'Walang Humpay na Ligaya' once again with Eraserheads tribute pocket concert

As a tribute to the genius of the Eraserheads, still considered "flagbearer" of Pinoy pop-alternative music to this day, a pocket concert cooked up by Crazymonkey Productions is happening at Handuraw Events Café on March 17, beginning 7pm.

"This is in line with Crazymonkey Productions' tribute series. We started with Beatles, now we are moving a little closer to home. No other band in the local scene that has made such an impact the way the Eraserheads did in the local music/OPM. They have made wonderful songs that stayed true to the Filipino culture. That prompted us to give tribute to these great musicians of our generation," said Rey Siasar of Crazymonkey Productions.

Bisrock bands Missing Filemon, D' Actorz, Trigger Happy, Thembones, The Spirals, Ice 9, The Ramonitos, and a lot more will interpret timeless Eraserheads songs. Expect these artists/band members to share as well how the Eraserheads influenced their music, according to Siasar. The FREEMAN is also one of the event partners.

"The organizers hope that this pocket concert will remind musicians, and the Filipinos in general, that once came the Eraserheads. And to ultimately thank the Eraserheads for their music. And maybe, just maybe, bring them back together," Siasar concluded.

Ticket price to the pocket concert: P80. The experience to relive the songs of Eraserheads: priceless.

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The "OPM fab four" of Ely, Raimund, Buddy and Marcus burst into the music scene of dekada 90, singing about the struggles and small ecstacies of everyday student life-semestral breaks, dorm life, insomnia and facets of love (unrequited, lost or found)-in a manner varying from playful to sentimental, but very real. Like their idols, the Beatles, they were commercially successful, critically acclaimed and even controversial without meaning to.

I've never met the Eraserheads in my life, but their effect I remember very well. They were like this fireball of inspiration that had many of us, youths of the 90s, desiring if not deciding on forming bands, as their songs seemingly breathed life into whatever creative muse that laid dormant. And as many of my generation have chosen their songs as a personal soundtrack, "E-heads" stories-from serendipitous face-to-face encounters to how their songs figured in the eventful past chapters of our life-have always been fun conversation pieces, especially when we feel like yielding to bouts of nostalgia.

I would always remember my first ever harana at a college dorm; and it would have been too easy to get carried away, had not the supposed "serenader" lost his nerve and pleaded for gay friends to belt out in his behalf with all their might Eraserheads' Kailan: "Kailan mo ako hahagkan/Matagal na akong naghihintay/Nakadungaw sa bintana/Mga dahon lang ang kumakawaaaaaaaay…"

Here's another from Althea Ricardo, creative writing grad student and columnist in this section: "We interviewed the Eraserheads pretending it was for school; this was in 1994. We contacted their original manager Anne, and she said that on this date, they would be guests on 'That's Entertainment' at Broadway Centrum. And a friend na baliw na baliw sa E-heads, lalo na kay Ely, dragged me. We had an ambush interview with them at the Parking Lot. Una umiwas sila, then my friend name-dropped Anne, saying: 'Sabi ni Anne kausapin na lang daw namin kayo sa parking lot.' But before that, napilitan kami manood ng That's!!! So when we name-dropped Anne, napatigil sila Raymund Marasigan and Buddy Zabala. We recorded everything, nag-message pa sila ng, 'Ma'am, ang kukulit ng mga studyante ninyo' pero wala naman talagang requirement. I also remember that when we asked them what kind of music they thought they made, kasi diba binansagan silang alternative? Sabi ni Ely, 'Pop.' Although mostly quiet lang si Ely at Marcus, sobrang saya talaga ng interview. And oh, they offered us a ride."

For Cover Me Quick vocalist/guitarist BoX: "I have all of their albums. I went to almost all of their gigs. In the first place, I got into music and my band Cover Me Quick was formed because of Eraserheads. Ganun ako ka fan. I became acquainted with them when I was still writing for a national newspaper and I had been lucky to have jammed with them before. A few years ago, I texted Ely to produce our album, he texted back: 'Only if you will change your band name.' Then, I texted again: 'To what? Eraserheads 2?' Then sabi niya: Good luck nalang sa inyo.' That was the last time I heard from him. Anyway, for me, at this time, we really need bands that write the way Eraserheads did. Kahit si Jim Paredes, sabi niya, Ely is the country's best OPM songwriter."

There is one song in their second album "Circus," which didn't earn a wide release but was touted as somewhat revolutionary. I don't know if this is true, but story has it that "Hey Jay" was originally titled "Hey J" but with the latter, it would be revealing too much. Because despite its slightly meandering lyrics, it seemed particularly addressed to someone. And how we love to speculate on stories behind songs of great songwriters. It could even be written for this popular local TV personality. I actually asked him/her, and the immediate reply was, "Yes, it was written for me!"

Hmm.

Google the lyrics, and go figure.