Rico Blanco auditioned as a rhythm guitarist/keyboard player for a yet unnamed new band that was managed by Lizza Nakpil and Chito Roño. He, along with Nathan Azarcon became the first two members of that band. Guitar player Kenneth Ilagan and drummer Rome Velayo completed the initial lineup with Blanco singing vocals. Jessie Gonzales was recruited later on to do the vocals, and Marc Escueta replaced Velayo on drums. Later on, Perfecto de Castro and Bamboo Manalac replaced the guitarist and vocalist, respectively.
With regards as to how the band's name was formed, Blanco really liked the name of Pinoy band Rizal Underground.
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He came up with hundreds of other possible names but Rivermaya was the one his bandmates chose. They were still planning to change it, but the first time they publicly called themselves Rivermaya, they all thought that it sounded right for them.
In the beginning, Rivermaya was at odds with the percolating music scene. In 1994, most of the bands had risen through the underground club scene. Their membership belonged to a loose community that gravitated around clubs such as Red Rocks and later, Club Dredd. They had paid their dues, but they hardly played any gigs until they landed a record deal, and almost immediately scored a hit single with "Ulan."
Rock snobs immediately came up with reasons not to like Rivermaya: They were too popular, too good-looking, their performances too tight, they were put together by managers who knew nothing about music, in effect, "manufactured." They were pitted against the Eraserheads, who according to Blanco were arguably the best band ever. He believed that to be pitted against a phenomenon was great training for the future.
One thing was undeniable, however: Rico Blanco could write songs.
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