November 28th, 2006

KJWAN IS 2-STEP MARVELOUS

• By : paochec

November 24th, 2006

HILERA

• By : paochec

“Rhyme Without Reason,” the very first track off Hilera’s self-titled debut album, makes you think of a punk band, wizened and worldly, seeing a lot of the world and sneering at it. Then, you see what they actually look like and you’re shellshocked—they’re children!! Well, not exactly. Hilera, who won the grand prize at the recent Nescafé Soundskool competition, are composed of brothers Chris and Bobby Padilla, one in college, the other in high school, and friend Ivan Garcia, who has also just recently entered college. Strangely enough, it’s not just punk that the band has managed to learn to play convincingly, as if they were already alive during that era. Hilera’s debut actually sounds like it could have been written in the 80s, which may explain the punk elements. Well, except that you could tell this album was recorded with present technology, of course. As a band, Hilera is tight and they each rock as individual musicians. It seriously boggles the mind that they’re so young. Their songs are quite well-written, as in the composition of the different layers are always interesting, sometimes even brilliant. Just when you thought that was the best instrumentation ever, you hear something competing with it in the next song. The main riff of “Pass the Walls,” for example, is not just a guitar riff, it is well-complemented by the bass and drums; it might probably sound totally different if played on its own. It also seems that they write their songs to show off each member’s capabilities. “Rhyme Without Reason” is just amazing from start to end. The drum rolls in “Define” and “Pot of Gold” (actually, most of the drum parts are astounding), the basslines of “Sun Grass,” the chord progressions and stops in “Up the Heavens.” “All of This” has a compelling chorus that moves you, and then, bam, just leaves you hanging. I love that it stops right there, it’s trippy. As I’ve already said, the album is not entirely punk; there are slower songs. Or, not slow exactly, just not as frantic. “Lies in the Head” is more emo than straight punk. Unlike the first four songs, which are the most aggressive of the bunch, “Lies…” has an almost brooding aspect to it, then the chorus has those melodic upsurges complete with back-up vocals that remind me of the theme song of St. Elmo’s Fire. Again, an 80s pop reference. No, I’m not saying it’s a rip-off, but it has the same feel. 80s melodic rock, yeah. Many fans have commented that they initially thought Hilera was a foreign band. Well, the vocalist does sound better singing in English, despite the slight faux English accent; his voice is fuller-bodied on the English songs. On the Tagalog songs, he sounds most emo, especially on “Dehado.” I don’t know why it seems like they have to really slow down on the Tagalog songs, it is only on these tracks that they sound like the other post-teen rock bands who are current favorites (oh, you know who I mean). The only real slow song on the album is a hidden track, an acoustic version of the second Tagalog song, “Pilit,” which is also the only obvious love song. In general, they’re both heavy and pop at the same time, which is why they’re quite an accessible band and why they’re going to get fans from both sides of the musical spectrum. I bet even the most snide purist will find themselves singing along to “Define” or “Rhyme Without Reason.” But that’s alright, because nobody will care—they’ll be busy singing along too.

November 23rd, 2006

THE NU107 ROCK AWARDS HIT 13

• By : paochec

UPDATED 12.02.2006 WITH WINNERS AND COMMENTARY: SCROLL DOWN FOR THE ORIGINAL FEATURE REPORT ON THE NU107 ROCK AWARDS 2006: JAY OF KAMIKAZEE MURDERS A MIC STAND, ASIA AGCAOILI GETS HALF-NAKED, AND THE ITCHYWORMS, KAMIKAZEE AND SANDWICH ARE THE BIG WINNERS OF THE NIGHT 12.02.2006 How do you keep an awards show interesting, relevant, and most important of all, fun—year after year? Ask the NU107 Rock Awards team, who could teach the people behind the Oscars a thing or two. December 1, 2006 marked the thirteenth installment of the wildly popular production, which has helped launch many a band’s career while always putting on a memorable show. Having said that, popularity does have its drawbacks—some of them expected, some of them unforeseen. One of the objections to the Rock Awards is that it’s gone increasingly showbiz through the years. As presenter Jon Santos said, “Is this a music awards show, or a sporting event, or an underwear fashion show?” His jibe was understandable: with all the actors, models and party people swanning around, one could be forgiven for thinking that the Rock Awards aren’t very, well, rock any more. But ask the musicians, both those who were and weren’t nominated this year; ask the people from NU, whose love of music is deep and unfaked; ask the judges; ask the listeners and the audience—when it comes down to it, the focus is still on the music. The glittery people are there to help spotlight the music, not the other way around. That’s why—from where I’m standing, at least—the Rock Awards still matter, still work, still rock. Full disclosure: I was happy and honored to have been chosen as one of the judges for this year’s Awards. Naturally, as the evening of the Awards progressed, I was gratified whenever one of my choices came out on top—and, conversely, just a little disappointed when my chosen ones for the other categories didn’t take home the award. Honestly, though, nominees for most of the categories were strong across the board (translation: there were no obvious stinkers), so I was pretty happy with the results overall, even though I still believe Urbandub’s “First of Summer” should have been Song of the Year. (On my ballot and in my heart, it is.) But I’m getting ahead of myself; more on that later. This year’s Rock Awards started up with an impressive a cappella rendition of our national anthem by Kat Agarrado of Sino Sikat? (no, I’m not unsure about the band’s name—it really ends in a question mark. *sigh*). Singing with power and grace, Kat wrapped up “Lupang Hinirang” with a little rock raunch, which elicited sounds and gestures of approval from the crowd. Jay and Jomal of Kamikazee then went onstage to introduce the first of many bands to play that night: the ever-entertaining Itchyworms, who performed a medley of songs from their acclaimed album Noontime Show while backed by a choir and a string quartet. They started off with “Noontime Show,” then segued into “Akin Ka Na Lang,” and then finished up with their intoxicating hit “Beer,” on which the quartet and choir were particularly effective. Asia Agcaoili, the main host of the evening, made her presence known right after the ‘Worms’ number, clad in a jaunty hat and a visually arresting bustier, which she would later strip down to just a black lacy bra. Many allusions to virginity and the losing thereof were made, and even a mention of how the Awards keep getting bigger—”palaki nang palaki”—sounded a little naughty when delivered by Asia. The first award of the night was presented by Channel 23’s Breakfast crew—Atom, JC, Patty—with charming new NU107 DJ Mallorie, who was so excited and just couldn’t hide it (winners in boldface): BEST NEW ARTIST Callalily Kala Reggae Mistress Rocksteddy Up dharma Down Off to a great start, I said to myself after Up dharma Down took the first award. I voted for them, and, no offense to the other nominees, but UdD owned this category—had anyone else won, I would have started throwing guests off the ledge of the VIP area headfirst onto the concrete below. So, lucky break, other guests. Seriously, UdD gave the local music scene something fresh, something that flipped our usual notions about what a rock band can do, and they did it with skill and self-effacing style. You can’t really ask for more than that from a Best New Artist. Miggy Chavez of Chicosci introduced Pupil, who played “Nasaan Ka,” one of this year’s nominees for Song of the Year. (Afterwards, Asia gushed, “I would love to let you touch my pupil,” which sounds like a strange and potentially blindness-inducing fetish to me, unless ‘pupil’ is a euphemism for a more erogenous body part). The next two awards, presented by the very tall Andy of NU107, local music legend Papadom, and a couple of models, were: DRUMMER OF THE YEAR Jazz Nicolas of Itchyworms Paolo Santiago of Join The Club Allan Burdeos of Kamikazee J-Hoon Balbuena of Kapatid John Mendoza of Urbandub Hooray for Jazz, who, as has been pointed out numerous times before by various other people, is one of Pinoy music’s mad pop geniuses. While accepting his award, he gave a shout-out to the other drummers nominated: always a nice touch, especially in a category with so many strong nominees. BASSIST OF THE YEAR Myrene Academia of Imago/Sandwich Kelvin Yu of Itchyworms Dok Sergio of Pupil Paul Yap of Updharmadown Lalay Lim of Urbandub While I admit I didn’t vote for Myrene—my vote went to Lalay—I was very, very happy to see Myrene win anyway. This happened to me a lot during this year’s Rock Awards: because so many of the nominees were highly deserving, the judges’ individual decisions were harder to make, but the final results were also easier to live with, in almost every case. (Most of the time, I had three or four nominees tied for first place in my head; of course, I could only choose one per category.) I don’t think Myrene expected to win either, since apparently she wasn’t near the stage when the winner was announced, and she seemed uncharacteristically flustered while accepting the award. She shouldn’t have been; the win was well-deserved. I should’ve seen it coming, anyway—there seems to be an unspoken rule of thumb at awards shows that whenever someone is nominated for more than one thing (in the Rock Awards’ case, more than one band or album), that same someone is going to win something. (See also: Mong Alcaraz, below). Jugs and Kelvin of the Itchyworms then did a short spiel about how these days, opposing musical genres that would have beaten each other up if they ran into each other in an alley a few decades ago are now making sweet sexy sounds together—so we knew who the next performers had to be: the disco-punk mavericks known as Pedicab. They did “Bleached Streaks,” with Diego Mapa doing his Diego Mapa dance while Raimund Marasigan leaped around and seemed to attack various things onstage. The next award was: GUITARIST OF THE YEAR Mong Alcaraz of Chicosci/Sandwich Jomal Linao of Kamikazee John Dinopol of Urbandub Carlos Tañada of Updharmadown Boogie Romero of Dicta License Yay Mong! He is cool without having to try. The last time I saw Dong Abay perform, he took off his shirt. For his 2006 Rock Awards performance, he took off his shirt and pants, striding onstage clad in a bahag. He and his band tore through a vigorous number that presented us with the important choices we have to make in our lives (such as the choice between GMA and ABS-CBN.). Director Quark Henares and Jett Pangan, lead singer of The Dawn, presented the award for Vocalist of the Year. “I never won shit, man,” Jett confessed to Quark onstage, before molesting FHM cover babe Valerie Concepcion with a hug. VOCALIST OF THE YEAR Jay Contreras of Kamikazee Gabby Alipe of Urbandub Armi Millare of Updharmadown Aia de Leon of Imago Raimund Marasigan of Sandwich Pochoy Labog of Dicta License I voted for Armi, yet was undeniably pleased when Gabby won; like I said, this sort of thing kept happening to me all night. Paramita pulled off a commendable performance, and then Erwin Romulo and a bunch of other people presented the next three awards: BEST ALBUM PACKAGING John Ed de Vera for Panorama/ 6Cyclemind Electrolychee for Blush/Imago Apple Sta. Maria for Noontime Show/ Itchyworms Allan Burdeos for Maharot/ Kamikazee Inksurge for Five On The Floor/ Sandwich Kahlil de Pio and Urbandub for Embrace/ Urbandub There’s no question that Inksurge’s design for the Sandwich album was imaginative and unique—stickers and all. I would have been just as happy if the prize had gone to Kahlil de Pio and Urbandub for Embrace’s moody and evocative visuals, though, or Electrolychee’s work on Blush, which to my mind represented the best relationship between the music and the packaging. BEST MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR “Jeepney”/ Kala (Directed by Tin Tayag) “Doo Bi Doo”/ Kamikazee (Directed by Topel Lee) “Martyr Nyebera”/ Kamikazee (Directed by Avid Liongoren) “Sugod”/ Sandwich (Directed by Marie Jamora) “Bitiw”/Spongecola (Directed by Gorio Cicuña) Congrats to Marie Jamora, one of the more consistently excellent music video directors we have; “Sugod” is loads of fun to watch. Also loved the way Avid Liongoren uses computer animation and FX to keep expanding the boundaries of what can be done with the form; “Martyr Nyebera” is basically a mini action/ comedy movie set to a pop-rock song. PRODUCER OF THE YEAR Raimund Marasigan, Buddy Zabala and Itchyworms for Noontime Show/ Itchyworms Angee Rozul, Jonathan Ong, Allan Burdeos, 8 Toleran and Jomal Linao for Maharot/ Kamikazee Pupil with Patrick Tirano for Beautiful Machines/ Pupil Buddy Zabala for Five On The Floor/ Sandwich Noel de Brackinghe At Sweetspot and Up dharma Down for Fragmented/ Up dharma down Kerryl Demeterio and Urbandub for Embrace/ Urbandub I was very impressed by the production work on Up dharma Down’s debut, but I can totally see why the team for the sprawling carnival that is Noontime Show won. Up dharma Down performed their excellent song “Oo”—another candidate for Song of the Year—and then the first of four sponsored awards was announced. RISING SUN AWARD Dicta License Imago Itchyworms Join the Club Paramita Up dharma Down Yay Itchyworms! Jay Ortega of DRT introduced the next band: the hard-rocking Lokomotiv. Now, I’ve seen Lokomotiv perform before, at smaller venues—and as technically awesome as the band is, I had a hard time getting over how lead singer Ryan Hudson overdoes all the rock star clichés, from the mic stand pumping to the heavy metal hand gestures to the ‘worship me’ stances. But you know what? On a larger stage—like the stage of the World Trade Center at the NU107 Rock Awards—it works. And besides, no matter what the size of the stage, guitarist David Aguirre and drummer Wolf Gemora are always fun to watch, particularly Wolf, who is half-demon and half-gorilla when he drums (and I mean that in the absolute best possible way). BEST LIVE ACT Imago Join The Club Kamikazee Sandwich No argument there. As great as the other bands are live, Kamikazee makes you feel that they might actually hurt themselves—or you—when you’re watching one of their performances. It’s like watching a knife-throwing act, or Evel Knievel. “Thank you sa NU!” Jay shouted. (And then, punnily enough, added “Thank you sa in-yu!”, addressing the audience.) Dicta License delivered a typically intense performance, and then the IN THE RAW award was granted to Silent Sanctuary, who have gotten a lot poppier since you last heard them, and sound ready and raring for radio. Then there was Chicosci. Looking down upon the crowd from the elevated VIP area was kind of like watching a whack-a-mole game without a hammer. Every once in a while during the performances, a clump of people would leap up and down, like a collective mole head emerging from a field. Chicosci was one of the performers that night that really got those moles jumping. And speaking of the VIP area, while I was grateful for the view of the stage and the space to breathe—not to mention the food and drink (thank you to the very competent staff, btw)—I have to say that there were some people there that had no manners whatsoever, so wrapped up were they in trying to come off as cool and better than everyone else. People who would bump you or push past you without so much as an “Excuse me.” Yeah, you bastards know who you are. Wealth doesn’t buy class. Being in the VIP section gave my companion and I the opportunity to observe some interesting fashion statements, though. And we have this to say to the girl with the cat- skull- and- crossbones boots: very cute. You wear them well. And to the guy with the black leather jacket with the sleeves shoved up to his elbows, Miami Vice style: perhaps a rethink is in order. Anyway, back to the awards! Mong Alcaraz and Armi Millare won for BEST MALE ROCK ICON and BEST FEMALE ROCK ICON (respectively, of course). The slight retooling of the award name (it used to be known simply as BEST MALE and BEST FEMALE) goes a long way towards defining it in a more meaningful fashion, but Mong was still moved to say “Di ko alam kung anong ibig sabihin ng award na ‘to!” Armi, on the other hand, simply said “This is pretty strange—but thank you, thank you!” Urbandub played next, and they did the magnificent “First of Summer” and got the crowd jumping, screaming, and singing along, not to mention raising their arms at appropriate points of the song and almost spilling their beers. Kamikazee took home the LISTENER’S CHOICE award—their second of the evening, but not their last. Then they launched into a blistering performance which climaxed with Jay beating the holy hell out of a helpless mic stand. THE HALL OF FAME: THE ROCK JOCKS OF DZRJ The Apo Hiking Society went onstage next, to introduce this year’s HALL OF FAMErs: the original rock jocks, the people behind DZRJ on AM radio. Established in the 60s, DZ RJ became known as The Rock of Manila, and its DJs “kept the flag of rock n’ roll flying” through years of repression, oppression, and imported Top 40 dominance. They introduced listeners to the Juan de la Cruz band, Maria Cafra, Sampaguita, Anak Bayan, and many, many others. DJs Sleepy John, Howlin’ Dave, Bob Magoo and Captain Eddie were at the Awards that night; kudos to NU107 for honoring DZRJ’s rock pioneers. Audience favorites Parokya ni Edgar performed next, with special guest Jay of Kamikazee: they did “The Ordertaker,” both hilarious and surprisingly hard-hitting. Then NU107 DJ Trish and some other presenters presented: SONG OF THE YEAR “Beer” by Itchyworms “Nobela” by Join The Club “Narda” by Kamikazee “Nasaan Ka” by Pupil “Sugod” by Sandwich “Oo” by Up dharma Down “First of Summer” by Urbandub This one knocked me for a loop. I admire Kamikazee in general, but their song was probably my last choice for Song of the Year. Okay, second to the last (sorry, Join The Club—competition this year was really tough). Trish said that the Song of the Year is “that song you always sing in your head, that reminds you vividly of a particular time in your life,” or words to that effect. For me—and for many other people—“First of Summer” makes that personal, indelible connection. “Narda” is fun enough, I guess. Sandwich performed next: an electrifying rendition of “DVDX,” given extra juice by some skillfully rapped stanzas courtesy of Jamir of Slapshock. Magic moment: when Raimund dove facefirst and fearlessly into the crowd, letting them sweep him along, and when Mong followed suit. NU107’s Cris Hermosisima, the always-lovely Barbie Almalbis, and a couple of other presenters announced the second to the last award: ALBUM OF THE YEAR Noontime Show by Itchyworms Maharot by Kamikazee Beautiful Machines by Pupil Five On The Floor by Sandwich Fragmented by Up dharma Down Embrace by Urbandub The Itchyworms’ victory: eminently predictable, and eminently deserved. Yehey! And then The Dawn went onstage. I was with Francis Reyes and Rock Awards director Kokoy Jimenez when they first discussed the big Dawn number, weeks ago. They talked about guest vocalists joining Jett on different songs. It sounded like a good idea, but the actual execution was even better than I thought it would be: the key to the concept was pairing the right guest singers with the right songs. Raimund Marasigan sang with Jett on “Enveloped Ideas,” Dong Abay joined him on “Iisang Bangka,” Gabby Alipe did “Tulad ng Dati,” Jett sang alone on “Ang Iyong Paalam” (luckily, he was louder than the purple suit he was wearing) and Chito Miranda joined up with everyone for a rendition of Dawn anthem “Salamat” that brought the house down. There was one last award to go, however, and it was announced by Tim Yap, Atom Henares, and the usual gaggle of sexy stars: ARTIST/BAND OF THE YEAR Itchyworms Kamikazee Pupil Sandwich Urbandub Kamikazee performed the night’s tinsel-laden finale, as people started to troop out and/or accost their favorite artists and celebrities for instant phone-cam opportunities. Backstage, people were weary, relieved, happy, and slightly—or in some cases, very very—drunk. The vibe was positive, though; everyone was glad to have participated in, and pulled off, another memorable show. Conversations overheard in the washroom were about how great the show had been, and the main question was: how is NU107 going to top it next year? I know one thing for sure: I’ll be there to see the answer. THE NU107 ROCK AWARDS HIT 13 11.22.2006 When I was thirteen, I was uncertain, unknown, and, in general, I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. The NU107 Rock Awards show turns thirteen this year, and it has none of those problems. (It does, however, share a few qualities with my younger self, such as a genuine and ever-developing interest in music, and a preoccupation with pretty women, as evidenced by its choices of award presenters.) Established in 1994 by NU107, “the Home of NU Rock”—the foremost rock radio station of the Philippines—the Rock Awards’ beginnings were relatively small-scale, compared to the highly-respected, highly-anticipated spectacle it’s become since. “It wasn’t really meant to be what it is now, in terms of proportions,” recalls Cris Hermosisima, NU’s Network Operations Head. Cris is the man who’s seen it all, who’s been there since the very beginning. “I’ve been with NU since ‘87—we basically set up the station.” He went on hiatus from NU for a few years, but he was there to help put together the first Rock Awards show. “The first Rock Awards, ‘di ko makalimutan ‘yun eh. It was held in the Music Hall in Annapolis, in Greenhills.” The first Lifetime Achievement Award went to Freddie Aguilar, and the first Rock Legend Award went to Joey “Pepe” Smith, and both Pinoy music icons were there for the party. “It was a treat for the listeners—‘yung mga suwerte na nabigyan ng tickets, grabe, parang starstruck eh.” (In fact, a fan whom Pepe Smith accidentally spilled beer on felt honored rather than enraged.) “From Pepe to, I think [Mike] Hanopol was there, to Freddie Aguilar, the Dawn, and After Image. Alamid was there, The Youth—lahat ng mainit!” ONE GOOD NIGHT “When we started before,” Cris explains, “it was an event to thank everyone. It was a way to thank the sponsors, it was a way to thank and recognize the artists. It was also a way to treat the listeners. For us then, malaki na ‘yung venue. It was the first time that there was a TV special, it was the first time that the jocks were on-cam, it was the first time that the jocks were supposed to rehearse their lines.” Despite the often amusing difficulties the staff had in staging the first Awards, it was a roaring success right out of the gate—and it only got better the next year, when the ceremony was moved to the Music Museum, and a little band you may have heard of called the Eraserheads won for Band of the Year, Album of the Year (for Circus) and Listener’s Choice. Since then the show has continued to develop and grow; it survived a period of waning interest in local rock music, and is now riding a resurgence of that same interest. In other words, rock is bigger than ever, and so are the Rock Awards. “Nobody expected it would become as big as it is right now,” says Kokoy Jimenez, director extraordinaire of countless stage and screen productions. Kokoy has directed every single NU107 Rock Awards show since the very first, and if you’ve ever gone to one, you’ll know why: he keeps things fast-paced, exciting, and tight. He’s been a witness to the evolution of the Awards. “Ang feeling ko, the major change is that it has crossed over to all classes. When it started out, it was really, how do you say it… Our crowd then was more musicians, more party people. But right now, it’s the only show I know of where all economic strata mix and mingle under one roof for one night, with no angst against each other. It’s one good night of good vibes.” STAMP OF APPROVAL The younger DJs of NU may not have been around since the beginning, but they know full well how important the Rock Awards have become. Mallorie, who joined the station just last August, was about six years old when the Awards started, and living in San Diego. A fan of radio and rock music since childhood, she says “I never really thought I’d be part of any sort of awards show in my life.” When she attends station meetings that decide the direction of the Rock Awards, she realizes with something like awe, “This is really gonna impact other people’s lives!” True enough; the eventual success of many a band has hinged on an NU nomination—or win. “It’s become a benchmark of performance,” Cris points out. “For a band to be given a stamp of approval, I think you must have been nominated at the Rock Awards, you must have performed at the Rock Awards.” This, DJ Trish feels, is a good thing. Trish has worked in broadcasting for about a decade, and has been with NU107 for the past three years. She says that the Rock Awards inspire musicians to strive for that benchmark. “It gives the young musicians that are trying to break into the scene encouragement—this is something that they can look at and say, gusto, ko ‘yan, I wanna achieve that, that’s my goal, to be on stage in front of hundreds of people, performing and possibly dishing out an award-winning song.” More than that, though: “It uplifts the music scene, and I think it gives it integrity.” Integrity is a word that came up a lot when I was talking to people about the Rock Awards. “Bands are judged not only in terms of popularity, but in terms of ‘How good are you?’” Cris states. “Performance, skill. Are you good live, are you good on CD? You might be a favorite of the station, but how do the listeners, how do the other people look at you as a band?” Trish adds, “You have to also remember that the integrity comes with it not just being a popularity contest,” addressing concerns that a best-selling band with loyal hordes of fans—or an unscrupulous band with a hired staff—might be able to prevail over a better, but less popular act. After the eligible artists for the time period covered by the awards (generally, from September 1 of last year to August 31 of this year) is determined, the voting public helps determine the shortlists of nominees, through polling booths in various malls, ballot boxes at selected music store outlets, and online voting. Afterwards, deliberations are held to weed out the obvious vote-stuffers, and to determine the truly worthy among the crop of the eligible. Then a carefully-chosen panel of judges is given the shortlist of nominees, and they determine the final winners. “It’s not just a popularity award. It’s about talent; it’s about putting out quality music. Quality, not quantity. That’s what I think it’s about. Pero hindi sa dini-discount namin ‘yung votes,” she stresses. The process can be summed up, as Trish says, by describing it as “a beautiful balancing act.” There will always be instances of someone’s favorites being left by the wayside, so to speak, but as DJ Russ, who joined NU a year and a half ago, puts it, it’s not possible to include all the good bands—there are too many—but “Definitely, the ones who are nominated this year deserve it.” Francis “Kiko” Reyes is a veteran of the Awards from both sides of the show: the renowned guitarist of The Dawn, he is also the Chief Announcer of NU107, and has been writing the scripts for the Rock Awards for the past few years. He explains the importance of the Rock Awards further: “Even if rock ‘n’ roll in general has been around 50 years and Pinoy rock for almost probably the same amount of time, there’s still that perception that rock is for kids and it’s not a serious art form or whatever. Of course, the musicians themselves know otherwise.” Therefore, the station’s recognition of these musicians’ efforts through the years is much appreciated. “Pinaghihirapan namin ‘to, we’re making this music, we take it seriously and people appreciate the fact that there are people who feel the same way about it.” HARD TIMES It’s not easy staging the Rock Awards every year, though. There are always risks, there are always worries, there are always problems. “It’s really, will it still work?” Kokoy Jimenez says. “You can’t second-guess that. It’s like giving a party, will people come? Di ba? So, you always have that fear—‘I put out a hundred invitations, what if two appear, 98 don’t?’ For whatever reason that is. We had the situation the other year where the typhoon hit on the same day as the Rock Awards…” I ask him if people still showed up. “It was full,” he smiles. That also happened to be the year that Trish hosted. “Two years ago, when typhoon Rosing hit!” she recalls. “Being so close to the bay and having that many people there—that was a lot of fun,” she laughs. “Nakakatuwa, nakakataba ng puso, that even if there was a storm, people still came to the Rock Awards.” Despite the proven appeal of the show, there’s no slacking off for the NU107 team. “Kami, the people who are doing it, we always try to make sure that people will come,” Kokoy says. “We don’t stop trying to think up of things that will excite our audience who go to these Rock Awards. We always make it a point to choose the best performers for that night. We don’t just choose any band just because so-and-so says or just because they’re popular. We always try to have something different for each year. Musically, we have to consider also that this is a live show. So, some bands may sound good on records but are awful live. So that goes so much into consideration.” It’s not just a matter of asking the best bands in the land, though. “It’s getting tougher in the sense that since rockers became very popular and all these bands appear in all the TV shows and all the awards and all events, it’s getting hard for us to come up with [something new]. ‘Oh no, it’s the same band again, oh no it’s the same song again!’ So, that has been a challenge for us every year, to try and give our audience something different, that they’d like, no? So if you take a look at our bands this year, you’d be surprised, because they’re not all the popular bands that you’d expect. About 50% is new bands basically.” There’s another concern, one that many a music fan has agonized or argued or blogged about: the idea of selling out. With rock music popular again, companies and sponsors eager for some rubbed-off cool have been lining up to be associated with musicians and music-oriented events. This can get in the way of putting on an ideal show—for example, when bands sponsored by rival brands of whatever product are forbidden from playing at the same event, or, arguably, when sponsorship shapes other aspects of the Awards. “Times are hard,” Cris states matter-of-factly. The Rock Awards have always had sponsors, he says, but they’ve only recently featured special sponsored awards, which are not voted on by the judges. “I think we have to go with the times. As I think Joey Ayala would say, ‘We didn’t sell out—they just bought in.’” Still, the influx of funds into the scene is of course a great boon as well, and for some people, may very well have a sort of legitimizing quality. “I think of it as a healthy sign that finally, the rock scene, the people in it, they’re finally being noticed by big names,” Trish says. The truth is, “You need money, to produce music… And if it’s your craft, you have to come up with some sort of funds to back up your passion.” Perhaps the primary concern every year at the Rock Awards is security. “Putting everything in control, security, peace and order, that’s actually the main problem,” says Cris. “When I got back on board in 2003, ‘yun ‘yung tanong agad, clients were pressured about security.” That year, NU107 beefed up security to the point that it was branded as ‘overkill.’ “Kasi kailangan eh, just to assure the public and to assure the business side, the partners, that you’re safe. And from then on, it was like that, no?” Cris says. Trish points out that “This year was a very rocky year for the scene, in terms of the events that didn’t happen so well, so on and so forth.” She doesn’t need to explain the reference, as the violence that erupted during a couple of big events this year is still fresh in the minds of anyone who follows Pinoy entertainment. ”This is going to be our final big event for the year, and I want to show everybody that rock is all right, it’s not very scary, and we can put on a good show without anything going wrong, period.” “You hear so many bad stories about certain rock events which turned out to have stone throwing and fights and [things like that], but the Rock Awards, for thirteen years, has been relatively safe,” says Kokoy. “You will not be scared to come and watch the Rock Awards and we’d like to keep it that way.” MEMORABLE MOMENTS What’s clear is that despite the worries and hassles and logistical headaches, every Rock Awards has its definite rewards as well: memorable performances, memorable occurrences, memorable reactions. Trish says she looks forward every year to “being with the listeners of NU, putting on a good show for them, and enjoying a good show myself. The bands—I wanna see who actually walks away with what award, and how they react. Kasi here at NU, it’s not just a professional relationship that we have with the bands, it’s really a personal relationship. So—the faces, that’s what I look forward to. The faces of the winners.” Everyone who’s ever been to the ceremony even once will have a favorite Rock Awards moment or two, or three. “Last year, Radioactive Sago Project performed a medley of the nominees for Song of the Year, and they made them their own, so you can just imagine,” Trish recounts. “Tsaka ‘yung Bamboo pala! Kasi may guards sila last year na lumabas at nag-acrobatics with their guns,” she laughs. Cris recalls another Bamboo moment, when lead singer Bamboo performed with a Mini-Me—a little person dressed like him, a smaller version of himself. Francis recalls the year that actress Rosanna Roces flashed the crowd. Earlier that evening, he explains, Parokya ni Edgar had been onstage, and their lead singer Chito Miranda had opened his shirt to reveal a dick drawn on his chest, with the words “Hi Papa!” (Their big hit that year was “Don’t Touch My Birdie”.) When Rosanna Roces took the stage, she said, “Nakito niyo na si Papa, eto na si Mama…” and then she opened her blouse and you could see her nipples. “We were like, oh shit! It’s great, there, and then you’re like, how is this gonna look on TV, I mean, of course, there’s always a way but at that very moment you freak out.” At this point Kokoy voices his disapproval of the incident. “We don’t want it to be a scene where you can’t bring your kids with you. Or you can’t bring your parents with you. Either way, di ba?” THE FUTURE OF ROCK And what about the future—of the Awards, and of the Pinoy rock scene, both of which, it is now clear, are inextricably bound together? “There will always be the Rock Awards, whether it’s hip to like rock or not,” Francis says. “I think, the way I see it is expansion lang, I guess, eh. There’s going to be more diversity in the next few years because, before kasi, when you think of rock, you think of it in very specific terms, in very specific ways. There’s just too many sub-genres under the rock banner, so you’ll see variety, you’ll see more creativity, I think.” Trish agrees: “There are so many different genres of rock that haven’t been explored yet and haven’t been born yet. I can name Up dharma Down, they have a different genre, I can name Juan Pablo Dream, cause that’s a totally different genre as well.” Trish foresees the scene getting even healthier. She remarks on how much attention the more mainstream side of rock is getting, citing Orange and Lemons as a band that got an early boost from the station and went on to mass success. “Parang parents ka, you see your kids grow up and conquer the country.” Regarding the Awards, there are some pipe dreams behind the scenes: “Outdoors is a dream for me, to do the Rock Awards outdoors, it’s a dream for me and Kokoy Jimenez,” says Cris, but admits that “logistically, parang nakakatakot eh.” Kokoy and Francis, meanwhile, daydream about staging the Awards outside of Manila—perhaps in Cebu, which is well-known for its thriving music scene. “Regardless of what state the music industry is in, in general, we’ll still put up this thing,” Francis declares. “What I foresee I guess is there will come a time that people will… not that people aren’t taking it seriously now, but there are still people who doubt, siyempre, the validity of this whole thing. I think it’s on its way to becoming an honest to goodness institution, as long as, of course, the NU107 staff keeps it that way and doesn’t lose perspective of what it really is all about.” I sit in on a meeting between Francis and Kokoy, as they discuss the details of the upcoming show—from possible hosts and presenters, to the performances and potential pitfalls. What comes across is their resolve to do things right—not just to do right by the guests or the sponsors, but to do right by the audience, by the musicians, and by their own sensibilities, their own ideas of what makes the NU107 Rock Awards, after all these years, a worthwhile endeavor. In other words, the future of the Awards—and, to an extent, the scene—is in good hands. See you on Friday! Thanks to Isabelle and Emily of NU107 for all the help! Photography by Carlo Guerrero, Edsel Ochoa, Mark Torres and others. The NU107 Rock Awards 2006 wil be held on December 1, 2006, Friday, at the World Trade Center, Pasay City. Gates open at 6PM, show starts promptly at 9PM. For tickets and reservations, please call 911-5555 or visit www.ticketnet.com.ph

November 22nd, 2006

I feel the warmth insi-ide…

• By : paochec

I went to UP today to register (late, hey, working for Pulse isn’t peanuts) and file for graduation, because this is hopefully my last sem, yay.  I’m taking my MA in Art Criticism, which, by the way, is not the course of choice of most music journalists, or so I noticed.  Anyway, just before I got down from the Toki jeep, a remake of Alamid’s “Your Love” was playing on the radio.  Well, I assume it was a remake.  Either that or I time-warped back to college, particularly my early years.  It was a fun time for me musically, I had discovered Pearl Jam and got obsessed, but more than that, the local scene was opening up my world.  My favorite local band was The Dawn, and they had yet to break up, then, though I absolutely hated their new single, “Talaga Naman.”  I was only half-joking when we’d scream “Omigod it’s the keyboardist of After Image!!!!” at our vice-chairman before every College Council meeting (yes, he really was Arnold Cabalza).  I secretly burned with jealousy when my crush was dating the bassist – or was it the guitarist? – of Keltscross.  Yep, happy times. But, no, it is 2006 and people now wear their IDs on campus.  Weird. I’m not sure what to make of remakes, however.  On one hand, it’s nice to hear old songs played on the radio again.  On the other hand, it’s become a trend and starting to lose its cool.  I heard there was gonna be a Bagets tribute album and I thought, but they only have that one song.  What’s next, a Club Dredd tribute album?  Vintage Color It Red, Sugar Hiccup, Kabaong ni Kamatayan, the original line-up of Put3ska, etc? Hmmm, that’s actually not a bad idea… I now have major LSS of “Your Love.”  And I was never a big Alamid fan, but I kinda miss the old version.  Do we remake songs because we want to remember the past (or, as some people put it, educate the next generation)?  Or we just don’t know what to write next?  But that can’t be the case, with all these brilliant new bands coming out.  And as much as I think the E-heads tribute album was the only way to get the songs out again, I still wish I could hear “Ligaya” or “Alapaap” played by, well, the E-heads. But times change.  You’re now supposed to wear your ID on school premises. No, I’m not hung up on my age, since this is my second post and I continue with some college reminiscing.  I guess, I just like to recall that time when I talk about music because my whole perspective on music then, especially local music, was fresh and new.  Now, I’m  older, supposedly wiser, and I’ve been around.  I don’t know if I should be so jaded, no not jaded, okay, let’s say caustic, instead.  But I was thinking, if Pulse was around when I was a freshie in college, I definitely would be an avid subscriber.  I’m serious! Yeah, really.  Hehe. – To prove I’m not hung up on my age, and to give you an idea what era of music I was referring to, I thought I’d share the start of my student number.  It’s 1992.

November 21st, 2006

We are the World, Pinoy Rock style

• By : paochec

Back in college, I remember hanging out with an ex-boyfriend and getting ticked off at him because he checked out what was playing in my walkman (yes, there was a cassette tape in it, yes I’m old enough to still use a walkman in college), saw that the tape was Blind Melon’s first album and said, “What? Hindi ka pa nagpro-progress?” I guess I would just listen to Blind Melon and the few other bands that I fell in love with without the help of TV and radio, but I’m now writing for Pulse and I need to know what else is out there, shouldn’t I? I’ve been to gigs the past few years but have yet to really encompass the entire local music scene. So even if I hardly watch TV anymore, I’ve recently been making myself watch MTV to check out videos and new music. The other night, I saw the Urbandub-Dicta License video for the MTV AIDS Summit. The song was “Future,” and is kind of reaching out to the youth, I guess, be aware of AIDS and don’t throw away your future, or some such. I thought the song was pretty cool, except I wasn’t paying too much attention to it really because I was busy watching the video. It featured all these familiar faces in the music scene besides the two bands. They were “playing” with their favorite childhood “toys,” so you’ll see Chito Miranda of Parokya ni Edgar pulling a train behind him, Jugs of the Itchyworms doing the limbo rock, Marc Abaya of Kjwan with huge pieces of lego, Armi Millare of Up Dharma Down playing piko, Christian Bautista pushing down a stack of dominoes, Sitti jumping rope, Karylle sitting at her tea set, Lougee of Mojofly fingerpainting, among others. Jett Pangan and Ely Buendia were also in the video, but I can’t seem to remember what toys they had. These aren’t ordinary toys by the way, you’ll have to watch the video to see. Anyway, I liked it very much, song and video, and I guess seeing all these recognizable kids as the “future” of Philippine music gave me goosebumps. Well, obviously not future, as they all are presently big deals already and that’s a concept I just find overwhelming, that we have arrived at the point where the music scene is such a big deal that a Pinoy We are the World is gonna work. It’s interesting to see where we go from here. – Yay, first blog post! Hope to hear your comments on the blog entries. Flowers and candy most welcome, too.

November 20th, 2006

Burn Baby Burn

• By : paochec

Anyone with ears and a soul should go to BURN BABY BURN: the massive concert put together by BURN magazine. It’s happening this Thursday, November 23, at the Music Hall in SM Mall of Asia, and it starts at 5 PM. (Originally slated for last September 28, it was postponed when mega-typhoon Milenyo hit.) The lineup, if I may say so, is excellent: big rock bands like Bamboo, Itchyworms, Sugarfree, Orange and Lemons, Hale, and Imago; the sweet bossa nova of Sitti, PULSE.PH’s Artist of the Month for November; the virtuosic (if there’s such a word) musical pranksters known as the Radioactive Sago Project; fun reggae act Hemp Republic; jazzhound Johnny Alegre; pinoy R&B paragons Chillitees; sexycool electronica artists Drip; rock n’ soul band Sino Sikat?; the sultry electro-latin-hiphop of Nyko Maca, and lots more — 22 artists in all. Show a copy of BURN issue 3 (Gary V or the Red Hot Chili Peppers on the cover) or 4 (Bamboo or Nelly Furtado on the cover, available this week) to get in. See you there.

November 20th, 2006

HALE KEEPS ALL YOUR LETTERS

• By : paochec

“Ayaw namin isipin nila na we’re rockstars, na we’re ‘up there’,” Champ Lui-Pio tells several journalists at a recent presscon for the release of their latest album, Twilight. Throughout the entire conference, the boys of Hale—guitarist Roll Martinez, bassist Sheldon Gellada, drummer Omnie Saroca, and of course, vocalist Lui-Pio—try to convince everyone that they’re just normal, everyday, average guys who happen to be in a rock band. The press is not buying it, of course. For example, a series of concerns were raised due to the band’s announcement that they would be “taking a break” after this second album. Concerns such as: Shouldn’t they be more visible, shouldn’t they capitalize on this momentum of getting back in the game, what if other bands surpass them? Concerns. Hale are quick to point out that these are not their concerns. ROLL: Kasi para sa amin, mas important yung hindi kami ma-burn out eh, kasi ordinaryong tao lang din naman kasi kami eh. We just happened [to sell] thousands of records. Pero, kailangan pa rin namin mag-aral, kailangan pa rin namin tapusin yung mga responsibilidad namin sa pamilya namin. CHAMP: To begin with, we never expected to be where we are now. ROLL: At saka we don’t think that way, na kung successful, kailangan hanggang sumuka na kami, basta lang ma-follow up ‘yon. Kasi we think far ahead, eh. Parang baka mamaya, itong third album, hindi na kami masaya. Pero hindi pa rin namin masabi, kasi malay mo, parang ‘yung second album, biglang naging sobrang excited rin kami, na gumawa na rin kami ng third album. Pero, as of now, ‘yun ‘yung plan… Hindi naman kami magiging invisible, we’re gonna still, like, play. Like, will they turn down fans and huge gigs? ROLL: Yes, kasi you can’t replace everything sa family atsaka sa buhay namin eh. CHAMP: Oo, quality of life pa rin. None of these answers seem to pacify the press. But what about the fame? ROLL: We’re really not concerned about that factor. CHAMP: We’re not concerned about kung ten years from now kung in pa rin kami o hinde. Parang, for us, it’s really about music talaga. Talagang, alam mo ‘yon, ‘yung showbiz stuff, wala talaga kaming pakialam dun eh. To begin with, we started off wala talagang pumapansin sa amin sa tugtog. Sanay kami eh. Parang naranasan namin to play with no one even giving a shit who we were, and now na kahit saan kami pumunta, people recognize us, so para sa amin, it’s all about doing what we love to do, as long as we’re happy, kahit ‘yung tumugtog kami isa lang nanunood. It doesn’t matter if, it doesn’t make a difference if isa lang ang nakikinig or ten thousand ang nakikinig, basta sa stage kami, masaya kami, ‘yun ‘yung importante. And so they try harder to convince these showbiz press types how normal, everyday and average they are. Like, they do ordinary stuff: gigging in Mayric’s wearing pambahay, they don’t have a wardrobe even, just rotate six T-shirts for gigs. And they try to maintain a personal relationship with their fans—Champ’s dad receives and accommodates texts from his son’s fans, Sheldon has allowed into his house a couple of girls who went there in the hopes of catching a glimpse of him. Roll insists that their relationship isn’t like those of celebrities, where the fans mob them, get autographs, have pictures taken. Hale has conversations with their fans, during gigs, and especially on their mailing list, which currently has 16,000 members—the most members of any local band mailing list in the country. Okay, 16,000 may not be a normal, average number, but to their credit, Hale does consider their relationship with their fans very important. They are, basically, grateful to be appreciated as musicians, to be “gotten.” CHAMP: The best part [about being popular] is being able to share our music on a big scale. ROLL: Ang best part dun ay naaangkin, eh, ng tao ‘yung kanta mo. Halimbawa, ‘yung kanta namin, makikita mo na kumakanta sila tapos feel na feel nila ‘yung kanta mo, parang makikita mo ‘yung sarili mo sa kanila, kasi pareho lang kayong nararanasan sa buhay kapag nakikita mong kinakanta ‘yung kanta mo. Champ then shares that moms come with their kids and tell the band their kids are doing well in school because they listen to Hale. Other kids approach the band after a gig, asking for a wish of good luck for their exams the next day, and then send them thank you letters because they passed. CHAMP: So, I keep all the letters, kami lahat, lahat ng binibigay sa amin, we keep them, kasi para sa akin, that’s the trophy, more than the platinum award. ‘Yung letters nila na sinasabi nila yung influence sa kanila, how it affects them in a positive way, ‘yun talaga ‘yung trophy namin eh. Not the triple platinum. Tapos, para sa akin, ‘yung impact na nakuha nila from our songs. Of course, they admit to appreciating the perks of fame, like getting to eat at the best restaurants in every city they visit, and getting to choose what bars to play at per month, while a lot of other bands are begging for a slot in a production. And perhaps they understand the implications of being so popular, which is why they’re so adamant about keeping it all real and not getting burnt out. They want to still want to play their songs, to record a third album, to still be Hale. For now, Hale will promote Twilight, which they claim is more straightforward lyrically and musically than their first album. And then after, they’d like to get back to an ordinary life; they want to go back to school, want to be able to ride a bus again and get stuck in traffic. Normal, everyday, average things. Join the army of Halers here!

November 20th, 2006

THE DAWN: LOOKING BACK AND MOVING ON

• By : paochec

The Dawn launched their 20th anniversary album, Tulad Ng Dati, last November 8 at the SM Mall of Asia: it’s a 2 CD set which features new songs as well as the band’s classics, rerecorded and rearranged by The Dawn’s current lineup, which includes bassist Buddy Zabala. They also screened the band’s semi-fictional biopic, also titled Tulad Ng Dati, which recently won the Cinemalaya grand prize. The event was opened by Troublespots, a band composed of fourteen year old girls playing convincing 80s rock, who capped off their set with a cover of the Dawn’s “Dreams.” I was surprised that these kids were doing covers of songs that were around before they were born, and was wondering why “Dreams” in particular, as it was not as popular as other past hits such as “Salamat” and “Enveloped Ideas.” Later, watching the movie, we found out why. Tulad Ng Dati is a biopic of the band—it stars most of the band members as themselves and tells their story. It’s semi-fictional because some characters are portrayed by recognizable celebrities—Agot Isidro as Jett Pangan’s wife Beth, Ping Medina as Teddy Diaz—and the movie is propelled by a fateful twist that didn’t quite happen in real life. That’s where the semi-fictional part comes in, as written by Mike Sandejas, who also directed and produced the movie under a tight Cinemalaya budget. While the history and the music is pretty much the Dawn’s in every respect, it is Sandejas who made this movie as magical as it turned out, from the twists in the story, to the brilliant editing, to the surreal conversation between Jett and Teddy that felt like a chapter from a Neil Gaiman novel. Sandejas is also responsible for a lot of the heart in the movie, particularly in how he captured the relationships found in the film. In film fests abroad, Tulad Ng Dati was sometimes criticized as being too dramatic, which Europeans aren’t usually fond of. “They’re also looking for Filipino movies showing how third world we are,” Sandejas shares, after the screening. Well, a movie about a rock band that used to fill stadiums in the 80s obviously isn’t trying to project how third world our country is, which Sandejas is “not interested in doing right now.” However, these critics did say that it was a very honest movie and one that obviously came from the heart. Which is how I feel about the movie exactly, also. Being a movie about a rock band, there were many opportunities to showcase the Dawn’s rich and expansive discography, whether as a soundtrack to a particular scene or featuring the band performing. The songs are synchronized according to the scene: “Change is Breaking Us Apart” during a depressing scene, “Little Paradise” during a scene where Jett meets up with an old flame, perhaps the one for whom the song was written, “Enveloped Ideas” during a scene where Jett brings the long-running members together—Junboy Leonor, Francis Reyes and a featured cameo by Carlos Balcells—to ask forgiveness. It’s a reunion song of sorts, that ends with a silhouette of Teddy Diaz watching over them from the bleachers. I still have goosebumps from that image, let me tell you. The fictional contrabida band (yes, there’s a contrabida band) borrows the Dawn’s angriest song as their own, “Salimpusa,” which figures hugely in one of the high points of the movie. Another high point is Jett discovering that his daughter Erica, portrayed by Mike Sandejas’ own daughter Zoe, plays the guitar and can do “Dreams.” Hey, look, it’s the lead singer of Troublespots! If you’ve been a fan of the Dawn since forever, you will undoubtedly love this movie. If you aren’t, it will make you an instant fan of the Dawn, believe me. After the screening, the music video of their newest single, “Ang Iyong Paalam,” was also premiered. The video is a mini-movie of sorts, directed craftily by Quark Henares. And then, the Dawn in its present incarnation—Pangan, Leonor, Reyes and Buddy Zabala on bass, who incidentally has the funniest lines in Tulad Ng Dati—took the stage. They started off with the new songs on the 20th anniversary album—“Difference,” “Ang Iyong Paalam”—then featured guests jamming with them, including the guitarist of the contrabida band, who is filmmaker Raffy Francisco in real life, playing sax on “Talaga Naman.” They were supposed to end their set with “Salamat,” but of course the fans and friends in the audience weren’t going to let them go so easily. Their encore was actually a whole new set in itself: “Enveloped Ideas” with Jett Pangan singing the Eraserheads’ “Pare Ko” in the bridge, then U2’s “Pride (In The Name of Love)” and “Beautiful Day,” and ending with my favorite Dawn song, “Iisang Bangka Tayo,” and the song they contributed to the Apo tribute album, “Bawa’t Bata.” As this jam progressed, people in the audience started to trickle onto the space between the first seats and the movie screen, standing nearer the band and dancing or swaying around. It looked like one big party. Which, in every way, it was. After all, it’s the launch of a 20th anniversary commemorative album and a special screening of their award-winning movie. Definitely lots to celebrate. Check out photos from the launch here. For more info on the Dawn, go to thedawn.ph.

November 16th, 2006

Here Comes the Judge

• By : paochec

Now it can be told, not that anyone was asking: I was a judge for this year’s NU107 Rock Awards. I turned in my decisions last Monday evening, so it is officially too late to bribe me with drugs and money (dammit!). The awards themselves will be held on December 1, at the World Trade Center (why can’t they call it something else?) in Pasay City. I always enjoy judging music awards shows — I’ve been an Awit Awards judge two years in a row, now — not just because they make me feel drunk with power, but because it’s nice to have a say when it comes to highlighting the accomplishments of worthy musicians. Of course, your definition of “worthy” and mine may be at odds, which is why it’s just as well that I’m a judge and you aren’t. In any case, the NU107 Rock Awards are always something special (even if no one has yet explained to my satisfaction what the hell the “Best Male” and “Best Female” categories mean, exactly). This year’s nominees are an impressive bunch indeed.

November 15th, 2006

New! Sugarfree!

• By : paochec

At one point, yesterday’s Sugarfree presscon became a mini-listening party — which was good, because apparently absolutely no one had known about the actual listening party, which took place… well, I don’t know when, because I didn’t know about it either. The good news: the new songs — at least the four that they previewed — are not bad. In fact, they’re pretty effing great. They reminded me of the songs from the first album — that immediacy, that unbridled feeling — but bolstered by the experience of the years in-between. New drummer Kaka Quisimbing seems like a good fit with the band, musically and attitude-wise. Have yet to see them all play together live, though (something I hope to remedy this Saturday, at the second leg of the Admit One anniversary gig). The nice people at EMI also played the video for the single “Kung Ayaw Mo Na Sa Akin” for us. It was excellently shot, which is to be expected for a Marie Jamora-directed video, but I found the quirky-cutesy love/hate story it was trying to tell to be a little less than compelling (unlike, say, the love stories told in videos for earlier Sugarfree songs like “Sinta” and “Burnout”). As good a director as Jamora undeniably is, sometimes I think that her more effective videos are the ones where she’s setting a mood or conveying a feeling rather than following a narrative — like Sandwich’s “Sugod” and “Food for the Soul” or even Orange and Lemons’ “Yakap sa Dilim,” say. Of course, every video tells a story in a way, so it’s kind of hard to classify them as strictly narrative/non-narrative. (I love what she did with Bamboo’s “Truth” and Imago’s “Akap,” for example — but were those story-videos or not?) Perhaps the split is best illustrated by her video for Kjwan’s “Daliri” — the footage of the band is great, dramatic; the serial-killer storyline somewhat less impressive. But anyway, “Kung Ayaw Mo Na Sa Akin” is an enjoyable, catchy song, which had us laughing at its funny/bitter lyrics. Am glad November 24 — the new album’s release date — is not so far away.