Take it from someone who has been in the band business for long and witnessed what it takes to be a good frontman. Naldy Gonzalez, the keyboard player, and mainstay of iconic live gig band Side A places his bet on a guy he describes as a vocalist who “truly puts in all his heart and has the soul.”
The man in question is Eich Abando, son of singer Joey Abando of Boyfriends fame. He is the frontman of upcoming band reasonably calling itself Heart & Soul and which credible music insiders hail as one “ready to conquer local RnB territory.”
“First time I heard Eich and his music, I knew right then and there that it’s just a matter of time before he becomes an added boost to OPM and to the rest of the music world,” assured Naldy, himself an OPM stalwart having steered Side A to its legendary status by way of longevity, some hit songs, and great reputation in terms of tight live-playing.
He has mentored his “brother in the business” and “fellow keyboard player” largely in part because he believes he has the “key ingredients in making really good music.”
Heart & Soul’s soon-to-be-released debut single “Kailan Kaya” is said to possess a relatable sound reminiscent of topnotch RnB bands South Border and Freestyle.
The song’s composer himself, Eich said of the piece, “All of us have experienced heartbreak at some point in our lives. It’s pretty relatable in that way as it reaches out to everyone who has lost a great love, but still waits for that love to come back.”
Heart & Soul’s management Actualizer Global informed that with “the band’s soulful vocal lines, sensual saxophone riffs, and spine-tingling falsetto notes,” the song “pierces the mournful Filipino heart in all the right places.” That it is published by Universal Music Publishing Philippines points to it being a piece bound for good mainstream exposure.
For listeners observing that pop, ballad and the indies dominate lately, this track is poised to take the RnB crowd by storm and into the 2020s with a good dosage of curly notes, pure mastery of the genre, and the right attitude.
Eich may be touted as a lead vocalist to watch for, but he’d rather share equal spotlight with Filipino-American Solomon “Sol” Glass, a former member of South Border, Mulatto, and Voices of Five. Together they form a strong singing duo complementing each other, instead of vocally clashing.
The group’s pool of instrumentalists, namely, guitarist Prince Verginiza, bassist Edgar Prieto, drummer Ramon Ramos, and saxophonist Ferdinand Daus is likewise a support system founded on considerable track records. All of them have played for local and international music greats.
Musical director Adonis Tabanda is also a welcome collaborator for the band.
To go along “Kailan Kaya’s” music and lyrics is a video directed by award-winning filmmaker Ice Idanan (Sakaling Hindi Makarating, Stranded), and featuring Miss Philippines Earth-Water Samantha Purvor.
