the necessary vacation

almost a year ago, i received a text message that changed a part of my life that till then, seemed permanent and easy-going to the point it was easily taken for granted. it's an sms sent to the three auxiliary members of the "sando" band: to me, to mike lagman, and to jp cruz.

it's a message from the "sando" band frontman sal reyes. a stern and seemingly irrevocable message that says he was quitting: leaving the band for personal reasons. he needed to focus his energy on his work, family and wedding preparations, which we all agreed was very important.

i tried to reason with him, and convinced him not to "quit" the band because of everything that led to what we have done, and because that would technically reduce the band to a headless chicken if we ever go ahead without him. he agreed, and we both called the situation a temporary hiatus -- to keep our hopes up, in case he'll be available at some point in the future.

towards the end of 2009, we already were starting to feel limited; we had to pass on some shows and opportunities because of schedule conflicts. at that time (before he sent the message), we were enjoying a cozy reception from several small groups of people and even new audiences, and we very much appreciated such warm support. we hesitated to let go of that small stake in the underground scene so after the "cool off" we tried to continue as a three-piece "sando" cover band, we called ourselves "multiplex". we had played as a trio before whenever sal wasn't available, but never as an official outfit sans sal.

we played once, at dayo bar, (kermit productions' last show (probably, for now)). but after a performance that didn't strike a chord within our hearts, we didn't try any other "multiplex" performances.

needless to say, i probably had the most difficult time accepting the hiatus. for a project we (somewhat) worked hard on, to end at a snap of a finger, was kinda hard to swallow (eventhough it was "temporary"); moreso since i co-founded this group, and i never missed a gig (i think).

together with my bandmates, i've endured early struggles, labored through adversities, and ironed out the kinks and wrinkles. but of course, there were good times, and there were more than a handful. that's why it was sad to see this house of cards crumbling down, it was sad because we haven't even scratched the ceiling yet. the time off may have been "temporary" but we all knew this was probably it.

a month passed after the "cool-off" and everyone was (not surprisingly) being more productive with our own stuff. everyone had a breather. aside from the itch to grab our guitars and drumsticks, to play to our heart's content, nothing really bothered us away from our stuff.

another month passed and we (or i maybe speaking for myself) started to admit that this was a necessary vacation. jp's business slowly but surely got going, then he met the love of his life, and it was smooth sailing from then on. mike set up his own business with his wife, and also got a new guitar later this year. as for myself, i started taking things more seriously at work, spent more time with family, but more importantly got my wife pregnant who gave birth recently to matthew rohan on december 2 -- the same date sal tied the knot with his then-girlfriend and now-wife (kudos buddy).

everything worked out the way it should, we even played several times this year at a new bar, headstock, near sal's family's place along quezon avenue.

things definitely changed but our bond remains strong, it was probably an end of an era, but i have to admit it was for the better. this vacation was necessary, and if i can go back in time, i definitely won't change a thing.