Eh eh o eh o, eh eh o eh o.
This was the battle cry of hundreds of fans last Monday, January 5, when British band Bastille rocked World Trade Center.
Photo by Magic Liwanag
“I know that you have been asking for us to come here,” Dan Smith, lead singer and songwriter behind Bastille, said. “We made it.” He smiled in that charming way he does, and hearts melted all over the place. Men included. “I LOVE YOU!” A guy with a deep, very mannish voice yells above the crowd, and everyone laughs.
Friends kept on asking me the day after the show: “How was Bastille? I heard they were amazing!” “I bet they were great.” “I wish I could have been there!”
Photo by Ferdie Arquero
Let’s put this all to rest now. Bastille was amazing. They were great. You really should have been there.
But in case you weren’t, or if you were and just wanted to relive the amazing experience, here’s When In Manila’s recap of Bastille Live in Manila, brought to us by Karpos Multimedia and Smart #SpinnrExperience.
Photo by Magic Liwanag
Bastille live in Manila
The dancing
“I’m a terrible dancer. So I’m gonna ask you to help me out. Do you guys know the pogo dance?” Dan goes down on his knees, asking the crowd to do the same before jumping high up. “I want you to get down with me,” he instructs. “Not sexually.”
And so the song went. “This is the rhythm of the night,” and you can see the entire place jumping wildly up and down. “This is the rhythm of my life,” the song goes, and everyone’s hands were up in the air, jumping, screaming the words. And. It. Was. Crazy.
Photo by Ferdie Arquero
Oblivion
“What we’re going to play next is a song that’s very depressing,” referring to Oblivion, a beautiful, heavy ballad which is one of my personal favorites. And so before playing, Dan asked the crowd to bring out lights—from their lighters, from phones, anything—and wave them up in the air. “When oblivion is calling out your name, you always take it further than I ever can.” The crowd did as told, and what occurred next was an intimate, stirring moment.
Photo by Ferdie Arquero
Flaws
The last song Bastille played before the encore was Flaws, one of the band’s biggest hits from their debut album, Bad Blood. Before starting the song, Dan put on his grey jacket and says “see you in a bit.” “See you in a bit?” the girl standing next to me wondered. And to be honest, I did, too. The next thing we know, Dan Smith was coming down from the stage and walks into the crowd of crazy fans for most of the song. And the rest was chaotic history.
Photo by Ferdie Arquero
The call for encore
You know how during concerts when the band leaves the stage before the encore and people are left yelling “we want more” in seemingly perfect unison? Yeah, that didn’t happen during Bastille live in Manila. But what did happen was tons better. To the right of the stage, a group of fans started singing: “Eh eh o eh o, eh eh o eh o, eh eh o eh o, eh eh o eh o,” the famous intro to Bastille’s biggest hit song, Pompeii. Little by little, the rest of the crowd joins in, myself included, and not long after, the whole floor was echoing these monumental words that put Bastille on the map of music lovers all over the world. Fans sang it over and over, until the band stepped out again to begin the end of what was an epic night.
Photo by Ferdie Arquero
The finale
The call for encore leaves no mystery—Pompeii is the most anticipated song of the night. And so imagine how World Trade Center went down when Bastille finally played their biggest hit. “Oh where do we begin, the rubble or our sins?” Everyone sings the hushed bridge building up to the final chorus. “But if you close your eyes, does it almost feel like nothing’s changed at all?” For the last time, the crowd goes wild and a rain of white confetti explodes overhead and the night truly becomes an unforgettable one.
Photo by Magic Liwanag
For fans, Bastille live in Manila was nothing more than the perfect way to kick 2015 off. And this is just the start. Music fans all over the Philippines can expect more great music to come to our shores, thanks to Karpos Multimedia, and to our gadgets, thanks to Smart’s #SpinnrExperience.
Photo by Ferdie Arquero
Stay tuned to Karpos Multimedia and Smart’s #SpinnrExperience social media accounts for more upcoming events and promos.
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