Gin Blossoms in Manila

A couple of weeks ago, I substituted in a sophomore English class. One especially friendly student, Julian, chatted me up about music. He was all praises about the music of the 90s, the music of my generation. And no, he wasn't referring to the Spice Girls or the Backstreet Boys.

He was talking about "alternative music," and how he was soooo jealous that I got to be a teenager and have Gin Blossoms and Matchbox 20 and Third Eye Blind be the soundtrack to my angst.



And all at once, it came back. Those wonderfully edgy and jangly songs, with those bittersweet lyrics that to me, sounded like the best kind of poetry. The compilation CD called "Alternative Tongue," with its red jacket and songs by U2, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Counting Crows. It was one of the last things I could remember that my sister, my brother and I agreed on, before we led our separate, adult lives.

I remembered that conversation with Julian this morning, when I read in Facebook that Gin Blossoms will be playing in Manila this November.

click the image for a larger view

I remembered also, the dark hallways of my high school, the nervous anticipation as we waited to go onstage, where my friends and I did a cover of "As Long As It Matters."

Tour dates are as follows:

November 18, 2010 at Araneta Coliseum in Manila
November 20, 2010 at Waterfront hotel in Cebu.