That’s what my dear boyfriend is – a closet Eraserheads fan!
After hearing him humming Eheads tunes since the concert on Saturday, I’ve been teasing him. He claims it was nothing but LSS (last song syndrome). But he kept at it until yesterday and something in my gut just says it’s more than just the LSS.
And just when I was trying to journey into la-la-land yesterday afternoon, there it was – the admission. He was an E-heads fan way back when. He took it to heart when the band broke up. He just couldn’t accept it. And I don’t know if there’s anyone else like him – but he hasn’t quite forgiven ElyB for calling it quits.
It would be better if he’d blog about it (seeing as his blog has nearly stagnated). It was just so funny to hear him say how he was fighting against singing along with everyone during the concert. And all the while there I was starting to get irritated that he was trying so hard not to enjoy himself. But enjoy he did.
I have been willing myself to write about my Eraserhads : The Final Set experience, but I’ve had so many false starts in the past 48 hours. I had a very good time and I don’t regret the money spent for the Silver tickets. I had enjoyed the experience even though I didn’t see the band up close and had to be content with the big screens setup all over the place. But I also could not help but wish I had the money to spend for VIP passes (@5k each); no matter how much I had been looking forward to this event, I just couldn’t justify the expense. 🙁
I don’t have spectacular photos of the event. I guess I didn’t have the patience to work with my camera to get good shots out of the lighting that was there. Plus, there was no chance to get photos of my idols anyway, so why bother? I did attempt to take some shots of the boyfriend and even of us together, but as usual, I’ve never had much luck in taking my own photos.
We were supposed to meet up earlier on the afternoon of the seventh so we could see a movie and have dinner before the show. But I had spent 14 hours at work (12am to past 2pm of the same day) and I just couldn’t bring myself to leave home so soon after hitting the couch. Besides, there were showbiz programs showing their tribute to The Man from Manila, and I had wanted to see some of those.
So it was already 630PM when I finally met up with the boyfriend at the MRT Taft station. We took a jeepney to MOA (my first jeepney ride in a long time, how sad), and ended up not stopping for dinner. We had anticipated a long queue to enter the concert venue, but there wasn’t any. Most of the people were just milling outside the gates, or were already inside. I secretly wished that Alfred would want to hangout by the VIP gate, not to ogle at celebrities who were sure to be there, but to be on the lookout for any VIP pass doleouts. But being the non-eHeads fan that he was, I was asking for too much. Haha.
There was food inside the venue, but silly me, I had decided to forego any food and drinks. This meant I was famished by the time the show ended, but let’s not talk about the end. Yet. So here’s Alfred, anticipating the start of the show. Press release: he’s not really interested. He was never really into Eraserheads. Even as he adores Sandwich, he didn’t want to see the ‘Heads even just for Raimund. It took so much coaxing on my part before this actually happened.
Was I imagining it or does he look like he was eagerly anticipating the start of the show? 😉 Now here’s a glance at the Silver A crowd, near the middle. We’re very close to the grills separating us from Gold. I must admit, when I saw the screens up front, my heart sank as I realized how far we were from the stage. But it didn’t dampen my spirit that night.
I tried out my camera to see how much I could zoom in to see a glimpse of Ely B. I could go this close in this shot, but when they were actually performing and I was trying to get a few good shots, I was nowhere near:
If this was how far we already were, I couldn’t imagine being at the Bronze section, though I bet that was where the crowd was the happiest! Here’s the rest of the Silver A crowd behind the boyfriend’s (semi)bald head, and a view of the distant screen that the Bronze crowd was possibly watching from:
By the time 8PM rolled by, people were starting to get restless and the appearance of the four MTV VJs (though Kat Alano and Anne Curtis were among them) did not make matters any better. I mean, go ahead and do an intro but that wasn’t what it was. We heard nothing but the list of sponsors mentioned over and over and over again, it wasn’t like the screens and the PA system had just reminded us of those same sponsors during the entire time we were waiting for the show to start. People would probably not mind too much if the concert was a free one and we were completely indebted to the sponsors, but we did pay too right? It’s jus that the four of them up there was nothing but a reminder of the contractual obligations of the show’s organizers to how many times each sponsor’s name would be mentioned for the night. I felt about Anne and the rest when they were being booed at already. I mean, they were so hyper at the beginning and the loss of enthusiasm was so tangible towards the end. It didn’t help their case that none of the girls sounded credible when they were talking about their most favorite E-heads tunes. At least the guy VJ was believable. But the show wasn’t about them…
The show was about a band’s grand gesture of thanks for all it’s fans whose love for them never waivered, through all the years that they have played both together and apart. It was a reunion not just of the band we so loved, but of a generation who felt their songs, who had dreamed their dreams.
The first three albums – Ultraelectromagneticpop, Circus and Cutterpillow – these were the best ones for me. I had played all three over and over and over until I had memorized almost all of the songs. How many times had I been with friends on our front yard strumming these songs on our guitars and singing on the top of our lungs? The year they played at the SJC fair was the year Cutterpillow was released. I was so paranoid that I may not be able to sing along because the album had just been released, haha. But sing along I did. You betcha.
And I was ecstatic to hear the opening riffs to this song that I so so loved (pardon the quality of the sound in the videos I’ll be posting):
(I hope I can upload the vids, their taking so long to upload, I’d probably add them here at a later time.)
And when they played Waiting for the Bus right after? Heaven. Haha. I could have played Name That Tune all night. And I’m pretty confident that I’d have scored really high too 🙂
When Marcus held the spotlight with his reggae-ish arrangement of Wag mo nang itanong, then Raimund performed the songs that was uniquely his in the Eheads repertoire, the deal was sealed for me. I hadn’t yet heard all the songs I loved, but I knew that I was already walking away from the venue a very happy girl. Everything that followed was just a bonus.
The second set – the acoustic one, was priceless. It felt like they were just jamming with a small crowd. Something you’d expect from a set at 70s Bistro. Ely singing Kailan – who wasn’t transported back to their highschool or college days when they were swooning over this rockstar? Seriously, in their heydays I fantasized about getting to know them personally, of jamming with them, and just connecting. In those days, when I still had ideas of the type of person I wanted to end up with, I had thought about a guitar toting guy who could play and sing songs for me (and with me) all day. Just like the ‘heads, he didn’t have to be dashing and beautiful.
We finally heard Pare Ko on this set, their very first single and their biggest hit in my book. It may be Huling El Bimbo that took them to the MTV awards, but it was Pare Ko that propelled the young band to superstardom. And like I’ve said so many times to whoever cared to listen, it was the first ever song I played on the guitar.
There were two Encores for the show. Everyone was expecting the FrancisM tribute, what with him being good friends with the band (not just Ely, but Raimund too). They had sang Minsan, the song that probably identifies them most with the UP crowd, for all college crowds actually. They had sang the chorus of Kaleidoscope World. There was El Bimbo too, and then there were the fireworks. They were saying goodbye. They had said thanks (we are the Eraserheads), bowed and had as close to a group hug as we would get, and finally walked off the stage. Three minutes later, the crowd wasn’t budging.
And then the best part – we heard Raimund’s voice – bitin ba kayo? Bitin ba kami? The real Encore – three for the road.
It’s going to be a long road. No one knows if there will ever be a next time, though the band said it themselves, no one ever thought there’d even be a reunion concert. But The Final Set is enough to feed us for the next seven years.
I can’t wait to get a DVD of the concert so I can finally seat myself on our couch (not very bad for a home theater seating substitute) and see the concert up close while relishing the memories over and over – I was there.
Oh, and I just have to say this – there were this two guys behind us who were so annoying. After the first they were saying that that was exactly what happened when the first reunion concert was cut short back in August. It’s like they were willing this concert to be doomed, and like wishing ill of Ely at the same time. They were even saying, wag naman, sayang ang 1300. Hell, if they were going to be so negative, why didn’t they just opt for the cheapest tickets, or better yet, why didn’t they sit this one out? They were wearing Eheads shirts pa naman. They are not true fans. Eck.
Anyway, read the experience from fellow fans baboyita, and Tiepee.
We finally saw the sequel to Laida Magtalas’ and Miggy Montenegro’s romance which started in the movie, A Very Special Love. I must admit, it probably did not top the first one, but it was still good. This movie is set six months after the initial romance, and Director Cathy Garcia said it best – it tells the story of how they are living out the fairy tale (doesn’t that just beg the question: are there really fairy tale endings?).
I missed some aspects of Laida’s character in the first movie though – there was no more reference to the belief in the goodness of each person, and no more sweet gestures like notes on coffee cups. She was so genuinely nice in Part I, why not continue that just for consistency? She didn’t have to just make coffee for the boss, she could have been portrayed to still be doing nice things for the others in her office, no? Here, her world was completely revolving around Miggy. He was no longer her direct boss, but she was more at his beck and call – to no fault of his really.
There was actually a change in Laida’s character, she didn’t only become somewhat of a fashionista, but she actually started to love differently. In the first movie, she was not really expecting anything in return. Here – she was expecting so much. Miggy was actually sweet, in his own special way and I’m sure she appreciated it. But because she was giving so much of herself, just as in any other situation, she was bound to crash and burn. I guess she had a very romanticized notion of love being about grand gestures and big sacrifices. We’ve got to accept though, that not everyone has the same capacity to love, and cannot make the exact sacrifices.
But, in fairness to Laida, if you get cancelled on so much and your relationship is reduced to phonecalls, text messages, and hatid-sundo moments, it can get quite tiring. Viewers can be more sympathetic to Miggy’s situation than Laida’s co-workers were because we can actually see his efforts to meet the commitments he’s made to her girl. I mean, it’s not like he was tormented every time he couldn’t make a date diba?
And I’ve got to say – I liked how Makoy’s character added some contrast and conflict in the movie but I didn’t see sparks for Rayver Cruz and Sarah Geronimo. Maybe it’s just that we’re so kilig with the Sarah-Lloydy tandem that we refuse to be dazzled by a third party, but I don’t think so. I can’t think of any other character who would have clicked in that role though. Jericho Rosales maybe?
Anyway, I enjoyed the movie even though we had not so pleasant neighbors behind us in the theater. It still is a hit!
We walked a bit around The Block after the movie and I found this wonderful shop and even took some pictures. Something to share tomorrow, so come back 🙂
I have seen this book around the web, and I think in the various bookstores I frequent too. I always checked it out but never bought it because I couldn’t identify myself with it because it was non-fiction, and the story of a woman after the collapse of her marriage. The story of her renewal I guess. I got hold of the audio version, the book being read by the author herself. Though her world is so different from mine, I find it very interesting. I’ve never listened to audio books before, it is not like listen to music at all – it commands your full attention! It is difficult to write up this post while I listen to Elizabeth talk about 9/11 in the background. But listening to an audio book would be a good way to pass the time while commuting (not for me because mine only lasts 10 minutes) or waiting in line somewhere.
I don’t think I’ll read listen through this all way through. Not because it isn’t worth it, but because it is. I actually would love to read her words. She reads beautifully, and I love the fact that there’s emotion specially because it is her story that she’s telling. But I want the book too. If I will use my BestBuy Gift Card, this will be one of the books I’d be getting there. 🙂
Oh and I’d just have to add: Hugh Jackman was great at the Oscar’s! I love his opening number. His number with Beyonce and the rest was also good, but I didn’t see much sense in the songs they sang, haha. I also liked the whole production, specially the way they presented the nominees for the acting roles. It seemed so personal and would totally make a nominee feel so honored. I also liked this year’s tribute for the Hollywood personalities who died in the past year with Queen Latifah singing in the background.
I enjoyed this year’s show, kudos to everyone behind the production!
For the first time this morning, we saw a trailer for a new series that’s going to be aired on Star World – October Road. Its cast includes Hannah Daniels, the level-headed girl we loved in The 70s Show as Donna. She’s not a red head here though 🙁
Any show that features “hometowns” and homecoming really interest me because I grew up in a wonderful community too. I got so interested on this one that I went online to check it out. Apparently, this show ran on ABC for a year, with the last episode shown in March 2008. The reviews are positive so I’m really looking forward to watching them.
*image credits to sitcomsonline.com
Here’s another show I also saw for the first time on Star World – Dirty Sexy Money. Like October Road, it was also first aired in 2007 and ran through the next year, with around 20 episodes. Though not part of the original cast, Lucy Liu was also part of the production.
When I was a little girl, I loved watching Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. There was no other show that sparked the dreamer in me. I used to imagine marrying rich because I knew then that that was the only way I’d get to experience those luscious accomodations and lavish lifestyle. Haha.
This is one show that would probably reinforce the idea that having money isn’t all that it’s painted out to be. That one can’t have it all. That money can buy anything, but won’t probably give you all the happiness in the world. But isn’t that a cliche already? Isn’t that what everyone thinks anyway? Aren’t there rich and famous families who truly are happy, and who truly live a fairytale life, and have no illegal sources of their wealth?
Hahaha, am I asking for too much here?
If you’ve seen this shows, what do you think about them? Who is your favorite character? I’d love to know.
Here’s another show I also saw for the first time on Star World – Dirty Sexy Money. Like October Road, it was also first aired in 2007 and ran through the next year, with around 20 episodes. Though not part of the original cast, Lucy Liu was also part of the production.