George Babsa-Ay Jr.
- Death’s Hopeful Message - November 6, 2024
- Sir Francis - October 16, 2024
- The Aras - September 11, 2024
Once, I thought and might have even argued, as fiery as any “feeling musician” or Rolling Stones mag critic, that no band could ever out-E-heads apo Eli Buendia et al. Sui generis is what they were. Simply, super cool.
Might have even argued The Beatles could’ve been the E-heads of London if “Toyang” aired 31 years earlier.
As any transient band must dig it, easier craved than done. To define and stay cool unless you looked it. Or wrote something in the mold of a “Spoliarium” and get to drawl it to one or thousands, sans the fear of going off-key. Or fudging the lyrics.
Unless you caused the comeback of Chuck and funky shades. And for me and three others to cheekily form a “combo” we called The Crickets. (Fittingly, I guess. We got a spot once in a Uni gig and, apart from getting thrown at with a wire, we gave the crowd a bad case of the crickets.)
Anyway, save for Asin or The Dawn, I can’t think of any other band – one, un-qualified by “Boy” – that comes close to the E-Heads. Creativity-wise, and how it captured and held its grip on the A-Z Pinoy psyche.
But that is only because I missed the juvenile IV of Spades (IVOS) and their utterly mature creations. By a good six years. And found one only by chance.
Midway of 2023, I found You Tube and clicked on “Hey, Barbara,” because some politician’s clip on the monitor’s left corner was yanking my hopeless leg. And hey, Barbara, my Sylvia and dear Sandra, guess what? I got hooked. So, played “Mundo.” “Take That Man.” The whole lovely list.
Man, they’re real good, I recall saying out loud. Awesomer and awesomer, with each re-play. Might have upped Mundo’s numbers there by a hundred. And more so, at that age, for them to be classy and grounded, deep and playful. That is something else.
IVOS was: Zild Benitez, Blaster Silonga, Badjao de Castro and Unique Salonga. “Was,” because fate dealt the dreadful Joker. And the band folded, too soon. Sure, bands ultimately disband. But for the cards to have fallen apart at the height of IVOS’ genius is just tragic. Some cosmic joke I don’t get, if you ask me. Since this world was deprived of something we need: more of cool music.
While we respect the band’s will, still, we are tempted to wonder what it could have done, stuck together: Out-E-heads the E-Heads, for one? Crank out a huge pile of OPM classics, for another?
Oh, well. From what is stalkable, so far, their careers have taken off, three spades paddling on waves of his own make: Zild, The Celestial Klowns, and Unique. I’ve yet to dig some on the beloved Badjao.
Perhaps, tasteless, too much, to ask of them. But a reunion gig soon would do well for a restless IVOS crowd and, so too, for the wish of this 50-year-old child. Man, what a cool day of a comeback that would be.