When a political rally turns into a big pink concert, OPM bands are a staple so people can be entertained while fighting for their beliefs at the same time.
When Vice President Leni Robredo started her campaign, Rivermaya was the first band to step up and help out for free. They always sang "Liwanag sa Dilim," which aptly encapsulated VP Leni's role in the upcoming elections.
I've seen Rivermaya's current lineup perform. Nathan Azarcon, Mark Escueta, and Mike Elgar took turns singing their anthems. They may not have the strong vocal prowess of their previous lead vocalists, but they give a livelier energy to the songs. So when they played "Liwanag sa Dilim" right after VP Leni finished her speech in Naga, I can say it still gave me goosebumps.
After a couple of sorties, Ely Buendia joined VP's rally. I'd say he and Rivermaya paved the way for artists to make a bold stand for their political beliefs. Of course, Ely is still at the top of the list when you ask who the idol of today's OPM bands is. He is still incredibly influential. After he performed at the Iloilo sortie—which was one for the books, I must say—so many other bands followed in his footsteps.
Mayonnaise, Moonstar88, Gracenote, Ebe Dancel, Itchyworms, Ben&Ben, and Chicosci, just to name a few, followed suit.
Which brings me to Chicosci.
I am a casual listener of the band. I'm not their biggest fan, though checking my previous posts here, I did like Mong Alcaraz. Yeah, my 16-year-old self liked the chinito guitarist. Seeing Miggy's emo demeanor back then didn't really appeal to me as much—I was more of a Yael Yuzon stan, preferring that clean, Atenista look.
But my god, I am 32 now, and the resurgence of me liking these vocalists came back thanks to VP Leni's sorties, haha.
I also realized what makes me like Miggy now is his political stance. I only followed him on Twitter this year because of his tweet about the dictator's son. Chicosci's first gig after two years went viral. Down to their last song, he took time to give a short speech about the upcoming election. He said we should really think about our choices and not just believe everything we see on TikTok. He didn't explicitly name his candidate at first, saying they weren't that kind of band. But midway through their song "Diamond Shotgun," he sang, "Lock and load, Leni, let's go!"
And I must say, buti na lang he didn’t stick to his emo sound and look. Also I never thought that he is that vocal about his political stand. I just think he is that cono elitist who is so out of touch. Sorry Miggy! You have that look eh haha same like you can judge if a person is a dds or bbm.
Their Camanava performance was awesome. Miggy hyped the almost gen z crowd. I mean, i am sure majority is not a chicosci fan or doesn’t know their song but he was able to make them jump, shout and sing. Grabe yung energy from both sides. What I love the most is he was able to deliver a powerful message. That we should fight for the country and leader that we deserve.
There’s so much to say about our upcoming election and the rallies that turned into concerts. Having supported and loved OPM rock bands since my high school years, the resurgence of the live music scene gives me hope in this crazy world. I also love that these bands use their platform in the best way they know how: to make people happy and take a stand for their choices. At the end of the day, the music of these OPM bands will stay with us no matter what the outcome will be this coming May.
More than that, we now know the bands who share our political stance: that Marcos is no hero, Marcos Jr. is a joke, and Leni Robredo is our hope.
Kaya lock and load Leni, Ipanalo na natin to’
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