Life after Eraserheads: Where they went after the noise

As “Combo on the Run” streams on Netflix, a look at how Ely, Raymund, Buddy, and Marcus rewrote their stories.

When Eraserheads officially broke up in 2002, it felt less like a band disbanding and more like an era collapsing in real time.

For years, they were everywhere—on cassette tapes inside jeepneys, in noisy dorm rooms, on radios playing past midnight. Then suddenly, silence. Fans searched for answers while the four members quietly drifted into different lives, carrying both the weight and shadow of what Eraserheads had become.

But the story did not end with the breakup.

It simply split into four separate timelines.

Ely Buendia: Escaping the shadow of Eraserheads

After the split, Ely Buendia seemed determined to prove he was more than the face of a legendary band.

He explored darker and more experimental music through projects like The Mongols before eventually forming Apartel. Compared to Eraserheads’ catchy college-rock sound, Apartel felt moodier and cinematic—almost like Buendia rebuilding himself from scratch.

Over the years, he also became a mentor figure in OPM, launching Offshore Music to support younger Filipino artists.

Yet no matter how far he moved creatively, Eraserheads followed him everywhere. Every reunion performance became proof that the songs had outgrown the band itself.

In 2023, Buendia first teased an Eraserheads documentary later revealed as “Combo on the Run,” directed by Maria Diane Ventura. The film reportedly dives into the band’s complicated relationships, with each member interviewed separately—creating moments where even they discovered new truths about one another while watching the final cut.

Raymund Marasigan: The one who never stopped moving

While the breakup slowed others down, Raymund Marasigan kept pushing forward.

He remained one of the most active figures in OPM, continuing to perform with Sandwich and later with experimental project Squid9.

Marasigan evolved with every generation of Filipino music instead of staying trapped in nostalgia. Younger bands still look at him as proof that longevity in the industry is possible without losing relevance.

Even decades after Eraserheads’ peak, he still performs with the same intensity that made him one of the defining drummers of Filipino rock.

Buddy Zabala: The quiet constant

Among the four, Buddy Zabala perhaps changed the least publicly.

Away from the noise of fame, he continued producing music and playing bass for Moonstar88. While others chased reinvention, Zabala stayed deeply rooted in the music scene itself.

He became known less for celebrity and more for craftsmanship—the steady presence behind records, gigs, and collaborations that helped shape modern OPM quietly but consistently.

Marcus Adoro: The most complicated chapter

For years after the breakup, Marcus Adoro remained the most elusive member.

He focused on visual art and solo music under Markus Highway, maintaining a low public profile compared to the others. But in September 2019, controversy surrounding Adoro resurfaced after his daughter, singer Syd Hartha, and his former partner, actress Barbara Ruaro, posted statements on social media suggesting physical and psychological abuse.

The issue shocked longtime fans and became another reason many believed Eraserheads would never reunite again. Reports and public conversations at the time suggested even the other members were hesitant, fearing the band’s legacy would be dragged into the controversy surrounding Adoro.

For a while, the possibility of another reunion felt impossible.

The reunion that still happened

And yet, somehow, the band returned.

From reunion concerts in 2008 and 2009 to the massive “Huling El Bimbo” show in 2022 attended by around 75,000 fans, Eraserheads proved that their connection with Filipinos had survived every breakup, controversy, and passing year.

Parents now sing the same songs they once played in college to their own children. Younger fans who never witnessed the band’s original run still memorize every lyric like inherited memory.

Perhaps that is the strangest thing about Eraserheads.

The band broke apart more than two decades ago, but the story never really stopped. It just continued through separate lives, unfinished conversations, and the music that refused to disappear.

Incidentally, the reimagined cut of “Eraserheads: Combo on the Run,” streaming worldwide on Netflix since May 30, explores friendship, conflict, identity, and reconciliation, and remains accessible even to newcomers according to director Ventura. 

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