A massive crowd queuing up at the concert venue set the tone for Thursday night’s playdate at the du World Music Festival at Dubai Media City Amphitheatre. Playing for the night were Eraserheads, the phenomenal Filipino band that has been a massive influence on the country’s alternative music scene. A decade after their sensational breakup in 2002, the band’s reunion concert in the emirate proved that the band and their songs remain well loved by fans.
It was one of the rare times that such a massive crowd of Filipinos gathered to watch a concert. Around 12,000 tickets may have been sold, making it one of the biggest in Dubai this year, said one of the sponsors said of the event. A spokesperson from du, however, declined to confirm the actual numbers.
The concert started quite late – around 9.44pm – and there were talks that this was because the organisers were waiting for the huge number of people lined up outside to get into the venue. The crowd did endure the wait but all this not futile as they were treated to Eraserheads’ biggest hits in the band’s 27-song session.
Members of the media covering the event, however, had some anxious moments just before the show when some members of the security rudely pushed them away from the spot where they had been told to wait. It turned out to be a matter of miscommunication, although the way in which security handled the media certainly left a bad taste.
Eraserheads performed their popular hit songs ‘Maling Akala’ (Wrong Accusations), ‘Ligaya, Huwag Mo Ng Itanong’ (Don’t Ask Me), ‘Kailan’ (When), ‘Overdrive’, ‘With A Smile’, ‘Julie Tear Jerky’, among others. The song ‘Alapaap’ was a soundtrack from the Filipino movie ‘Dubai’ wchih was filmed in the emirate. The band also performed ‘Super Proxy’, which they dedicated to the late legendary Filipino rapper Francis “Kiko” Magalona.
The band even gave an encore before saying farewell to their fans in Dubai, who are certainly looking forward for a return performance by them next year.
