Orange and Lemons performs 'secret' show before official comeback

“Makikigulo lang kami,” apologized Clem Castro to the Friday night crowd that gathered at Mow’s Bar in Teacher’s Village, Quezon City. The crowd erupted in cheers. “Okay lang!” yelled back one patron to which Castro smiled.

It was New Wave Night with some top-notch indie bands such as We Are Imaginary and Paranoid City in the line-up. Yet, a surprise late additional performer, the newly reformed Orange and Lemons literally stole the show.

“Our real comeback show is slated for the 29th of September at 70’s Bistro,” Castro explained earlier as the band cooled their heels at a nearby hamburger joint a couple of hours before they were due to take the stage. “This is a secret show. Four songs – that’s it. A teaser if you want.”

“I’m nervous and excited,” offered drummer Ace Del Mundo while his brother and band bassist, JM sat nearby and nodded in agreement.

The coffee didn’t calm their nerves one bit. “It has been 10 years since we last performed. We performed some of the Orange and Lemons songs with Kenyo (the Del Mundo brothers’ band with Mcoy Fundales, the band’s other vocalist and guitarist who decided not the be a part of the comeback due to a rift with Castro) after ONL broke up in 2007. Masasabi ko lang, ay nakaka-miss.”

Ace revealed that he received entreaties from Clem for a reformation some time ago but he never gave it consideration. With Kenyo in hibernation as Fundales has been busy with his work, the brothers decided the time was right for a reunion even if the fourth member of the popular group is unavailable.

“Sabi ko, if okay sa kapatid ko then I’m in,” added JM.

“Hindi ko alam what kind of reaction we will get,” wondered Ace. “One thing we all agreed on is we are doing this to make music. Kung hindi magustuhan ng tao, okay lang; tuloy pa rin. Kung magustuhan, eh, wow… tignan natin kung saan tayo makakarating.”

Already the band has been busy recording a new song that will be revealed before their official comeback show by month’s end.

Leading up to the secret show at Mow’s, the appearance of ONL was kept a secret. Towards D-Day, the organizer dropped hints such as a poster online that featured Castro and the Del Mundo brothers in a crowd -- that is if you could spot them.

However, by 9:45 p.m., it was decided to announce it. After Paranoid City’s set (We Are Imaginary was the closing act), it was as if the lid of a pressure cooker was about to blow as the audience of some 50-plus people brimmed with excitement. They crowded the front area allotted for the band with cellphones and cameras ready to record the momentous event.

“Marami bang tao,” asked Ace while hanging outside by the holding room reserved for bands. He didn’t want to go inside until the band was due to take the stage.

He got his answer when past midnight, they took the stage (along with Castro’s occasional collaborator Rain Paggao on second guitar) to bedlam.

Their sound check had fans cheering. When the bass line to “A Beginning of Something Wonderful” (from their magnificent debut "Love in the Land of Rubber Shoes and Dirty Ice Cream") rumbled in the roar was deafening. Whatever trepidation ONL felt prior to the show evaporated. The fans sang along, some danced, while some lost their minds.

They segued into the Echo and the Bunnymen classic “Bring On the Dancing Horses” then to another original, “Caught In A Line” (from their second album "Strike Whilst the Iron is Hot") to which the crowd sang the chorus.

They closed their short but sweet set with the Smith’s “This Charming Man.”

“More” begged the crowd but just like that, ONL quickly exited to the holding room.

“That was good, huh?” said Castro as the bad sat down with the adrenaline still pumping. Ace, who articulated his nervousness and excitement no end broke out into a broad grin.

“Wow,” was the only word that emitted from his lips.

Next up: the comeback show on September 29 at 70’s Bistro that was the site of their last domestic show before the band parted ways in 2007.

“The venue is by design,” revealed Castro. “This is unfinished business.”