Joey “Pepe” Smith and Ely Buendia

Jose Rizal’s 150th birthday became more meaningful as Pinoy musicians made songs about him and his works through a downloadable album called  Rock Rizal. You can download the songs for free and share it to everyone who know and wants to know Jose Rizal.

Listening to the tracks made me remember my PI 100 (Philippine Institutions 100) in UP. It is mandated by law that educational institutions has to add Rizal’s life and works in the curricula of public and private schools  (please see Republic Act 1425 or Rizal Law). My PI100 class was unforgettable (under Prof. Nilo Ocampo) because I had the chance to visit the Rizalistas in Mt. Banahaw. I found an old blog post about it but didn’t exactly elaborate on what I did there but all the things that I experienced are kept in my mind. At that time, I realized that Jose Rizal’s life and works are timeless and it crosses all social classes (although many say that his philosophies reflects elitism and conservatism). Could this mean that nothing has really changed since the 1800′s? Hmm.

“Bungo sa Bangin” – Ely Buendia featuring Pepe Smith and Turbogoth

Anyway going back to Rock Rizal, last night I was able to hear some of the songs from the Rock Rizal album performed live at the SM Mall of Asia, San Miguel By The Bay. Karla and I were late because I had to come all the way from Makati after work. I only got the chance to catch the bands such as Gab and Josh, Reese and Vica, Peryodiko, Ebe Dancel, Radioactive Sago Project and Ely Buendia with Pepe Smith. Super thanks to friends from Rock Ed for giving us a chance to stay at the backstage and stay in front of the stage. I was sitting on a speaker (good thing it was heavier than me) because other photographers were squeezing me against the speaker so I might as well just sit on it. I could really feel the groove through my butt! What the hell, it was an awesome and unforgettable gig.

You know why this gig was made awesome? Let me show you why.

1) Ely Buendia performed with Joey “Pepe” Smith.

Two Pinoy rock legends from different eras performed live! Actually, they should only perform 1 song which is “Bungo sa Bangin” (song from the Rock Rizal album and my favorite) but I guess both of them were in the mood to do some more. After “Bungo sa Bangin”, they performed “Teacher’s Enemy No. 1″, a Juan Dela Cruz classic. It seemed that Pepe forgot a stanza but what the heck, it was still a fun impromptu jam! Mar Dizon (former Side A drummer / founder and played with other artists such as Kevin Lettau, Jim Brickman, David Pomeranz etc.) also played the drums with them!

Another impromptu song from Ely is “Ang Huling El Bimbo”.

2) Gloc – 9 made the the crowd jump for joy.

I’ve never seen Gloc 9 perform live before so I was surprised on the crowd’s response. He engages with the crowd and I believe this is the reason why the crowd loves him. He’s not just another Francis M. but he lives by his own name and style. He also seemed humble (sorry, didn’t get to meet him in person). Here’s a video of him performing “Kung Tama Siya” with Jaq Dionisio of Kissjane.

3) Vin Dancel made the audience wave to the viewers of Digradio.ph.

The entire concert was webcasted via Digradio.ph so Vin made the audience raise their hands to the air. People who were not able to watch it live had the chance to see the entire concert on the internet! How amazing technology is now.

4) Radioactive Sago Project’s music almost made me dance to my feet but instead with my butt.

Sorry for the TMI (too much information) but they did! Like I said earlier, I was sitting on a speaker in front of the stage so when Radioactive Sago Project was next, I said to myself “uh-oh, my butt muscles will definitely be sore after this”. Well I was exaggerating then but I felt the soreness today. I was excited to hear “Sino Si Pepe” live and one of my favorite tracks.

And so if you were not able to go to the concert, all you can do now is watch the videos I uploaded (and other uploaded as well ;D ) and download the Rock Rizal tracks from the links below.

1) Ely Buendia – “Bungo sa Bangin”

2) Gloc 9 featuring Jaq Dionisio of Kissjane – “Kung Tama Siya”

3) Sandwich – “Mi Ultimo Amor”

4) Ebe Dancel – “Ikaw ang Aking Tahanan”

5) Aiza Seguerra featuring Radha- “Lupang Pinangako”

6) Radioactive Sago Project – “Sino Si Pepe?”

7) Jett Pangan – “Shine A Light”

8) Peryodiko – “Kumagat Man Ang Dilim”

9) Hijo – “Tamalee”

10) Gab ‘n Josh and Reese & Vica – “Pagbabalik”

You can also view other photos from my Flickr.

Vin Dancel and Kakoy Legaspi of Peryodiko

I believe that the true soul of any musician is revealed when his/her performance is simplified. It is when the musicality is easily digested by the audience. In this kind of performance, the audience is captivated by the simplicity and truthfulness of the performer. All that you could do, when you’re actually there watching the artists perform, is to absorb every single musical note and word down to its core.

Last Saturday, I was at the Folk U Alexis and Nika 2 in Piazza Musica at the Podium, the music part of the .MOV International Film, Music and Literature Festival. This is one of the rare moments when I feel musical nirvana.

Enrique de Dios

It was my first time to see Enrique de Dios to hear him play the guitar and actually sing. I usually see him with Brigada. I saw a different kind of Inky de Dios without percussion instruments.

Tao Aves

Another artist that mesmerized me was Tao Aves. I’ve already seen her perform before in Obsidian and this time, there is something new about her music. She already has a keyboard accompaniment which gave a different “folk” flavor in her music. By the way, she is the daughter of Grace Nono. Her voice is somewhat like her mom’s but she’s unique in her own way.

Mikey Amistoso a.k.a Hannah and Gabi

I’ve always known Mikey to be the vocalist of Ciudad but this time he performed as Hannah and Gabi. I expected it to be a duo but Mikey is Hannah and Gabi. He also played the ukelele which I think was very cute!

Aldus Santos

Aldus Santos, vocalist of the Purplechickens and music writer extraordinaire, was passionate in his performance as always. This was where I saw the rawness of his music. Here’s a video I took while he’s performing a song by the Purplechickens.

Pauline Diaz of Toi

The very first time I saw Toi was during Archipelago’s Travel Advisory album launch back in 2009. Pauline is a wonder; her voice reminds me of Sarah Mclachlan and Norah Jones – very soothing to the ears.

Fando and Lis

Jesse Grinter and Raimund Marasigan of Gaijin

Ely Buendia

The line up became more and more interesting towards the end of the show. Other performers were Ace Cada of Bagetsafonik, Jesse Grinter and Raimund Marasigan of Gaijin and Fando and Lis. My favorite performance would be Vin Dancel and Kakoy Legaspi, who are both from Peryodiko. Kakoy played the intro of “Agawan Base” using a thumb piano (thanks to Vin for the name of the thingimajig!). I wasn’t able to complete the video because my camera’s battery was low but I was able to capture the intro, click here.

The highlight of the evening was Ely Buendia’s performance. He played one song from each of his previous and current bands: Animal Lover (Pupil), Wigout (The Mongols) and Lightyears (Eraserheads). As an ultimate Eraserheads fan, it means so much to me that he played Lightyears again.

I stumbled upon the album of Stone Temple Pilots while I was on my way to work this morning. I suddenly found myself getting too excited because I knew that they will be coming to Manila this March. It’s finally sinking in! Swarmed with work and other commitments, it’s quite hard to grasp this kind of reality. We are ditching Deftones because we realized that STP has a better venue – Deftones is at the World Trade Center vs. STP at the Araneta Coliseum. Plus, I have more favorite songs than Deftones. So, save the date! March 9 at the Araneta Coliseum.

Here are some of the songs that I am expecting to hear:

Interstate Love Song

Vasoline

Plush

Sour Girl

Big Bang Baby

Between the Lines

Fresh from the Listener’s Party at Robot Bar, I am now listening the third album of Pupil entitled Limiters of the Infinity Pool at home. The album isn’t released yet and not sure when it will be released at the record bars. Glad to be one of the first to grab a copy. Just hate it that someone stole the album Karla bought for me. Thanks to Ryan for giving me her free copy. I owe you! The listeners party was actually a press conference and a chance for fans to ask them directly about the album. The boys were dressed to kill with their handsome rocker looks. They didn’t perform, they’re ready to answer questions from the media and the fans. Karla and I only stayed for a while and then had our albums signed by the band members. Although the interiors of the bar were cool – lots of mirrors and glasses – didn’t really bothered to stay long. Went to Old Swiss Inn and enjoyed our Schublig dinner.

Will make this a soundtrack – quoting from Wendell Garcia. Will make an album review soon. Here are some photos from the party.

It’s been quite a while when I first watched Doki perform and I’ve been dying to hear the whole album well guess what, I got to hear the entire album during the listening party at Votre Bar in Quezon City. Fellow Scholasticans were also there to support Doki – Mabie, Jihan and Nikki.

So about the album, it contains 12 songs. They usually perform these during their gigs so I am a bit familiar with those. One that I am not familiar with is “Kartada Diyes”. I guess older generations and music enthusiasts will know that this is a song of Rico J. Puno. Yes, Doki ( I mean Dorica) will sing the revival of her father’s hit song back in the 70′s. Of course the band gave a modern and yet soothing approach of the song.

Flicker Fusion

Other bands who joined Doki’s Listening Party are Flickr Fusion, Novus Luna and Maya’s Anklet.

Novus Luna

Maya’s Anklet

I think the highlight of the night was Renmin’s daughter, Mantra, singing with the band. What a talented kid!

So when will the album come out? According to Doki, this will be released this December. Their album launch will be held at the Eastwood Central Plaza at 8 PM with guests such as Stonefree, Julianne and many more. See ya all in the album launch!

Electrico is a Singaporean band that I have been dying to own a CD of. Because they’re based in Singapore, I can’t get a copy of their album here in Manila. I believe there were only a few copies that were sold in record stores then. Even though Electrico already went here in Manila in 2008 and 2009, we never got the chance to see their live gigs here in Manila because of various reasons. We. are. such. losers. Huhu. Electrico’s sound is pop rock. They somewhat remind me of Coldplay and Rivermaya (when Rico Blanco was there there).  Also, they’re one of the most popular bands in Singapore. Some say that they define “Singa – Rock” (Singaporean Rock).

Just recently, I was in Singapore with Karla so we didn’t pass the chance of searching HMV (their version of Tower Records in Singapore). There was only 1 HMV store, which was in Somerset in Orchard Road. Karla and I grabbed Electrico’s 2nd and 3rd albums (Hip City and We Satellites). Unfortunately, we can’t find their first album “So Much More Inside” released in 2004 because it was an indie release. Only 1 torrent download was available for “So Much More Inside” and it was incomplete. Boo. BUT, it’s ok. We’re both happy now. “We Satellites” costs SGD 29 something while “Hip City” costs SGD 30 +.

Electrico was previously indie but now they’re already mainstream. They’ve done collaborations with Rivermaya. It’s sad that Amanda Ling, their ex-keyboardist left the band in 2009. Aww, she’s one of my favorite members. By the way, Amanda Ling recorded a track for the upcoming 3rd album of Pupil, “2020″. Gotta wait for that!

I just noticed that there aren’t much record stores in Singapore unlike here in the Philippines – every mall has a record store. We weren’t able to witness the Singapore rock scene (aww too bad) but we are looking forward to see any band when we come back to Singapore! I’ve heard that the Singapore rock scene is awesome!

Anyway, here’s a sample of Electrico’s music. Enjoy!

In Love and War Album Cover

Two real life friends, Ely Buendia and Francis M., were once struggling each of their personal battles and showed to the whole world that their diseases/illnesses will not hinder their passion to make music. Clearly, the collaboration of musical talents of these two individuals created good music together. Even though Francis M. is not here anymore to hear the full album, his legacy lives on as one of the most talented artists in the Filipino music industry.

As far as I know, the album wasn’t finished yet when Francis passed away (correct me if I’m wrong here). There were songs where Francis’ vocals were not present anymore. I guess those were the songs that Francis wasn’t able to record.

There are 10 songs in the album, almost all of the songs there were written by Ely such as “Buzzkill”, “Hands On”, “Bum Ticker”, “Wasak Waltz” and the old song he composed for Francis’ Happy Battle album, “Unstrung Heroes”. “Bleeder” was written by Francis M. and Pia Magalona while Dream Date was written by Ely Buendia and Diane Ventura. There are two covers in the album namely “Bus Stop” by the Hollies performed by Ely and Hilera and It’s All Right Ma (I’m Only Bleeding) by Bob Dylan performed by Ely, Purplechickens and Radha. The carrier single since last year, “Higante”, was composed by both Francis and Ely.

Listening to the whole album is like hearing their thoughts and experiences on what they’re going through, most especially Francis as his was a grave disease. Hearing Francis’ voice feels like he’s still alive. I like all the songs in the album but my favorite is “Bleeder”, “Bumticker”, “Dreamdate” and “Wasak Waltz” and “Buzzkill”. Below are of some my favorite lyrics in the album:

“Bleeder”
(Francis M. and Pia Magalona)

One drop is all I need
One time for me to breathe
One night for me to feed this fever
And sleep, sleep, sleep

Coz I’m a bleeder (bleeder)
C’mon and stick me with your needle (needle)
Coz I’m a bleeder (bleeder)
So give my vessels a breather (breather)

Clearly, this song talks about Francis undergoing the “needle” because of his medications and procedures that needed to be done to prolong his life. Hearing this song breaks my heart as if I am feeling what he underwent. I liked the beats and the minimalistic lyrics which was not usual for Francis as he does rap songs with long lyrics.

“Wasak Waltz”
(Ely Buendia)

Eto na naman
Panahon ng tag-ulan
Di maiiwasan sa buhay nino man
Tulad mo rin ako
Isang pulo sa dagat
Na walang hanggan
Naghahanap ng masisilungan

Itaas ang kamay
At iwagayway
Masarap mabuhay
Itaob na ang tagay
Saan ka man pumunta
Meron man o wala
Diyan nagsisimula
Ang wasak na pagsasamahan

The song seems to be a song of friendship. Ely vocals on this song depicted his vocals during the Eraserheads era. It somewhat reminded me of “Minsan” by the Eraserheads.

“Bum Ticker”
(Ely Buendia)

Casio was a calculator
With a wax pistol in his hand
They put him in an incubator
With a blues singing thyroid gland

People are always talking about you
People are always talking talking

Bum ticker in the moonlight
crawling on its hands and knees
If you got the Panacea
Then baby I got the disease

Bum ticker

FYI, Bum ticker is an American slang for “bad heart. Ely had a “bad heart” more than once and had angioplasties before. I loved the intensified drum beats and the chants of the line “bum ticker” throughout the song which I think is very appropriate to the meaning of the song. Thanks to Brigada and Hilera for intensifying the heavy beats in this song. It reminded me of “Insomya” of the Eraserheads .

Overall, the whole album is easy listening. In fact, it’s not the Ely Buendia type of songwriting in Pupil which is dark and obscure. This time, Ely’s songs had the “funk” most likely because of Francis’ influence. The collaborations with other artists such as Turbogoth, Radha, Hilera, Brigada, Pupil and Gloc 9 are what makes this album more interesting.

In the last part of “Unstrung Heroes” remix, you can hear Francis asking for blood donations. The first time I heard this really made me freak out and then made me sad after.

The album was just released a few days ago but this was already being anticipated by Francis M. and Ely Buendia fans months ago. Glad that the album turned out well although it’s only 10 songs.

I hope that there will be a listening party gig so that fans can hear the songs live. Elmo Magalona already takes over the mic for his pop so I guess this is ok .

Here’s the performance of Ely Buendia and Elmo Magalona in Party Pilipinas wherein they first sang “Bus Stop”, the second single from the album.

Tanya Markova’s album is my current LSS (last song syndrome) for the past few days. I’ve been hearing their song “Picture Picture” in NU 107 for the past weeks and just recently got a hold of their entire album. My friends hate me for singing the “Picture Picture” over and over again. Haha, sorry friends, but I can’t really get it out of my head!

Their album contains 16 tracks but some of them are short fillers. When I first played the album, I can’t help but laugh because of the funny mismatched lyrics and situations combined with girly-man voices, melodious tunes and pop goth. It’s like hearing Ang Bandang Shirley (without a real female vocalist like Selena), slightly tamed Parokya ni Edgar in the Khangkungkernitz era, pop attitude of the Eraserheads in the Ultraelectromagneticpop era, Dodong Cruz and Queen in one. Interesting huh? They definitely reminded me of the Pinoy 90′s rock era. Their band formed in 2004 and when I learned about this, where the f*ck was I and didn’t discover this way, way back? I guess I was in Pinoy Rock hiatus then.

Tanya Markova’s music is not your mainstream kind of pop. Their lyrics don’t talk about the common themes in pop songs such as love and other sugar coated themes. That’s why I called them pop goth, if there is such a genre. Behind the cute melodies and girly man voices are songs about Alma Concepcion’s old manananggal flick, emo culture and a student ala exorcist a.k.a Linda Blair. Very witty and creative indeed. I give this band two thumbs up in incorporating gothic associations with popular culture. I haven’t seen them perform live yet but I am hoping to see them soon in their bar gigs.

They are composed of 8 people in the band and they preferred to have aliases instead of revealing their real names. They are Norma Love, Iwa Motors, Mowmow, Heart Abunda, Sugar K., Skrovak Iskopanjo, Rufa Mae Milby, Jennylyn Sucaldito and Rez Curtis. Tanya Markova was previously independent but now they have already signed with MCA Universal.

Here are the must-hear songs in the album:

1) M.I.M (Manananggal in Maynila) (by Karryle Karel and Iwa Motors)

This is the second track in the album but is the first full length song. This will make you feel eerie because of the Adams Family like synthesizers all throughout the song. My favorite lines are in the bridge:

Alma Concepcion
slow motion
pahid lotion
na may potion
Alma Concepcion
evolution
transformation
with emotion

Obviously, they are pertaining to a manananggal here and I just loved the mixture of words here!

2) Disney (Harmony: Iwa Motors, Sugar K., Rez Curtis; Libretto: Iwa Motors, Sugar K., Norma Love, Mowmow, Iskrobak Iskopanjo, Biboy)

Here’s a mellow song about dreaming to go to Disneyland. It made me thought of Parokya ni Edgar’s chill out song “Tayo ng Mag-Beach”.

Gusto kong mag-punta sa Disney
Magwi-wish ako kay Genie
Para maka-jam si mickey
sa Disney…Disney…Disney…Disney

3) Picture Picture (by Karel, Iwa, Heart)

This is the single that is being played in airwaves and the melody won’t come out of my head (and probably yours too!). It’s a semi-love song of a photographer (I assume!). Here’s the entire lyrics:

Picture Picture
Picture picture oh (2x)
Picture picture oooo…

Nang gabing masilayan ka
Dala dala ko pa ang aking lumang kamera

Kampus gig noon at nag-aya ang tropa
Maraming bebot ang nagsasayaw nang biglang mapansin kita
What a beautiful face..
At kinunan kita
What a beautifil face..
Angat ka sa iba
Picture Picture (12x)

I saw her face… mukha syang taga outer space….

Si mang roger ako’y kinalabit ang sabi’y…
Halika na balot muna bago ka mag-konica
Na seramika gawa sa pabrika
Lagot ka na ang kamera may mahika
Ano ang lohika kung bat nahilo ka…
Mekaniko si moniko ng makina ni monica
What a beautiful face..
Bigla kang nawala
What a beautiful face..
Ako’y natulala

Meron shang look alike na
Meron shang look alike na
Meron shang look alike na
Mekaniko si moniko ng makina ni monica
What a beautiful face..
O nasaan ka na?
What a beautiful face..
hinahanap hanap ka…

4) Linda Blair (by Karryle Karel and Iwa Motors)

The high pitched back up vocals of “Tang Ina” is a must hear in this song. Haha.

Teacher, teacher ako si Linda Blair
and the ghosts are everyehere
I can feel it in the air
Teacher, teacher
I’m just trying to be fair
huwag ka nang mag-worry
huwag ka nang mag-worry

*lyrics were copied from http://tanyamarkova.roxer.com.

Drip has become one of my favorite local acts in Manila because of their distinct electronica sound and the soothing voice of Beng. It’s exciting to know that the band will be launching 3 music videos for their songs “Turning Grey”, “Blind” and “Bloodletting”. All of these 3 videos took 2 years in the making so I am quite excited to finally see those songs as music videos. Another good news is that they will be performing some of their new songs from their Spanish album which they collaborated with Instituto Cervantes as a tribute to a Spanish poet Miguel Hernandez. The event is free so anybody can come and join us. By the way, this event is sponsored by Puma.

Please see details below:

Where: The Gallery, Greenbelt 5 (right across Cibo and beside Adora)
When: January 29, 2010
Time: 6:00 pm
Front act: Mark Zero
For more information about Drip, please visit these sites:

www.facebook.com/dripmanila or www.dripmanila.multiply.com

Mailing lists in the cyberspace have existed a long time ago and bands these days are taking advantage of the opportunity to interact with their fans both online and offline. On the other hand, the fans also take advantage of that situation because this is the exclusive time a band offers to their fans. Nowadays, clubs allow a handful of bands to perform every night which lessens that set list they’re allowed to perform (usually 3-5 songs per set).

I believe that it was in the late 90’s or early 2000 when local Filipino bands organized lister’s night parties. I remembered some bands such as the Eraserheads, The Dawn, Rivermaya organizing those parties. I was able to attend listers nights of Eraserheads years ago and then few months was The Dawn. Each and every lister’s night I’ve attended in the past and the present were fun and have realized the differences among their crowds.

I seldom speak in the Mailing Lists I belong to but I was fortunate enough to meet some of them in previous gigs. The latest lister’s night I attended was just last Thursday in Club Dredd Eastwood. It was Pupil’s way to celebrate Christmas with their fans. Even though I have work the next day, I felt the urgency to go there because this might be the last time I’m gonna see them perform live before the year ends (hopefully, not).

 Karla and I arrived early in Club Dredd (around 7:30 pm). The staff wouldn’t allow us to go in yet because they’re setting up so we decided to eat dinner first in Stackers Burger. While eating, someone caught my attention. Ely Buendia entered the resto with someone. If you’re gonna ask me who it was, nope I’m not gonna tell because it’s their private life. Anyway, they were supposed to sit beside our table (which was the couch) but they decided to sit outside. After dinner, Karla and I went to Club Dredd and got a table at the middle.

 The party started with games. They gave away items from Pupil’s sponsors such as Puma and Levi’s. I got a Puma bag by answering the name of the sphere in the cover of Against the Light book. Thanks to Karla who lead me to the answer .

The gig started at 11 pm with Ely feeling a bit sleepy because of the games. I felt him singing with energy when he sang “Higante”. That was my first time to hear the song live. Too sad Francis M. isn’t here anymore to sing it with him.

“Higante” by Pupil

The gig finished earlier than expected (around 1:00 pm). I had an opportunity to take my photo with Ely (it’s in my Facebook!) hehe.