Gin Blossoms plays a free, unplugged gig at a Quezon City mall
A four-song set seems too short a gig. But Gin Blossoms proved otherwise, having delivered a solid line-up of hit songs that sealed their fate as one of the quintessential bands of the ‘90s.
Last Tuesday, October 22, the American pop rock band gave fans gathered at the Eastwood Mall Open Park in Libis, Quezon City an arsenal of familiar songs in unplugged version. The band featured the trio of lead vocalist Robin Wilson and guitarists Jesse Valenzuela and Scott Johnson.
The band made their mall appearance one night after they performed at the Araneta Colisum with with two other 90s bands: Sugar Ray and Smashmouth.
Band was cheerful
While the concert seemed plagued with problems, Gin Blossoms looked cheerful as they
appeared on that mall stage with just a couple of acoustic guitars, a tambourine and harmonica, which Robin worked occasionally.
The set had a rousing start with "Follow You Down," a top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hit from their second album "Congratulations I'm Sorry" released in 1996.
Robin was in his usual self, ensuring the band’s connection with the crowd with his emotive vocals that sounds pretty melancholic even when the beats are upbeat. "Great to be here in Manila," he said, keeping his spiels short and letting the music do the talking.
The landline song
He introduced his second number exactly as he did the last time the band was here in 2010. Yet, it remained moving considering how big the piece is to Filipino listeners.
Robin shared, "Jesse and I wrote together this song while on the telephone. I was tuned in to some cartoon and I had to turn the TV off to finish this song."
The track in question: "As Long as It Matters."
Sing-along crowd
By the time the song got to the chorus, the audience, which gained access to the cordoned area by purchasing the band's greatest hits collection "Outside Looking In," was singing along.
The crowd looked like they were in college or high school when the song was released in 1996. The song, no doubt, left an indelible mark.
Just like the third song, "Till I Hear It From You," which noticeably revealed the tightness of their vocal harmonies because of the sparse instrumental accompaniment.
PH gig again next year?
Robin assured this wasn't the last time Gin Blossoms will drop by the Philippines. "We'll be happy to see you again next year."
They were to fly out of the country immediately after the Eastwood show according to one of the organizers.
The group who tried to pack it up after "Till I Hear It From You," knows how well-loved they are here and knew that they still owed their fans one more for
the road.
The encore
So, instead of saying their goodbye to the crowd, Robin exclaimed, "Let's play another song!"
Their encore was “Hey Jealousy,” the band’s first hit written by former member Doug Hopkins, who committed suicide after he was fired from the band due to alcoholism and stubbornness. The band has credited Doug for their mainstream success.
The encore song, of course Doug's composition and Gin Blossoms' first hit, "Hey Jealousy."
After that, Robin raised his beer can. "Cheers!" he told fans who that came to buy the band’s CD, have the guys sign it and then be treated to a performance of four songs played beautifully and with such raw intimacy.
You might also like:
Ke$ha to young Filipino fans: Be a warrior!
Aia de Leon: Don’t be afraid to make mistakes
So you wanna be a rock star: Skarlet’s tips on surviving the music biz
#TBT: Never-before-seen photos from the Dawn movie ‘Tulad ng Dati’
