I’m so glad I got to see Paramore again, in Singapore this time, and minus drummer Zac Farro. When I first saw them in Manila last year, Josh Farro wasn’t with them because he was too busy planning his wedding. The concert was held on 21 August 2011 at Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Here are some of the things I remember about the concert:
1) The Indoor Stadium wasn’t really packed, but maybe that’s because the venue is too huge.
2) They started with Ignorance, one of their catchiest songs.
3) They sang Decode quite early in the show, unlike in Manila where they reserved it towards the end.
4) They had an acoustic set, which included Misguided Ghosts.
5) Hayley was wearing a strange pair of black and white leggings, as in one side is black, the other is white.
6) They did not perform My Heart. Again. I’m losing hope of ever seeing them perform it live, especially with Josh-the-growler gone.
7) I thought Brick by Boring Brick was their encore, but surprisingly they closed the show with an older hit, Misery Business.
I don’t even remember when I first heard about Paramore. It was probably about two years ago, when my then-boyfriend (and now-husband) heard “That’s What You Get” on the radio and was intrigued by the beat used during the stanza. I listened to the song and liked it, but I didn’t become a fan until I got hold of their albums a couple of months after. Since then, my husband and I have been talking about how we wished Paramore would have a concert in Manila so that we could finally watch them perform live. Thank goodness they did! The concert was held at the Mall of Asia Grounds in Manila, Philippines on 9 March 2010.
We were actually pretty late for the concert and missed the opening act (Callalily). While we were entering the gate, people started screaming and I ran inside and was met by a huge, dense crowd and a very limited view of the stage and the big screens. But that doesn’t matter so much – just hearing them perform and singing along with the crowd was such a huge rush. Here are some of the highlights that I remember from the concert:
1) Hayley shouted “Kamustah kayow?,” much to the delight of the Filipino crowd. It turns out she wrote the greeting on her arm, probably to make sure that she’ll remember what to say.
2) Hayley explained that Josh wasn’t with them because he was busy planning his wedding. And to think they went out for a couple of years. *sigh* Perhaps that was the reason why they didn’t sing “My Heart,” my all-time favorite Paramore song, since there won’t be anyone screaming in the background.
3) Hayley called the band’s manager on stage because it was his last tour with them, and they had a picture taken with him with the crowd as the background. I guess they did that in every leg of the tour.
4) When Paramore played the intro to “Decode,” which is not really my favorite song but which I knew would probably get the most reaction from the crowd, my husband hoisted me up his shoulders so that I could see everything. It was amazing.
Wow. I just came back from Greenbelt 3 Park, where Michael Johns did his last show here in Manila (21 November 2008). I was so torn up that I couldn’t go to his show at Glorietta two days ago, but I had stuff to do. For some strange reason, I forgot to call to reserve a ticket beforehand – I guess I was sort of hoping that there weren’t that many people who would show up. At any rate, when I got there at around 6:30 pm, the tickets were sold out. Too bad. I had to find a spot at the balcony to see him.
I couldn’t believe it when he went on stage, because I was finally seeing him in person (albeit from quite a distance). He was my favorite Idol last season and I was torn up when he was eliminated so early in the game. I’m such a huge fan of American Idol, and he’s the first Idol I’ve seen (“not the Idol, just… an” as he once said about himself).
The problem was that my parents borrowed my camera yesterday, so I had no choice but to bring my old camera, which suddenly died on me even though the batteries were new. There’s something wrong about it but I haven’t bothered to have it checked yet. Sheesh. And to top it all off, both my mobile phones died on me too, so I wasn’t able to take one single picture or video.
I also forgot to list down the songs he performed, but I really loved his song choice! Here are some of the songs I remember (not in any particular order). These are all classics.
Yellow by Coldplay
Wonderwall by Oasis
Plush by Stone Temple Pilots
Come Together by The Beatles
Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day
Purple Rain by Prince (encore)
These were the songs he performed which he also did in American Idol:
Don’t You (Forget About Me) by Simple Minds
It’s All Wrong But It’s All Right by Dolly Parton
Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen
We Will Rock You / We Are the Champions by Queen
He also performed his original song, “Feelin’ Alright” which I think will be released as a single next year.
It’s weird though, when I checked YouTube for songs uploaded from his other perfomances here in Manila (in Trinoma, Alabang Center and Glorietta), it seems he sang The Doors’ “Light My Fire” and Pearl Jam’s “Daughter,” which I don’t remember him singing in Greenbelt earlier. I could be wrong though…
I do remember that he was a bit hoarse and his voice was strained. He’s probably not used either to the climate (he kept mentioning that it was very hot on stage) or to performing for four nights in a row. But he still did remarkably well, and you’d never think that he was tired. I was very much amused by the way he dances and how he moves around the stage.
My favorite performance were “Bohemian Rhapsody” (he only did the first part, until “Nothing really matters…”) and “It’s All Wrong But It’s All Right.” Those two were my favorites in American Idol, and they were my favorites live too.
Anyway, here’s a pretty good video of MJ in Glorietta singing “Wonderwall,” which he said is one of his favorite songs.
I’ve always loved Alicia Keys because she’s my age, she plays the piano (and a pink piano too in her Karma music video), she has a big voice that sounds bluesy, and she’s got STYLE. And to top it all off, she reminds me of the time I first started going out with my boyfriend, Sidney (it’s a long story, so I won’t delve into that).
We went to see her live at the SMX Convention Center in SM Mall of Asia last 05 August 2008 (Tuesday). It was supposed to be at the open-air concert grounds, but they had to move it in because of the weather. Before I start with my rave review though, I have to get the following rants out of the way:
1. The concert started late. The front acts opened the show at around 8:30 pm, while Alicia Keys came on after 10:00 pm. I wouldn’t mind waiting for her for an hour and a half, but I wish they didn’t play some random music while we were waiting. Couldn’t they at least have played some Alicia Keys?
2. The lights were on at the “bronze” area (or General Admission) during the front acts. It felt as if the people in the “silver” area (nearer the stage) were having a concert, and we were spectators outside the venue. Plus the giant screens weren’t on, so I couldn’t see Luke Mijares and Duncan Ramos.
3. The people who bought Php900 and Php500 tickets were all lumped in one area. Thankfully, I bought the Php500 tickets so it didn’t matter to me, but I can understand why people who bought the more expensive tickets were so pissed.
Okay, so enough complaints. Really, Alicia Keys was phenomenal! Unlike some singers out there who don’t sound so good when they’re performing live, she sounded even better during the concert than she does on her albums!
Unfortunately I forgot to list down all the songs she performed in order, but here are some random memories from the concert:
1. She opened with a song I wasn’t familiar with, but it got the crowd going and we all instantly forgave her for being so late.
2. She started “Superwoman” by rapping the lines, “still when I’m a mess, I still put on a vest with an S on my chest, oh yes.” It is now officially my second favorite Alicia Keys line, but mainly because the S reminds me of my, uh, boyfriend Sidney. Plus I have a pink shirt with an S on the chest (actually, it’s the Superman logo).
3. I’m putting up a video of her performance of “Karma,” which they rearranged by giving it a salsa beat. It was so unexpected, yet so danceable. I have a video of the performance as well, but since I was further from the stage (than the person who shot this) and I wasn’t able to film the entire song, I decided to put this video clip instead which I found in YouTube (thanks to user standard123123).
4. She sung only her parts in “My Boo” so it was pretty short, but at least I got to hear her sing my favorite Alicia Keys line live, “Yes I remember boy, the moment I knew you were the one I could spend my life with.”
5. Her performance of “Teenage Love Affair” sort of reminded me of Destiny’s Child (since she was doing some choreography with her two backup singers. She looks a little weird sometimes when she’s dancing, but it’s all good. The fans appreciate the effort.
6. “Fallin” was one of the most loudly cheered performance. I think it’s still her best song because it really showcases her musicality and range. It was so great to see her play the piano and sing it to the crowd.
7. It was a treat to hear Alicia Keys and Jermaine Dupri singing “Diary.”
8. She played other favorites like “Unbreakable,” “You Don’t Know My Name” and “Like You’ll Never See Me.” I missed hearing “Girlfriend” and “Goodbye” though.
9. “No One” was one of my favorite songs, and she played it for her “encore.” It was a great way to end the night, but I knew she had another song up her sleeve since she hasn’t sung “If I Ain’t Got You” yet.
10. For her real encore, she did “If I Ain’t Got You.” Although I’d have liked it if she ended on a happier, more upbeat note (like “No One”), I understand how she said this song is appropriate because she knows she wouldn’t be here if she ain’t got us (her Filipino fans).
I’m so glad I got to see Paramore again, in Singapore this time, and minus drummer Zac Farro. When I first saw them in Manila last year, Josh Farro wasn’t with them because he was too busy planning his wedding. The concert was held on 21 August 2011 at Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Sunny Feels 
