Fans Need to Watch Out for ‘Easter Eggs’ at the Upcoming Eraserheads World Tour
Music constantly evolves and inevitably inspires new generations of listeners. A band like Eraserheads—comprising Ely Buendia, Raimund Marasigan, Buddy Zabala, and Marcus Adoro—is no different. Wherever they go, the band brings their entire rich catalog that fans have grown to cherish and love over the decades. It's been over 30 years since their formation, and the Eraserheads still manage to draw giant crowds each time they perform together, most recently at their reunion show in Manila in December 2022.
On Wednesday (June 19), the four members came together to announce that they are embarking on a new world tour that will see them perform in parts of the world they haven't yet visited.
The Eraserheads Huling El Bimbo World Tour 2024 will kick off next month and will see stops in North America, Singapore, ??and Dubai. Produced by WEU Event Management Services and Live Nation Philippines, the Huling El Bimbo World Tour 2024 is sure to rock every Filipino music fan’s socks off across the planet.
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Deciding on the setlist
"We're focusing on a lot of deep cuts," Marasigan declared during the press conference. "Some songs we've never played before." This was news that would be most exciting for all Eheads diehards. The band said they have yet to perform live every song in their extensive catalog given how massive their discography is. The upcoming 2024 tour will definitely debut one of the more underappreciated cuts from their backlog.
“There’s always something new,” Buendia stated. “We’d love to make new friends and audiences on tour. It’s always something to look forward to.”
Just like their relationship with each other, the four members said the tour’s setlist is constantly evolving. In some cases, the places where they play and their experiences there can often influence their choice of which songs to play. The band members said they make it a point to ensure that every single city they stop in has to be special.
“We have a very fun and busy group chat,” Marasigan revealed. “Everyone’s suggesting songs. We get into a lot of pre-production, a few actual rehearsals. We just jammed yesterday. I think we're preparing 40 songs, but we're not going to play it all in one night.”
“I think 80 percent is decided by the fans,” Buendia said about picking the songs. “Fifteen percent is decided by the family and friends and–tama ba yung math ko? Oh five percent na lang, is decided by the band. If we were to choose 100 percent of the setlist eh baka walang pumunta sa gigs kase super deep cuts and mga obscure Eheads songs which we, as parents of the songs, want them to be exposed to the world and just to give them a chance (to be heard).
“Syempre it's not a perfect world, so we just do it for the fans,” he added. “So most of the songs will be the greatest hits, the fan favorites and a little bit of five percent thrown in there. But we make it a point where we call it the “soundcheck experience.” We get to play the songs that we love as a band, we will do it in soundcheck because we know the fans who paid those VIP Tickets will appreciate whatever we play.”
Packing and easter eggs
The band also shared some tips on packing, given how much traveling they’re going to be doing for the tour.
“I always make it a point to pack light,” Buendia answered.
“Berocca. Lola Remedios. Everything that you can think of to keep you healthy and functioning.” Zabala advised on packing essentials.
“Kase walang bidet sa America so kung may portable bidet kung Filipino ka, yun ang the best na dinadala namin,” Marasigan stated. “Wag mong makakalimutan sa US Tour. Sa ibang bansa okay lang.”
In addition to the constant shuffling of songs per stop, the band members said they plan on dropping easter eggs at every stop in the tour, which will take the form of a special song in the setlist.
“We’re preparing an easter egg for every city,” Marasigan explained. “So it’s up to the fans to figure out what the easter egg is in each stop.”
Buendia chimed in, “It’s a song, not an actual egg.”
“Do not check under your seats for an easter egg,” Zabala added.
“In Winnipeg, for example, we played “American Woman” by The Guess Who,” Marasigan said. “We used to play that in college because The Guess Who is a band in Winnipeg, pero mas maraming may alam nun as a Lenny Kravitz song, but that’s an easter egg.”
When the Singapore stop was brought up, Zabala playfully attempted to put their own twist on their most iconic track.
“Alam ko na!” Zabala exclaimed, “We’re gonna use the Singaporean ‘lah!’ in Huling El Bimbo!”
Veteran OPM bands like the Eraserheads and their contemporaries have noticed a paradigm shift in music listening. But newer generations of young listeners plan to attend these upcoming live shows. Buendia explained what it’s like to perform in cities when a newer, younger crowd shows up at their shows.
“It’s also great to see young faces in the audience who probably weren’t even born during our heyday,” he said. “It just means the music translates to the younger generation, which is awesome. We all know how much they’re all so hard to please now. Just kidding!”
When it comes to touring, every band has its own so-called "horror stories" or funny moments to share. Marasigan said it’s no different with their own band.
“For us, a lot of adventures happen after or before the show,” he said. “One time tumirik yung bus sa gitna ng desyerto. Sa isang show naman, yung kalahati ng crew and equipment hindi dumating yung eroplano, so photo finish. Right before the show dumating yung engineer and the gear. Parang sabi namin, ‘Makakatugtog kaya tayo?’ Sabi namin, ‘Nakatugtog ka nga sa Mayric’s eh.’”
“We’ve had our fair share of Spinal Tap moments,” Adoro adds to their personal experience on tour.
No regrets
It’s been almost two years since the "Ang Huling El Bimbo" show, where the band reunited for the first time in over a decade. The band couldn’t help but look back on that special performance watched by tens of thousands of fans.
“Nung December show, it was the first time we played live in front of an audience in a long time,” Marasigan said. “Parang basketball team, di ba? The chemistry has become better musically. Kung ano yung tinugtog namin, that was the best that day. Pero syempre, after several shows, yung pang sampung show mas tighter kami as a unit. Mas comfortable and mas sureball. Mas confident. But no regrets, with the mistakes and all. That was all part of it.”
The Eraserheads 2024 World Tour will make stops at the following cities and countries:
Live in Honolulu
Date: July 6
Venue: Hawaii Convention Center
Live in San Francisco
Date: July 12
Venue: The Warfield
Live in Los Angeles
Date: July 13
Venue: Peacock Theater
Live in Temecula
Date: July 19
Venue: Pechanga Resort Casino
Live in Toronto
Date: July 21
Venue: Great Canadian Casino Resort
Live in Singapore
Date: November 23
Venue: Arena @ Expo
Live in Dubai
Date: December 8
Venue: Dubai Exhibition Centre
