It’s been over three and a half years since Bruno Major was last in Manila. For his return, the musician is aiming to put on the show he’s always wanted.
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2023 is a big year for Bruno Major. The last time the musician treated the world to his body of work, it was during the thick of the pandemic as he was forced to cancel shows in support of his second studio album, To Let A Good Thing Die. But three years later, he’s back on the scene, and arguably better than ever as Bruno took the time away from the spotlight to build the world that is Columbo, his third studio album. The 12-track LP serves as the artist’s serves as his musical manifestation of his learnings, experiences, and insights over the past few years.
But beyond making music that hits on another level, Bruno is ready to take it to live stage with his upcoming tour, and that includes a stop at the New Frontier Theater on August 15. And considering that the local production company handling Bruno’s show had to upgrade the venue to a bigger location, we have a feeling his Filipino fans are ready for his return. The last time Bruno Major was in Manila was nearly four years ago as he was fresh of his debut LP. Now, two albums later, Bruno is set to treat his Filipino fans to more music, experiences and new stories that can only be felt in a concert.
Ahead of his return to Manila, we got the chance to catch-up with Bruno Major where he shared his touring plans, what it’s like to be going back to the Philippines, and more. Read on below for what he had to say.
How does it feel that you finally get to go back on tour after all these years?
I’m looking forward to playing these songs to people. Because I feel like when you write a song or you make a piece of music, it doesn’t really feel like you’ve finished it until you’ve played it on stage. It’s part of the creative process for me. So I’m looking forward to completing not only my new album, but my second album, because I never got to play that one live because of COVID.
What can your Filipino fans expect from your Manila show?
So I can’t wait to come and meet all my fans from all these different countries, even now it’s still mind blowing to me that I get to come to places on the other side of the world and there are people who want to hear my music
Aside from the concert, what other things are you hoping to do while in the Philippines
Hopefully I’ll have a little bit more time, last time I was there, I didn’t really get much time to hang out because I was in the show and then I left so yeah. Hopefully this time I can maybe go to some restaurants and check out some places and experience a bit more of the culture.
Do you have any pre-show rituals?
I do my vocal warmups, I just do stuff like <did a lip trill sound>, making sure my voice is warm, I have a nice warm tea, and then I’m probably going to warm up on my guitar as well play some scales and maybe practice a few other bits of the set that are trickier. I also don’t talk to anyone because I get nervous. I’m always kind of on my own and just kind of quiet.
Columbo is your first album in three years. How are you feeling now that the world will be able to listen to your latest body of work?
I mostly feel relief to be honest. It’s been so long, like, I’ve been working on this thing for two and a half years. And it’s just going to be such a wonderful feeling to have it out there finally being listened to. You know, it’s a weird feeling when you make music because it belongs to you, it’s like your own thing is like having a child you know, it lives at home, and you look after it. And then when you release it, it’s like the child leaves home and goes into the wild. And suddenly, it’s not yours anymore.
All of these songs for the last two and a half years, they’ve just belong to me, they’ve been my private feelings, and they’ve been the only things I hear. And now the whole world is going to be able to hear them and it’s amazing. It’s such a crazy feeling. It’s almost like people are looking inside your brain. So yeah, I’m just so happy because I’m really, really proud of this stuff. Really proud of this album. And yeah, just glad that people can enjoy it.
Which song/s on the album are you most excited for fans to hear?
For me, I wrote like 25-30 songs, and I reduced it down to 12. So I think that every song on the album is important, and I love each and everyone of them. But if I had to choose, I would say either “A Strange Kind Of Beautiful” or “18”.
You often like to mix your personal experiences into your music. However, how do you manage to find that balance between letting the public get to know you through your music while having that personal space to keep for yourself?
I’ve never made music or for any other reason than to express myself authentically in an artistic way. And I think that’s conversely why I do have a larger audience, because people can tell, you know. I’ve always viewed it as like, if I make it my goal to express myself artistically and make something that represents me in an honest way, then if I complete that task I’ve been successful, then it doesn’t matter if I release it and no one listens to it. Or if I release it and a million people listen to it, it doesn’t matter, because the goal was just to make it.
Conversely, if you make something and your goal is to get on the radio, or to get a certain amount of streams, or to make a certain amount of money, if you do it great, fantastic, you’ve been successful. But if you don’t do it, which is very possible, and 99 out of 100 artists that make music don’t achieve those things, then you’ve failed. And therefore, by setting goals that are empirical, such as streaming numbers, then you’re setting yourself up for failure, do you know what I mean? And it also means that you’re not really expressing yourself. You might as well just be selling Hoover’s or lighters, it’s just not the same thing.
What message do you have for your Filipino fans?
It’s been three and a half years since I played a show and I can’t wait to come and play for you all and thank you so much for your support over the years cause it really means a lot.
Photos by Neil Krug
Get your tickets now to Bruno Major’s Manila show here.
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