It was almost a decade since I last visited this little but popular bar in front of UST along Espana Avenue, formerly known as Mayrics now called Sazi's Bar, obviously after Sazi Cosino, the bar's owner . I went there with an old friend half expecting Parokya ni Edgar or Eraserheads will be playing. Yes, Eraserheads folks that's no misprint, for a moment I lost myself and thought I was still living in the Golden Age of Philippine Alternative Music, the 90's. But I was not disappointed when I learned that Tropical Depression will be playing instead. The entrance fee is still 100 Php but this time your whole 100 bucks is no longer consumable like in the old days, instead you'll get only one beer free. Inflation rate, my friend explains, while taking jabs at Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's SONA claim.
After a few rounds of beer and after getting sober from nostalgia, the set finally started a little over 11 pm,
Papa Dom looks old with noticeable whites on his beard, the usual
Bob Marley cover kicks off after a long sound check. Then I realize after their first set that
Tropical Depression has nothing much to offer in terms of original compositions with just
Bilog na naman ang Buwan to feed our nostalgic appetites; too bad we didn't hang long enough to hear them play it. I left the club with a mental note that I will visit
70's Bistro,
Conspiracy Cafe, and
Xaymaca before this year ends. And it will be interesting to see if those great bands that were born in
Mayrics as that old
NU 107 advertisement quips, are now playing in those joints or maybe they are all gone now together with my old politics.
