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You always hear and read about it in interviews: bands and long-time fans talking about the early years and the intimate club shows. And you feel a hint of envy: Why wasn’t I there?
So it’s such an absolute delight that in recent years, Filipino fans are becoming privy to cool “small gig” experiences even from bands overseas. There’s the 2010 Jens Lekman and Kings of Convenience show, the 2011 Whitest Boy Alive at Opus, and last Friday’s Tahiti 80’s return at The Eye in Green Sun on Pasong Tamo Extension in Makati.
Where a big crowd filled the SM Mall of Asia Arena for Incubus’ fourth Metro Manila gig on Friday night, a small, goodlooking and trendy set came together at Tahiti 80’s intimate set. Much like the French band’s first Manila show three years ago, the show saw a lot of fun, for the audience, the band, their openers Yolanda Moon and Up Dharma Down, and even the often serious and unsmiling concert organizer, Toti Dalmacion, whom we caught grooving and dancing at one point in the evening.
First, kudos to the Terno openers for working and building the excitement of the crowd. Up Dharma Down especially, tickled the crowd pink when they premiered their new video, the King Palasoc-directed “Indak.” A good move from the band because 1) The Eye, with its 360 experience — visuals can be projected on all four walls — is the best location for video launches, and 2) the video featured UDD vocalist Armi Millare dancing the rumba instead of singing, thereby wowing the crowd. Imagine, everywhere you turned, you can see Armi doing her moves.
The video was the band’s “last number for the evening,” and by the time it finshed, The Eye was abuzzed. People were ready for T80.
The Frenchies took the stage at 10pm sharp, playing a full two-hour set, complete with two encores. It was a cool showcase of their career, playing songs from the new album Ballroom, as well as certain picks from the old records. They reserved the crowd favorite “Heartbeat” at the very end.
The Friday night gig was also the first time that keyboardist Stephan Ballity played with T80 and it showed. His energy was so high up there, the stage proved too small a space; toward the end of the gig, he left the stage to go dancing with members of the audience, with the rest of the band and especially bassist and co-founder Pedro Resende — who reminds us of Razorback’s Tirso Ripoll, by the way — looking like they were having the best kick on that Friday night.
Vocalist Xavier Boyer, fashionable in his all-white outfit accented only with a gray chambray jacket, certainly looked at home on stage. He moved with so much ease from guitars to keyboards, grooving to their own music and engaging the audience in small talk. At one point, he even kneeled down to hear what an audience member was saying.
It’s all too easy to overlook T80’s musicianship. They are a pop band, after all, with super groovy and catchy songs that sometimes so all you wanna do is dance to them. But I’m glad they played at The Eye, where the acoustics are absolutely ace.
Little nuances that show the band’s talent and skill — like those pesky half-step progressions and syncopated beats — are highlighted. It was especially so, during songs like “God of the Horizon” and “Missing,” when in a middle of a groove, you hear how fragile the song structure really is that you stop to appreciate the band. I must admit, I was expecting them to mess up or go off-key a few times and was only too happy to be proven wrong.
Couple the acoustic with the 360 experience and you’ve got one memorable gig. For instance, when T80 played “Coldest Summer,” images of beaches, islands, and the beautiful blue summer sky were projected on all four walls, making the audience feel like they were somewhere else. At one point, trippy neon lights ran across the walls, making us feel like we were inside a heart rate monitor on acid.
Small, intimate gigs such as T80’s last Friday often don’t get enough attention because, of course, stadium concerts are really, something else.
But there is something to be said about gigs such as this. Audiences get the most bang for the buck, for instance, because imagine: you’re never just a few feet away from the band, who are themselves having as much fun as you that they’d indulge and play a full two-hour set or even dance with you. Here’s hoping more such shows happen in our dear ol’ city. I’d like to argue that the Metro Manila audience is more than ready for this.
