Girl writes fan mail to rockstar.  Rockstar responds.  Girl faints.

hey krysty

thanx for the kind words. have good weekend!

raym<s>

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!  *faints again*

As much as I would like to focus on completing my now two weeks overdue school report, I am sidetracked by post-reunion concert interviews with three of the Eraserheads.  I am fascinated, obviously, and would’ve loved nothing more than be in Gang Badoy’s (the interviewer) shoes.

Anyway, Marcus is — as usual — the most laid-back of the three.  He’s so calm you’d think Bin Laden just surrendered and joined a monastery.  Buddy’s obviously very mature, his answers sort-of daddyish.  Raymund seemed like he was playing it cool and coy, dodging questions on reunification and the testy waters that surround his relationship with Ely Buendia.

But whatever.  All three agree that they were overwhelmed by the crowd’s response and the spontaneous combustion of love in the air that night.  Plus they’re all extremely willing to play as the Eheads again.

Best line of the three interviews:

“Basta masaya ako…” ~ Marcus, explaining how things were between him and the other members of the band.

Plus this, of course:

“I want Ely to fully recover soon and talk him into finishing it.” ~ Raymund, on finishing the reunion concert.

Now all we need is Ely.

[Read the PDI interviews with Marcus, Raymund and Buddy]

[Yes, this is my nth consecutive Eraserheads-related post for the week and I'm not apologizing.]

Raymund Marasigan has never been my favorite Eraserhead.  I don’t exactly know why (maybe it’s because I prefer the laconic Ely over flamboyant Raymund), but that’s how it’s always been.

Until today, that is: September 3 2008, also known as the day I recognized the utmost rocker god that is Mr. Marasigan.

I’m not a professional musician, but as someone who knows the magic that guitar-playing can wield, I can wholeheartedly say I understand.  There’s something about playing music that soothes the heart and calms the soul.

Plus he knows how to use “albeit”.  And he just gave solid evidence that yes, the Eraserheads are back on good terms.  What that means for them professionally doesn’t really matter anymore.  Just knowing that  the four greatest Filipino musicians of my life are back on speaking terms is good enough for me.

Seriously, I got all teary-eyed and corny after reading this message from Raymund Marasigan (no he did not send it to my inbox directly; how I wish it was so).

That is some serious bad-assery, man, and I will hold you in high esteem for it from now until forever.

to whom it may concern

i dont usually rant but ive been hearing reports about people
questioning why we played saguijo after the concert.

first things first. when marlboro pulled out and cancelled the show a
week ago, the band was free of all obligation to play the show. if it
was about the money we could have just walked away fully paid no
explanations to the press or anybody. free from the contract. the band
decided to play nevertheless. the tickets and the prices was for the
new promoters to buy out the production from philip morris to put it
simply. contrary to what some people think it takes money to stage a
concert. stage, lights, and video screens don’t magically grow out of
the ground. that’s what the ticket prices were for. the band was not
in the negotiation meetings between the the two promoters and we did
not want to be in the meetings.

personally i said just call me cos i’m ready to rock. no extra pay no
contract negotiations. as far as the eheads was concerned were out of
the contract.

but here’s what you dont understand. playing music is what we do. we
play when we’re happy, play when we’re sad, play when we’re angry,
play when we’re sick, play til we die.

painters paint, writers write, my skateboarding friends skate or die.
when u ask nba superstars what they do in their spare time. they play
basketball.
us musicians, we play. thats what we do. getting paid is a bonus. i
will not apologize for that. when we don’t get paid we still play.

we played saguijo because we wanted to, we needed to. our hearts and
souls dictated it. we could just go home and sleep. we did not talk
about it. there was no invites there was no plan. we did not get paid.
we borrowed equipment.

yes ely knew about it. buddy told him the next day. yes pupil was in
saguijo too.

yes marcus buddy and i have lost a parent. we know how it feels.

ive been playing music for more than 30 years. professionally since
1993.there have been a few times when it was me who was unable to
continue the set due to illness. albeit it was a lesser scale and
(thankfully) never reported. it was nonetheless life threatening. ive
had a run in with losing my voice, food poisoning, diarreah
(embarassing) and a few more i do not care to mention that involved
blood and bones. i had to drop out of the set from the eheads, cambio
and sandwich. thankfully there was always someone there to finish the
set for me. and i am thankful that they were there. i did not feel
bad. ive also saved a few shows from other bands when [gooey brown stuff] happens. we
dont plan this and we dont complain but we still play.

my bmx friends ride with broken bones.

if we finished the eheads show that night you would STILL have found
us in guijo playing after.

yes i visited ely in the hospital yesterday. i hope he recovers soon.
we have a show to finish.

music is life
ill only stop playing when i die.

raym<s>

And now I suppose I will learn to spell his name correctly.

In a nutshell: I just got home, Ely had a heart attack, it was the most spectacular show I have ever seen in my entire life.

I can’t really say much right now.

At first I was pissed when I saw that even in the patron section I would not have an opportunity to touch Ely’s feet.  The crowd was pushing, I stood next to an asshole who had no idea who Marcus was and it was just … smelly.  All over the place.

But when the show started, everything was just worth it.  I screamed myself hoarse, sang along with every song and laughed at Ely’s sparse banter.

I sort of almost fainted, too, thanks to the heat and hunger.

The pain, however, was nothing compared to the shock I felt when I heard that Ely had been rushed to the hospital because of a heart attack.

I do hope Ely gets better soon, and that the band gets to perform together again.  I’ve never seen anything like it, and I doubt I will ever again.

Pinoy rock at its finest.  “Blew my mind” would be an understatement.

Get better, Ely.  I seriously love you. <3

*******************************

On a much more annoying note, I realized that a lot of those who came to the concert were not fans.  I’m not being sanctimonious and judgmental here.  I actually have proof, man.  Here’s a sample of some conversations I overheard:

Asshole 1: Uy si Marcus

Asshole 2: Sinong Marcus?

(Asshole 2 had no clue the entire time.  He didn’t know any of the songs and he kept screaming Super Proxy.  Plus he called Jay of Kamikazee a one-hit wonder.  Weird.)

*******************************

Girl 1: Sino yung long hair?

Girl 2: Si Marcus ata.

Girl 1: Si Marcus ba yon?  Bakit parang pumangit?

*******************************

Lastly, after the announcement that Ely had been rushed to the hospital and the concert was being cut short:

Some guy: Hahaha, bukas patay na si Ely.

Some girl: Aaay, ang mahal pa ng pamasahe ko para pumunta dito.

Some other girl: Wala nang refund?

Real fans would’ve doubled over in tears, like we did.

*Note: You have to sing the title.  Yes.  You have to.*

The extra long weekend had me stretched out in front of the television for hours on end.  This I did while playing the Sims 2 on my beloved MacLovin.  Yes, I multi-task.  I’m talented that way.

Anyway, I’m sure you’ve heard of the Joey de Leon-vs-Pokwang non-issue, wherein the Eat Bulaga host allegedly called the latter an “aswang“.  The taunt drove Pokwang to tears — conveniently on national television — and gave Willie Revillame yet another opportunity to grandstand.

Major disclaimer: I like Joey, if only because I grew up watching Starzan and She-Man.  The guy is a genius.  Sort of an asshat, but a genius nonetheless.

The same cannot be said for Willie Revillame, whose only claim to fame is his sleaziness.

Back to the non-issue at hand.  In defense of his co-host, Willie tearfully exhorted Joey not to pick on women; he would gladly take the hit he said.

In a separate interview, Willie defended Pokwang, saying that she was doing her best to make people happy every day.  Pokwang, he said, was a kind-hearted person and a successful comedian.

This, unfortunately, is a fallacy.  An empty argument, completely non-sequitur.

For the sake of this discussion, let us concede that Pokwang really is as good a person as Willie describes her to be.

In no way, however, does this argument negate or refute Joey’s allegation that Pokwang’s physical appearance is an aberration in God’s eyes.  Ergo, Joey’s statement stands.

I have nothing against Pokwang.

I think it’s just logic talking.

It’s no secret that I’m still waiting for John Lennon’s reincarnation to show up and carry me off into the sunset.

Of course, being one-fourth of the Beatles and one-half of the mega-duo that was Lennon/McCartney could have given him a free pass to nirvana, so he might not be coming back as flesh. Ever.

Which leaves me with no choice but to seek out other British hotties to marry.

American actors have never quite attracted me. Except Johnny Depp, of course, only I’m not sure he’s actually human so I don’t think he counts.  The only reason I like James Marsters (erstwhile Spike of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame) is because of his fake British accent. There’s just something about these British guys that, well, ensnares me.

I realize, certainly, that not all British men are sweet and oddly endearing like Hugh Grant. Most of them turn out to be horse enthusiasts like Prince Charles. [Apologies. That was a low blow, even by my (non-existent) standards.]

And still I continue to fantasize about their charming ways and offbeat humor, rendering me completely immobile when faced with the celluloid presence of actors such as Simon Pegg, Jim Sturgess and Daniel Radcliffe. Yes, Daniel Radcliffe. No, I’m not a closet pedophile.

Simon Pegg, in particular, is my British amour du jour. A few weeks back, I finally watched “Run Fat Boy Run”, which, in essence, really is about a running fat boy. Anyway, Pegg stars as the eponymous Fat Boy, and I must say it’s a far cry from his Hot Fuzz portrayal. This time he’s a lovable loser, not unlike the usual Hugh Grant character, except that he’s a lot more prone to dirty and disgusting physical jokes. Must I remind you that the film was directed by Ross of Friends? Didn’t think so.

Anyway, yes, Pegg and all the other British guys never fail to make me drool buckets. I don’t think I have to over-emphasize why British guys rule:

- The Beatles are British

- The Rolling Stones are British

- Hugh Laurie is British

- Hugh Grant is British

- Simon Pegg is British

- Jim Sturgess is British

- The Arctic Monkeys are British

- Mr. Bean is British

- Jason Bateman is sort-of genetically British

- Keira Knightly (my girl crush, along with Jessica Alba) is British

- Alan Fricking Rickman is British

- Almost everyone in Harry Potter is British

On the down side, yes, I realize that the following is also true:

- Prince Charles is British

- Camilla is British

- Jude Law is British

- The Douchebag Gallaghers are British

- Balfour (of the Balfour Declaration) is British

- Jack the Ripper is British

-Heather Mills is British

- Almost everyone in Harry Potter is British

Just to rub it in, I have to say Sean Connery is Scottish, which makes him sort of British (yeah, I’m toying with centuries of political strife, sue me), so that just renders the question, “should I be in love with British guys” moot. Suck it, Pierce Brosnan; Sean Connery is THE man.

Now if only I had enough money to fly to the UK and realize my own version of “Love, Actually”. It might contain a bit more gore than the usual British film, but yeah, it’ll have a happy, sort-of twisted ending.

Or not.

I like gay people as much as the next person (which is a lot, just so we’re clear), so this isn’t a homophobic post.

My sister has been watching the new Wu Chun starrer “Hot Shots” and it’s been pretty entertaining so far, if only because Wu Chun has appeared a grand total of two times in the past two episodes.

I have nothing against Wu Chun, except that he’s a lot prettier than me. My sister likes him, by the way, which makes him my imaginary brother-in-law of sorts.

Anyway, in one of the Wu Chun scenes, Jerry Yan (of F4, yes) gives Wu Chun and Other Guy the evil eye for some reason. You feel the tension as the guys appear to be preparing for a serious face-off. Wu Chun and Other Guy then move menacingly towards Jerry Yan. Both put on their motorcycle helmets and scowl for good measure.

They then ride the same motorcycle, with Wu Chun riding shotgun, his arms wrapped tightly around Other Guy’s waist.

Oooooh. How menacing.

And gay.

***PS: I’m gonna get a serious beating from my sister for this. It will be worth it.