August 2004 Buzz Night

Affirmation rocks.

Buzz Night last Saturday started late. A couple of bands had already arrived, but most of them had a member or two missing and so Allan couldn't kick the program into gear just yet. Roel had just arrived straight from Baguio an hour earlier and we really appreciated his effort to make this night possible for Candyaudioline. Ralph and Charmaine were there, too. Ralph and I were both nervous about our set, especially since our last In Between Days performance was a bit of a laugh (though people said they had a lot of fun hearing us again). People were slowly filling up the place so we had a good-sized audience. We hoped the new bands would enjoy playing. Ayn arrived a bit later with Trina; she said she was studying at their place that night and that was why she could get away with playing. Candyaudioline had a little discussion on the songs to be included in our set (we wanted to take a risk and exclude some safe songs). Thankfully, we were all able to agree on something, and it turned out later that the risks paid off.

Eloha, former Soft Pillow Kisses vocalist, was there with her boyfriend. Later, Apol also arrived, though she left the singing to Eloha because she had to rush to an emergency all of a sudden. The night promised to have more reunions as some Buzz Night peeps from before paid a visit (Ryan from Apple Orchard, Joey from Candy/Pillow/Judith and Mike from Carnival Park), and also ex-Candy vocalist Mich's band Death By Tampon (with Lara SPK on drums!) was on the repertoire.

At 11, newbie band Join The Club kicked things off with their spunky harmonic songs. These guys had played with Pillow and Candy at Backbeat gigs before, but it was only when they let Allan listen to their EP recently that we noticed their infectious, head-bopping music. The people enjoyed their set and Charles heard the vocalist of Easy Mercey comment that bands being lined-up for Buzz Night are quite good these days. Next came Candyaudioline's set. We pulled it off very well, and the crowd really appreciated us starting it with "Flaming Walls". In the middle of the set, Ayn and I exchanged a subtle, relieved, "we're-doing-great!" smile. People liked that we ended with "Nothing Much To Lose".

Death By Tampon played next. Mich called our attention during soundcheck, saying they had a surprise for us. She started playing and singing "So Painful", but she had to stop because she forgot the chords, I think. She explained to the crowd that she used to be the vocalist for Candyaudioline and that it was Allan who had taught her to play the guitar. They gave a very enjoyable performance. They were all eye candy in their dolled-up selves, and their songs were sharply cute. I can't say for certain whether they were everyone's cup of tea, but a lot of us were certainly entertained by them, even Allan. We're happy that Mich and Lara are making a niche for themselves. Their band's personality and gumption will take them a very long way.

Sunset Drive followed with a very tight set. Their guitars sounded great! Next played Helen, which refreshed us with their slow, jazzy tunes after all that guitar angst from the previous four bands. After them, Popular Days took the stage… of course, they were the band that everyone was waiting for :D They played a new song and a cover from Ocean Blue along with a few staples. When they stepped down, they were surprised when people told them they played a great set… and they did!

It was Tether's turn. "Ang galing talaga nilang magpatunog ng gitara," Allan said. At first, their vocalist Joyce was having a hard time keeping up with the volume (Iha, ok lang yun… I had the same problem with Candyaudioline for the longest time, and I still have that problem every now and then… It's tricky when a band loves volume so much), and I could feel the tension of her efforts seeping into the crowd. But they soon won the audience over with sheer talent by the time they played their new songs.

Finally, Soft Pillow Kisses played. Eloha sang for them. She was drunk, but her diminished inhibitions made for good singing, despite the fact that she hadn't practiced in a long time. Allan is considering taking her back into the band now that she seems more interested. That would be good. In the middle of their set, I noticed something big and brown run across the floor from the restrooms, scuttle up onto the stage, make a beeline for Lara's feet and hide behind the amps. I gave out an involuntary cry, while the rest of the audience laughed and instinctively raised their feet. Allan practically did a rocking jump onstage and so did Lara. It was a huge-ass rat! Once again, the sweet strains of SPK's dream pop have lured the pests onto their set, like Orpheus' effect on flora and fauna. What talent.

Anyway, it was a very successful Buzz Night. May we have one again this coming September!

i'm back

thanks to those who wished me well during my few days of hell.





don't forget buzz night tomorrow!

Selena is hospitalized

naconfine si selena sa UDMC last night. asthma kasi. akala ko nga d na nya kakayanin eh. i left there with apol (ex soft pillow kisses singer) at around midnight na medyo okey na siya... if you have time, drop by... room 521 A... i hope she'll be okey soon so she could sing for candy this saturday...

buzz night aug 28 (saturday) @ mayrics in front of ust

here's the line-up so far for this month's buzz night

popular days
candyaudioline
death by tampon
helen
soft pillow kisses
join the club
tether
sunsetdrive

see you!!!

buzz night aug 28 (saturday) @ mayrics in front of ust

hello everyone!!!

first of all i would like to thank those who where at freedom bar last weds for the "in between days" gig!!! ayos na ayos!!!

here's the line-up so far for this month's buzz night

popular days
candyaudioline
death by tampon
helen
soft pillow kisses
join the club
plus many more...

see you!!!

hi coral fang!!!

hi coral fang,

hopefully candyaudioline will play on the 28th for buzz night kasi it might be the last for us for the meantime. and also, i'll try to get bagetsafonik to perform this aug 28, as for aj related bands, sorry to say that they don't like doing buzz nites any more... but the do have a monthly gig called "Girl Boy..." which they do at different venues... which boast of a more "purist" line-up of "indie" bands compared to mine which means that if you're looking for really good "indiepop" bands "girl-boy..." is the gig for you... if ever i see a post sa friendster ko i'll let you know thru the tagboard... adios

Candyaudioline Tonight @ Freedom Bar, Anonas St.!!!

For the first time in months, Candyaudioline will be performing tonight at In Between Days in Freedom Bar, Anonas St. Of course, all of us are excited :D

I guess there's something good about being able to play so infrequently-- when we do get to play, it's all the more sweeter and we look forward to it.

Cliches for everyone! Yipyipyipee!

(Must remember to bring Ralph's adaptor for his gadget.)

In Between Days @ Freedom Bar August 18, 2004 (wednesday)

hello everyone!

in between days will push thru this wednesday august 18...
here's the line up...

soft pillow kisses
tether
sunsetdrive
candyaudioline
children of eden
backseat
switch

gig starts at 9:30pm entrance is at 100 bucks

There's Birth, and There's Death

Last night was Allan's dad's first death anniversary. He invited some of us to go to his house and eat. William, Charles and Lara showed up. We had kare-kare, lechon kawali and giniling. Charles and William initiated some Emperador and Coke consumption. William told us that he now has a job as an encoder at a bank. He has some interesting songs in his new phone.

Charles got drunk. You know how we knew? He actually consented to have his picture taken several times. He was even posing, good grief. Lara told us about some of the projects she was going to do soon.

We all watched ETC and the Oprah Queer Eye for the Straight Guy episode. Then we all went home at 2 am.

Eniamrahc Thor!

Saturday, August 7 was Ralph's baby shower. The night before, Ayn and I were discussing what gifts we got for the baby. Allan and I were unsure about ours because we doubted whether he needed more than one crib cover set, but Ayn assured me that, during the first months, it's helpful to have more than one of each cloth accessory, since babies tend to soil them a lot with pee and/or milk and you have to keep changing. That really made me feel better. We also got him a bib and burp set.

Ayn and Trina picked me up at home while I was still taking a bath. When I finished, I rushed outside panting, "Sorry…" and found no one. They had actually headed straight to the rooftop to smoke. We all went downstairs and they looked at Edwina's and my messy room. They marveled at the number of Pinoy cds she owned ("Not mine!" I was quick to say for some reason, but I wished the Eraserheads ones were). I also was finally able to return some books that I had borrowed from Ayn half a year ago.

It was only 1:30, but we decided to head on to Daungan Restaurant, the venue for the baby shower. We were surprised to see a pool there and visions of future pool parties flashed through our minds. A lady in short shorts led us up to the party area where cute, baby blue Styrofoam letters spelled out the day's theme: "Watch Out for Me!" We were the only three there.

We passed the time doing our own things: Ayn drank beer, Trina studied her bite-size law book, and I stared into space and listened to the soundtrack of "50 First Dates" blaring from the restaurant speakers. I was reeling from a late night out (JV's birthday!) and could only find enough energy in my brain cell's mitochondria to silently curse Jason Mraz's rendition of "Melt With You". Trina and Ayn brought me back to earth though by discussing some law stuff in front of me. Egad.

Finally, Ralph arrived wearing a diagonally striped vintage red shirt. He looked like he was a member of VST & Co., especially because of his long, floppy hair. He said that Charmaine was on her way. We talked about what was up and when we could possibly play again.

30 minutes and 30 visitors later, Charmaine finally arrived, bigger than ever, and the feasting commenced. As usual, when it comes to food, Ralph spared no expense, which makes me wonder why he's so thin. There was mushroom soup, lechon, crispy pata, some kind of pork stew, fried chicken, pancit, and I can't remember what else… basta, a lot of food. As I was lining up to get some, I told Charmaine, "Gosh… you are truly Mother Earth!" She laughed.

Basically, we stuffed our faces and talked. Allan arrived a little later. He was able to pass by before having to go to a Subic Cheese gig. While we were having a dessert of fresh mangoes from Ralph's farm in GenSan, we talked about possible ways for Candyaudioline to be able to play this month. There's the In Between Days, which Ayn might be able to go to, if we play really early, and Buzz Night on the 28th. We might even get to play a Backbeat gig one of these nights.

While we were eating, Ralph's and Charmaine's other friends started doing videoke, and we were forced to watch the Viva Hot Babes undress or do suggestive dances in the background. Gad.

We left with Allan because we were all very tired. Welcome to the world, Baby Romero!

new counter

just want to say that i've put a new counter here. countville kind of fucked up the old one when they merged with another company, but it's ok. it would be nice just to keep track of the blog's visitors, that's all.

congratulations to ralph and charmaine again. will write about their baby shower soon.

in between days @ freedom bar

hi there...

i might put up an "in between days" gig at freedom bar this 18th of august. anyone interested to play can reach me through my cell phone 09209610348 or call me at home at around 10am to 12:30pm.

a tribute to 'em manyaks 

Be there or be square! :) 

Buzz Night, July 31, 2004 :)

Having to accompany some Backbeat bands to Lucena last Saturday, Allan gave the reins for Buzz Night to me and Charles. I told Charles that I might be late because I had made plans to visit Ayn right before Buzz Night. He said he'd take care of it until I got there.

I took Edwina with me to Ayn's. She and her law school friend Trina were just getting ready. They had their matching iBooks open on picnic tables in Ayn's room. They seemed to have been constantly working right up until they started dressing. It was great to see Ayn again and meet Trina. We were all excited about Buzz Night.

Ayn brought Tristania into the room and I was surprised at how much she's grown in the past few months. She's so round and pink and healthy, like a pretty little ball, and I teased her that she was getting to be like her Ninong Allan. At first, she was a little reserved, but with the help of some jumping on Ayn's black satin sheets, she became playful and hyperactive. Then she would kiss each of us in turn and hug us tightly; she did that over and over again, much to our delight. She wailed when it was time for us to go, so her lolo and lola decided to take her with them as they drove us to Mayric's.

I think Charles was ready to panic by the time we got there, though it was only 10 pm. I guess he was nervous being alone and having to talk to all the bands, which I wasn't so keen to do, either. Thankfully, most of them were there already and Charles had them settled into a good sequence that everyone agreed upon. I was impressed that he had handled all of it without my help, and it seemed that there were a number of walk-ins, too.

Ralph was there and it was great to see him. His hair was longer and he was wearing his red sweatshirt. He said he was sorry but he had run out of invitations to Charmaine's baby shower. He told us that this was one of the few times he was out of the house as he's been swamped with work-- he has at least four major projects he needs to work on simultaneously. All he does to battle insanity is download stuff from Soulseek (he also told us a pretty funny story about someone's opinion on who to ask about indie if you're from the Philippines).

Suddenly, Charles said that someone wanted to talk to me. It turned out to be one of the new bands, Switch. They had called Allan the night before and he told them to talk to me or Charles when they arrived at Buzz Night. But everything had been settled, so what did they want with me? Anyway, I faced the two guys and they actually just wanted to know about Buzz Night… was it a regular event? Was it a club? Haha… I was really nervous because I didn't feel like I was the person to ask but I told them some basic stuff they needed to know and said they should ask Allan himself when they meet him. I asked them what they played and they said, "Industrial," and I said, "Great." They seemed intrigued by the whole thing.

Ok, no critiques here, just observations.

So Five Leaves Left started the night early minus their curly-haired bassist, plus their pretty boy floppy-haired bassist. Now Allan can't form a band with them and call themselves The Don't-Mess-With-Us band. They seem to be getting better and better and I noticed a lot of heads moving to their music. Next followed the industrial pair Switch. The more aggressive audience members liked them and they gave a heavy touch to the night.

It was then that my friends Dottie and JV arrived (they actually paid entrance!)… they wanted to see Charles perform, having met him during several nights out before, and they also wanted to catch a certain band (secret, hehe). Edwina was sleepy, but Trina graciously entertained her with some parlor tricks so she could stay awake. I suddenly had a bad asthma attack, having left my inhaler in Ayn's van, and so I had to step out with my friends and buy an emergency Ventolin at Mercury Drug ("damn, there goes my chicharon bulaklak money!"). When we returned to Mayric's, it was already Blue Stellar's last song, so I wasn't able to catch much of their performance.

Ralph disappeared around that time, but I hadn't noticed when exactly. He might have still caught some of Sunset Drive, but I'm not sure. Anyway, before he left, he told me that he had an interesting experience while waiting outside Mayric's at 8:30 pm (I don't know why, but he decided to go there really early--- probably to soak up enough Mayric's tugtugan vibes to last him a month of seclusion, hehe!). He said that some people passed by and read the line-up for Buzz Night and one of them commented, "Ay sayang, hindi tutugtog yung Candyaudioline." Ralph just sat there chuckling to himself.

Next came Sunset Drive's strong performance, and then Children of Eden. I remember watching the latter before on the night of my first Mayric's gig… Ayn had brought me with her to Klub Fluid to help her friend's band and they played that night. I was surprised that they were lined up for Buzz Night; I think someone recommended them. Their music did sound right, but I wasn't sure about the vocals as it seemed a bit mainstream. Still, they went with the flow, and people liked them. By this time, since it was early, Charles had already asked them and the remaining bands to play 5 songs each.

Tether took the stage, minus one of their guitarists (the one with glasses). Joel, their bassist, was forced to sub for him and they got someone else to do the bass; these would probably account for the guitars' super loudness later on. I approached them, remembering they only used to have four songs before, so I could request them to play their Heavenly cover for the fifth, but they assured me they could play 5 songs. Their guitars were really loud and there was no one to manipulate the sound system that night, which made it very, very difficult for their diminutive vocalist to keep up, but this did not mask the coolness of their 2 new originals. I was impressed at how much they've grown since they first played Buzz Night. My friend JV, who doesn't really listen to much music, later on commented that the bands he liked best that night were Tether and Popular Days, and that says a lot about those bands. JV generally doesn't like anything that assails the ear, but in spite of Tether's absolute love for volume, he appreciated them. That says a lot, believe me.

Next, Popular Days performed. Once again, they proved to be the darlings of the night. The crowd was charmed by them and I couldn't resist calling out a fond shout of "Manyak!!!" or two. One funny thing happened, though. Charles was nervous in between songs and so he suddenly said, "Pasensya na, wala si Allan ngayon. Meron siyang… proyekto." I was coming from the bathroom and heard one of the walk-in patrons say, "Anong sabi niya?" The girlfriend said, "Si Allan daw…" to which he replied, "Si Allan? Sinong Allan? Maraming Allan eh!" Haha! I remembered that question by one of the Switch guys on whether Buzz Night was a club.

Bagetsafonik sealed the night with pleasing melodies interspersed with electronic beeping. I think it was a fitting end to July's Buzz Night.

After the gig, we were sitting around waiting for people to leave when this old guy went up to Charles and said, "Galing! Sa Tuesday ha!" Charles said, "Salamat, sige." When the man left, I asked Charles what he had meant by that and he said, "Hindi ko nga alam eh!" Haha! Whatever the case, I think the man had been impressed by Popular Days and probably had assumed that they would be playing at Back to The Edge, a New Wave production coming up at Mayric's. I told Charles how much I appreciated him single-handedly manning Buzz Night. It was a pity Allan wasn't there, but I'm glad it was successful anyhow.

new home

as per request, here's the new url to our candy site: candyaudioline.ralphot.com.

sign-up na rin kayo for a gmail... it's 1GB of free email courtesy of google. check nyo yung link once you sign into blogger.