Eraserheads “The Final Set” Concert
After the Eraserheads’ last concert was unexpectedly cut short because of Ely Buendia’s health problem, “The Final Set” reunion concert of the band was held today at the SM Mall of Asia concert grounds. Thanks to MTV Philippines, the Filipino’s (and my) fab four was seen again on stage singing all their hits. Unfortunately according to Ely himself, this would be the last time the four of them would be seen performing as the Eraserheads.
Again, I was not there to witness this momentous event which for me is a must see for all Eheads diehard fans (well um, like me!). So I promise myself when I go for my vacation on May I would collect all their albums as a tribute to this great band.
Long live the Eheads!
Farewell to Francis Durango Magalona…
Francis Durango Magalona, the country’s foremost and one and only Master Rapper, passed away today at the age of 44.
Suffering from leukemia since last year, Francis M. (as he was popularly known) succumbed to multiple organ failure “secondary to severe sepsis and secondary to pneumonia.” according to his doctors at The Medical City hospital. It was first announced publicly in Eat Bulaga by Vic Sotto minutes after his passing away.
Francis kept the public up-to-date about his condition through his blog “A Free Mind” in Multiply.com where he posted pictures and entries about himself while undergoing treatment.
The Master Rapper is survived by his wife Pia Maria Arroyo-Magalona and his eight children, including celebrity Maxine Magalona.
It’s a Song, It’s a Paean, It’s… Superman!
Superman has been a popular topic for pop, rock, R&B, blues and hip-hop artists. Here’s my list of top ten Superman songs:
10. You Don’t Mess Around With Jim – Jim Croce (1971) – Sample the lyrics “You don’t tug on Superman’s cape. You don’t spit into the wind.”
9. Kryptonite – 3 Doors Down (2000) – The Mississippi rockers focus on Superman’s fatal flaws.
8. Superman Lover – Johnny Watson (1976) – The R&B-funk-rap set often fantasises about super powers in the boudoir.
7. So Long, Superman – Firewater (1998) – A pop-punk ditty about a world with no need for the last son of Krypton.
6. Superman (It’s Not Easy) – Five For Fighting (2001) – The emo crowd just can’t get the notion of invincibility, can it?
5. Superman – The Game (2008) – The rapper’s new track is a hilarious send-up of hip-hop breeast beating: It’s a bird, it’s a plane / Naw… it’s the… Game.”
4. O Superman (For Massenet) – Laurie Anderson (1981) – Anderson turned to the caped one for her hypnotic meditation on modern life.
3. Sunshine Superman – Donovan (1966) – The Scottish Bob Dylan paid his respects to Superman at a time when substance experiments made anyone feel like he could fly.
2. Suerman – R.E.M. (1986) – Originally by The Clique, Mike Mills (taking lead vocal duties from Michael Stipe) sounds a bit braggart, a bit of a stalker and a lot like Clark Kent.
1. (Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman – The Kinks (1979) – Ray Davies takes the Everyman’s viewpoint in this disco-rocker sung by a scawny wimp yearning to be more like the Man of Steel.
The Genius in iTunes
It has always been a pain for me to create playlists of my favorite songs. When making compilation CDs, it is so hard to find the right songs that will sound great when played simultaneously. Most of the time you leave out some good songs, especially when you have an almost 80 GB music collection like, ehem, me!
Now, iTunes have come up with a “genius” solution to this problem. Literally, Genius is one of the newest features of the latest release of iTunes. It creates the perfect playlist from your song selection. All you have to do is select a song and click the Genius button. From that, iTunes generates a playlist from your library that sounds great with the song that you chose. And it works really great. Here is a sample playlist that I generated using Genius. In this case, I selected “Ang Huling El Bimbo” by The Eraserheads:
- Ang Huling El Bimbo – The Eraserheads
- Harana -Parokya ni Edgar
- Nakapagtataka – Sponge Cola
- Kailan – MYMP
- Before I Let You Go – Freestyle
- So Slow – Freestyle
- Kahit Kailan – South Border
- Pare Ko – The Eraserheads
- Especially For You – MYMP
- Buloy – Parokya ni Edgar
- Through The Fire – Nina
- Hinahanap Hanap Kita – Rivermaya
- Much Has Been Said – Bamboo
- Fruitcake – The Eraserheads
- Princesa – 6 Cycle Mind
- Batang Bata Ka Pa – Sugar Free
- Tell Me Where It Hurts – MYMP
- Tuwing Umuulan At Kapiling Ka – The Eraserheads
- High – The Speaks
- Ang Aking Awitin – Side A
- Oo – Up Dharma Down
- The Day You said Good Night – Hale
- Kisapmata – Rivermaya
- Overdrive – The Eraserheads
- Sayang – Parokya Ni Edgar
If you will notice, I chose an OPM song to test Genius and look at the result. The playlist incuded all OPM songs. And when I played all the songs simultaneously, surprisingly it really sounded great together. For me, it is really just fitting to call the feature Genius. Kudos to Steve and all the folks at Cupertino for another job well done.
Eraserheads Reunited!
Wish I could have been there…
Just hearing rumors that my favorite pinoy rock band The Eraserheads will be having a reunion concert made me feel ecstatic. And it was even more overwhelming to see them perform together again. Thanks to YouTube, I have seen Ely, Raimund, Buddy and Marcus play some of my favorite Eheads hits again. It was just so sad I wasn’t there when it all happened. I could have been one of those who squeezed themselves at The Fort with all those people and sang every single line of lyric of my favorite songs. I can say that there was something magical about the concert even if I was just watching them in those video snippets. I envy each and every one of those who were there at that moment.
Even though it was already given that how the concert ended was not as everyone had hoped it would be, still seeing them perform the songs of our young adult lives (well, mine at least!) brought me back in time when waiting for their next single or their next album release or their next gig was my most anticipated moment.
Maybe this is just my way of showing how much I love this band that even I am so far away and was only able to hear some of the songs performed online, I can say it was still a wonderful listening experience.
A part two or a repeat? Maybe I’m asking too much, but i know I am not the only one asking.
The Art of Making Compilation CDs
Lacking an iPod jack for our home theater system, I was forced to create a compilation of my favorite songs which I can play during my off days whenever I don’t have any new downloaded movies or TV show episodes to watch.
Compiling and burning these CDs brought back memories of the good old days of the portable CD players and the Kazaa generation. Because of Kazaa, I was exposed to the magnificent world of online music downloads through so-called peer-to-peer networks. And also due to this, compilation CDs became very popular.
The making of a good compilation CD for me is an art. First of all, you are using someone else’s poetry to express how you feel, and that is a very delicate thing. So, how do you make a good compilation CD? Please read on as I walk you through some pointers on doing this:
Start Wisely – The first song needs to be catchy and should hold the promise of what’s likely to come. But don’t start with your best song, because then you are going downhill from here.
Pick Your Tempo – Don’t let Slash‘s guitar licks follow a romantic Michael Johnson love song. It’s just wrong and could put the listener off. If you have to change the tempo, choose a song that could act as a bridge.
Too Esoteric – Know your audience. It’s good to introduce the audience to an artist they are unlikely to be familiar with, but don’t go overboard and be self indulgent.
Repeat Artists - Do not repeat songs by the same artist back-to-back. Avoid using the same artist again, but if you have to – space them out well.
Don’t Let It Go On Forever – An mp3 format may let you go on endlessly, but you don’t want to do that. Try to keep it under an hour, or else you run the risk of the songs toward the end of the list never being heard. Weed out the unnecessary songs from the playlist.
The Eraserheads Reunion Concert happening this August
I was browsing the internet and the blogosphere until I stumbled upon an interesting post that is somewhat asking the reader to “connect the dots” and analyze recent rumors on the upcoming reunion concert of the very popular pinoy band “The Eraserheads”.
As it turns out, it’s no rumor after all. According to reliable sources, the Eraserheads will be performing in a one-night only event as part of the Marlboro Red Nation promotions which has been running for the past two years for adult smokers. The event will be held on August 30 at the Bonifacio Global City open grounds in Taguig City. Access to the event is age-restricted, strictly by invitation only, and is intended for members of Philip Morris Philippines’ adult smokers’ database, trade and business partners. and selected adult guests.
It was said that Philip Morris is ripping off approximately 10 million pesos in talent fees for the band to do a 45-minute performance. 45 minutes, that suddenly made my mind running. It is enough to play 9 songs (maybe 10 if they do an encore). Surely, they would be playing their huge hits. But the thing is they have so many, which brings us to the question, “Which among those numerous hits will they play?” Here are my thoughts:
1. “Ang Huling El Bimbo”
This would definitely the first choice for the opening song. It maybe very much overused, but still for me it’s their biggest hit.
2. “Torpedo”
Another really overused classic. But as one of my favorites, they just have to play it, at least I can dream about it.
3. “Overdrive”
This is pretty much a must-sing in the concert. For me, the song is very unique in its very own way.
4. “Magasin”
Possibly the best-written Eraserheads song ever; the punchline towards the end is second to none.
5. “Minsan”
My all-time favorite Eraserheads song. It still reminds me of my younger years whenever I hear it playing.
6. “Poor Man’s Grave”
I know it’s not one of their mainstream hits and it was not released as a single, but still, it’s free to dream…
7. “Wishing Well”
The only Eheads song I love that was not sung by Ely. It’s likely that they won’t do this one, but again, I can always dream.
8. “With a Smile”
They can’t get away with out playing this one!
9. “Sembreak”
I just can’t enough of the melody and beat of the song. One of my very first favorites.
10. “Pare Ko”
The song that started it all. A proper choice for the ending song.
It’s just too bad I won’t be able to see it. I would have thought about starting to smoke just to watch the concert, hehehe…
Rico Blanco leaves Rivermaya
It’s now confirmed, Rico Blanco has left Rivermaya.
The news has been buzzing for a few weeks now, though never confirmed until just recently. According to The Dawn’s JB Leonor in an email to their official mailing list:
We had a gig in Metrowalk last Friday and Rivermaya was there – they
played before us.It started out as a rumor. Someone text Kiko something crazy that I
didn’t know if I’d believe it or not.We played in Big Sky Mind after Metrowalk. Kiko didn’t ride with me
home. He told me he was going to Metrobar to check out Rivermaya.Kiko text me when he got there. Confirmed! It’s Rivermaya’s last
gig!!! They’re breaking up!
Source
They’re not breaking up, Rico just left. Rico left Rivermaya!
I rarely blog about the local music scene now, okay I rarely blog, but to go back to the topic, Rivermaya is one of the pillars of OPM for the past decade, surpassed only by the now defunct Eraserheads, so this is big news! Rivermaya without Bamboo was news, but Rivermaya without Rico Blanco — is — not Rivermaya. Without any disrespect to the remaining members, the band will never be the way it was without the man behind the music. He played the keyboards, then played the guitar after Perf De Castro left (or was he booted out?), then fronted the band after Bamboo Manalac left. They marched on without Nathan Azarcon, regrouped to capture the label “Ang Banda Ng Bayan†as they produced rock hits that continue to be anthems in the local rock scene.
It’s sad to see a legend break apart, but some good things are not meant to last. Remember the Beatles? The Eraserheads? So what happens now?
Heto na ang gabi na ikaw ay aalis
At iiwan mo ako
Sa lahat ng gabi ito ang ayaw dumating
Sana ay umaga naTatawagan mo pa rin ba ako
Susulatan mo pa ba ako
Tayo pa rin bang dalawa kahit…Babye na
Aalis ka na
Babye na rin ba
Sa ating alaala
Source
Pupil on Wikipedia
I was doing some cursory research for my sister’s project when I chanced upon this funny Wikipedia entry on Pupil, and vocalist Ely Buendia’s recent heart attack:
Buendia was finally released from the Hospital and was allowed to stay at home and rest by his doctors on the night of January 15, 2007. [… ] This event prompted rapper Francis Magalona who is a longtime friend of Buendia and the other Eraserheads, to state the following on his personal blog: “Fast forward to right now, 9:58 am, Jan. 9, alot of what ifs scenarios pop in my head. What if the E-heads members are back, like long-lost blood brothers? What if “the most significant OPM band of Pinoy Rock†would be in one room, what would happen?†And in postscript he adds, “Para sa akin panahon na para mag-reunite ang E-heads. Sugod na mga kapatid…rock & roll na hanggang umaga.“â€
Way to motivate a guy there, Francis. Give Ely another heart attack by quoting lyrics written by Raymund.
(Curiously — although not unsurprisingly — Marasigan’s name is NOT on the list of local artists that Buendia and his wife Diane thanked after his recovery. The other two Eraserheads were though.)
Pupil: Beautiful Machines
I was finally able to get a hold of Pupil’s Beautiful Machines album a few days ago and give it a good long listen. What can I say — it took 5 years but it seems Ely Buendia may have finally hit his stride post-Eraserheads. The album is slickly produced and confidence oozes out of each track. More importantly though, these new songs are sharp as a whip. The single “Nasaan Ka?” is a great introduction to the new sound, but it can’t begin to represent the breadth of the other 13 tracks on this album. “Dulo ng Dila,” “Beautiful Machines” and “Gamu-gamo” are all the kind of songs that could sell an album single-handedly.
The only track on this collection that I feel weird about at all is the closer, “Lost Guide,” which sounds so Semisonic-esque that I had to check my player to see if I was still listening to the Pupil album. Apart from that one rather misplaced track though, this album is a real treat, because it doesn’t sound like it’s consciously (or un-consciously) aping other more established bands (coughPedicabcough). If Ely Buendia can manage to keep this group together until their second or third albums, he just might pull off the impossible feat of revolutionizing mainstream OPM twice in his lifetime.
Of course, until then, my fingers are well and firmly crossed.
