Aegis for all ages

Once put down by critics as baduy or too masa, their pop-rock songs like Luha, Halik, Sinta, Basang-Basa sa Ulan have become the soundtrack to the lives of many music fans

MANILA, Philippines — Twenty years. That’s how long Aegis has been surviving, thriving and representing Original Pilipino Music.

“It’s a big honor for us,” vocalist Juliet Sunot said of being part of the Philippine music industry this long. “Dito nagka-anak, nagka-pamilya, nagkaroon ng bahay, nagkaroon ng sasakyan. Dito din, sa musika, nakuha namin ang aming mga pangarap.”

And what better way to celebrate this achievement than to hold a major concert titled Aegis: Doble Dekada, Ang Soundtrack ng Buhay Mo at the Big Dome on July 13.

Aegis is made up of the Sunot sisters Juliet, Mercy and Ken (singers), Stella Pabico (keyboardist), Vilma Goloviogo (drummer), Weng Adriano (bassist) and Rey Abenoja (lead guitarist).

Aegis in an old music video

Once described by critics as baduy or too masa, Aegis has vindicated itself by becoming one of the country’s most enduring artists, with its pop-rock music strongly resonating with Pinoys. The band has since crossed over to other genres and inspired an orchestral concert Aegis in Symphony with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) that was staged twice at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), and Rak of Aegis, the longest-running musical of the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) with six runs and over 300 shows.

Their songs like Halik, Luha, Sinta, Basang Basa Sa Ulan, Sinta have the ability to express intense, deep-seated emotions that singing them can be quite the cathartic experience for many karaoke-loving Pinoys.

Aegis members hailed from different cities and provinces like Cagayan de Oro (the Sunot sisters), Misamis Occidental (Stella), Southern Leyte (Rey), Pampanga (Rowena), Vilma (Manila), and previously belonged to other bands while working as entertainers and musicians in Japan. They were eventually formed into a group initially named AG’s Soundtrippers (after their manager’s initials) and then renamed Aegis in 1998 by the band’s manager and Alpha Records. That was also the time Aegis returned to the country to record the debut album Halik, which carried many of the band’s greatest hits and received quadruple platinum record status. During the late ‘90s to early 2000s, the pre-digital era, such accomplishment equaled to nearly half a million physical albums sold.

Just as lasting as the music is the band members’ close bond. Aegis never underwent a change in line-up let alone considered disbanding. It only saw the addition of Ken six years ago. According to Ken, she’s “very lucky” to have never experienced the early struggles of the band.

Mercy said they are grateful to God for blessing them with career longevity. “Pasalamat kami kay Lord dahil at least, kahit papaano, umabot kami ng 20 years.” Their “motto in life,” she added, is to be there for each other, forever.

For her part, Stella said they are not mindful of the years they’ve been together. “Actually, we haven’t noticed the passing of the years, we’re just enjoying our work. Kung wala lang nakakapansin, di rin namin naiisip na 20 years na kami.”

If there are problems, they said, these are resolved once they hit the stage.

Music keeps them together, Juliet stressed.

“We need this job that’s why we’re also together,” they laughed.

Amidst all the laughter, it’s no joke how they managed to reach this far in the music business.

Stella recalled that prior to becoming Aegis, in the late ‘80s to early ‘90s, they got paid as little as P32 per show.

After successfully working in Japan, their management decided to bring them home in 1998 to record an album.

The band receiving a double platinum and quadruple record award for Halik

They could now laugh at the memory of playing in no-name bars because “no popular bars were willing to accept us.”

When one established bar finally did, they recalled feeling nervous and intimidated by its “classy” crowd. “Nanginginig pa kami kasi sanay lang kami sa tabi-tabi. Sanay kami na nagtsi-tsinelas lang yung mga tao at lasing (laughs),” Juliet shared.

However, they were not allowed to perform their original songs. The owner agreed to let them sing originals but on a Sunday, thinking it would be a slow day. It turned out they were able to fill up the venue, with the audiences requesting for their song one after another.

They also remembered agreeing to do a mall show for P80 just so they could sell their first album. Eventually, the mall didn’t want to have them because the crowd became too much to handle.

They have also experienced performing in a rice field. And they used to lug around their equipment and packed them into taxis, even jeepneys. Vilma said, “Wala pa kaming PA (production assistants) noon so kanya kanyang buhat ng music equipment.”

Stella believes these were all “good experiences because we learned a lot when we were just starting.”

To promote the Halik album, friends would call up radio stations during the wee hours of the morning to request for their songs. Radio deejays would decline requests because they found their songs too loud and noisy.

Aegis also had some critics that dismissed their music as too masa or baduy. One R&B performer refused to share the stage with them because supposedly, unlike Aegis, “their music is meant for the class A.”

“Pero ano ba talaga ang baduy? Baduy ang kanta or baduy ang personality or baduy yung pananamit namin? Dun ako nalilito… Kasi pag sinabi pang-masa yan, sinasabi kaagad baduy yan,” asked Weng on why their masa-friendly songs were being equated to baduy by others.

Of course, the band used to get offended by such comments but have learned to just let them go because “you can’t please everyone.”

Rey said, “We don’t mind. Basta as far as we know, ang audience namin ay all walks of life, A-B-C-D-E.”

Unknown to many perhaps, the main composer of Aegis songs was Rey’s brother Celso Abenoja, who unfortunately passed away 11 years ago. “Ang dami niyang pangarap, ang iba natupad. For example, it was his dream to hear his songs on the radio. Ngayon natupad na. When he was still alive, he used to tag along to our gigs. Although at that time, di pa kami kasikatan.”

Rey further revealed, “Actually, sad to say, he became a drug dependent during his college days in Olongapo. Ang brain damage niya, according to his doctor, di na kaya.”

Even with his condition, Rey’s brother would make all these searing, emotionally-charged — hugot in Pinoy parlance — songs about love, loss and pain based on real experiences, and which are fittingly interpreted by the Sunot sisters’ power vocals.

Rey said his brother Celso would write three kinds of songs: “love songs, angry songs and super angry songs.”

The story behind BasangBasa Sa Ulan, he related, “Nagdadala siya ng sariling banig at gitara niya kasi tuliro na siya. Napadpad siya sa Quezon City, sa may UP Village, and nabugbog siya.”

He then returned home, bloodied and soaking wet because it was raining, Rey recalled. The next day, his brother penned the song as triggered by the incident:

“Heto ako ngayon, nag-iisa

Naglalakbay sa gitna ng dilim

Lagi na lang akong nadarapa

Ngunit heto, bumabangon pa rin.”

From these lyrics, there’s something so easy to learn and relate to ­— about being down and out, and yet trying to battle personal demons and pick oneself up.

Rey said, “Kung buhay siya ngayon... matutuwa siya.”

Celso’s memory lives on through the songs, and in a way, their continued success is a tribute to him.

Recently, ABS-CBN’s Sunday musical-variety show ASAP also paid tribute to the contributions of Aegis to the music industry.

A rerun of Rak of Aegis is also playing at the PETA Theater. The band credited the wildly-successful musical for expanding their audience base.

When members were first informed that their music would be used in the musical in 2014, they were both shocked and surprised.

First thought was, “Why us?”

“Sa dinami-daming banda, bakit yung kanta namin ang napili? ‘Baduy’ kami dati, ni-lo-look down kami, tapos ginawan kami ng musical,” Juliet said.

The orchestral show Aegis in Symphony with the PPO at the CCP last year brought them to tears.

Rey said, “That was the time na umiyak talaga ako ng husto. You know why? Because me and my brother, we were always together. Sabi niya, gagawa ako ng music na balang araw matutupad ito sana. He called it ‘space music.’ He had imagined a four-piece band but may ibang tugtog sa likod, which is nangyari sa orchestra (referring to the different ensembles of instruments). Naiyak talaga ako.”

The Sunot sisters attend PETA’s Rak of Aegis musical —Photos courtesy of Aegis Band/ABS-CBN Events

The 20th-anniversary concert, which is produced by ABS-CBN, is the latest platform to celebrate Aegis music. The idea for the show came about after ABS-CBN COO of broadcast Cory Vidanes, also a fan of the group, watched a Magandang Buhay episode late last year that guested Aegis, according to Igi Bumagat, executive producer for ABS-CBN Events. In the said episode, the band talked about other dreams like holding a concert at the Araneta Coliseum. Aegis has had performed at other major venues such as the Music Museum, Philippine International Convention Center and CCP but never at the Big Dome.

Special guests are some of the most esteemed in the entertainment scene like Regine Velasquez, Jet Pangan, Vice Ganda, Ann Curtis, Jericho Rosales and Karla Estrada.

During the July 13 concert, expect not just Aegis hits but also songs from the new album, including a rap number, plus “millennial music and K-Pop, Aegis-style,” they said.

The concert will also go on a regional and world tour with planned visits to US, Canda, Dubai, Italy and Hong Kong. Ticket prices for Doble Dekada, Ang Soundtrack ng Buhay Mo range from P5,830 (VVIP) to P320 (General Admission). For more details on the tickets, call ABS-CBN events at 413-1222/0915-0369464 or Ticketnet at 911-5555.

So, how do they see Aegis in the next decade or two?

“Ten years kaya pa ba? 20 years?” Juliet, Mercy, Ken, Vilma, Weng, Stella and Rey asked each other, before adding, “sana tangkilikin pa rin nila yung music (hope they continue to support our music) so that we will still be here.”