Can you still recall the time when you patiently waited which OPM song topped the charts on Myx, or when you try to record the radio stations that used to play them on their tracklist? How about listing down these songs and burn it to a cd for a personalized playlist? Senti moments or music session with your friends—these OPM bands made songs that have taken a big part in our daily lives back then.

The decade of 1990s to early 2000s is considered by a lot of Filipinos as the golden era of music in the Filipino music scene. It was also the decade that paved way to different Filipino bands that we are seeing today.

Ang Huling El Bimbo, 214, Rainbow are just some of the songs that bring back nostalgia and can still be heard everywhere up until now. And to bring back that 90s feels, we list down our 10 all-time favourite Filipino bands.

1. Eraserheads

The Eraserheads is one of the most relevant musicians in the history of rock music up to this day. Most of the 90s kids described them as the Philippines’ The Beatles. The band is composed of Ely Buendia, Buddy Zabala, Raimund Marasigan, and Marcus Adoro. Eraserheads popularized songs like “Huling El Bimbo,” “With A Smile,” and “Pare Ko.” After releasing their seventh studio album, vocalist Ely Buendia decided to leave the band. On March 7, 2009, the band went on stage at the SM Mall of Asia for their second reunion concert named The Final Set, which was attended by approximately 100,00 people, a proof how prominent the band is in the country. It was just last year, 2019 when the iconic group had a mini reunion as they performed at the Eton Centris Park in Quezon City.

2. Orange and Lemons

Any kid who grew up in early 2000s can surely still remember the iconic song “Pinoy Ako” which is also the official theme song of the most popular reality TV show in the Philippines—Pinoy Big Brother. Orange and Lemons were composed of Mcoy Fundales; who was also once a housemate of the said TV show, Clementine Castro, JM Del Mundo, and Ace Del Mundo. Their other famous hits include “Hanggang Kailan (Umuwi Ka Na Baby), “Aboy Kamay,” and “Yakap Sa Dilim.” (Originally by APO Hiking Society. It was in 2007 when the band had reportedly broken up. The reason of the disbandment was said to be the differences between the members and managers. On 2019, exactly after 10 years of disbandment, Orange and Lemons reunited and released a new single entitled “Pag-ibig Sa Dagat” which was written by member Clementine Castro, and said it was an old song written in 2007.

3. MYMP

MYMP, which stands for Make Your Momma Proud, is an acoustic band famous for their songs “Tell Me Where It Hurts,” and “Specially For You,” and “Get Me.” On October 1, 2005, the band had their first major concert. The success of the concert prompted them to have another one at the Araneta Coliseum on November 18, 2005, then followed by another on February 3, 2006. All of the concerts were sold-out. The group went on hiatus after the announcement of the vocalist Juris Fernandez leaving the band on November 5, 2009. In 2018, in an article released by Philstar.com, MYMP announced that they are still on the roll as the band guitarist Chin Alcantara explained that the band never disbanded. According to him, MYMP is still very much active in the live music scene, as their schedule is packed with gigs, inside and outside of the country.

4. Rivermaya

Rivermaya is a Filipino rock band composed of original members Rico Blanco, Mike Elgar, Nathan Azarcon, Perf de Castro, and Bamboo Mañalac who later on formed another band Bamboo and eventually went on his solo career as to date. Formed in 1994, it is one of several bands who spearheaded the 1990s Philippine alternative rock explosion. They became popular with their songs “Kisapmata,” “214,” “Umaaraw, Umuulan,” and “Liwanag Sa Dilim.” It was just this year when Bamboo broke silence and shut down the possibility of having a reunion with former Rivermaya members in an article released by Philstar.com.

“I don’t think so. I’ll never say never, I’ll never say never pero I don’t think so because again, it sort of goes against what I do, what I believe," Bamboo said.

However, Bamboo also clarified that he is still in good terms with other members of Rivermaya.

5. South Borders

South Border is a Filipino pop and R&B band originally formed in the 1993 who gained recognition in the music scene in the late 1990s to the 2000s. The band’s most popular songs include “Rainbow,””Kahit Kailan,” and “Ikaw Nga.” The band’s name is a tribute to their roots in Davao down south. South Border had their first major concert at the Araneta Coliseum and as expected, thousands of fans filled the enormous dome. On June 26, 2020, they were featured as guest performers on The TODAY Show on NBC and were commented on as "the Boyz II Men of the Philippines".

6. Cueshé

Cueshé—consists of members Ruben Caballero, Jovan Mabini, Fritz Labrado, Cesar delos Santos, is a Filipino pop rock band based in Cebu, Philippines, and is currently based in Manila. The band is formed in 1998 and became popular with their songs “Borrowed Time,” “Stay,” and “Ulan.” On 2015, the band released a new single titled "Ikaw Lamang,” the music video premiered in September 2015. The band still continues to perform on stage and was invited to perform at UP Los Banos just this year, April 2020.

7. 6cyclemind

6cyclemind—founded in 2001, is a Filipino rock band with members Ney Dimaculangan, Tito Fortunato Caringal II, Ryan Sarmiento, Roberto Cañamo, Herbert Hernandez, and Vic Aquino. The band’s most popular songs include “Upside Down,” “Prinsesa,” and “Sige.” In 2018, the band renewed contract with Star Music and released their 2020 version of their old single “I” featuring Twenty Nine Eleven on June, 2019. The latest song has garnered more than 700,000 streams as of writing.

8. Parokya ni Edgar

Parokya ni Edgar, formed in 1993, is composed of vocalists Chito Miranda, Jeric Estaco, and Vinci Montaner, along with guitarists Mikko Yap and Gab Chee Kee. The name “Parokya Ni Edgar” actually came from a joke by a classmate named Bambi Cuna during one of their high school classes. The band’s popular songs include “Your Song,” “Halaga,” and “Harana.” It was just this year, February 2020 when Parokya ni Edgar and Kamikazee announce that they are working on a new song together, as it was posted via Instagram featuring Parokya ni Edgar’ Chito Miranda with members of Kamikazee.

9. Silent Sanctuary

Silent Sanctuary is a rock band with violins and a cello in most of their songs which make them melodramatic. Composed of members Paolo Legaspi, Allen Calixto, Anjo Inacay, Chino David, and Sarkie Sarangay, Silent Sanctuary was formed in 2001, and became popular with their songs like “Ikaw Lamang,” “Kundiman,” and “Rebound.” It took the band three years before they became able to release a full-length album called Ellipsis of the Mind. On July 24, 2020. Silent Sanctuary dropped their latest single entitled “Himala,”

10. Kamikazee

Filipino rock band Kamikazee was formed in 2000, composed of Jay Contreras, Jomal Linao, Led Tuyay, Puto Astete, and Bords Burdeos. The band’s most famous songs are “Narda," "Tagpuan," and “Huling Sayaw”. Kamikazee went on hiatus after their farewell concert named “Huling Sayaw” on December 2015 and the reason according to them was because of their “family”. Although the band then had a reunion gigs and tours since 2017. On May 2020, Jay Contreras and wife Sarah Abad officially broke up, as Abad confirmed on her Instagram story. In February 2020, Kamikazee announced new line-up which includes two new members Mikki Jill, and Jian Lubiano, as they posted a photo on their social media accounts.

Millennials should consider themselves lucky to witness these bands invading the music scene in the country before. These bands will always have a special place in our hearts, truly, the gems of OPM.