Cigarettes After Sex Make A Dreamy Return To Manila For Their Biggest Show Yet – Review

In the Philippines, music about love — especially the kind that explores the raw emotions of heartbreak, longing, and yearning — has always held a special place in the cultural landscape.

Filipino audiences have a deep connection to these themes, often drawn to the soulful vulnerability of love songs that reflect the universal pain of unrequited affection and lost relationships. Such fondness for these themes has drawn the majority of Filipino listeners towards Cigarettes After Sex, who with their ethereal sound and emotionally charged lyrics, have weaved a soundtrack that echoes the bittersweet nature of Filipino romance.

For their second time performing in Manila, the beloved dream pop band brought back their signature brand of melancholy, and ambient sounds to a sold-out SM Mall of Asia Arena (a massive upgrade from their last show at the Vertis Tent), captivating thousands of fans who share an enduring love for impassioned and heart-wrenching love songs.

The crowd, dressed in shades of black and gray, created a sea of monochrome that mirrored the melancholic tone of the evening. This dark, muted palette — both in the audience’s attire and the set design — set the perfect stage for the dreamy, reverberating world the group would soon transform into.

From the moment the lights dimmed and the first notes of music began, the venue transformed into a surreal, almost otherworldly space as if the ordinary world outside the Mall of Asia complex had ceased to exist. Fans swayed and lost themselves in the spellbinding, cinematic atmosphere that the band conjured from the very first note of their opening track, “X’s.”

The trio curated a setlist that seamlessly blended their newest tracks from X‘s, their third studio album, with fan-favorite classics, crafting a journey that was as much about emotional intimacy as it was about atmospheric exploration. The opening segment of the show featured some of their most recent songs, including “You’re All I Want,” “Dark Vacay,” “Dreams From Bunker Hill,” and “Tejano Blue.”

Such haunting tracks set the tone for the night, slowly drawing the audience into the immersive soundscape for which the band is highly regarded. Each song served as a layer, building an emotional depth that resonated with the crowd’s own sense of longing and desire (which one could easily note from the number of couples locked onto one another).

As the night progressed, the show delved even deeper into the band’s discography, taking on a more personal and intimate feel. The crowd’s energy shifted when Cigarettes After Sex performed some of their beloved older hits, such as “Pistol,” “Nothing’s Gonna Hurt You Baby,” “John Wayne,” and “Sesame Syrup.” These songs, beloved by fans for their simplicity and emotional rawness, further deepened the connection between the band and the audience.

But it was in the quieter, more introspective moments of the show that the band truly captivated their audience. As they moved through songs like “Cry,” “Sweet,” “Sunsetz,” “Heavenly,” “K.,” and “Dreaming of You,” the fans’ emotions ran high. The atmosphere in the arena became charged, with many in the crowd visibly moved, their eyes glistening with tears as the wistful melodies filled the space. The collective emotional experience was undeniable, as the audience swayed gently in time with the reverb-heavy rhythms, some singing along with raw, heartfelt intensity.

The night reached its emotional apex when the band launched into their most iconic track, “Apocalypse.” The crowd’s response was nothing short of ecstatic — cheers erupted, and fans sang the song’s bittersweet lyrics with passion, swaying as though in a trance. The reverb-heavy, cinematic quality of the ballad seemed to fill every corner of the arena, resonating with the fans’ own personal heartaches and desires. For a few moments, it felt as if the music itself became a shared experience, a collective catharsis that bound the crowd together.

As the final notes of “Opera House” echoed through the arena, the crowd remained enraptured, begging for more after the encore. The band’s lead singer Greg Gonzalez took a moment to express his gratitude for the incredible support they had received, promising that they would return sooner rather than later. He then approached several corners of the peripheral area of the floor standing section, signing trinkets, taking photos, and acknowledging a variety of fan signs that showered him with love.

By the time Gonzalez and his bandmates had departed the stage, the applause that followed was thunderous, marking a testament to the deep connection the band had forged with their Filipino audience. The show proper itself may have ended, but one could easily note that the leftover emotions still lingered, suspended in the air like smoke.

For Cigarettes After Sex, their one-night-only, sold-out Manila show was not just your usual return; it also served as an immersive experience that carried audiences away to a different realm — one where love, longing, and heartbreak mingled in the air to become a spiritual experience of its own. It was a night where, as fleeting and elusive as the smoke itself, the crowd could lose themselves completely in the rapture of the band’s haunting, dreamlike sound.

Listen to Cigarettes After Sex’s third studio album X’s below: