The UltraElectroMagneticRecap
August 31, 2008(yoko na i-spell at grammar-check to…)
What a roller-coaster ride this whole thing has been from the very start:
- Surprise and skepticism when the news first broke out that The Eraserheads were going to have a one-night-only reunion concert.
- Then a pleasant disbelief when details and confirmation of the event were coming left and right.
- Then excitement when everything was starting to fall into place during the weeks leading up to the concert.
- Although this was followed by disappointment when legal troubles regarding the event started to pop up.
- But after days of being in the dark, it was finally confirmed that the event was pushing through.
- Everyone was getting uneasy on the week of the concert because ticket details and final arrangements were only made several days before the event.
- Then tragedy struck as news broke out that Ely’s mom passed away, and with this news came an air of grief, sorrow and uncertainty. It was almost like the fates didn’t want this concert to push through.
- But finally, on the evening of August 30, 2008… it did. And when the first notes from the first song of that night rang through the speakers, it was utter euphoria and blissful pandemonium.
But then… … …well… … …read on.
Andun kami 5:00pm palang and we killed 3 hours before the excitement started to sink in that, “Shet, eto na talaga to!” There was an estimated 20,000 people at least in attendance and kili-kili-to-kili-kili na ang siksikan dun sa area namin (which was thankfully at the frontmost part of the Patrons section).
At around 8:30pm, a big timer flashed on the screen and read 10:00. Then it started counting down… and at that point, everyone knew that that was going to be the longest 10-minutes of their lives. People were getting uneasy and everyone was getting excited to the point of counting down each minute until we reached T-minus-zero.
And then it started… All the lights went out and a splash animation was shown onstage, which eventually culminated in all four members - Buddy, Marcus, Raymund and Ely - rising up from beneath. When the bassline of Alapaap rang through, we knew that we were in for an amazing night. Feeling ko talaga dudugo na talaga yung tenga ko nun sa lakas ng hiyaw at sigaw nung mga tao sa paligid ko. Pati ako nakisigaw na din at nakikanta. No holds barred na. If the band was gonna give it their all, the all the fans in the venue might as well do the same - me included.
“masdan mo aking mataaaaa… di mo ba nakikita…. ako ngayo’y lumilipad at nasa langit naaaa, gusto mo baaaaang sumama??”
What a trip that was. I’ve only gone to two E-Heads concert in my life and in both of them, that song was the intro. I couldn’t think of a better intro. And on that night, it was performed complete with a lightshow and pyrotechnics… Pyrotechnics!!! Amazing.
After the song ended, may humiyaw sa likod ko “Bat kayo naghiwalay?!?” Laughter. Bittersweet.
The band jumped right into Ligaya, and the people also knew immediately what the song was. I realized that a lot of us fans were still rusty because we were messing up words, mixing up verses and shit. But it was all fun. Sembreak and Hey Jay came in quick succession and it was then when I realized that none of the band-members were talking on-stage. It felt as if they were just going through the motions. At most, there was a quick acknowledgement of the crowd at the venue.
I just shrugged that observation off and then came Harana before the band followed with Fruitcake. There was a funny moment at the start of that one because after Ely sang “There are b-sides to every story / If you decide to have some fun,” he stepped away from the mic and yelled “What?” to the crowd giving them their cue to sing. So we sang, “Take a bite! It’s alright!” - and then we messed it up. Hehe. Everyone started singing a different verse, tapos nagtawanan nalang kaming lahat. Rusty nga talaga pati kaming fans.
What was also cute was that around that same time, people would start chanting “group hug! group hug! group hug! group hug!” at the top of their lungs.Laughter. Bittersweet. It didn’t happen.
At that point, we still haven’t heard much from Ely or any of the members of the band. Then Ely speaks up: “This next song…” *roars and applause from the crowd* “…is all about love…” *WILD roars and applause from the crowd* “…and I wrote it all by myself.”
“Then try to tell use we’re too… … …old” *laughter* “Too old, too really be… … …bold.” and then Toyang kicked into high gear.
Then came a quick succession of songs: Kama Supra, Kailan, Wag Kang Matakot and Kaliwete. Although I really wanted to ignore it, a few things were starting to become clear:
- Ely really looked weak and not-into-it. That’s not to say he didn’t give it his all. I really felt he didn, pero nananamlay na talaga yung tao.
- Raymund is a beast on the drums! Siya yung pinaka-energetic dun sa apat onstage and anlupet talaga nung palo niya.
- Lastly, ewan ko talaga kung ano ang status ngayon nung apat… kung okay ba sila sa isa’t-isa o ginagawa lang nila for the sake of it… …but there wasn’t much talking or interaction on-stage. Regardless, it was a great night.
The band continued with the ultimate crowd-pleaser With A Smile, and then they proceeded to play what for me was the best song of the night: Shake Yer Head. It started with a jam-intro and Ely started to literally shake his head faster and faster until his shades flew off to reveal a pair of really tired eyes. Pero ang cool nung kanta. Most rockingest song on the setlist.
Then they played Wag Mo Nang Itanong, which preceeded Lightyears. That was the emotional high-point for Ely. Considering he just lost his mom a few days before, that last song seemed to have really struck a chord. After performing it, he slumped down on the floor, leaned against his guitar and hugged it. Then they went backstage for the intermission.
And then the sad news came…
The intermission was supposed to be only 20 minutes, but it started to go on longer until we were already waiting there for around half-an-hour. However, when everyone got back onstage, there was no more Ely.
His sister Lally read an announcement and informed the audience that Ely had to be rushed to the hospital for medical attention. The concert was being cut short. Everyone was sent on their way home.
For something that already caused an onset of a whole flood of emotions for a lot of people concerned, this had to happen. It was a combination of shock, disbelief, anger and disappointment. One insensitive bastard at our back even yelled “REFUND!”, which made me want to smack the daylight out of him. 15 songs na yun no, tapos refund ang una mong maiisip after you receive the news that Ely had to be rushed to the hospital?? WTF. Seriously.
But all-in-all, it was amazing. To see all four of them onstage again together and play 15 great songs to a jampacked arena of die-hard fans was a priceless experience. Kahit sabihin na natin na they were just going through the motions… that they weren’t talking much to each other or to the crowd… It’s still all about the music, man.
And the music was good… just like it has always been for the past 20 years.
