Resurrection ecstasy

Concert review: Eraserheads Live! The Final Set

MANILA, Philippines - The religious connotations to this title are not misleading at all. A more than 100,000-strong audience trooped to the Mall of Asia Concert Grounds for what must be the ultimate concert in Philippine music history — and like some phoenix rising, resurrecting for this one special night, were the Eraserheads. For anyone who was around when Ely Buendia, Raimund Marasigan, Marcus Adoro and Buddy Zabala were regularly gigging as the EHeads, this would have been like some semi-religious revival meeting. The closest we’ve had to a Beatles-like Fab Four, the premature demise of the band in 2002 (Ely calling it Graduation-time) has only added to the mystique and legendary status of the band. Factor in the bitin midway-aborted reunion concert of last year, due to Ely’s poor health, and you had an almost-mystical, fervor-pumped event in the making.

From the opening chords of Magasin, there was dumbstruck awe written on the faces of the audience, that sensation of having to pinch oneself to know this was finally, truly happening. And it took a couple of songs before the crowd shook off this sensation, to really get into the music. Raimund’s tackling the lead vocals for Slow Mo, Insomnia and Alcohol, plus the rearranged reggae lilt to Marcus’ version of Huwag Mo Nang Itanong — these were like the true icebreakers, when the crowd broke free, seemed to collectively sigh ‘I believe,’ and realized that at its core, they were at a celebration, a party of a concert! And the E-Heads did not disappoint.

Mining their first three albums, Ultramagneticelectropop, Circus and Catterpillow for the night’s repertoire, it was one crowd favorite after another, where a sea of voices would not only sing the chorus of the songs, but even accompany Ely from the very first line. Such was the case with songs like Overdrive; and when Ely exhorted the crowd to dance to Super Proxy, the crowd was awash with raised and pumping hands, ready to follow their leader’s every utterance.

A poignant moment was raised when Ely asked the crowd to remember Francis Magalona; and while they performed the chorus of Kaleidoscope World, images of Francis flashed on the screens that were raised on the stage, and those that were dotted around the grounds. An acoustic set followed the short intermission, and I presume that had much to do with the pacing of the concert for Ely’s health, as it allowed him to sit on an armchair.

I personally called this their “sofa set,” and when Marcus placed a hat on his head, with his acoustic guitar, some people joked with a request for Anak (yes, there was a Freddie Aguilar look to him). And that was what became the tone of the concert, how people relaxed, enjoyed the vibe, and seemed to party as one. During the intermission, people would stroll, and I know for a fact that celebrities like Francine Prieto, Ehra Madrigal, Wendell Ramos and Dos Quizon were getting all these requests to pose for photos.

The final set of songs had them bringing on Jazz Nicolas of the Itchyworms to play the keyboards, and it was during this juncture that the realization of just how magical and mystical this night was really hit me. If I understand it right, while the band may perform as the Eraserheads for a bunch of dates abroad, Ely had signed a document effectively eliminating him from performing in the Philippines with the other three, as the Heads, for a period of ten years. As I’ve written elsewhere, I can understand how with their own respective bands and flourishing careers, the four Heads can be frustrated by how everyone can only talk about them reforming. But, let’s face it, I don’t think Pupil, Sandwich, Pedicab, Marcus Highway and the Dawn play to crowds of 100,000 — so this reunion gig truly had special stamped all over it. When the five trooped to the center of the stage to take a final bow, there were shouts of “group hug,” to which Ely exclaimed, Kayo muna! While Raimund threw his sneakers to the crowd, Ely threw his sneakers and jacket and slyly called out, “Salamat... We were the Eraserheads!”

An encore with El Huling El Bimbo had the crowd swaying in sheer ecstasy, and as the crowd began to troop to the exits, a real surprise was created by the band coming back for a second encore that included such all-time favorites as the playful Toyang — shame to those who didn’t know the lyrics when Ely descended from the stage and brought the mike to some members of the audience. Kudos to the MOA personnel as they made the egress orderly, with only a minimum of traffic affecting Macapagal Ave. For the more than 100,000 “faithful,” the night really exemplified how the Eraserheads represented an era (I call it putting the Era back in the Eraser); how much of what we see passing as today’s music scene, owes a debt to this band that made original material and relevant, shared-experiences lyrics, anthems for a generation.