Posts under the 'Concerts' category

In the past 10 years, Jason Mraz has visited the Philippines and performed in concerts, both his own and in local music festivals in the country, in more than just one occasion. Sometimes I think he’s like David Pomeranz, because he keeps coming back.. probably because he loves the Philippine audience, and we feel the same way.

I’ve lost count in keeping up w/ the exact number of times he’s been here, but I am pretty sure the count is past 5 already. Just last year he was here. And the year before that, he was here with Toca Rivera. I wanted to watch that show,  but the planets just didn’t align that time. I bet it would’ve been a fantastic show too. The earliest I remember would be the appearance he made at the first ever MTV Exit event at the Mall of Asia back in 2009. He’s visited couple of times prior to that, too.

Fast forward to the present: Fortunately for me, Jason Mraz came back to the country just last week and the best part is.. this post won’t be me regretting not going again, because I actually got to go and watch. Finally! It was a last minute thing — as with every event I find myself going to these days — but we were lucky to have scored really good seats as well. 🙂

I may be biased, and I probably am, but I think this is his best in all of the Manila shows yet. I was expecting a mellowed down set like the one w/ Toca, but since he brought the lovely women of Raining Jane this time, it was a lot more fun. Certainly, I got way way more than I came there for.

Maybe it makes you think that from this post’s headline, this post is going to be one of those types wherein I would incessantly talk about the artist and putting them in good light. Sort of, maybe. 

But given what I experienced from Jessie J’s recent show here in Manila, who wouldn’t?! So hear me out. 😉

Before the concert, I only knew a handful of her songs. Most of them are songs I would hear on the radio, or on  TV, everywhere even at someone’s autoplay music in their social media profile LOL. And then three days before her show, Janelle asked me if I am available to help her cover the event (which she wrote about after here, check it out!). With no hesitations, I said yes to her invitation. I get to watch a concert and take photos — instantly two things I LOVE to do.

I only had a few hours to prep myself that Monday afternoon. Having just came back to the city after a long weekend at the province with my friends exploring Bohol (to be discussed in another post!).. I barely had time. Took a nap as soon as I got home, and later I just put a random Jessie J Spotify playlist I found while I was getting ready. Infairness, that playlist was helpful!

So this one happened last year, my apologies for the late post again. Does anyone really care at this point, lol. Sonic Carnival: Feast on Sound, if I were to describe it, is a yearly event (I’ve no idea if last year was their first) catering to the EDM/rave/party crowd. There were bands (most of them were from Terno Recordings, I think), but much of its artist lineup were DJs, both locally and internationally known.

Being a usual audience for rock concerts, may I say that I sort of experienced a culture shock attending this festival? Hahaha. Lots of kids dancing around, the performer encouraging people to literally get up and dance, drinking everywhere, people dressed in small pieces of clothing… or barely at all. I felt overdressed and cold. It was also held at an open area, just a few blocks away from the Mall of Asia.

Meg and Dia

The following night after their show at the Hard Rock Cafe, Meg and Dia had another show. This time it was at the Eclipse Bar in Solaire Resorts, Manila. Unlike the HRC show, this one is free for everyone, but the setlist is a lot shorter and it certainly wasn’t that intimate when it comes to the crowd interaction.

I arrived late to this one. To get to Solaire, we had to get to their free shuttle located at the Mall of Asia first. It took some time for the minibus to be occupied enough to leave so we waited longer than we expected. Well, I’m just glad that I did not miss a lot.

It was also the first time I visited this place. Solaire Resort and Casino looks cool. Looking forward to going back and exploring the place next time.

By the time we got there, they were on their third song. I met Lexie’s friend, Baldwin, and Crisel that night, too. I went to this show w/ Shereen this time since Clarizze had work. I hope I did my job of converting Shereen to be a fan of their music at the end of this night! LOL

I took some videos from this show since the previous night, all I had were photos. I had to make up and do video documentaries for my own use, too. 😀 The rest of the photos and videos and stories under the cut. 😉 Enjoy!

The videos are better watched in HD quality. Nevermind the quality of the video itself.. this was just from a digicam, but the audio quality is good enough methinks. I didn’t bring a DSLR to this show. Sorry for the amateur edit, I was in a hurry to upload these videos for this post.

First up is Pumped Up Kicks. I just got to the venue when they played this. I hit record just in time, lol. (This was the 3rd song, as far as I remember)