May 2007 Archives

(Disclaimer: This is not for the faint of heart. This is just me during a thunderstorm.) I COULDN'T stop laughing as I read a playlist posted by my editor in a mailing list. He dubbed it, "Baduy Songs." Baduy is a Filipino term that describes something or someone who is out of fashion. It also sometimes means "geeky" or "corny" but that could be debatable. Baduy could also mean jologs or lowbrow. So if you say a certain song is baduy it means "bad" or "nasty" music. But I guess the meaning changes based on context. Anyway, let’s move on to our little story. My editor Leo Magno urged us to post the most baduy songs we could find in our playlist. Apparently, everybody has a secret playlist tucked in somewhere in their iTunes folder or in their iPod. He eventually posted at least 40 tunes he considered the worst songs he has collected (He's willing to share them, if you like). I was floored. He even revealed that he had to do some research to match the songs with the artists. Okay, I know you're excited to know what tunes landed in his baduy songs playlist. Here they are in no particular order of baduyness.

• 20 Minutes Before Takeoff (Dan Henry)
• 628 (Europe)
• Achy Breaky Heart (Billy Ray Cyrus)
• Always (Erasure)
• Angelina (Lou Bega)
• Angelina (Psy)
• Asereje (Las Ketchup)
• Barbie Girl (Aqua)
• Body Dancer (Magic Fire) "shake, body-body-dancer... shake..."
• Boom Boom (Paul Lekakis) "boom, boom, boom, let's go back to my room, so we could do it all night..."
• Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom (Vengaboys)
• Boulevard (Dan Byrd)
• Brother Louie (Modern Talking)
• Candyman (Aqua)
• Da Da Da (Trio)
• Dayang Dayang (Erika Macho)
• Designer Music (Lipps Inc)
• Dr. Jones (Aqua)
• Electric Youth (Debbie Gibson)
• The Final Countdown (Europe)
• Give me Hope (Joanna) -- Eddy Grant
• Gloria (Laura Brannigan)
• The Great Commandment (Camouflage)
• Hit that Perfect Beat (Bronski Beat) -- "Beat boy, beat boy, hit that perfect beat boy..."
• If You're Not Here by My Side (Menudo)
• Keys Me (Alyssa Alano's version of Kiss Me)
• Lambada (Kaoma)
• Liberte (Gilbert Montagner)
• Like a Cannonball (Menudo)
• Macarena (Los del Rio)
• Magic Carpet Ride (AringKingKingKing) -- Mighty Dub Katz
• One Way Ticket (Boney M)
• Ride the White Horse (Laid Back)
• She Bangs (William Hung Version)
• Square Rooms (Al Corley)
• Sukuleu (Tantra)
• Swiss Boy (Lou Sern)
• Tarzan Boy (Baltimora)
• Thai Na Na (Kazero)
• We like to Party (Vengaboys – "The vengaboys are coming…New York to SanFrancisco..")

Now, it’s your turn to share your baduy playlist.

LIKE father, like son? Here's an excerpt from the Associated Press article:

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Sting's son opened The Police's first major tour in 20 years Monday night.

Joe Sumner, the lead vocalist and bassist for Fiction Plane, raced onto the stage sounding a lot like his father, otherwise known as Gordon Sumner. Fans packed Vancouver's GM Place to catch the kickoff of The Police's reunion tour.

THEY may be old, but hell, they're legends -- and they still rock and roll with the best of them. Pinoy rock legends Joey "Pepe" Smith, Chickoy Pura and Jun Lopito recently played together in Mega Music Fest. They're also the endorsers of the Fernando brand of guitars. Here's an excerpt from the Showbiz & Style article:

Their performance, billed as “Pinoy Guitar Legends,” opened with three ’70s classics: “Mamasyal sa Pilipinas,” “Beep Beep” and “Himig Natin” -- all of which Pepe wrote with JDLC. While Jun and Chickoy cranked up the rhythm and lead lines, Pepe as usual played around with the lyrics of “Mamasyal”: “Ako’y naghihintay ng masasakyan sa highway/Ngunit kanina pa ’ko naghihintay, wala pala ’kong pamasahe…” Chickoy had his turn with the jazz-inflected “Kun’ Di Man,” a song he wrote a long time ago. Jun picked Eric Clapton’s “Crossroads,” which showcased his love for the blues. In each of those numbers, Jun and Chickoy exhibited ease and control over their instruments. Jun often called the shots, signaling with a nod or a wink on who would play lead. Chickoy was caught smiling with each signal.

CONGRATULATIONS to 17-year-old Jordin Sparks, who has made history as the youngest "American Idol" winner. Here's an excerpt from the San Francisco Chronicle story:

Jordin Sparks grew up on "American Idol," watching the show since she was 12 years old and telling her mother it was what she wanted to do.

"Now I'm actually doing it," the 17-year-old told reporters backstage after winning the competition in Wednesday's season finale. The announcement that the Arizona teenager bested Blake Lewis, 25, the beat-boxer from Washington state, came at the end of a two-hour extravaganza at the Kodak Theatre.

WILL they be the next big thing in the Philippine music scene? These aspiring pop stars sure hope so. Here's an excerpt from the Showbiz & Style article:

Maricris Garcia, a lounge chanteuse, points out: “I want people to realize that singing prowess is not measured by the high notes you can hit. It’s still about voice quality and having a distinct style.”

Joyce Tañaña, a choir member since elementary, explains: “PPS has already produced a belter in Jonalyn Viray. I want to show everyone that it’s possible for a female singer to impress an audience even if she doesn’t resort to belting. All she has to do is sing from the heart.”

CHECK out Pam Pastor's story on Rock Ed. Here's an excerpt:

And because it has been proven time and again that the adults in this country have a hard time listening to the young ones, Rock Ed decided to put together a killer combination that is impossible to ignore: an eight-hour showcase of music, images and videos that demanded for clean and honest elections.

The sky didn’t cooperate—it rained—but the 20,000 people who attended the event in Amoranto Stadium didn’t care. “Everyone behaved,” Rock Ed’s Gang Badoy said. “We had no crash guards, no net in front of the stage and not a lot of security but it was so peaceful. It was great. They were well-behaved but the concert was still rocking! The moshers rocked pero walang gulo. I think it’s also because we asked people to come in white and because they signed agreements that they will rock in peace when they downloaded the entry forms.” Gang also had nothing but good things to say about the musicians who have shown Rock Ed’s projects tremendous support. “The musicians in the Philippine band scene now understand that their voices carry. They know that they have the power and responsibility to influence the young to be more nation-involved. From the start, Rock Ed has always challenged the rock stars, I always ask them, “Do you deserve that microphone? Do you deserve your audience? What does your music stand for?” And the musicians have delivered more than I imagined. They have been generous with their talent. Many of them even study the advocacies before performing. They come with their own opinions and stands on issues involving the young. I have a feeling the term “rock star’s ego” will mean an entirely different thing in the near future. Eventually, it will indicate compassion, genius, kindness instead of self-serving, ego-involved, and conceited.”

PHILIPPINE music will also be showcased at the University of California, Los Angeles Spring Festival of World Music and Jazz. Here's an interesting story from the Los Angeles Times that shows how music strikes a common chord that brings together different cultures:

While the ethnomusicology groups allow some players to use Western instruments, the vast majority perform on the traditional ethnic instruments collected by UCLA or lent by its instructors, many of whom have the expertise and connections to find authentic instruments.

"I bought six of these for $80 each when I went home to the Philippines," lecturer Tagumpay De Leon said as he held up a small 12-string bandurria during a rehearsal by his rondalla choir of plucked instruments, which includes guitars and double basses, as well as Philippine octavinas and lauds. "But if I'd just shopped on EBay, they'd be $200!" De Leon's new bandurrias make up a mere fraction of the department's holdings. Many of these instruments are stored in a room housing the collection's centerpiece: a 60-piece, 150-year-old Javanese gamelan dubbed Kyai Mendhung (Venerable Dark Cloud) for the sound of its largest gong.

SO, what do you think? Is it true that a female singer has to be a babe to make it big? Here's an excerpt from the MSNBC story:

NEW YORK - She was an “amazing talent,” a young singer with a wonderful voice who wrote beautiful songs. But she was no beauty, plus flat-chested and overweight to boot.

Remembering the aspiring star, music executive Jody Gerson still feels terrible about thinking: “She’s never going to get signed, even though she’s fabulous.”

Gerson might feel even worse after Wednesday night’s exit of the matronly Melinda Doolittle from “American Idol.” In today’s music industry, Plain Janes need not apply. Sex appeal was once considered a bonus for a woman; now it’s practically a requirement.

 

EVER heard that phrase? I guess so. If not, you wouldn't be reading this blog anymore, heh. How many times has music saved your "life." In my case, I guess countless times. We have different tastes for music. They could be the neck-breaking heavy metal sounds you play loud. They could be the cool Indie Emo you have around when you're feeling sentimental. They could be the old and new Brit rock or similarly influenced music you listen to while typing an entry in your blog. You listen to music usually based on your moods; thus you would sometimes see people arranging their playlists based on certain emotions. Feeling-a-lot-of-love. Chill out. Morning dose. Cool down. Angry music. Or whatnot. I checked how "violent music" affects our emotions, and here's what I stumbled upon.

Violent music lyrics increase aggressive thoughts and feelings, according to new study

Well, that made me smile. Just a disclaimer: that piece of news is actually a press release from the Americal Psychological Association. It involves an experiment on over 500 college students.

Results of the five experiments show that violent songs led to more aggressive interpretations of ambiguously aggressive words, increased the relative speed with which people read aggressive vs. nonaggressive words, and increased the proportion of word fragments (such as h_t) that were filled in to make aggressive words (such as hit). The violent songs increased feelings of hostility without provocation or threat, according to the authors, and this effect was not the result of differences in musical style, specific performing artist or arousal properties of the songs. Even the humorous violent songs increased aggressive thoughts.

Such studies will surely create debates among us. But as the study admits, longterm experiments should be done to really determine if violent music does lead to aggressive behavior. What gets me in this study is the point that "[r]epeated exposure to violent lyrics may contribute to the development of an aggressive personality and could indirectly create a more hostile social environment..." Hmmm. Let's pause there for a moment. Okay, breathe. Now, laugh! To end, I found this interesting news from BBC News, titled Organ music 'instils religious feelings'. It somehow links organ music to feelings of spirituality. Yes I do agree that music can lead to certain emotions. But music's impact on human beings should consider the context or the environment. Here's an interesting experiment that Guy Kawasaki found and wrote about in his blog, titled "Violin Monday." Excerpt:

Basically, the Washington Post convinced a world-class violinist named Joshua Bell to act like a street musician to see how many people would stop to listen to him play and how many would donate money. He would play his $3.5 million violin made by Antonio Stradivari in 1713. It must be a helluva of violin because it has a name: “Gibson ex Huberman.” The Violin Maker is filled with stories of how violins come to be named, by the way.

Moral of the story: Don’t pass by life much less let life pass you by. (That's from Guy's blog too) . Rock on!

HOW does it feel like to kiss the incredibly sweet Norah Jones? Jude Law knows. Ms Jones, known for her cooey, made-for-Starbucks music, appears with the British actor in Wong Kar-Wai's "My Blueberry Nights," the opening film at this week's Cannes filmfest, quite possibly the best venue for an acting debut. Wikipedia reveals she did appear in the film Two Weeks Notice -- which starred baked-beans-throwing Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock -- but that don't count since she played herself in that movie. "My Blueberry Nights should be something to watch out for since one, it's by Wong Kar-Wai and two, the noticable absence of his favorite Asian actors like Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung. In their place are Mr. Law, Rachel Weisz and Natalie Portman. Make that three reasons since it's Natalie. As for the opening question, the opening sequence in this video for "Sunrise" zooms in on Ms. Jones' lips at their kissable best: (Editor's Note: Photo courtesy of Agence France-Presse)

HERE'S an excerpt from the Inquirer Entertainment story:

MANILA, Philippines--In 2001, the civil society movement pagbabago@pilipinas sought to use music in its campaign to make this country a better place. One of its objectives was to inspire inner change so that Filipinos might learn, for example, to discern who to vote for during elections. It's been almost five years since the album "Pagbabago" was recorded. It's hard to determine the level of awareness it has attained so far, being an independent release, which means no major record label funded its promotion, unless you're one of the fortunate few thousands who have a copy of the CD. Today being Election Day, it's good to look back and understand what "Pagbabago" is all about.

LOOKING to dance the hot summer nights away? Check out Nyko Maca and Playground. Here's an excerpt from the YOU Super article:

IF you’ve been dying to fly half way around the world to experience the electrifying salsa beats and booty-shaking rituals of a Brazilian Carnaval, pack your bags and head to M Café (Ayala Museum, Greenbelt 4, Ayala Center, Makati, phone: 757-3000) every Tuesday night of May. Celebrate hot summer nights with the infectious Afro-Cuban breakbeat and electro-samba grooves of multi-talented performer Nyko Maca and her sonic accomplice, Playground (composed of electronic DJ Neon8, guitarist Rick Sanchez, and saxophonist Alvin Cornista). The group has gone traipsing across the globe in search of bossa, infusing Maca’s classical jazz background with batucada and a few heady strokes of hip-hop-rooted neo-soul.

SUMMER ushers in the music festival season in the US and the stage is set for band reunions -- Rage Against the Machine and Jesus and Mary Chain at Coachella, for one. America's hottest blond export Scarlett Johansson even does some vocal charms singing Just Like Honey, the JAMC song from "Lost in Translation." Reunions are a-plenty these days -- The Police, Pixies, The Stooges (to say Iggy Pop didn't age one bit is probably, well, funny). Billy Corgan is reportedly giving it another go with a new Smashing Pumpkins album, although not with a full line-up. Ben Ratliff of the New York Times dissects the dynamics of these band reunions in this really great article -- you can also hear him voice his thoughts in the accompanying audio clip. He ponders on the notion that music is more powerful than the band itself. I believe so. To me, these reunions mean it's a chance for younger people and the "late bloomers" like me to see these great bands perform onstage one more time -- in the present time and not the occasional TV special. I have this DVD of a Pixies reunion concert (bought from unofficial sources, heh) that I recommend music-loving friends to look out for -- to hear Kim Deal's woo-hoos at the beginning of "Where is my Mind?," to see Joey Santiago play the opening riff to "Here Comes Your Man" is a different experience than listening to their albums. Speaking of reunions, will Ely, Buddy, Raymund and Marcus ever give it a go, even for one very last time? The succeeding generations of UP students can only listen to tales of their memorable freshmen orientation gigs from old farts like us.

THE GRATEFUL Dead will always remain alive in the hearts of their fans. Fans of the defunct band proved this once more as they shelled out $1.1 million in an auction of Grateful Dead memorabilia. Here's an excerpt from the San Francisco Chronicle story:

Another treasure was a suitcase full of Garcia's spare guitar strings. It went for $16,800. An empty red steamer trunk sold for $13,200. The best stuff, two of Garcia's old electric guitars, fetched $312,000 and $186,000. But without Garcia to play them, music historians said, they were two old electric guitars. Garcia, who died in 1995, has already been the drawing card for memorabilia auctions of dubious transcendence. In a Garcia auction in 2005, a Nevada casino paid $2,500 for one of the maestro's toilets. As devoted Dead fans know, Tuesday's auction fell on the 30th anniversary of a beloved concert by the band in Ithaca, N.Y., an event so stellar in Ithaca history that the mayor declared Tuesday to be Grateful Dead Day. Devoted Dead fans point out that it is almost always the anniversary of a beloved Dead concert, someplace.

AHH, the good old days. For those of us who couldn't afford to buy an imported acoustic guitar, the next best thing was a Lumanog. In a recent article on PhilMusic.com, Gerry Diwa takes us back to his days of hunting the best local custom-built guitars. Apart from the Cebu-made types (not those made out of plywood, of course), the Lumanogs became very popular because of their distinct sound. (If you can't relate, blame the generation gap, heh). There were other brands at the time. But the Lumanog guitars became popular among budding musicians who wanted a custom-built acoustic guitar that was truly Filipino-made, as this blogger wrote back in 2005. Excerpt from Diwa's article:

The Lumanog name is synonymous with Philippine made acoustic guitars. As far as I can remember, when someone in the family wanted an acoustic guitar the reply is always to "get a Lumanog" 'cause "it's the best". And since the family hails from Pampanga, everyone knows where the best of the best Lumanog guitars can be found - at the hub of guitar and music instrument shops all bearing the name Lumanog in San Anton, Guagua, Pampanga. Thus, when it was my turn to get my first acoustic guitar - as soon as we changed Apo Ando's $100 gift into pesos - we rushed straight to San Anton in Guagua, me and my cousin haggled the hell out of the C.B. Lumanog music shop.

THE GELLED-HAIR and eyeliner reminded me a lot of the guy from Fall Out Boy. Maybe the producers thought it's about time to bring some Bruce Wayne-ish darkness into Peter Parker's character for a change. Speaking of emo, the soundtrack to the earlier sequel featured a song by Dashboard Confessional. This time around, the "Spider-Man 3" soundtrack is leaning more towards indie/alternative, with songs by Snow Patrol, The Killers, The Walkmen, Wolfmother, Rogue Wave, etc. Some of the songs can be heard on the official MySpace page. The latest Spider-Man movie did have the usual ingredients (a Stan Lee cameo, Kirsten  Dunst's irritating screams) but managed a few welcome surprises (great opening chase scene, Bryce Dallas Howard). Makeup aside, Peter Parker's all-black outfit won't make him feel out of place with the guys from Interpol.

BAMBOO is bringing hope to remote villages in Mindanao via the Days of Peace campaign. Here's an excerpt from the INQUIRER.net Showbiz & Style article:

Lead vocalist Bamboo Mañalac, guitarist Ira Cruz, bassist Nathan Azarcon and drummer Vic Mercado expressed their support in song while lending a hand in distributing vitamin A drops and de-worming tablets to children who were missed out during routine immunization services.

Sitio Saramuray, which sits over sprawling hills in the hinterlands of Maguindanao, is almost four hours away from Cotabato City—a remote community run by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. “We want to express what we feel in the best way we can,” said Bamboo. “We don’t speak their dialect but we can use our songs to speak to them. Kayang-kaya, sama-sama, bata muna! (Together we can if we put children first).”

HERE'S some bad news for Pandora lovers in the Philippines and most likely every other listener outside the US. I got an e-mail from its founder, Tim Westergren, who announced that listeners from the country will be blocked from its streaming servers because they still have to secure international licenses. It says that Filipino users will be blocked from accessing the service starting May 3. This is bad news indeed. At this writing, it appears I still have access to the service. Here's his e-mail:

Dear Pandora listener, Today we have some extremely disappointing news to share with you. Due to international licensing constraints, we are deeply, deeply sorry to say that we must begin proactively preventing access to Pandora's streaming service for most countries outside of the U.S. It is difficult to convey just how disappointing this is for us. Our vision remains to eventually make Pandora a truly global service, but for the time being, we can no longer continue as we have been. As a small company, the best chance we have of realizing our dream of Pandora all around the world is to grow as the licensing landscape allows. We show your IP address is 'xxx.xx.xx.xx', which indicates you are listening from Philippines. If you believe you are seeing this by mistake, we offer our sincere apologies and ask that you please reply to this email. Delivery of Pandora is based on proper licensing from the people who created the music - we have always believed in honoring the guidelines as determined by legislators and regulators, artists and songwriters, and the labels and publishers they work with. In the U.S. there is a federal statute that provides this license for all the music streamed on Pandora. Unfortunately, there is no equivalent license outside the U.S. and there is no global licensing organization to enable us to legitimately offer Pandora around the world. Other than in the U.K., we have not yet been able to make significant progress in our efforts to obtain a sufficient number of international licenses at terms that would enable us to run a viable business. The volume of listening on Pandora makes it a very expensive service to run. Streaming costs are very high, and since our inception, we have been making publishing and performance royalty payments for every song we play. Until now, we have not been able to tell where a listener is based, relying only on zip code information provided upon registration. We are now able to recognize a listener's country of origin based on the IP address from which they are accessing the service. Consequently, on May 3rd, we will begin blocking access to Pandora to listeners from your country. We are very sad to have to do this, but there is no other alternative. We will be posting updates on our blog regarding our ongoing effort to launch in other countries, so please stay in touch. We will keep a record of your existing stations and bookmarked artists and songs, so that when we are able to launch in your country, they will be waiting for you. We deeply share your sense of disappointment and greatly appreciate your understanding. -Tim Westergren (Pandora founder)

THIS one's not a leak. The latest album by American indie band Modest Mouse We Were Dead Even Before The Ship Sank has topped the Billboard charts a week after it was released late March. Lots of hype surrounded the album because of the addition of Johnny Marr (third from left), legendary ex-guitarist for 80s heroes The Smiths (for the non-fans, they sang the theme song of the "Charmed" TV series). Listen to the first single off the album, "Dashboard," on the band's MySpace profile. For diehard Smiths fans, look out for Marr's trademark jangling guitars. In true indie fashion, Modest Mouse has launched a contest over at Stereogum, allowing fans to make the video for the song "Fire It Up." Reminds me somehow of this video by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Here's a video of Modest Mouse's "Dashboard."

THE BAND Do’Ahou kicked things off at IP e-Games‘ Dom1Nation first anniversary celebration on April 28 at Le Pavillon, Roxas Boulevard by performing several popular anime songs. Here’s the video I took for hackenslash.

SO could we say she's doing it for love, heh :) Courtney Love has announced that she plans to auction off the late, great Kurt Cobain's belongings. Here's an excerpt from the Spinner.com interview:

Thirteen years after Kurt Cobain's death, Courtney Love is making a commitment to move on, by selling her late husband's belongings. "I'm going to have a Christie's auction," she tells Spinner. "[My house] is like a mausoleum. My daughter [14-year-old Frances Bean] doesn't need to inherit a giant hefty bag full of flannel f***ing shirts ... A sweater, a guitar and the lyrics to 'Teen Spirit' -- that's what my daughter gets. And the rest of it we'll just f***ing sell." Love says her friends are supportive of the idea. "Everyone's been positive and behind me on it," she says. "We'll make a lot of money and give a bunch of it to charity."