprise people can’t wait for the concert date to arrive.

The Eraserheads are currently rehearsing for the show and we know you have a lot of questions. Here are questions about the rehearsals collected from people on Multiply, along with answers.

Did they come with a prepared set list?

Yes they did.

Who wrote the set list?

Ely drafted the initial set list. Then Raymund and Marcus met up with Ely about a week ago to firm up the order of the songs. Buddy wasn’t there, but they figured that three ’Heads is still better than one. On the rehearsal day itself, they sat down inside Blue Light Studio’s ante-room and discussed production details. A lot of ideas were thrown around and according to Raymund, they kept the ones that were funny and cool.

Did they choose their songs based on crowd favorites?

Yes! They chose the songs based on what they thought the audience would like to hear. They also had to factor in that this coming show is a also considered—by many—a continuation of last August’s reunion.

Did they reminisce old times?

No.

Did they take long to set up or was it fast? What axes did each musician bring and which effects did the guitarists rehearse with?

Raymund and Marcus went into the studio ahead of the two and started tweaking on their own. Then Buddy came in. He’s very efficient when he sets up himself. Ely had someone tune his Yamaha acoustic while he did the mic tests etc. For the rehearsals, both Ely and Marcus used a Fender Stratocaster, Ely using Boss effects and Marcus used something that looked like Digitech. Buddy used his Rickenbacker bass guitar and Zoom effects. Raymund brought his own sticks, snare drum and pedal and played on the resident Blue Light Studio drum set.

Magpapalit-palit ba sila ng instrumento?

Hindi ko alam.

Did they still remember all the chords and arrangements?

Yes they did remember it, but naturally there were some parts more shaky than others. Very few though, but there were some.

Was there any song that didn’t sound so good that they abandoned it?

No, they ran through all the songs on the set list to the end. No stops, just a lot of starts.

What track did they repeatedly run through?

Watching their rehearsals was like watching a gig, actually. This was the first band rehearsal I’ve seen where no one interrupted in mid-song to rerun an uncertain part.

Did they try to rearrange the songs?

Nothing like that, actually. They talked more lengthily on the production details but when it came to the songs, seemed like there was no urgent need to rearrange yet. It was, after all, just the first rehearsal for this particular reunion.

Topless ba sila kung mag rehearse?

Awa ng Diyos, hindi.

Did they approach the rehearsal in a business-like manner or was it loose and laid back?

They were as professional as they should be. The adjectives loose and laid-back were adjectives that never came to my mind while I was there.

Joker pa din ba si Marcus?

During rehearsals focused si Marcus, before or after—is a whole different story. Nakakatawa talaga si Marcus, full stop.

Was it smooth or were there disagreements about how things should go?

It went smoother and faster than everyone expected, according to the band members. Everybody played well. The atmosphere was comparatively lighter and they guessed it was because they were more comfortable around each other this time.

Did anyone criticize the other’s playing?

None, zero. It was eerily quiet in between songs, I could feel their thought balloons bump by the studio’s ceiling.

What was the rehearsal food during the breaks?

I duly sampled the spaghetti and meatballs. They also had a great healthy sandwich spread out. Semi-wheat bread, cold cuts, lettuce, tomatoes and other condiments were available too. I imagined that the oily side of the table was for the rest of the bunch, while the healthier looking fare was included with special consideration for Ely’s dietary restrictions. Cool. The ’Heads have paid their dues, so they deserve this red carpet roll-out.

Was there booze or did they play clean?

No booze whatsoever. Just a lot of water, iced tea, softdrinks. Coffee for the sane ol’ Buddy. I don’t think I noticed what Ely was drinking. Siguro tubig din.

How many hours did they spend rehearsing?

The group met at 2 p.m., I got there at 3 p.m. and found them huddled talking about the song order. They got spilled into the studio a bit past that and started playing a stream of songs. After zipping through the first planned set, Raymund suggested a break. And Ely said jokingly, “Sige, break na tayo!” Everyone in the studio was cautiously giggling, the atmosphere was giddy when people streamed out of the studio back to the ante-room. There was some planning with the entire group including the MTV decision makers and their respective managements. A second round inside the studio happened after that, this time smoother and more relaxed. Buddy was feeling under the weather so he left ahead of everyone. Marcus and Raymund left a bit past 7 p.m., while Ely was the last to leave the building.

How many rehearsals left? I suppose two more?

Exactly that, two more.

Did Jazz come prepared?

Jazz Nicolas (Itchyworms) wasn’t there yet. But Jazz is a genius, he doesn’t need to prepare.

What do you think would’ve been different if it was just the four of them without all the cameras shooting?

This would be my guess: With or without cameras, they’d have still practiced the same way. These four have been celebrities longer than half their lives, they are used to being watched. In fact, I think this is why the clamor for them is still on an upswing, because they are so familiar to the public, we all think we know these guys. No deep, dark chamber secrets, at least not any more than the regular guy.

Could you discern roles that each member plays in reaction to others?

Buddy is literally and figuratively the bass player and he’s always been the one that ‘held the line.’ Marcus is the rhythm guitar and he strums the pace for everyone even if he isn’t aware of it or even if he doesn’t make too much of that fact. Raymund is the drummer, he’s the ‘rah-rah’ man who snaps the rim shot when energy should be taken a level up or down, he is aware of that and so is everyone. Ely is the main song writer and the architect of the band, so he lays the blueprint down on the table and says, “This is what it will look like, any suggestions?” What I think I’m witnessing is a band of young dorm guys from UP Diliman who parted ways some time back for reasons so convoluted that all of them don’t even remember exactly why or what made them part in the first place. And here they are again, this time on equal footing. It’s easier for them to see eye to eye this time around.

How do you see the Eraserheads?

I see musicians who felt and still feel the need to part ways in order to establish their individual identities. I think going their separate ways was all they needed to come back together and stand again in that circular formation inside a studio. Now, they face each other with their own weapons of creativity forged elsewhere, this time as servants of the songs instead of their egos.

During the rehearsals, which song did the band think would be a crowd favorite during the concert? Are they cooking up a surprise for the crowd—can you give hints and clues?

I’m sure you’d really prefer that I don’t answer this one thoroughly. All I can reveal is that I overheard Buddy telling a tech person in charge that the sound system should be adjusted so that everyone watching gets a good view and a good audio catch. I appreciate the way he said that the area of the general admission tickets should get a great view of the screen and that the sound-throw should be exquisite because that area is the priority. I thought that was neat. I definitely like the latter-day ’Heads better than the self-declared obnoxious punks they used to be.

--Written by Gang Badoy for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Joys of Being Ely Buendia

2009-01-16T22:32:00.000-08:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

Celebrated as the songwriter of a generation, Ely Buendia is not nonchalant about his popularity; but he doesn’t go on an ego trip either. He has gotten so used to fame that it’s become part of his equation.

It is no longer his need, it is now his norm. Brown eyes: check. Black hair: check. Ten fingers and toes: check. Famous: check.

That’s the mic test spiel before he walked out of Diliman over a decade ago. His every gesture seems to come with a mantra—“This is how it’s been and this is how it is, pour me some wine.”

Buendia is an extraordinary songwriter who seems to know the plight of everyday people who worry about ordinary things. He wrote songs that made people say, “Oo nga ano!” and “Ako rin ganyan!” Of him, fellow musician Raymund Marasigan said, “His songs came out in buckets.” And, I suppose, a generation is all the better for it.

What Buendia doesn’t seem to know is that he has the makings of a perfect politician. His songs have rhetoric that can touch life and inspire action; he is clear and enigmatic at the same time.

These are traits a Senate hopeful will kill for.

Buendia is gifted. His songwriting stance is generous, his works have given and continued to give comfort, solace, guidance, relief, hope.

The clamor to see or hear him live has not waned. He doesn’t need to curse onstage to look cool. He doesn’t need to pop a neck vein to prove his passion before an audience. He has no ghost writer, no lawyer executive assistant to make him “look better.” He doesn’t need PR monikers like “Men in Black,” “Spice Boys,” or “Ely-Obama-rama.” He really just wears shades at night to prevent headaches before the klieg lights.

One can say he is the perfect political animal precisely because he doesn’t want to be one.

So what can a politician learn from Ely Buendia?

Simple things: If you’ve got it, produce it. If you do produce it, share it. If people benefit from the work, do it again. One more song. One more project. Improve one more life and be honest while you’re at it. Fight with colleagues if you have to. Make amends, then reunite for one big gig. Face mortality squarely and carry on. Lead. Follow. Admit. Start. End. Start again. But ultimately, perform.

This very long SMS conversation with the Eraserheads frontman will tell you just that.

I know only the adult level-headed Ely. Were you out of control when you were younger? You’re so mellow now.

The only crazy stuff I did when I was younger was some substance abuse. I thought I was Superman then. I was also unprofessional as hell.

Do you write songs for yourself, as self-expression, or do you have some purpose or message to give?

All my songs have been about or inspired by real people. In that sense I tend to refer to my early work as “folk music.” But there was also a marketing angle to that (laughs). I wanted my band to make it and it was obviously the best language to use. But few people realize that the way I write now is the way I wrote in college. So it’s more real, in a way.

So does that mean “greater sincerity” in your present-day works?

I guess so.

I have a theory that in this world,
it’s your son who knows you best.

Hmm, Eon certainly knows which buttons to push. He knows how to make me laugh. That’s very astute.

If one goes through all your songs, will he or she get to know you?

I like a bit of mystery, so I don’t exactly air out my laundry, if you know what I mean. Especially in my songs.

You seem to have a grave understanding of human nature. Love and life even. It’s almost like you understand people well and know what they go through.

I can’t really say I understand people. In fact, I’m socially retarded.

I’m almost sure fame was not/still not in your agenda. But did it mess with your existence? You seem so fragile and introverted, is this pre-fame or fame-caused?

To be honest, when you’re young, fame and validation are the only thing on your mind, all the more if you’re an introvert like me. Music was a great way to attain that without really changing who you are.

Did you ever consider your work as a songwriter
as some form of public service?

Yes, in so far as it entertains people, I do think it’s public service.

Well, I agree. To a certain extent—far from the Revillame way, mind you—entertainment can be considered public service...let’s talk about life and death. What became your focus when you stared at mortality?

Well what do you do when death comes knocking? I just turned the volume up. (laughs)

What song should we play in your funeral?

“Staying Alive” by the BeeGees.

Recently I found out a lot about you. Your mom cut your hair even during the Eraserheads heydays. You won Mr. Molave (UP Dorm beauty tilt for men), and you’d occasionally wear your shirts inside out.

Where’d you get that info?

I asked Raymund (Marasigan).

Yeah, I had to improvise or else I’d run out of clothes.

Akala ko sa maong lang ‘yun. Did you know there’s a new product on the market that deodorizes jeans? It makes your jeans still smell nice even if you’ve worn it for the third time. Ang galing ‘no?

Totoo ba yan?

Oo, “Gram Zero” ang brand.

Sayang, ngayon lang naimbento.

Raymund also said that your initial bandmates were really skilled jazz musicians, technically you downgraded by being with them (the Eraserheads: Zabala, Adoro, Marasigan) because they could barely play.

It wasn’t just me ditched, there were three other guys. Yes, I couldn’t keep up with those jazz players anyway. Punk rock is punk rock.

Anyway, do you still want to be an architect? Don’t you think with the memories you built for the teens since the ’90s, para ka na ring architect? Teka, ang pangit nung analogy na yon, sige ‘wag mo na lang sagutin.

Ang galing nga eh!

Do you slave over songs or do they come easy?

If I have a hard time with a song, I store it until it comes easy.

Cool! Alam mo, I thought you were tired earlier, so I texted someone the same question (if you slaved over songs) he said, “Ely’s songs just came out by the buckets. He’d play it for us with just an acoustic guitar. He wasn’t particularly keen on making demos. I never saw him work too hard on them, as far as I can tell if it didn’t work, he just moved on to the next song.” Sa newlywed game, panalo kayo.

Who said that?

Raymund.

(laughs) That’s funny… It’s true.

After a song is recorded and sealed, do you find yourself saying, “Parang puwede pang i-revise ‘yon ah,” or are most songs “finished” as soon as they’re done.

Kung puwede lang i-revise lahat ng songs, gagawin ko.

You can always improvise and revise the songs eventually.

Yeah, ‘yun na nga lang ginagawa ko, I improvise and revise during live performances.

Noong German classes sa Diliman, people barely saw you study but you still did well.

I only remember “Hast du feuer?” (Do you have a lighter?) and “Warum nicht?” (Why not?)

Ako “Wie heisen sie.” (What’s your name?) and I still know how to count to four.

I can name at least 10 politicians who wished they were Ely Buendia. I know they do, considering the extent of his fame and slam-dunk influence on the daily lives of the voting population.

I also believe the opposite—I don’t think Buendia would want to be any of them.

--Interview by Gang Badoy for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

Eraserheads Reunion Concert Part 2

2009-01-13T23:48:00.001-08:00

This is not exactly new news. If this is your first time to get wind of it, then woe to you. What rock have you been living under?

Anyway, I have a suggestion for the opening act: Ely and the rest of the band should be brought on stage in an ambulance.

It's sick. But it would rock.

Ely Buendia: "A repeat? Yes, of course!"

2008-09-23T17:57:00.000-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

Eraserheads main man Ely Buendia granted his first live interview, through phone patch, in Showbiz Central yesterday, September 21, after that fateful night in Bonifacio Global City where his original band had a reunion concert.

It can be recalled that Ely wasn't able to finish the concert last August 30 because he was rushed to the hospital for what later was diagnosed as a heart condition. Since his hospitalization, Ely's bandmates Raymund Marasigan, Buddy Zabala and Marcus Adoro have given their personal opinions and accounts in interviews about the unfinished concert.

Yesterday in Showbiz Central, Ely finally put controversial issues to rest by answering host Pia Guanio's questions.

First, of course, was about his health. Is Ely doing okay now?

"I am still resting, but okay naman. Kailangan lang na bantayan ang tulog at kain," Ely said in a clear voice.

Before the concert, people were clamoring for it to happen, In spite of his mother's passing away and his health problems, Ely made the concert a reality. What made him do it?

"Well, unang-una, eh, yung sa mom ko," Ely said. "Yeah, of course, we did have the option not to continue. Pero, well, that show was actually for my mom. She was one of the reasons why I agreed to do it kasi the number one fan of the Eraserheads is my mom. She had been a fan of the band from the start to the finish. Ayoko pa pahintayin ang number one fan na si Mama. Baka magalit din sa akin yun 'pag hindi itinuloy ang concert, eh."

What did Ely feel when he climbed the stage to greet the many fans--twenty to thirty thousand people--who wanted to see the Eraserheads perform once again?

"Mahirap i-explain, eh," Ely admitted. "Pero yung adrenaline rush, sobra! I mean nakaupo nga ako doon, eh, hindi ko ma-contain ang excitement. Parang nilakasan ko na lang ang loob ko na huwag magka-nervous breakdown on stage dahil kailangan kong kumanta. Pero it was overwhelming talaga--the crowd, the energy, and the love that came from the audience."

As a rock icon, did he really stil feel nervous during the concert?

"Oo naman!" he admitted. "Hindi naman mawawala 'yon, eh."

Pia asked Ely about people at the concert who were screaming "Goup hug!" Yet the band members did not do it. Did they hear the chant?

"Naintindihan ko," said Ely. "Pero alam ko naman na ginu-goodtime lang nila kami. I mean, I don't think na ine-expect nila kami na mag-group hug nga ang grupo."

On the night itself, what happened during the intermission? Can Ely recount what happened backstage in his point of view?

"Right after the last song at the first set, eh, naramdaman ko parang hindi ako makahinga," Ely related. "So there was an ambulance there and may medical crew. Sila agad tinawag ko at humingi ako ng oxygen. When I got to my dressing room, I felt pain in my chest and nag-collapse na ako."

Now, the answer to this next question should come from Ely himself. Would the Eraserheads ever host a repeat concert?

"Yeah, of course," Ely answered. "That's the number one thing in my mind. Syempre, I'm not going to sign on to anything yet until I'm pretty sure na kaya ko gawin yun ulit. It's a wait-and-see thing muna at this point."

That siad, how's the band coming along now? Are the four of them in much better terms?

"Yung tatlo binisita ako sa ospital and we've always been good friends," said Ely.

Message to fans?

"I hope you enjoyed the show!" laughed Ely, probably thinking about the ending that he did not expect. "Thank you very much to all of you for supporting us until now and doon sa mga hindi nakanood at sa mga na-late, siguro may next time pa, who knows?"

Ely admitted that he was also "bitin" and was looking forward to the next Eraserheads concert.

--By Elyas Isabelo Salanga for PEP

The Fifth Eraserheads: Jazz Nicolas

2008-09-23T17:38:00.000-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

When the Eraserheads finally appeared at the concert that fateful Saturday night, a lot of people were surprised to see one extra head onstage.

It was Jazz Nicolas, Itchyworms drummer and Eraserheads sessionist for the night. Jazz played a lot of instruments during that first set—keyboards, tambourine, guitar—and he provided sound effects and backup vocals as well.

In this interview with Super, he talks about his days as an E-heads fan and what it was like to find himself in the spotlight, in front of thousands of other E-heads fans.

Were you an Eraserheads fan?--Oo naman, sobra. Oo from the start, from “Ultraelectro.”

How old were you when they became popular?--Naalala ko parang second year high school, mga 13 ako nun.

Were you already with Itchyworms when you met the Eraserheads?--Oo, noong na-meet ko sila, Itchyworms na ako. Siguro ’yung album nila noon “Fruitcake.” Si Jugs (Jugueta, Itchyworms vocalist) ‘yung kilala sila talaga— through Jugs nakilala ko sila. Sobrang solid fan din iyon.

How did you first hear about the concert?--May chismis na magre-reunion sila. Andun kami sa Liquid Post noong narinig namin ’yun. Iniisip namin, hindi totoo ’yan. At the back of my mind, iniisip ko, “S***, paano kaya makakuha ng tickets diyan?” Then two days later ...

They asked you to play with them?--Tinawagan lang ako ni Buddy. Kailangan daw nila ng keyboardist. Oo ako agad.

You didn’t think twice?--‘Di na! Yes agad!

How did you prepare for the concert?--They gave me a list of 30 songs. Konting preparation na lang eh, kasi kabisado ko na ’yung songs nila teenager pa ako. Dati sinasabayan ko ng gitara ‘yung casette tapes nila.

Did you get nervous?--Oo, kinabahan ako. Iniisip ko, ‘pag nakita ako ng mga tao baka batuhin ako, baka sabihin, “Sino ba ‘yan?”

How did your friends react when they heard you were going to play with the Eraserheads?--Sobra silang, “Ul*l! Seryoso?”

What about the other members of Itchyworms?--Ganun din. Niloloko nila ako, “Naku, babatuhin ka niyan!”

Gang Badoy interviewed the members of Eraserheads. Raymund told her that they were all asked separately to choose who they wanted to play with and they all said they wanted you.--Whoa!!! ‘Di nga? Talaga? Wow!

Oo, separately ha.--Seryoso? Sobrang nakakikilig naman ‘yun. Siyempre mga heroes ko sila eh. Wow, talaga!

How many times did you practice with them before the concert?--Three times. Sa practice, sobrang nakakatakot na nakakatuwa, haharap sila sa akin, “O ano pa’ng gusto mo?” Ako bahala kung ano’ng next song. Parang wow, ano ‘to, private concert?

How did you feel at the concert?--Sobrang dream come true. Iyong unang plan, dapat nasa gilid lang ako ng stage, hindi ako kita. Ako ‘yung dagdag na sound eh, ‘yung mga sounds na nasa album. Masaya na ako dun, sa gilid. Pero biglang sabi ni Ely, hindi, you’re part of the band, dapat nasa stage ka. Puro friends ‘yung nasa harap ng stage. The whole time nagbabuzz lang ‘yung utak ko.

Is there any moment you won’t forget?--‘Yung pagtingin ko kay Raymund, ‘yung nakawig na siya. ’Di namin alam ‘yun, biglang “Nyaak! Naka-wig at shades siya!” ‘Yun ‘yung old Raymund eh.

Where were you when Ely was rushed to the hospital?--Actually hindi ko alam na may nangyari pala kay Ely. Nung intermission, pumunta akong backstage, kumuha akong drink, nag-PSP pa ako. Si Myrene (Academia) ang nagsabi, “Si Ely ni-rush sa hospital, nagkaroon daw ng chest pains.” Speechless ako. Shocking sobra.

Have you visited him?--Napuntahan na namin. May practice kasi Itchyworms with Markus Highway, tapos niyaya kami ni Marcus na dumalaw kay Ely.

How is he?--He’s doing well.

If there’s another concert, will you play with them again?--Sana. Sabi ni Ely, tutuloy natin ‘to.

Is there anything else you want to tell Eraserheads fans?--Sobrang happy lang ako to help out with the ‘Heads, to give them the sound na kailangan pa. Ako ‘yung pinakasuwerteng tao sa buong mundo— kasi napanood ko ‘yung buong set.

--Interview by Pam Pastor for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Guitarist Hangs Loose: Marcus

2008-09-23T03:07:00.000-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

Maraming nag-assume na ’yung pinakamahirap sa reunion na ‘to ay ‘yung unang rehearsal.--Ah oo! Hindi ko rin alam what to expect, napa-yosi nga ako nung narinig ko, “Andyan na si Ely.” Tapos pagdating niya, alam mo, ang gaan lang. Ang gaan. “Pare, kumusta.” Tinanong niya kami lahat. ‘Yun. So, na-realize mo ba na, “Wow, na-miss ko ‘to!” Hindi pa nga rehearsals, bago pa lang nun, excited na ako. Kasi siyempre bago mag-rehearsal kinailangan kong mag-review ng chords ng mga kanta namin noon. Siyempre habang tinutugtog ko, nagpa-flashback talaga ako. Excited talaga ako na makita si Ely, kasi hindi pa talaga kami nagkikita. Once lang kami nagkita, sa MYX awards, pero lasing na siya, lasing na rin ako, so nag ganun lang kami. (Nods) Alam mo, ’yung first practice para sa akin, ’yung ice breaker namin ay nagtatanungan lang ng mga suot naming sapatos, T-shirt, ganun. Nag-uusap naman kami eh. Nagkikita kami palagi nina Raymund at Buddy. Mga binyag, special occasions. Kasi may ‘sang tropa kami mula college pa talaga. Kami ni Ely ang hindi talaga nagkita nung six years. Hindi kami pinagtagpo ng tadhana (laughs). Nung nag-umpisa na ang rehearsals mismo, kalmado kami lahat, nakatutok kami sa kailangang gawin. Bago nga nun, nagkita pa kami ni Buddy para mag-practice. ‘Yung tipong, “Buds, paano nga ‘yung chords nito, hindi ko makapa eh.” (Laughs)

Aah, so nagkita kayo ni Buddy?--Oo pinuntahan ko siya sa bahay, nag-practice kaming dalawa. Inisa-isa namin lahat.

Ang unang nalaman ko tungkol sa ‘yo ay nagtuturo ka daw ng surfing sa La Union.--Oo, limang taon ako nag immerse sa surfing culture. Nung latter part ng ‘Heads, nahumaling na ako sa surfing. Nung nagpalit na kami ng singer, nung naging si Kris Dancel na, nagpaalam na rin ako kay Raymund, sabi ko sa kanya surfing muna ako.

So hindi tama ‘yung impression ng marami na tinakbuhan mo ang music…--Hindi! Pero yung music ko nung time na ‘yon, para sa akin lang, gumawa ako ng para sa akin. ‘Yun yung laman ng album ko ngayon, ‘yung Markus Highway. Pinahinog ko, kung baga. Pinahinog ko nang matagal na matagal.

Di ba sa banda laging may tinginan at konting usap-usap sa stage para ma-coordinate yung tinutugtog, gaano kahirap para sa ‘yo yung hindi kayo masyadong nagtitinginan?--Personally, para sa akin para ngang walang nangyari eh. ‘Andun ulit, kabit lahat. Nung una may mga linyang naiiwan. Nagkakatinginan, ‘yung tipong, “Oy, meron dapat do’n ’di ba?” May konting sabit-sabit. Lalo na ako. (laughs)

So hindi pala kayo gaanong natisod kahit gano’n.--Oo, kasi syempre warm-up pa lang naman yung first set eh. Pinaghandaan talaga namin ’yung second and third set. Tataas pa dapat talaga ‘yung energy dun eh. Kahit lahat tataas after the first set, ‘yung technicals, ‘yung nasa video wall, hindi pa ‘yun eh, wala pa ‘yon! Marami pa dapat mangyayari, kahit ‘yung fireworks…actually lahat!

So, gaano ka-stressful para sa ‘yo yung change in plans?--Konti lang sa akin ‘yung part na ‘yon. Ang kailangan talaga naming i-deliver ‘yung performance eh. May theory na mas okey ang banda kung nagkakasundo lahat…Magkasundo kami lahat. (Smiles then moves his mouth closer to the voice recorder) Okey na banda kami.

Nakakatuwa na iba-iba kayong mga sagot sa pare-pareho kong tanong…--Wala akong problema sa kanila. Baka ‘yun ang gusto kong sabihin, kasundo ko sila. Si Ely dinalaw ko kagabi. Magkasundo kami. Magkasundo kami ni Buddy. Magkasundo kami ni Raymund. Ewan ko sila. (laughs) Pero, Gang, hindi eh… maganda talaga yung vibes eh.

Paano kaya na maganda pa rin ‘yung vibes despite the six years na hindi kayo nagkasama-sama?--Dahil sa kanta. Kasi naka-angkla kami sa kanta. Kasi kung bad vibes ka, sasabit ka. Para sa akin, pag nagpeperform ka tapos nag-iisip ka ng iba, doon ka sasabit. ‘Pag iniisip mo na masama kunwari ang ka-banda mo, doon ka magkakamali.

May mga taong hindi masyadong aware na hindi kayo ma-salita during gigs.--Ako ‘yung tahimik, usually. ’Yun ang trabaho ko, “Tumahimik ka dyan, Marcus.” (laughs) Ako madaldal ako ‘pag ako ‘yung frontman. So siguro si Ely ‘yon. Pero dati may instances na planado lahat. Dito ako magsasalita, tapos diyan si Buddy, tapos palitan kami ng sasabihin…meron din namang ganoon dati.

Nagka-time…Sinabi ko rin ‘to kay Raims eh, na halos lahat sa inyo may trademark na look sa respective bands ninyo kaya na-curious talaga ako kung nag-usap man lang ba kayo tungkol sa susuotin ninyo during the reunion.--Sinuggest ko actually na mag usap-usap ‘yung mga “stylist” namin. Siguro ‘yung mga girlfriends namin. Kami ni Buddy nag-coordinate naman kami kasi kami ‘yung magkabilaan sa stage eh. “Basta ‘wag ka magpuputi.” Sabi nya kasi magpuputi daw siya, so nag-pula ako at saka itim. So, may konti naman din kaming coordination. Hindi naman kami nagpakitaan ng wardrobe. (laughs)

Sabi ni Raimund kasi wala namang ganun-ganun sa ’Heads, ‘yung coordination ng wardrobe talaga. Show up as you are talaga.--Hoooooo, siya nga yung pinaka-conscious diyan eh! (laughs) Nag-kulay pa ng buhok, nag-wig pa. Sabi nga niya sa ‘kin sa rehearsals mag-so-shorts lang daw siya saka hubad eh. (laughs) Pero, hindi…syempre si Raymund ‘yon eh.

Nung time na magulo noon, gaano ka ka-apektado?--Hindi ko pinatulan. During the past five years, nagka-chance din naman ako pumatol, pero ayokong sayangin ang energy ko doon. Hindi ko na ginatungan ‘yung apoy kumbaga. Hindi ako nag-labas sa Internet o press release. Okey lang sa ‘kin. Kasi chismis nila ‘yon dito eh. Nung nasa La Union ako, nasa surfing culture ako eh. May sarili kaming mundo doon eh, may sarili kaming superstars…

Ni minsan ba hindi ka nagkaroon ng need to explain things or at least air your side?--Isa yon sa rason kung bakit ako umalis dito. Marami akong rason, pero isa yon. Tuwing pupunta na lang ako ng bar, “Pare, bakit kayo naghiwalay?! Pare bakit ganito, bakit ganon.” Eh hindi ko naman masasagot ’yon nang ako lang eh. Apat kaming dapat sumagot nun.

So napagod ka rin.--Oo, so sabi ko mag su-surf na nga lang ako. Hanggang dun pa rin sa surfing minsan nga maski sa dagat, may mag-pa-paddle na surfer sa tabi ko (gestures paddling) tapos sasabihin, “Pare, ba’t kayo naghiwalay?!” Matatawa na lang ako tapos sasabihin ko sa kaniya, “Ayan na ’yung alon, o!”

Meron ka bang isang moment nung concert na hindi mo makakalimutan?--P**a, hindi lang isang moment. Lahat. ‘Yung crowd, ‘yung turn-out. ‘Yung suporta sa Internet. ‘Yung tao na kung saan-saang lupalop pa nanggaling para lang manood. ‘Yung production, ‘yung stage design, ’yung logistics ng lahat. Parang, ang galing. ‘Yun ang concert.

Wala ka gaanong moment-memory na nag stand-out talaga?--Actually, ‘yung anak ko. (laughs) Umiiyak siya, buong concert! Masayang moment ’yon, basta. Cute ‘yung moment. May mga picture kasi siya nguma-ngawa. Ano ba ‘yung sagot ni Raymund?

’Yung countdown.--Ay, siguro sa akin isang moment doon, ‘yung moment ni Ely. Nung ano… ‘yon. Siguro sa akin, ‘yun ‘yon.

Nasaan ka nung nalaman mo na na-ospital na sya?--Nasa dressing room ako, nag re-ready na ako for next set, palit ng costume. Kausap ko ’yung tech kasi sabay nagloko ’yung mga digital effects namin ni Buddy. Apparently may pumutok na something sa baba.

So, imposible nga ba talaga na magbalikan?--Napaka-aga pa para matanong ‘yan. Ang focus ngayon ‘yung health ni Ely. Kasi nag reconnect kami as friends. Gusto ko siyang tulungan sa aspetong yon.

Sa recovery?--Oo. Natuwa ako kasi nag reconnect talaga kami. Nung binisita ko nga siya, maski sa vibe, sa tinginan. Basta, basta, Masaya ako.

Teka, so tingin mo ba gumaling kayo?--Oo, gumaling. Ako gumaling konti. (laughs)

Marami sa musicians na nakakasama natin sa Rock Ed maingat na maingat magtanong tungkol sa ’Heads. Halos ayaw pag-usapan nga eh tuwing nagtatanong ako dati.--Meron mga unspoken things na hindi na siguro kailangang pag usapan ulit. ’Yung nangyari nung huli… wala na ‘yon. Normal naman ‘yon sa banda eh. Sabi nga ni Ely, normal ‘yung nangyari sa ‘min eh…. Normal lang ‘yon.

So, was it “just a concert” to you?--Of course hindi ‘no! Yung magnitude nung event, siyempre alam namin kung gaano kalaki ‘yon. Ganoon kalaki ‘yung stage, ‘yung laki nung screen, sabi ko, ‘ba! totohanan na ‘to ah. Iba, iba talaga.

So that night, who did you play for?--Well, that night, siyempre nakikita ko ermats ko do’n, so ayokong sumabit as much as possible. Siyempre para din sa… kanino man… (laughs) Actually, gusto kong mapasaya si Ely.

Did it feel like old times?--Oo, pero mas kalmado na kami ngayon. Madaming bull**it na nawala. Mga maliliit na bagay wala na. Dati ang daming iniintindi eh. Ngayon, music lang ang focus.

Na o-offend ka ba pag may nagsasabi na ginawa ninyo lang to “for the money”?--O eh ano ngayon! (laughs) Well, there’s money. More money, more art. (laughs)

Ha ha, ngayon ko lang narinig yun ah.--That’s from me. Original.

May nagsabi na nung tumugtog kayo sa Saguijo after ng concert insensitive daw ’yon kay Ely dahil nga nasa ospital na siya...--Hindi! Hindi… ako kasi, hindi ako juma-jam sa Cambio, kahit noon pa. My reason being, two ’Heads and three guitarists should be enough, man, hindi mo na ako kailangan doon. Plus pumunta ako doon kasi ang taas ng energy ko, tapos nalaman na namin na okey na si Ely, hindi rin ako makakatulog. Ayoko rin bumalik sa hotel, ang boring naman, ano’ng gagawin ko doon? So naghanap kami ng matatambayan. Nalaman namin na maraming nandun, so pumunta kami. Tapos tumutugtog ‘yung Cambio, tapos maya-maya may tatlong tao nang sumundo sa ‘kin, pinapatawag daw ako ni Raymund, jam daw. So tumugtog ako, masaya naman. Hindi yon dahil insensitive kami. Hindi yon ganon.

So, when Ely bounces back to a steady health state, basta may medical clearance na, reunion ulit?--Oo, ba’t hindi? Pag umo-o ’yung tatlo, bakit ako hihindi?

Oo nga naman. Saka bitin din ako eh.

--Interview by Gang Badoy for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Bass Man Holds The Line: Buddy

2008-09-23T02:04:00.000-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

How’ve you been since Saturday?--Ang weird. It hasn’t even been a while since the reunion gig happened and I already find myself trying to play it down in my head. I’d say, “It was just a gig.” But I’m thinking maybe it wasn’t just that. In fact, I still wake up in the morning and I say, “Wow, it really happened.” I think I’m not done processing it yet. You see, I was expecting it to be an experience for me, for myself. Pero sobrang daming tao doon and people’s energies were so high na it became a shared experience, eventually. ’Di ba? That’s the equation right there, I mean, sure, I tried to calm myself before going onstage saying over and over, “It’s just a gig, just more people,” then all of a sudden when I found myself there and in front of me was this sea of people then I realized, gigs are supposed to be shared experiences.

Did you expect it to be any smaller than that? --No! Or wait… I don’t know. It’s something like, I expected it to be a certain way, and then it does turn out that way but I’m still overwhelmed anyway. It was amazing. From where I was I couldn’t even see where the people ended. Maybe it was the lights, I don’t know, but as far as my eyes could see, it was people. So it’s not easy for me to downplay it now. I mean, I try to feign nonchalance sometimes but my grin gives me away. I was grinning all night. Till now, in fact.

That night, who did you play for?--My family of course. Earnest, Veda, my Mom. You know, whenever I perform, I try to single out people in the audience kasi I usually don’t know people in the audience, I’m used to playing for strangers. But this time around, wow everywhere I looked—it was familiar faces. Someone I knew from a band, a former officemate, then my Mom! Hey, my Mom! Ang saya talaga. When I got onstage, it was different. Not just the size of the gig but the energy level. The vibe was indescribable.

Right after you walked off stage, where did you go? --I went straight to Ely’s tent to congratulate him and tell him that he did well and I wanted to ask how he was feeling. When I got there he was already lying down and he had an oxygen mask and the paramedics were already checking his blood pressure. Then next thing I knew they had to rush him to the hospital. It was all so fast.

Any regrets?--None. Zero. It was great. Of course, people were asking, if everything falls into place.

Will you do it again?--Yes. You see, I have this mantra that has worked pretty well for me, that I will play with anyone. So if I will play with anyone, then why not with old bandmates?

The proverbial question, do you see a possibility of getting back together, maybe record a new album?--I’m not too sure about that. But we never know, surprises come our way all the time. Malay mo.

Were the fluctuating plans stressing you too much? Or did you just let it whiz by you?--Stress? Yeah. Sobrang stressful. Going into a project, one has a lot of expectations, ‘di ba so you know that it’s going to be a really big show, a really killer gig, so and so number of people with all this equipment. Then all of a sudden they say they’re pulling the plug. How would you feel? Going into the whole project, ang taas ng expectations ko kasi mataas ang expectations ng mga tao. Even when I talked to Marcus or Raymund, even Ely, all of us were hyped, everybody was stoked to do this concert. Then all of a sudden right before the show it got cancelled then picked up by someone else. It was such a roller coaster.

So those details affected you?--Very much so. Can you imagine if it affected me, what more the people who were really engaged or involved in the planning? Maraming naghirap dito. The prod, si Raims, lahat. Si Ely rin. It really took its toll on him.

From what I’ve observed, it seems to me that you’re the peace guy in the bunch. The public airing of grievances was in full-swing at some point, that must’ve taken its toll on you.--When friends get hurt, everything gets personal. But…

Wait, did you just imply that the source of disagreement is mostly professional and it just became personal?--No, it was always personal. Kung professional ‘yon, napapag-usapan, there’s always a democratic way to solve things. Vote on it. If you get a tie, decide on who can vote to break the tie. Professional hitches are easier to resolve. But this has always been personal and that’s much more complex. Affected talaga ako noon, people were getting hurt. It was not as simple as a “can’t we all get along” type of moment. It’s not at all like that. It was more like a, “Wait, what’s his point? And what’s the other point?” Then all the points were getting lost. Things got out of hand and all of a sudden it got old. Napagod lang ako. And since I get bored easily…. I just let it go.

Good for you.--(laughs) I know, but if you’re asking me if I got affected badly… well, of course. I have friends who got hurt, my friends and family would ask me what was happening and I wouldn’t know what to say.

But isn’t it easier to play with a band you get along with?--Yeah, but even bands that don’t get along can still play really well together. Like I heard about the Police. They play incredibly well. People don’t go to watch the fighting, they come for the music, so you give the music. The fighting is supposed to be irrelevant.

Maybe it’s part of their creative process?--Maybe.

If the Eraserheads got back together, would it sound very different from before?--Better! If it sounds just like before then what’s the point? At least better than the last E-heads album, kasi that’s what we used to say, next song always better than the last. But then again, that’s just to our ears.

Now, let’s talk about the talked-about dead-air moments.--Oh, we were never the band that got the crowd on. If people really knew the ’Heads they’d know that’s how it is. And yes, we were never about engaging the audience. It was only about the music. That’s how we talked to the audience, I guess. That’s where the conversation was, through the songs talaga. I heard from someone that our concert was one big karaoke party. It looked that way from what I saw. People were singing along, on the tops of their voices. We were incredibly loud onstage and I was wearing earplugs, and I could still feel the audience singing. I even heard that some people were crying, literally, crying while singing. And wow, that was something else. That means something, right? The music meant so much to them that maybe the lack of talkies in between songs made up for it. Bawing-bawi naman. I can bet that, at least 90 percent of people you know had the ’Heads album playing in their iPods the month or weeks before the gig.

(Laughs) Yeah, actually ako rin! I was listening to the ’Heads albums also. Can you tell me about the “one big moment” for you that night?--For me it was really while the stage was being hoisted up, through the haze I was looking out and then saw all the people, all the faces cheering us on, I felt all that energy thrown my way. Wow. It was more than overwhelming.

--Interview by Gang Badoy for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Drummer Will Drum: Raymund

2008-09-23T01:32:00.000-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

Is it really impossible for you to get back together as a band?--Right now? I think that’s impossible because I think we’re very happy and satisfied with our respective bands. And also because the Eraserheads is too big, too difficult to handle, plus we’re all having fun with our respective bands. Speaking for myself, I am extremely pleased with all my bands, there’s no room to take care of a big band like the ‘Heads. It’s a lot of responsibility. One gig nga lang, sobrang daming makikialam, kokontra. And it’s great that I can do anything in Sandwich, Cambio, and Pedicab. Financially, we’re successful. Artistically, we’re free and musically, it’s very satisfying. The relationship is tight, more (like a) family than bandmates, actually. This is exactly how I wanted it after the ‘Heads. The ‘Heads is one big lesson, for me. I don’t mind playing Eraserhead shows, now that we’ve played together. Maybe just not on a regular basis. I don’t think I can handle it. Physically, emotionally and psychologically.

Was it too stressful for you, the dramatic last few weeks before the reunion gig—with all the changes in the plans, production and promoters?--The most stressful part about that was that I couldn’t announce to friends and family details about the concert. They were asking questions mostly directions—on how to get the tickets, etc. That was what mattered to majority of the people. Many didn’t care if it was to be produced by Marlboro or the DOH or whoever, the original promoters relayed that by Aug. 1 all details would be set. So I promised everyone I’d keep them posted. Eh Aug. 25 na, wala pa ring final plans. So I was getting stressed with that, I got sick, even got a fever because of that. Otherwise, everything was ready. The band was prepared, the production was ready but none of us could send any details if it was pushing through or not. But at the back of my head I was thinking, everyone should relax, it’s just a concert. The country has bigger problems like the peace in Mindanao, ‘di ba? But that was just me and I don’t like worrying about the technicalities and etc. I’ll worry about the music but not the mechanics of a concert, so that stressed me out. I guess when Sony BMG took over and “saved the day,” I really wasn’t interested in the legal-speak, I just wanted to know details so I had something to tell my friends and my family at that point because this was a few days before the playdate.

You keep saying that “it’s just a concert” but obviously it’s not just a concert to many people. And you know that it’s not just that to many of us in the audience.--Yeah I know, I know. (laughs) But you know, during those few days, that’s also when I heard about Ely’s mom passing away. After that, I surrendered na. I knew that this was as far as our control goes. If Ely decides not to play, no one will question him. None of us will. So at that time, I knew that I just had to go with the flow. The passing of Tita Lizette trumps everything. In fact, at that time all the stress I was feeling about the arrangements and everything else disappeared at that point.

Of course, because there was a higher order to follow.--Oo nga! Suko na ako. We will all respect Ely’s decision, I know I will. In my experience, when my dad got sick, I dropped out of the last leg of the Eraserheads’ US tour and they all respected that. Whatever happens, at that point, will happen. And I knew I had no control over anything anymore. We visited her in the hospital and then the next day she passed away. So Buddy and I paid our respects, we went to the wake. We had known Tita Lizette for over 20 years. Not just in the context of the E-heads career but even since our college days. And then it was taking its toll on Ely, who hadn’t slept in weeks, weeks! But he never tells anybody. I don’t think any of the band members asked him if he was going to play. I didn’t think it was right at all to ask him that. He just showed up during our sound check and we finished it and then showed up the next day. But he had every reason and right to decide otherwise. I’d respect that, of course.

As we all would’ve.--Oo, dapat lahat naman eh. Basta I decided, I will be the drummer and I will show up when required. And if Ely decided not to show up, then I would follow that direction. No explanations necessary.

During performances, there’s usually one band member who will give cues when to start. How was this performance managed among you since the relationship isn’t exactly smooth?--As the drummer, I usually give the cues, I count off. Most of the time I need to look at every band member before I count off. For some reason, Ely wasn’t giving me a signal per song if he was ready or not. I wasn’t sure if it was an act or because he was laboring or the pressure or the now-famous chant, which I later on found out was “group hug.”

Oh no, kami ‘yon! We started it during the end of the first countdown.--Yeah, I know! Later on I found out it was you, guys, my friends nga, but from my vantage point I couldn’t understand it. I kept looking at the set list if it was a title of a song. And I was trying to figure it out. Until I asked someone and I was told it was “group hug.” Maybe it was that. I didn’t need to figure it out because after every song I just counted the beats per minute in my head and worried about the next song. By that time, Ely wasn’t giving me cues so I thought maybe he was already having a tough time just handling his physical feeling. So I just looked at his body language and whenever he looked ready from the back, I counted off. I didn’t rush nor slow down.

I was telling my friend that it was so interesting to see four guys “head-on dead-pan” thousands of people, since no one onstage was reacting to the chant. Libo-libo kaming halos hindi ninyo pinansin!--(laughs) The Eraserheads was never really into the “talk to the audience” type. We never did that. That was never part of our act, really. Ever since. Even in college. If you remember, we didn’t have audience rapport. In UP, during our E-heads career, never, never did we do that.

No talkies, you mean? No spiels?--None, purposely. No. Never. Ely’s wit was always sarcastic and the way you saw us in Kamia (a UP Diliman dorm) back then, that was it. That’s how we’ve been. We were never “hi, hello!” You know? Even Sandwich is not like that. We just play. Eraserheads is like that. We just play.

Did you even notice some dead air? What was going on in the stands, did that even have an impact on you during the gig?--I did pay attention! In fact, it was great to see the faces in the crowd. But you see, preparing immediately for the next song, that’s just my “auto-pilot.” That night I kept reminding myself to “Get the groove steady, Raymund, gotta relax.… you’re too excited, you’re hitting the drums too hard…”

Wait! If you were excited, then that means being there was a very good thing for you!--Of yeah! It was good, it is good. And besides, there’s a Sandwich rule that whenever I play, I give it 110 percent or Diego (Castillo) will kick my a**.

But that’s Sandwich!--But I’m Sandwich!

Oo nga naman. But this is E-heads!--Yes! But even in Pedicab, he will still give it to me if I don’t give it my all. So when I signed that contract, I said yes, I will give 110 percent—and I did. And I will give the people watching what they deserve. Everything. Except the show biz part. I don’t do that. I don’t think any of the Eraserheads does that. Nobody has done that. I’d give the music and the performance my all—but not the show biz part.

Anyway, I know that you switch roles in a lot of bands. When you were onstage that night, did you say to yourself, “Ah, now this is E-heads.”--Of course. When I’m on the drums for E-heads, I’M THE DRUMMER OF THE E-HEADS. That’s it.

No cross over?--None. Actually at the first part, I put on the wig to celebrate my look during the first years of the E-heads. The day before, Mary Lou (Malig) and R.A (Rivera, Pedicab) dyed my hair green to celebrate the era of “Sticker Happy.” I didn’t dye my hair two days before the gig because I didn’t want to go to the wake of Ely’s mom with green hair, I didn’t think it was respectful. So we did it the day before the gig. That’s to celebrate ’97 “Sticker Happy” years. Then Mads of Furball lent me a wig to celebrate naman ’93 Heads. You have to write all of this down, Gang, because this is important. So I was up there as ’Heads, no doubt. Yeah, I was the drummer of Eraserheads.

So, you were paying tribute to the ’Heads…--Yes.

With your hair…?--Exactly.

How much of your present-day bands did you bring with you guys onstage? Did you guys at least talked about what to wear on the night of the gig?--Ay no, we don’t talk—the ’Heads don’t talk.

You don’t talk about even those details?--Sa Sandwich, we can talk about hats and shoes all day, coordinating etc. Sandwich will talk about everything . . . but the ’Heads? No. We don’t talk. We just play.

Was it always like this? Let’s say, from day one or did this happen slowly?--I think from day one. We don’t talk a lot. But we gelled together because we played music, especially when we play music. For example, our first rehearsal recently, after six years, if I’m not mistaken, we ran through more than 20 songs. And I didn’t practice any of the songs. I physically practiced the drums but I didn’t rehearse the songs. I had to work on it, on my method. I knew it was very different playing for an arena compared to Saguijo. That’s like the difference between a marathon and a sprint. Different muscle groups. So I worked on that. The technique, stamina, breathing, all the technical aspects of drumming, but not the E-heads songs. But when rehearsal day came, and there were some song changes and Ely would call songs and Buddy and I would just play it. I was laughing most of the time. Hopefully no one took offense to that. I only laughed because I realized after six years I could still play the songs.

People generally have a belief that a band plays well because of a certain chemistry among its members.--Eraserheads has chemistry, no doubt.

And its chemistry lies in…?--I remember listening to the recording of our rehearsals, it was a bit eerie because no one was talking but playing was definitely good. I’m not sure, but there’s a different chemistry for every band. Kami, we have it when we play.

That particular night, who did you play for?--That night? My friends. I saw everyone in front. And I was really looking for you guys and then I see familiar faces and they’re singing along with us… That’s it! And my friends are my family, you know me, Gang, you know me well enough that my friends and bandmates are my family, too. And when I see a familiar face having fun with our music, that’s it. Tanggal pagod. For that night, yeah, that was it. I played for friends. I play for the fans too, make no mistake, but for that night… or any night, it was family and friends talaga.

Did you seriously think that this was just going to be a gig, and that you were gonna walk away from it unchanged?--Let me backtrack to the beginning. Remember this “reunion” was years in the making. Negotiations started way back. And put it on record, that in my case, it was Darwin and Marlboro who succeeded in convincing me. I never had the inclination to do a reunion gig. I always asked, “What for?” Everything I want to do in my life I’m doing in Sandwich, Pedicab, and Cambio. Why mess with a good thing? I knew if I said yes to the ’Heads it would be more than just a yes.

Too many consequences?--Of course.

But this couldn’t have been just a gig. There must’ve been something different. Something must’ve changed in you after Aug. 30.--What do you mean by change?

Inside you. Surely something cramping inside you clicked back into place.--No. Nothing changed.

Oh okay.--But you see, when I signed up in Eraserheads, I knew I’d be part of the ’Heads forever. I knew what I signed up for. As Sandwich, I can walk in the mall, walang pumapansin. When I signed onto this, I was Eraserheads again. People would stop me sometimes and ask me, “Kailan ang reunion? Kailan ang concert? Saan?” Pero okey lang ‘yon, I knew that was part of it. At okey lang talaga ‘yon, kasama ‘yon.

How come even musicians in the scene, mostly Rock Ed volunteer musicians, are very careful when they ask about the reunion? Seems like everyone tiptoed around me saying, “Gang, ask Raims naman kung tuloy ang reunion gig.” Pabulong pa minsan. (laughs)--Because Ely and I were very vocal about the split-up. And many of them know that Ely and I haven’t communicated in six years. We had personal differences.

And those personal differences were over, under, and beyond ‘being in the band?’--Yes, they are personal. Exactly that. And I will still not talk about it in public.

Good. Now, is it fair to say that you all gave equal share to make this reunion happen?--For this show? I think the four of us gave all that we could. I even think Ely gave more than anybody else, given the circumstance. I think he gave more than what was asked of him. Hindi kasali ‘yung tyempo ng pagkawala ni Tita Lizette sa kontrata, ‘yung health din niya. But he gave it his all, too.

This is not exactly a question for you, but I’m wondering why he didn’t decide on postponing the concert? I mean, his Mom just passed…--I think, in my opinion, he did it for his Mom. Because his Mom was always in the shows. She produced many of our shows. Tita Lizette was really into the ’Heads, more than all of our moms. But she really produced shows, she was really involved. So yeah, he probably went on with it to honor his Mom.

So, if by some miracle you reunite and produce another album, do you think it will sound the same or different?--I think it will be a lot different, but I don’t think we can stand each other for that long period of time, enough to record an album.

Did it ever cross your mind to include your present-day bands as front acts to this gig?--No. Personally, no. The people came for the ’Heads. If they wanted to see the rest of our bands, they could see us wherever else we play. We’re all still around anyway.

Anything else you want to say?--Yes, I want to give credit to a group. They took in a lot of pressure and bad raps, they took a lot of sanctimonious raps, so I want to credit Marlboro/Phillip Morris for getting all four of us together. You see, Eraserheads is not a single entity, it’s four individuals plus plus. I hope you don’t edit this out, this is the truth. Even if they gave into pressure in the final hour, they still got us together, they worked for this and they pushed this together. It was as simple as the DOH not giving them the permit because of a law. I really think the fans, regardless of their stand on the tobacco law, should really thank Marlboro for making this possible. I mean, really. Please don’t edit this out, we really have them to thank. Just as much as we thank Sony-BMG, MTV or Radiohead Productions. It was never about advertising cigarettes, I think. It was a lot more than that, alam nila maraming mapapasaya, kasama na kami doon! And I think it was proven last Saturday.

Seems like there are so many people crucial to this event. Like you said, it was four individuals plus plus...--Ah wait! No, make that five! Alam mo, we used to have a session keyboardist, the late Noel Garcia. So for this one, when we were all asked—separately, ha—who we wanted to work with us onstage, we all chose Jazz Nicolas (the drummer of Itchyworms). He’s brilliant. Many people thought we sequenced music playback but that’s not true. Everything we couldn’t cover, Jazz took over. Keyboards, back-up vocals, back-up guitar and the tambourine—sometimes he’d play all those sabay-sabay! Ang galing talaga. The first time he sat in, he just knew all the parts. It was a joy to play with him on our side, really.

Do you think it’s because Jazz is a ’Heads fan himself?--Maybe it’s that, but I think fan or not, he’s a musical genius. I worked with him in Project 1 and many other collaborations and I’m a fan. I’m a fan of his work. So is Buddy, he’s worked with Jazz, too. He is amazing and crucial to the whole event. People should know that.

What was the moment you remember most from that night?--When the crowd started counting down and we were under the stage. I actually banged the drums when it got to one. I wasn’t supposed to, but I just had to, I had to release the energy. I could feel the love, it was pure love, nothing negative. I could feel it in every pore, I knew there was going to be a video thing first and other things going on, but I just had to crash on it. In my head it was, “Let’s do this!” You know, and If I didn’t do that, kakailanganin kong tumambling, kung hindi sasabog ako. I couldn’t contain it.

If all factors fall into place, Ely back health-wise, you’d do this again, right?--Definitely. Me, personally? When he’s ready, I’d probably talk him into doing it again. I’m sure he wants to finish what he started. I mean, finish the full show, he’d want that. Because Ely worked so hard, as much as everybody did in this show, ‘di ba? I’m sure he set aside feelings about everybody also, we really all worked hard to get this together. So yeah, for as long as health-wise he’s clear, I’d like to do this again. I want to finish what we started. I want Ely to fully recover soon and talk him into finishing it. We don’t talk a lot but I want to talk him into finishing it. I’m sure that’s what Ely wants to do, too.

A music writer texted me just now, “What was the real reason you broke up? Are the stories going around even remotely close to the real reason?”--May kanta kami diyan, “’Wag Mo Nang Itanong.”

--Interview by Gang Badoy for the Philippine Daily Inquirer

Minsan, Eraserheads

2008-09-23T01:22:00.000-07:00

Napanaginipan ko sila noong nakaraang linggo. Hindi ko alam kung bakit. Sa panaginip, pumasok ako sa isang lumang bahay na gawa sa kahoy. Kulay orange ang ilaw. Nadatnan ko sa unang palapag si Ely Buendia. Sa ikalawa, si Buddy Zabala. Sa panghuling palapag, nakatanguan si Raimund Marasigan. Hindi ko maintindihan – hindi naman ako excited sa papalapit noong konsiyerto nila. Hindi ko naisip na manood. Pero nasa panaginip ko sila – maliban na lamang kay Marcus Adoro, ewan ko kung bakit – na ibig sabihi’y nasa laylayan ng kamalayan ko ang Eraserheads.

Siyempre, napanood at nabasa ko ang hinggil sa mga nangyari sa konsiyerto. Nakita ko sa telebisyon ang fans. Nakakuwentuhan ang mga kakilalang nanood. Parang reunion, sabi ng isa, hindi lang ng banda kundi ng isang henerasyon. May mga trabaho na, ang iba may pamilya na (dalawang kuwento mula sa konsiyerto: ang isang kakilala, si E, kasama ang asawa at mga kaedad na magpipinsan; ang isa pang kakilala, si J, pinambili ng tiket nilang mag-asawa ang perang dapat gagamitin sa bakuna ng anak). Kaya nang bumili ng relatibong mamahaling tiket. Kung dati, nang mga estudyante pa lamang kami, nagkakasya na sa hiraman ng tapes at pagpuslit papasok sa UP Fair, ngayon, kahit papaano, napagbibigyan na ang hilig. Better late than never.

Reunion nga, at wala ako doon. Sayang. Binalikan ko sa mp3 ang musika ng Eraserheads. Mula sa ultraelectromagneticpop! hanggang sa Carbon Stereoxide. Nasa Circus pa lamang ako – pasakay ng MRT tatlong araw na ang nakararaan – nang bumulaga sa akin ang realisasyon: Oo nga pala, fan nga pala ako nila. Kinalimutan ko na. Naalala ko ang isang kaibigan noong 1995, galit na galit siya sa Eraserheads, nakokornihan, at naiinis sa mga freshmen na ang unang tanong sa kanya’y kung saan makikita ang pinakasikat na banda ng UP. Para mapanatili ang pagkakaibigan, hindi na namin pinag-uusapan ang Eraserheads. Mas gusto raw niya ang Yano. Noong tagal, nahumaling kay Cynthia Alexander.

Pero fan nga pala ako. Parang kinimkim na emosyong bumulwak mula sa akin ang realisasyong ito pagdating ko sa kantang Minsan. Nasa masikip na tren ng MRT ako. Naluha ako. At hindi lang dahil tulad ng persona sa kanta, minsan akong tumira sa Kalayaan Residence Hall. Naluha ako dahil naalala ko ang panahong ito, ang pagkabata, ang pagkamulat. Taong 1994-95, sariwang sariwa, mula sa probinsiya. Wide-eyed freshie na tuwang tuwa na nakatuntong ng UP. Mababaw ang kaligayahan. Sangkatutak ang insecurities. Tinatagyawat. Kahit noon, nagtataka na ako sa kantang ito: Para naman yata ambilis tumanda ng mga ito. Nagno-nostalgia trip, para namang dekada na mula nang umalis sila ng pamantasan.

Pero kinausap ako ng kantang ito. At ng iba pa nilang kanta. Wishing Wells, Alapaap, kahit Huling El Bimbo – panay pagbabalik sa nakaraan ng persona. Pinaalala ng mga ito kung paano ako mag-isip noong panahong iyon, kung paano ko dinamdam ang mga kaganapan sa buhay. Naluha ako dahil naramdaman ko ang paglipas ng panahon. Naramdaman kong tumanda na ako, at nagbago na ang pananaw ko sa mundo. Naging seryoso ang mga pinagkakaabalahan: pulitika, pagsusulat, sining, aktibismo. Nakalulungkot na kinailangang kalimutan ko ang payak at simplistikong mundo ng pagkabata para maging pulitikal na tao. Naluha ako sa paglipas ng panahon, sa henerasyon ko at sa trivial, maliit, makitid na mundo nito.

Tinitingnan ko ang mga footage sa TV ng konsiyerto at naisip ko: pareho pa rin ang hitsura nila, parang hindi tumanda. Si Ely lang, pumayat. Siguro dahil sa sakit niya noong nakaraang taon. O dahil siya ang pinakaunang tumanda sa grupo. Sa pagsulat niya ng mga kantang tulad ng Minsan, Huling El Bimbo, Para sa Masa, parang siya ang pinakaunang nakaramdam ng paglipas ng panahon, ng pagbabalik-tanaw sa nakaraan at pag-aakalang mas maganda ang anumang nakaraan kaysa sa kasalukuyan. Masaya ang buhay-banda – epitomiya na siguro ito ng pagkabata. Naalala ko ang isang linya sa pelikula ni Cameron Crowe: sabi ng isang karakter, “Hindi ba pumasok tayo sa banda para iwasan ang responsibilidad?” Nasa banda raw ang karakter para pansamantalang ihinto ang orasan, at manatiling bata – juvenile, nakatira sa mundo ng “Rock n’ roll Neverland.“

Pero si Ely – siya na siguro ang unang kumawala sa Neverland. Siya ang unang kumalas sa banda, habang ang naiwang tatlo sinubukan pang palitan siya ng babaing bokalista pero di nagtagumpay. Nagpalagay ng brace sa ngipin, nagpagupit, nagbihis-burgis (nakita ko sa YouTube ang bidyo na ito na panauhin si Ely sa talk show ni Martin Nievera matapos tumiwalag sa ’Heads). Di nagtagal, nagtatag ng bagong banda (Mongols, saka Pupil), pero di na bumalik sa moda ng ’Heads – tila mas seryoso na ang pagiging musikerong artist, hindi na pinangarap na maging popular o populista (Ikumpara, halimbawa, kay Raimund, na kinakantahan pa ang Betamax hanggang ngayon). Wala nang hihigit pang patunay ng napakaagang pagtanda ni Ely sa tila napaagang pagkakasakit niya sa isang karamdamang madalas na naiuugnay natin sa katandaan – sakit sa puso.

Usap-usapang mauulit daw ang reunion concert. Pero tingin ko, hindi na dapat. Sapat na ang isang gabing nostalgia trip – hindi lamang sa musika ng isang henerasyon, kundi sa naglipas na sensibilidad at angas ng henerasyong ito. Tumitindi na ang krisis. Sobrang mahal na ng mga bilihin sa tindahan ni Aling Nena, laluna sa CASAA. Nagmahal na pati ang isaw sa tapat ng Ilang-Ilang. Nag-abroad na si Shirley (sana hindi siya mapabilang sa mga OFW na bumabalik sa bansa sa kahon). Nagbenta ng katawan sa magasin ang dating crush ni Ely. Hindi lang bugbog — pinapatay pa — ang inaabot ng mga bading na tulad ni Jay. Nasagasaan sa madilim na eskinita yung kamukha ni Paraluman.

Aktibista noon sa UP yung kaibigan kong galit na galit sa Eraserheads. Inisip ko noon, galit siya baka dahil wala siyang maaninag na pulitika sa musika ng banda. Maliban siguro sa pag-anyaya ni Raimund sa kalalakihang estudyante na tumiwalag, sumapi sa NPA at “palayain ang sarili,” at isang pagkakatong tumugtog sila sa isang rali kontra komersiyalisasyon sa UP noong 1996, iwas-pulitika at iwas-aktibismo ang Eraserheads. Sa isang pamantasang pinaniniwalaang may mayamang tradisyon ng aktibismo, hindi nila naiwasang makasalamuha at makaibigan ang mga aktibista (Dalawang ehemplo: si Bomen Guillermo ang pinakaunang kritikong nagpasikat sa banda, nang magsulat si Bomen ng rebyu ng demo tape nila para sa Philippine Collegian; at, noong 1998, naka-housemates ni Buddy sa Teachers’ Village ang ilang lider-estudyanteng aktibista. At, isa pa pala: Nag-opening act sa launch concert ng Cutterpillow ang bandang The Jerks, na sa kabila ng mga “boo” ay nag-alay ng kanta noong gabi para sa Pandaigdigang Araw ng Karapatang Pantao). Pero liban doon, banda lang talaga ang Eraserheads. Bandang masaya, magaling, henyo pa nga. Pero banda lang talaga.

Ganyan din ang sinabi ni John Lennon nang tanungin siya kung ano ang tingin niya sa penomenon ng Beatles ilang taon matapos magkanya-kanya sila: “We were just a band…” Aktibista na noon si John Lennon. Nagmartsa siya kasama ang mga Amerikano para labanan ang giyera sa Vietnam. Nagpahayag siya ng pagpabor sa sosyalismo. Naging anthem ng kilusang kontra-giyera ang mga kanta niya. Tulad ni Ely sa ‘Heads, tila si Lennon din ang pinakaunang tumanda sa – at unang na-outgrow ang – Beatles. Pero siya ang pinakabatang namatay. Sabi ng isang interpretasyon sa pagkahumaling ng assassin niya sa librong Catcher in the Rye, pinatay daw ng assassin si Lennon para manatiling inosente’t bata, parang yung karakter na kapatid ni Holden Caulfield na “catcher in the rye.”

Buhay pa naman si Ely, pero tumatanda na silang apat. At ang musika nila, nagiging instrumento ng gunita, ng pagbabalik-tanaw sa isang henerasyon, isang sensibilidad na naglaho na. Pero may panahon pa, para sa mga pahayag na “banda lang kami noon”, para sa mga martsa, mga pagpabor at pagtutol, pag-awit ng mga anthem, at pamumuhay sa mundo at realidad natin ngayon.

--Posted by Kenneth Roland Guda on his blog

What could have been: Set Two

2008-09-21T19:01:00.000-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

We were all supposed to dance the Huling El Bimbo with a fantastic fireworks display. It was going to be the perfect song to end a perfect concert.

I know because my sister said so. She was one of the band's PAs (guess which one!) and was there during the production meetings. On Sunday morning, as we gathered for our family lunch, she told us what was supposed to go down during the Eheads concert.

The first set went exactly as planned, except of course for Ely's collapse. To refresh your memory, these are the songs we heard:

1) Alapaap 2) Ligaya 3) Sembreak 4) Hey Jay 5) Harana 6) Fruitcake 7) Toyang 8) Kama Supra 9) Kailan 10) Wag Kang Matakot 11) Kaliwete 12) With A Smile 13) Shake Yer Head 14) Wag Mo Nang Itanong 15) Lightyears

During the second set, the band was to sing ten more songs, in this order:

1) Maskara 2) Poor Man's Grave 3) Torpedo 4) Trip to Jerusalem 5) Back To Me 6) walang Nagbago 7) Maling Akala 8) Tikman 9) Spoliarium 10) Magasin

When Magasin was to be played, the screen behind them would have montages of various news and magazine clippings of them. It would flash alternately with shots of the band and audience until the song reached the coda where Ely sings "...ay centerfold ka naaaa...woo hoo-hoo, haaa-haaa" part of the song. Then there would be fire works and a fountain of sparks, going on til the last note of the song. Then the hydraulic stage would be lowered and the band would make a "fake ending".

The lights would then go out.My sister said the band would wait til the crowd chanted "more". "It would take two beers' worth of chanting "more" she said. Then in the darkness, a very dramatic keyboard solo would be heard, and it would be the opening chords of Para Sa Masa.

The hydraulic stage would rise again and there they would be.After Para Sa Masa, they'd switch into Overdrive. With the crowd pumped within an inch of insanity they were to hit us with Pare Ko. And then we would slow down and reminisce with Minsan.Finally, they would perform Huling El Bimbo. Again, after the last refrain, at the coda (la la la laaa...) the grand fireworks display would go off, fountains of light surrounding the stage. The next la-la-la parts would see fireworks from behind the general admissions section, and as the song ended there would be a burst of confetti all over the audience.

Then the hydraulic stage would be lowered for the final exit.Those were the plans for the Ultraelectromagnetic night. It may not have happened as planned but at least we knew they were going to give us a show we would never forget!We asked my sister if the band knew about all these plans and she said they did. In fact they were so excited about all the gimmicks and couldn't wait to party with the audience. "Nag-usap pa nga sila kung may mga kailangang saluhin na kanta just in case (di na kaya ni Ely)," she said. "And Ely said, hindi, Kakanta ako!"

I'm putting out an order to the Universe that we all get to watch the second set!

--Source unknown

Ely Buendia's Brave Heart

2008-09-15T00:30:00.002-07:00

Photo from Mari Arquiza's Flickr set

Before we visited Ely Buendia at the Philippine Heart Center Monday night, we knew that he was already preparing to be transferred to a regular room because he was progressing well in his recovery that day.

But when we got there at past 9 p.m. Monday, we were surprised to find out that he had to stay at the CCU unit of the Philippine Heart Center for another two days at least because he just had angioplasty that same morning.

It turned out that his doctors found another blocked artery that same morning when his preparatory ECG test showed that. "He was all sprightly and enthusiastic when he came for a supposed stress test that morning. But the doctors recommended angioplasty right away instead," Day told us.

When we saw him, he was already stable and was being administered medicine to pull up his blood pressure which was a bit low due to the procedure that morning. We asked him how he was feeling when we saw his blood pressure reading was only 89/45 and he said, "sa akin, okay lang yan kasi low blood talaga ako," he told us. The nurses were explaining to Ely the medicines they were giving him.

Although still looking pale, Ely smiles warmly to his visitors. My heart truly went out for him. We told him he gave everyone the scare of their lives again and he replied by just smiling back and pressing our hand. He gave us the thumbs up sign when we inquired how he was feeling.

Ely was conversing with everyone and even expressed desire to go home for the wake of his mom. He was asking questions about the show, about the recording done by SonyBMG and even narrated how he actually felt that fateful Saturday night.

He said, "Towards the last song of the first set, I was already feeling chest pains. Nung matapos, parang hindi na ako makahinga. Kaya umupo ako. When we reached backstage, I was asking for oxygen already kasi nahirapan na talaga ako huminga."

Ely said the chest pain he felt Saturday night was the same pain he felt one year ago when he had his heart attack in January.

With Ely that night were his ever so loyal manager Day Cabuhat and his sister Lira. His wife Diane was talking to some visitors from Philip Morris outside. It looked to me like there was an endless stream of visitors for the Eraserheads vocalist. Sony BMG bosses Rudy Tee and Vic Valenciano also came shortly. Then Pupil’s Yam and Doc arrived, too, along with Twinky Lagdameo who told us Gary Valenciano visited a bit earlier to pray with Ely that day, too. Ely said Marcus Adoro was there too, earlier.

He gives all of us a grateful smile when we speak with him and when we said our goodbyes so he can sleep and rest already, he shook hands with the boys and kissed our hand and thanked us all for being there.

Why not part 2?

Everyone’s hoping that there will be Part 2 of the Eraserhead’s reunion concert. And the possibility is big.

We’ve spoken with some people from in and around the concert production, including those very close to the band members and they all have the same high hopes for a repeat of part 2.

The band members were quite receptive to the possibility, having been evidently buoyed up by the amazing reception that the public gave them during the momentous one night music event at The Fort’s open field. We were told that Raymund Marasigan, after speaking with Pupil manager Day Cabuhat and was assured that Ely was in a stable and far better condition Sunday night, sort of made a promise to their followers that the reunion will see its ultimate fruition soon, or something to that effect.

Buddy Zabala, who went to visit Ely at the hospital Sunday night (with his wife Earnest Mangulabnan and good friend Rommel Sanchez), reportedly shares the same excitement reminiscing those marvelous moments on stage again.

The organizers are hopeful, too, including Sony BMG executives who recorded the gig for DVD release as an excellent alternative for those who failed to get there that night when the history of local rock music charted a milestone with the reunion that nobody believed was ever possible.

Breaking social barriers

Eraserheads’ supporters, clearly transcending social classes, are once again united for this purpose. Looks like the heavens are responding as Ely gets better and better even while we were writing this column.

Day told us in a phone conversation Monday morning, "his doctors were very careful because all the triggering factors of a heart attack were present at his condition and being a cardiac patient, they just couldn’t take chances."

She said all Ely wanted is "to get out of his hospital bed already. He wanted to go back to the wake of his Mom and weâ€™re really hoping he will be strong enough. Weâ€™re just waiting for the doctorâ€™s recommendations."

Fateful night at The Fort

Ely was transferred to the Philippine Heart Center at about 1 a.m. last Sunday after getting initial treatments from the Makati Medical Center where he was rushed from the concert venue Saturday night (at around 9:30 p.m.) during the 20-minute concert break. The organizers took care of his bills at the Makati Medical Center.

The band just finished the first 15 songs (the last one being "Light Years" from the internationally-released "Aloha Milkyway" album).

Ely was seen, just before the lights went out, sitting down at a platform props with his head turned towards his guitar signaling something to the technical guy.

Unknown to the expectant crowd, some of whom are even betting on what the final song will be, Ely almost collapsed already when he reached his dressing room, ashen-faced, cold, and profusedly sweating.

"It was then that we decided to stop the concert and rushed Ely to the hospital. He was not really talking but he kept pointing towards his chest. If you see his very pale face, cold and clammy, you will really decide to stop the show and just seek medical attention right away," Day said telling us that although she was bravely taking hold of the situation, she was really scared when she rode with him in the ambulance in what could be the longest short distance ride she ever took with him.

While Ely was being wheeled out of the venue, Diane, his wife, was breaking down already and his sisters were all crying that’s why it was decided that they stay behind and just follow Ely to Makati Medical Center. The scariest thing happened on the way, Day said, when Ely’s blood pressure dropped to 90/60. Later on, it was noted that it was due to sheer exhaustion, hypotension and dehydration (because he didn’t drink water during the entire first set of the show) and thankfully not another heart attack that caused it.

Ely is so brave

Day told us that Ely was obviously in pain but he was trying his best to keep a brave front for the sake of his family. His family is sort of depending on him for strength being the unofficial "captain of the ship" at this very difficult time of their mother’s passing.

But what was really heartbreaking to see was his son Eon crying beside his dad while at the Makati Med emergency room. "When he asked his Dad what was happening to him, I saw Ely really go out of his way to give his son a smile and assured him that he is fine and that he just needed to rest a little bit," Day said citing the fact that the father and son are so close.

He told us that although the guys were sort of "uncomfortable" around each other during the very first meeting, that feeling vanished totally when the rehearsals proceeded.

"They had gimmicks for some of those songs. The band had a fun time doing video recordings to complement some of the songs. Too bad, the public didn’t get to see that last Saturday," we were told.

But then again, who said the reunion concert is already finished?

--Written by Shirley Matias-Pizarro for The Manila Bulletin

Eraserheads, Delirium and Anticlimax

2008-09-09T19:50:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 0120. I can tell you this: it was intense. From the moment it was announced, the Eraserheads reunion concert was attended by high drama. The original sponsor of the concert, a cigarette manufacturer, required registration on its website for free tickets. The cigarette company was found to have violated the ban on tobacco advertising, and the show was cancelled on August 23. The show was back on the following day; a different promoter had stepped in, and tickets would be sold via Ticketworld. On August 28, Eheads frontman Ely Buendia’s mom died following an illness. It had been raining all week, and the concert was to be held in a field at Fort Bonifacio. Would the reunion concert go on as scheduled?

It did, and it didn’t. I’ve never seen so many people at Fort Bonifacio. Thousands of people—do we have crowd estimates?—descended on the field on the one clear, rainless day of the week to see the biggest, most important Filipino band of the 90s. As far as I know there were no TV or newspaper ads for the gig, just radio stations playing Eheads songs and fans blogging, texting, emailing the news to each other. It was one of those things that You Just Knew. The band took the stage at 2020 to a delirious ovation. They had not played together in many years, but by their mere presence they reversed time. They could’ve just stood there, and it wouldn’t have mattered: the audience was singing their songs to them. From the opening strains of Alapaap, it was 1995 all over again.

Fourteen songs* later, at around half-past nine, there was a 20-minute intermission. It felt longer. Then Raimund Marasigan, Marcus Adoro, and Buddy Zabala returned to the stage with Ely’s sister, Lally. She read a statement thanking the audience for their support, then breaking the news that Ely had to be rushed to the hospital. The gig was off. Ten years ago, that news would’ve been greeted with boos, mineral water bottles would’ve been launched (they were not allowed into the venue), and good luck getting out of there. But the news was received with a shocked silence: it is widely known that Ely had a heart attack last year and underwent angioplasty. There was a minute of silence for his speedy recovery. Then the thousands quietly filed out of the venue. It was eerie, walking out of there in near-silence when your systems were still adrenalized.

Ely is now in stable condition. According to family members, he had passed out from fatigue, stress, and lack of sleep following his mom’s death. He is resting and will be fine. Meanwhile we’re going to have to deal with our own Ang Huling El Bimbo/Magasin/Pare Ko deprivation.

It just started raining.

*1. Alapaap 2. Ligaya 3. Sembreak 4. Hey Jay 5. Harana 6. Fruitcake 7. Toyang 8. Kama Supra 9. Kailan 10. Wag Kang Matakot 11. Kaliwete 12. With A Smile 13. Shake Yer Head 14. Huwag Mo Nang Itanong Sa Akin

--Posted by Jessica Zafra on her website

Ely's Unfinished Symphonies

2008-09-09T04:29:00.001-07:00

It was the one everyone was waiting for. It took ages to organize and it seemed like ages before we got in and even longer before the concert started. But when it did--with the fab four appearing seemingly from thin air--with Alapaap, the decibel level at the open field went from deafening to ear-drum shattering.

Raimund was right--the band was cooking. They sounded better than ever. Ely's voice was strong, Raimund pounded the skins and kept the beat steady;Marcus was the taciturn axeman and Buddy was the smiling rhythm keeper.

For about an hour and fifteen songs deep, it looked like this was going down in history as among the best concerts and the reunion that did not disappoint until the last song.

Going into the last few notes, it seemed something was off; then Ely sat down as the song ended. A 20-minute intermission was announced and everyone started rattling off songs they expected to be played during the second set--El Bimbo, Overdrive, Julie tearjerky, Pare Ko, Tuwing Umuulan at Kapiling Ka,among many others.

When the 20 minutes became about 30, people started getting restless and then the three appeared onstage, with a woman and several others.That's when Buddy introduced Ely's sister who broke the news-- Ely would not come out anymore, he had to be rushed to the hospital. Amidst a stunned silence,and people half hoping it was a joke, Raimund confirmed it and introduced the organizer who also confirmed it, asked for calm and order and asked for a one minute prayer in silence.

Then it sank in.It was over.

The reunion no one thought would ever happen happened, but was over--in one hour. Ely would not come out for the second set. People, in silence, started shuffling out in disbelief.

While walking to the parking area, we could hear cars with speakers blaring the songs of the 'Heads,as if in tribute and thanksgiving to the band that made a great difference in pop culture and influenced a whole new generation of musicians.

Part of me was hoping it was a joke but when Buddy and Raimund confirmed it, I knew it wasn't.

As Jam said in his post, maybe it was fatigue, maybe it was emotions,maybe it was grief at the loss of a loved one(his mother passed away on Thursday),but Ely Buendia, he of the pop hooks and the astonishingly intuitive and perceptive lyrics, played his heart out tonight. And even if that heart was probably broken, it didn't show.

Many of us were screaming "group hug"to the four who were obviously not talking to each other; they did not oblige. But when the news of Ely's condition came, the remaining three took the stage as one. It was like the group hug that never was.

Ely, get well soon. If tonight has shown one thing: it is that the 'Heads still make a difference and that the four of you are loved. I know because my ears are still ringing and my hands are still sore. Get well soon, there are unfinished symphonies yet to be played.

--Posted by human rights lawyer Ted Te on his blog

Still A Magical Night

2008-09-09T02:25:00.000-07:00

The thing with magic is that no matter how simple it is—a coin palmed in one hand and then disappearing into the back of the other—as long as someone performs it in front of you for the first time, it will enthrall you.

For that moment which spans the magic trick—from the pledge, the turn to the prestige—you are held in awe. Saturday, Aug. 30, 2008, the pledge was simple. As the huge digital counter worked its way to zero, an electric crowd held its breath as the huge black backdrop presented the trick’s turn in huge golden dot matrix numbers dropping off one after the other. And then the prestige came: From the bowels of a makeshift stage, rose the Eraserheads.

“Masdan mo aking mukha/Di mo ba nakikita?/Ako ngayo’y lumilipad at nasa langit na/Gusto mo bang sumama?"

Who wouldn’t?

For six years we had waited for this one. When the countdown flashed 10 minutes, the general reaction wasn’t “10 minutes more?” It was “10 minutes left!” I mean, for anyone who has waited for Ely Buendia, Raimund Marasigan, Marcus Adoro and Buddy Zabala to play on the same stage, 10 minutes is like the time it takes to to pause between inhaling and exhaling.

After suffering through all those years with the pain of feeling our brains turn to mush and leaking out of our ears because of all the sixcycleminds, spongecolas and hales of this world, this was it: Eraserheads, reunited.

The reunion concert had taken quite a hit from moralists, who felt that their fan-ness wouldn’t be able to transcend the fact that the group had agreed to get together for wads of cash bundled into four equal parts by a tobacco company. They were still not friends. They had not patched up the differences that led to the breakup of the country’s best rock band. They were making a pitch for smoking.

Killjoy phlegmspits. Didn’t even bother to check that said tobacco company surrendered concert rights to MTV.

Put it this way: The four of them could have trooped to the Global City open field carrying pitchforks instead of guitars and engaged themselves in a death match with their songs as background music in an event that aimed to raise money for the Keep GMA in Power Foundation and the UP Cum Laude and I would have still gone.

See here: All it mattered was that they got together. And just a few notes into Alapaap, Eraserheads knew one thing: Through the clouds and even through hell, we would have gone with them if they

They got to the stage at 8:27 p.m. They played 15 songs, including such iconic hits as Ligaya, With a Smile, Fruitcake and Wag kang Matakot, a song which overemphasized the fact that NOBODY does it better and please. get. that. idiots who plan to sell their versions of E-Heads hits in the future.

Oh sure. Marcus missed a few riffs during solos and Ely couldn’t simply belt out notes with a vocal range that had shrunk after all this time. But you know what? With the crowd singing along every single moment during the concert, nobody cared.

"Wag kang matakot/Di mo ba alam nandito lang ako/Sa iyong tabi/Di kita pababayaan kailan man"

The crowd filled in every time Ely had to catch his breath. And, in retrospect, he did seem to try and catch it a lot during the high notes.

If anybody was looking closely, that might have foreshadowed what was to follow.

The first sign that trouble was brewing backstage was when the band plunged into what was supposed to be a 20-minute break. Again, the huge black backdrop flashed giant numbers reading 20:00. But shortly after it flashed, it disappeared behind a kaleidoscopic display of lights.

And then, more than 20 minutes had elapsed. Suddenly, questions cropped up in the mind. Was there any meaning to the fact that Ely had belted out–

“I look forward tomorrow/But can’t leave yesterday behind/How it feels so strange/To have grown and change/Now it’s not the same”

–just before the break? I look forward to tomorrow? Had Ely mock-genuflected just before surrendering his guitar to a stage hand right before the break? And why were Marcus, Raimund and Buddy climbing back to the stage without their instruments? And who was the girl with Buddy? Why was she holding a piece of paper?

Turns out, Ely had suffered mild chest pains and yielded to fatigue. He had to be rushed to the hospital, the girl, who was introduced as Ely’s sister, made the announcement. Together with organizers, band members offered their apologies to the thousands who had scrounged the city for tickets and then waded through traffic and then sang with them through 15 songs for having to cut the concert short.

Organizers braced for the worst. Jeers, perhaps. An angry mob demanding for refund. They had a litany of excuses ready to quell whatever uprising the crowd would morph into.

Instead, they got an appreciative, grateful silence. You guys are saying sorry? C’mon. A few notes into Alapaap and I already had my fill. Oh sure. Now we will never know how Ely would have introduced such hits as Pare Ko, Magasin and Ang Huling El Bimbo, three of the bands biggest hits penciled into The Second Set That Never Was. Right before the band went into Shake Yer Head, Ely shook his head wildly, letting his hair loose and sending his shades off unto the stage floor.

The Heads must’ve had something ready for those three hits, right?

When they did With A Smile, the Heads added a twist of melancholy into it, slowing down the tempo a wee bit and adding a little keyboards to the mix. Surely, they must have had something special planned for the longing-filled Para sa Masa, right?

And as the UP Cum Laude said, how would the E-Heads have dug into Minsan? Would they have finally given in to persistent egging by the crowd for a group hug? Would any of them wax emotional at the song that traced the beginnings of their friendship and whose lines seemed prophetic when one looks at the path that the band took?

We will never know. But the not knowing did not merit any apologies, Raimund, Marcus and Buddy. Ely’s mother had just died, two (three?) days before the reunion concert. From the emotional toll that had taken on him, to the daily grind of band practices and just the overwhelming euphoria of the night, things were just pretty too much for Ely’s fragile heart.

But see, here’s what we got: Over an hour’s worth of a moment we had given up on.

Sorry? No. Thanks. Every hair-raising minute after the opening sequence was one minute more than what we bargained for. In the end, a unified crowd fell into a minute’s silence and whispered a prayer for Ely’s health.

We could have gasped collectively at the announcement. But then we would have sucked out all the air out of the open field. We could have groaned, complained. But for what?
A rain check?

The thing with magic is that every time a trick is repeated, a layer of mystery is peeled off. Tickets for Reunion Concert Part II? There will never be one. Not because Ely obviously can’t go the whole grind anymore. Not because no one is willing to fork in for talent fee anymore.

But once you find the coin at the back of the other hand, the magic’s gone.

So thank you, Raimund. Thanks, Marcus. Thanks, Buddy.

We know you feel sorry. But you should have been there when the lights had gone out on the empty stage; when all that was left were faint echoes of the songs that endeared you guys to us.

When the singular crowd broke up into tiny dispersing units, no one was wincing over the financial toll the abbreviated concert took on a beat-up wallet. Everybody was chattering, reminiscing, as if they had watched the full version of the Eraserheads Reunion Concert.

And hey, Ely Buendia, thanks.

* * *

I remember when I was a kid, a magician during a school fair quieted a clamor from a bunch of us by saying he would perform one last trick.

He held up a deck of cards and showed it to us kids. 52 different cards. From the deck, he fished out the ace of spades. He passed it around and told us to put it back into the middle of the deck.

He then passed the deck to each of us—I think we were seven or eight—and told us to shuffle it once. We did.

He placed the deck face down on the table as we eagerly awaited the pledge.

“I want you to tap the top of the deck once,” he said.

We did.

Then came the turn.

“Can one of you come forward?” I did.

“When I say ‘ace’ I want you to lift the top card and throw it in the air,” he said. I nodded.

“Ace!”

I picked the top card threw it in the air. The magician caught in inbetween both palms and held it out in front of us.

“Guess what this card is?”

“Ace of spades!” we gleefully answered, suspense building up in our hearts.

But when he unveiled the card, it was the three of clubs.

We stood there stunned, wanting an explanation. He handed out the deck. We searched but we couldn’t find the ace of spades.

“Magic,” he said, but it wasn’t the prestige we were hoping for.

Still, we clapped. He had shown us several magic tricks, after all. And then the fair grounds closed and we went home.

* * *

I was having dinner at home that night, going over the events in my mind and a little bummed out that the magic trick didn’t turn out the way I hoped it would.

Until my mom, checking on the laundry, told me she found an ace of spades in my shirt pocket.

It’s hard to explain the childish giddiness that overcame me way back then. But Saturday night, Aug. 30 2008? It kinda felt that way.

* * *

Never refer to it as half a concert. It was everything the Eraserheads could give. Bitin, sure. But you’ll never know with these guys. They might crop up with a new album. And while they won’t be able to conjure the magic that filled the Reunion Concert, they still might surprise you one day with a short gig or two.

After all, what was it that Ely once told us?

“At kung sakaling mapadaan/baka ikaw ay aking tawagan/dahil minsan tayo ay naging/tunay na magkaibigan“

--Original post by Francis T.J. Ochoa

Dream Come True

2008-09-09T02:01:00.000-07:00

I and three of my friends felt we were the luckiest people alive last Saturday when we were able to get special VIP passes at the Eraserheads reunion concert.

We were having a blast. We were all smiles until the end of the first set.

And then we noticed; Ely seemed to have slumped in an odd way before he picked himself up and went backstage.

Who knew it was the last time everyone would see Ely again that night. After 30 minutes or so, the announcement came.

The concert had been called off. Ely was rushed to the hospital. His sister read a statement and then everyone was asked to leave the venue.

Surprisingly, there were no boos. There was only silence. Or more aptly, there was stunned silence. Everyone filed to the exits like zombies. (Actually, zombies would have been more interesting to watch as they tend to moan and growl.)

The people who watched the concert last Saturday were like empty shells of themselves--everyone seemed to have their souls yanked out of them.

I myself didn't know how I felt. I didn't know if I wanted more or if I had enough. Besides, I was partly glad it was over since my throat was already drying up from all the screaming and singing during the first set and it was impossible to get drinks since we didn't want to give up our spot in front of the stage.

And then I had a realization over the weekend. There were no boos simply because everyone got what they wished for that night.

We all just wanted to see them sing together again.

It didn't matter if there were still lots of fave songs they haven't sung yet--Overdrive, Pare Ko, Huling El Bimbo, Minsan. The truth is, from the moment the stage went up and Ely belted out Alapaap, we already reached heaven.

And for me, I think that was it. That was a dream come true, right there, at that moment.

--Originally Posted at Inner Sanctum