Reo Brothers

The Reo Brothers is a Filipino band composed of four brothers. The band perform renditions of 1950s–1970s music such as that of The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Dave Clark Five, Bee Gees, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, The Lettermen, America, The Ventures, VST & Co. and other prominent bands of the era. The band became more popular after they performed at the ABS-CBN Christmas Special 2013 in Araneta Coliseum. It was a concert graced by over a hundred local stars and celebrities but it was Reo Brothers band that drew the only standing ovation that night.

Background

Formation and early years in Tacloban (2005-2013) 
It was in 2005 when Ronjoseph made drums from tin cans covered with chips packaging bags. He fixed it up and started learning to play the drums on his own. After learning to play the drums, he then mastered playing the guitar and passed the skills to his other three siblings, Ralph, Reno and Raymart. They started playing OPM songs and songs inspired by their father's (Reynaldo Otic) collection of 1950s to 1970s songs of The Beatles, Bee Gees, Cliff Richard etc.

It was October 2008 when Roger David Gabero Bichachi, an employee of the City Mayor's Office of Tacloban and a member of PGBI (Philippine Guardians Brotherhood Inc) Tacloban Chapter saw them jam with their friends, singing and playing their improvised instruments. Bichachi then invited them to his birthday party to sing some songs of The Beatles with Ronjoseph as lead vocalist and acoustic guitar player. Bichachi was so impressed with the Otic siblings, he then pledged to help with the band formation. He bought them their musical instruments and requested the band to play for his other parties and events. The band mastered some songs until they created their playlist for gigs, events and competitions. They were later discovered by Bia Ong, a friend and previous employer of Bichachi. Bia Ong is a retired musician, a member of the Biatles band, a band that did renditions of The Beatles songs and other prominent bands of that era in Tacloban during the 1970s through the 1990s. He mentored and trained the Otic siblings and gave them support.

The band was then called PGBI-RDGB (abbreviation for Philippine Guardians Brotherhood Inc - Roger David Gabero Bichachi).

The first line-up consisted of Ronjoseph on vocals, Ralph on bass guitar, Raymart on rhythm guitar and Reno on drums.

They started singing through competitions and events in 2009 to earn a living. Since their father did not have a stable job, singing through these events was a big help in sending them to school and for their family's financial needs.

They later changed the name of the band to Reo Brothers, derived from the first letters of their first name, middle name and surname. 'R' for Reno, Ronjoseph, Raymart and Ralph, 'E' for Evasco, their mother's maiden name and 'O' for Otic, their surname.

More people noticed the band as they went from gig to gig. On June 22, 2012, they met Reynaldo Fuentes. He was so impressed with the band that he gave them his calling card and told them to contact him in case they decided to come to Manila.

The band was featured twice on a local religious TV channel in Tacloban. They were contented living in Tacloban, where they became popular and earned enough for their financial needs, until a super typhoon, Haiyan, known as Typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines, hit Tacloban.

Super Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban (November 2013) 
Super Typhoon Haiyan hit Tacloban, Philippines on November 8, 2013. There was widespread devastation from the storm surge in Tacloban City with many buildings and trees destroyed, and cars piled up. The low-lying areas on the eastern side of Tacloban city were the hardest hit, with some areas completely washed away.

The Otic family survived from the super typhoon but the devastation left the family penniless. It was 2 days after the typhoon that Raymart got the chance to communicate with their other siblings residing in Manila via a social networking site. Their siblings in Manila immediately decided to bring the whole family to Manila. The Otic family had to walk for more than an hour to reach the bus terminal from which they were fetched by their brother-in-law, a bus driver of Philtranco Bus Company. They only brought their guitars, some clothes and subsisted only on biscuits, a gallon of water and candies on their entire trip. It took them more than two days to reach Manila. They stayed in a small apartment in Quezon City.

Reo Brothers in Manila (November 2013 to present) 
After a week in Manila, they remembered the calling card given by Fuentes on one of their gigs in Tacloban. They successfully made contact and met up with Fuentes. He then referred them to his friend Tom Banguis Jr., a businessman and band adviser.  On November 26, 2013 at the InfinitiF, a professional band rehearsal studio in Makati, Banguis asked them to play three selections. After hearing the band play and sing, Banguis and his band ended up clapping. According to Banguis, they performed with polish and finesse normally associated only with mature, much older professional bands. He then called up Bobby Caparas, general manager of the Primos Cuisine and Lounge, and implored him to give these Tacloban boys a break, even if it was just for a meal and transport money. Caparas then booked a slot on Thursday, November 28. The audience was so impressed with their first gig and did not want them to stop playing that night, and the boys gladly obliged, perhaps overwhelmed too with the crowd’s appreciation. The Primos management then announced that the band would be back the following evening, Friday, November 29. The Friday evening crowd was just as enthusiastic and appreciative of the band that played almost 3 hours of continuous music. More than just a repeat “one-shot” performance, Primos then engaged the band to regular gigs on Tuesday evenings, which provided them needed presence and stability in Manila, where they decided to stay while Tacloban was slowly rebuilding.

Banguis decided to share their story to the national television networks in the Philippines. ABS-CBN responded to the letter and wanted the band to appear on their annual Christmas celebration dubbed as Kwento ng Pasko – Pag-asa at Pagbangon on Tuesday, December 10 at Araneta Coliseum, which was aired on December 14–15.

International success 
The band performed at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York for the Pinoy Relief Benefit Concert on March 11, 2014 with other performers such as Jennifer Hudson, Pentatonix, Plain White T's, A Great Big World, Jessica Sanchez, apl.de.ap, DJ Poet Name Life and Charice.

After their performance in New York, the band also performed for a benefit concert dubbed as 'Here Comes the Sun' in Southern California, presented by Rotary Club of Historic Filipino Town in Glendale.

On June 14, 2014, the band performed at the Sun Pearl Arakawa, Tokyo, Japan dubbed as 'Damo Nga Salamat' ("Thank You Very Much"), a thanksgiving concert presented by The Philippine Assistance Group. The event featured Reo Brothers with guests Charito, FilCom Chorale and Sayaka Akimoto.

They became the first Filipino musicians to perform at the historic Cavern Club in Liverpool, England, the birthplace of iconic British band The Beatles. The brothers did a 3 day UK tour; on August 1 at Cavern Club in Liverpool, on August 2 at Bournbrook and Selly Oak Social Club in Birmingham and on August 3, 2014 at Northumberland Theatre in London.

After almost three months, the band was back in the United Kingdom for their second tour. They performed at Cavern Club (Liverpool, England) on August 31, at Ten Foundation (Belfast, Northern Ireland) on November 2, at Benwell & Springback Club (Newcastle upon Tyne) on November 7 and at The Dome (London) on November 9, 2014.

Discography

Studio albums

Television appearances

Band members
Reno – lead vocals; drums
Ronjoseph – lead vocals; lead guitar 
Raymart – lead vocals; rhythm guitar
Ralph – lead vocals; bass

External links 
The Story of Reo Brothers Band
 'Yolanda' survivors perform at 'Kwento ng Pasko'
Standing ovation for Tacloban's Reo Brothers at ABS-CBN's 'Kwento ng Pasko'
REO brothers band survives through music, with inspiration and hope for better future
HOW MUSIC HELPED REO BROTHERS AFTER 'YOLANDA'
How Pinoy Beatles group survived 'Yolanda' and got to America
Young band from Tacloban wins ovation in Yolanda benefit concert in NY
Tacloban's Reo Brothers Band will Perform in NY with Jenni

References 

Category:Cover bands
Category:Sibling musical groups
Category:Filipino rock music groups
Category:Musical groups from Leyte
Category:Musical groups from Quezon City
Category:Star Music artists
Category:Musical groups established in 2009