For fans who watched IV of Spades’ members go their separate ways, Sunday’s Queens concert offers a reunion years in the making: Unique Salonga, Zild Benitez, Blaster Silonga and Badjao de Castro sharing a stage again.
The Filipino band will perform Oct. 11 at 5 p.m. at Melrose Ballroom, bringing its original four-member lineup to New York following a comeback that has earned some of Philippine music’s leading honors.
At the 39th Awit Awards on Sept. 15, the group won Album of the Year for “Andalucia” and Song of the Year for “Aura.” It also received Best Sound Engineered Recording for “Monster.” The ceremony, organized by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry, took place at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Those awards mark a new chapter for a band whose history includes a breakthrough hit, a departure and a lengthy pause.
Formed in 2014, IV of Spades built a following with music blending funk, rock and pop, paired with a retro-inspired visual style. Salonga handles vocals and guitar, Benitez vocals and bass, Silonga vocals and guitar, and de Castro drums.
The group gained wider attention with “Mundo” in 2018. Later that year, Salonga left to pursue solo work. The remaining members continued as a trio, releasing their debut album, “CLAPCLAPCLAP!,” in 2019 before announcing a hiatus in 2020.
That album won Album of the Year at the 33rd Awit Awards, while its single “Bawat Kaluluwa” earned Record of the Year.
The reunion arrived without an elaborate rollout. On July 16, 2025, the band surprised listeners with “Aura,” confirming both its return from hiatus and Salonga’s return to the lineup. “Andalucia” followed as the group’s first album recorded with all four original members.
The Queens appearance gives longtime listeners a chance to reconnect with the musicians behind that history, while introducing newer fans to a band now making music together after years of individual projects.
Organized by BERCE LLC, the show will take place at Melrose Ballroom, 36-08 33rd St. in Queens. Tickets are available through Eventbrite.
