The bad and the beautiful: What happened at Wanderland 2016

The Wanderland Music and Arts Festival happened last Saturday. Photo: Wanderland FB

The scorching Manila heat could not dampen the mood of the crowd at this year’s Wanderland Music and Arts Festival. People started packing the Globe Circuit Events Grounds as early as noon on Saturday, and the crowd continued to swell to thousands. By 4 p.m., one could already see that the event was a success.

Here’s what went down last March 5 at what might have been the biggest music festival Manila has seen so far.

The Bad

Let’s start with the festival’s share of the strange and the unsettling. A friend told a story about a couple aggressively squeezing themselves to the front, then offering money to strangers just so they could stay in the first row.

These things would most probably be beyond the organizers’ control, but I’m hoping that more attendees would do their part in showing respect to the people around them. Everyone wants to have a good time, and everyone wants to listen.

These actions are not only insulting, but also downright ludicrous. Everyone was wise enough not to accept the offer, because who does that?

There were designated lines for all types of beverages. While these were easy to spot in the venue, things got a bit inconvenient. People who needed water had to line up with people who wanted beer, and before they could, they needed to first load up their electronic bracelets with money, as the concessionaires did not accept cash. This could be problematic, especially for people who just needed to hydrate, because the summer heat was just too brutal.

A comment by attendee Hershey Castro on the Wanderland Facebook page read: “I've never wanted so much water in my whole life. Why do you have to make it so hard for us? Let the other concessionaires sell drinks too. And bring back the cash-as-payment system.”

Bouncers were great at following rules, but it seemed like they followed them too much. I witnessed a girl, who had a media bracelet, practically begging a bouncer at the VIP restroom entrance to let her in, explaining that she wouldn’t make it to the Portalets on the other side of the venue. She was repeatedly rebuffed, with the guards even implying over and over: you may not pee here; you can buy drinks at the VIP bar, but you cannot pee here. Maybe she just didn’t want to take a hike to the regular restrooms, but this could have also turned into a medical emergency.

Lastly, the aftermath of the event grounds was just too heartbreaking to look at. Plastic cups, discarded containers, and unfinished food were everywhere.

Somebody joked that she stood on a slice of bread during Death Cab for Cutie’s set.

These things are common at big events, but they can be controlled, with the attendees’ participation, of course.

The Good

Now that all of these are out of the way, let’s focus on the good stuff.

Flowers for sale at Wanderland. Photo: Bong Sta. Maria

The well-curated lineup catered to both young and new audiences. Local act Oh, Flamingo kicked off the event with energetic tunes that proved why they were chosen to be this year’s Wanderband (every year, Wanderland picks one unsigned band to be part of the festival), followed by the always smooth Jensen and the Flips, and the energetic Cheats, who just represented the country in this year’s Laneway Festival in Singapore.

Curtismith, CRWN, and Jess Connelly, as well as international acts Panama, San Cisco, Chad Valley, and Blackbird Blackbird kept everyone on their feet. I’d only heard of most of these bands after the Wanderland lineup was revealed, so it was refreshing to hear new music—the festival did a great job in choosing them.

It looked like New Zealand band The Naked and Famous was the reason for the loud screams from the crowd. At the rate these guys are going, and with the great material they have released so far, it looks like they will be around for a very long time.

Aside from the music, the festival also made sure that the venue was packed with sights and activities to keep everyone entertained: ukuleles, live art, even an area where you could buy daisies and sunflowers—definitely a first in my festival book (the farthest I got were insanely pricey flower crowns at last year’s Laneway Festival).

Staying true to this year’s Space theme, attendees could send Postcards From Space, get their faces painted at The Flagship, roll like Wayne Coyne in the Zorbit, enjoy trippy lights and mirrors at The Black Hole, and bounce on the Sky High trampoline.

A great selection of food was also available. From childhood favorite Food Channel to good coffee by Magpie Café, the festival also made sure that there was a wide selection of munchies to choose from.

The Beautiful

Fans already know for a fact that Justin Vernon is talented, and that Bon Iver is a great band. What most of us probably did not know was that these guys are simply unbelievable on stage, playing music that left everyone awestruck and quite possibly in shambles, but in a very good way.

Casually walking onstage with the rest of the band and kicking off the set with “Perth,” frontman Vernon performed the songs impeccably. They played with the Stavely-Taylor sisters, otherwise known as English folk trio The Staves, providing an almost haunting backup to the songs.

Bon Iver and The Staves. Photo: Bong Sta. Maria

The band performed songs from their two critically acclaimed studio albums For Emma, Forever Ago (“Blindsided,” “Skinny Love,” “The Wolves Act I and II”) and Bon Iver, Bon Iver (“Towers,” “Holocene,” “Calgary”) as well as EP Blood Bank (“Woods”). They also surprised the audience by performing the arresting “Heavenly Father,” which was released in 2014 for a Zach Braff film.

The entire performance filled with too much love, and I saw it everywhere: the crowd was filled with smiles, I saw someone apologizing to a companion for crying, some were gaping, some were cursing, one held on to his chest, as if his heart was ready to tear his chest open.

It was exhilarating to see music played so well, but another huge band was going to play next: Death Cab for Cutie.

Ben Gibbard, a musician I have adored for many years, and one of my most favorite songwriters, started the set with “No Room in Frame,” the first track off their latest album Kintsugi and “Crooked Teeth” off Plans.

Death Cab for Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard. Photo: Wanderland FB

Songs from albums spanning the band’s more than a decade-long career were spread throughout the set: "Cath" and "I Will Possess Your Heart" off Narrow Stairs, "Marching Bands of Manhattan," "What Sarah Said," and "I Will Follow You Into the Dark" off Plans, "The New Year" and "Title and Registration" off Transatlanticism.

There was also a great surprise of "Why You'd Want to Live Here" from 2001's The Photo Album.

Most fans probably already had an idea what would cap off the night: “Transatlanticism,” arguably one of the band’s best songs, and to me, the band’s tour de force. This was my third time seeing the band perform live, and nothing has changed: still beautiful, still powerful, still enough to leave you with a confusing union of rapture and ache.

There were some noticeable setbacks in this year’s event, but fans are thankful for one very important thing: music. Bringing these artists in the country changed lives, and left thousands of fans happy. This year’s Wanderland could be the festival’s best one so far, and they have set the bar high for music festivals in the country. With fingers crossed, fans are hoping for bigger, better ones in the years to come. — BM, GMA News