hello

hi! got to office early so makakapost ako ng konti.

medyo olats yung buzz night last saturday because the bands came late and some of them weren't up to par really. but things picked up a little later on and it broke even. but the candyaudioline set was good. and the spk set was great. you could tell people were happy some of the old lineup was back...

anyway, hope we can get better bands for this month's buzz and see you at venue 108. finished my mask already (rather, manix finished it for me hehehe).

july buzz Night (Punk, Panic, Pillow, Perfect... PUNYETAH!!!)

for a moment there i thought we were in for one of those nights wherin everything crashes and you're left with just nothing but regrets.

yesterday at about 2pm, ayn texted me that she's not going to play at buzz night because she's suffering from fatigue. then shortly after, joel texted me that Pumping Pluto won't make it because of ... by that time i was a bit annoyed because i could've given the slot to some other band. at the same time realising that ayn's absence would mean that candyaudioline line won't be able to play 100%. good thing that i had two options, it's either charles or joel. charles agreed to play and so my problem was solved a bit. although i still had regrets because charles could only play 5-7 songs.

on to buzz night...

me and selena arrived at mayrics at around 10:15pm. sunsetdrive was outside while i hurried inside to see if i could get the ball rolling because it was getting late already. i was a bit surprised to see an empty mayrics while the PA system was playing this really annoying pop song from some local artist. i started to panic. then i saw jerry from massive action. i asked him if they wented to go first but they opted to do a soundcheck... ok, after hearing this band doing soundcheck, i had really weird thoughts of discontinuing buzz nights. i was wondering whether buzz night is beginning to turn into a big joke or something. i tried to pull myself together and the best way to do it was to put everything in the right scheme of things. i decided to let candyaudioline play first. a good decision indeed. i was bit nervous at first because i knew that charles has yet to gel with the band. chosing "flaming walls" as first song really paid off. we got very relaxed. it set the tone for the rest of our set. we did well i guess. thanks charles!!! next up was massive action. they play pinoi punk covers from the likes of urban bandits and third world chaos. they were crap! punk was crap also but it had something to say. these guys were really... jerry, do you need my help? you should ditch that band and hook up with people who could help you make good use of your talent.that is not old skool punk. "disgrace" is a far better word for it. next up was sunsetdrive. tight as ever. i noticed that some of the songs were a bit longer than usual but the hell with it. they sound mean this time around (dahil kaya sa greco guitar ko?). i liked the second song, the guitars had this prog rock feel ala dealership. my science project came next. actually, i talked to these guys about a week ago regarding some adjustments which could help them improve their brand of indiepop. well i guess my suggestions where taken quite seriously. the singing improved a bit. although some of the songs still sounded like they where stolen from a superminty or soft pillow kisses song, but it ain't that obvious anymore... next time guys try to improve more in the guitar department. you have one of the best guitar players indie local indie scene in joey (an ex-candyaudioline and ex-soft pillow kisses member).infact you have a very strong line up of musicians. your drummer is one of the best drummers i've ever seen, you have a great keyboard player (so far siya pa lang ang nagdadala sa inyo). dennis is also a good singer who has this distinct, easily recognizable voice. if only he could use it properly. dennis, this is not daffodil cookies okey! up next was tether. with a very tight rythm section and two of the best and equally creative guitarist around plus an arsenal of really catchy songs, tether made everyone listen... they were simply quite awesome that night... they slowed some of the songs down to good effect giving it a chance to breathe and show their true melodic beauty. soft pillow kisses followed shortly... all i can say is that this is one gig i'll never forget. yes we played a really great set, yes we were able execute the songs with almost clinical precision inspite having just one practice session after not seeing each other for nearly five months, yes the songs were gorgeous but its way beyond that. it's the fact that we were able to be together again. that was the real thrill. i haven't had success in looking for new pillow members (singer and bassist) for the past few months. maybe that was meant to be. selena said "yan na yan allan, yang unit na yan"... i'm afraid she's right and it was meant to be that way. thanks lara, eloha, charles and gilbert. i just wish that that this is really "it"... last band to play was lucious dreams. i won't comment on their set because it wont be proper to do so for the meantime. i would just like to thank them for showing up inspite of the late notice plus the fact that they came from another gig wherein the played an acoustic set.

just to give you an idea on why i invited luscious dreams to play for buzz night. i saw them play at music museum a few months back. they played along side tether plus a few other unknown bands. i find their sound a bit like tether's less the attitude and experimentations but more melodic. i figured that if i put them up for buzz night, they might get to like it, be influenced (like poopoo vox who according to some sources had already disbanded) and evolve into another promising band which could atleast boost buzz night's line up...

we missed indie-glamore group POPULARDAYS...

JANNPOL!!! nasaan ka!

AYN! get well soon...

BUZZ NIGHT on July 23 @ Mayrics

hello everyone,

here is this month's line up for buzz night:

sunsetdrive
candyaudioline
massive action
tether
pumping pluto
my science project
soft pillow kisses

looking forward to seeing you there!!!

A Game of You

Hi bandmates (and Candyblog readers).

I'm not sure if you guys know who Neil Gaiman is, what he's known for and that he was here for a 3-day booksigning tour--but allow me to share with you something priceless...

In a few years time, my daughter will thank me for this.

The Dream-King up close and in the flesh at Gateway.

During the Anansi Boys reading at the Promenade.

---

For those who were in the know.

"You!" said the Caterpillar contemptuously. "Who are you?"

- From ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND, by Lewis Carroll.

:)

the week that was!!!

ano nga ba ang nangyari during the week that waz?

as usual... palala ng palala ang situasyon dito sa pinas! nagtataasan ang mga presyo ng kung anu-ano dahil ayaw kasi bumaba ng isa dyan!!! punyetang yan, halatang sakim sa kapangyarihan!!! syempre eto ang panahong kung saan ang mga tulad nyang sablay ay sasamantalahin ang situasyon upang magpapogi!!! punyetah talaga... pag magpalutoy pa ito eh baka mapilitan akong magbuo ng PANK BAND at tutugtog kami sa harap ng malacañang at sa tabi ng sandigan bayan... susulat ako ng mga pank rak song tungkol sa pagbabago, kapayapaan at pagkakaisa taglay ang aking gitara at mahihiram na granada... (ano kamo? WALANG NUKLEAR!!! talagang wala! malay naman ng pinoy gumawa ng ganun?) kadalasan, kapag ganito ang situasyon, naiisip ko minsan na maging SUPERHERO nalang... gusto ko, taglay ko ang lakas ni SUPERMAN, kapa ni BATMAN, spider sense ni SPIDERMAN, katawan ni HULK, boses ni FERNANDO PO JR. at mukha ni DAFFY DUCK para seryosohin ako. kakailanganin ko rin pala ang BRA ni DARNA para gawing goggles. alam mo naman dito sa pinas, madumi ang hangin pati na tubig, ayoko naman ma-side-line dahil sa isang eye infection... sana mapa-saakin na rin ang batong gamit ni darna nang sa ganun ay di na sya makapag-darna. kawawa ang mga nanunuod. nakakabobo!!! syempre mas malala ang KAMPANERANG KUBA pero given na yun kasi chanel 2. alam mo naman sa istasyong yan, umaapaw sa pera at kabobohan!!! tingnan kung sino mga pambato nilang artista, yung isa ex ng anak ni lovingly yours at yung isa naman (game na!) lagi, parehong imoral at walang kwenta... pustahan tayo balang araw sila ang magkakatuluyan...

hay naku!!! buti nalang at nakapanuod at ng cine recently. okey talaga yung WAR OF THE WORLDS at F4... bad trip nga lang at may ina-advertise na bagong basura na pilit nilang tinatawag na pelikula... ASTIG DAW OH!!! TAE NYO! dapat tawag dto "UNGGOY BLAND"!!! letse... trailer pa lang T.O. na ako... ETO ANG KATUTUHANAN MGA KABABAYAN, KAHIT NA MAGANDA PA ANG TEMA, STORYA, O KUNG ANU-ANO PANG SANGKAP NA KAILANGAN PARA MASABING DE-KALIBRE ANG PELIKULA, MAGALING NA DIRECTOR, MAY PONDO ANG PRODUKYON , MALAYO PA RIN MAKAKAGAWA NG TUNAY NA MAIPAG-MAMALAKING PELIKULA ANG ATING BAYAN SA NGAYON... BAKIT? KASI 90% NG MGA ARTISTA NATIN NGAYON AY PURO SABLAY... YUN LANG... di nyo carry mga tsong-go...

nung friday, sinawing palad ako na samahan ang isang alaga naming banda sa concert ng isang foreign band na ubod naman ng walang kwenta... WALA PA SILA SA KALINGKINGAN NG CHISILOG. gusto ko nga silang CHINELASin eh... sa totoo lang kahit isang piranggot na element para masabi kong interesting sila eh wala akong napala. tatlong kanta ang buong-dusa kong pinanuod wala talaga. skillful lang sila at magaganda ang mga gamit, lahat wireless. magaling din silang magpatunog ang instrumento at dumura. marami pa sana akong gustong sabihin tungkol dito pero baka marami ang masaktan...

sana nasa UP nalang ako nung mga oras na yun para naisalba ko ang mga kabanda ko sa napala nilang kapahamakan dulot ng isang di makabandang sound system, nalungkot nga ako kasi i was expecting na magiging okey ang set nila dahil sobrang okey nung practice pero ganyan talaga. iba talaga sa live. minus me, candyaudioline is just a very young band. ayn is almost five years, selena 3 years, kel and dennis barely five months. atleast nag-enjoy sila.


the weekend has again come to an end. we are to face a new one once more. a week full of uncertainty. as for me, tuloy pa rin ang depression, repitition, miscalculation, abomination, at mis-interpretaion... kung sa bagay, rainy days pa rin naman. and because of this, i'll end this entry with a rainy-day quote from one of the greatest yet ignored legend of our times... ako yun (",)

.... "precipitation inspire one's imagination and in the process gives rise to solutions which would be used later on to improve public relations"... (inspired by last months buzz night)

san megel soper dry!

Yesterdey wi pleyd at bahay ng alumni!ok naman ung tugtog naminbat da thing kaya pumanget kasi...
- ang panget ng gamit( sawnd sistem)
- wala daw lasa ung mga pagkain sabi ni DENNIS!!!
- nakakabingi ung cymbals kc panget...
- ayaw ng malakas nung mga sawnd tek di ko tuloy marinig si Dennis...
- kulang kami wala c allan, pero i shud sey galing ni selena!ung nga lang kulang talaga kami!
- KAINIS!
- konti lang mga panalo!!!hehehe!!!
- okey nman ung set nga Ciudad, medyo nagiba nga lang ung tunog nila...
- annoying ung 3rd band! ang gulo ng shit este set nila!
- ung las band wala akong masyadong koment kasi pauwi na kami, pero ung gitaris nila nagsolo, parang ayaw patutugtugin ung mga band meyts nya!!!hehehe!!!
- allan, KAILANGAN KONG MAGING MALUNGKOT!!!

PERO ok din kasi para sa akin ok ung Pud and may wan tu sawang BEER!!!
apter umuwi kagad Ayn dahil siniundo siya.
Den, umuwi na din kami nila dens, bj, and allan(lomax).
naglakad kami papuntang Palma Hall kc may "Pers Dey Punk" dun e! dun kami sumakay ng dyip!
Si selena nagstay pa with her prends!

at eto pa dumating ako sa julibi pilcoa ng eksaktong 5:49 kasi 6 PM DAW ung kitaan! pero hangang 6:50 WALA PA RIN UNG MGA HINIHINTAY KO! nahimasmasan lang ung inis ko nung dumating cla BJ, and allan(lomax). den da 2 keym wid deyr risons! balid naman e! kaya ok lang!!! neks taym ulit ha!!!hehehe!

Bwisit na Gloria yan e!
OUST GLORIA!!!
BOWT DENNIS DIZON POR PRESIDENT!!!
Dadami suplay ng Bigas natin, sigurado un!mauubos din nga lang kagad dahil...

bow!

gigs

hey guys. tonight, we'll be at UP Bahay ng ALumni for the MBA party. Also playing will be Ciudad and various MBA bands.

Here are other gigs up for this month:

July 19 - UP Bahay ng Alumni
July 23 - Buzz Night, MAyric's
July 28 - Venue 108, Timog Ave.

wala lang uli

those were interesting answers to the interview you did, allan. i guess they really are publishing it, since they've been asking your for some pics of buzz night.

i spent a good chunk of yesterday afternoon looking for buzz night pics for allan. too bad i couldn't get many old ones (though there were some bands from early buzz days). one thing i noticed was--- dennis.

dennis, baka magkatotoo yung prediction sa yo ni charles! may isang picture dun ng tether from a few months ago. sobrang payat mo dun. halaaaaaaa.

but i'm one to talk ehehehe. nakita ko uli yung kinuha ni erick wasted_drummer nung wala pa akong kamuwangmuwang kung ano talaga yung buzz night. medyo matagal na akong hindi kasya sa blouse na suot ko dun. sigh.

anyway, i hope they do publish that interview, cuz it can clarify a lot of misconceptions and/or questions.

+++

ok naman yung UP natin (ok post mo kiel ah). bitin nga lang kasi ang una nilang sinabi ay 3 songs each, kaya lang naging 2. 3 songs wouldn't have been so bad because the first could be the introduction, then 2 could be the buildup and 3 the climax (or if you'd rather, 2 could be the climax and 3 the anticlimax, whatever). but 3 songs is a good, natural number... so 2 was kind of clipped. but anyway, 2 it was. we chose "an empty you" and "felt so fine". we did well. afterwards, my sister said the crowd was really receptive to our music (she sensed they really enjoyed it).

some of us hung around to wait for allan to finish work. i did a crossword puzzle from a wayward section of newspaper and almost finished it (darn!). ely made the mongols play "alapaap" which made the crowd go wild (and some of the artists too). i went outside to watch the parokya set and it was great. i once said that fete de la musique and crowds like that make me dizzy nowadays, but watching that UP crowd from the second floor of bahay ng alumni made me miss the energy at such concerts. for one thing, the crowd was so big, the moshers were contained in one area, and everybody moved in one big mass when the music particularly moved them. it was great.

we ended the night at-- where else?-- then went home early.

+++

this week, we're playing at the UP MBA Freshmen's party at the Bahay ng Almuni again. I don't know how admission works though.

t e n b i t s

isa lang ang masasabi ko...

astig ang gig sa UP!!!

kaya lang bitin...

parang itong post ko...

interviewed by a music mag thru email...

here's an interview done thru email by one music paper. i decided to put this in the blog just incase most of what i've said don't come out on print... hulaan nyo nalang kung anong music
paper. probably out na siya by august...

PRODUCTION GROUPS QUESTIONS:

1. Tell us about the history of the production, andwho’s involved.

i don't really consider Buzz Night as a production group. to me, it's more of a consortium where people know each other, likes almost the same stuff, believes in almost the same things and eats almost the same stuff (chicharon bulaklak at mayrics, combination of special chelo, ox brain, upside down with "sugarspree" fruit shakes at mr. kabab and chorizo with rice at colasas). Buzz Night as we now know today being, a monthly affair has been going on since the middle of 1998. but before this, it started out as a twice a year afternoon affair during the early part of the 90's. Richard Tan of BackBeat was the brains behind the early buzz events. during this peroid, unsigned bands like the youth, eraserheads, color it red, feet like fins and alamid among others were just some of the acts that grazed most of the buzz events. by the late nineties, it became a vehicle for bands/artist who were into new wave, shoegaze, ethereal, post-punk and other non-mainstream musical forms. bands such as sonnet lviii, archaster, skies of ember, aspirin, bad days for mary, soda jerk, candyaudioline, aga mulach experience, choking brownies among others were just some of acts who were able to make an impact on their target crowd. 2000 - 2003 was the high point of buzz night. it was a time when "indiepop" caught the fancy of people who had discriminataing musical taste world wide. bands such as dorian of juniper bells, colour contest, soft pillow kisses, carnival park, apple orchard, the fantasy lights, and even "cult favorites" skies of ember became minor sensations partly because most of them were part of two independently released compilations, "uno documento compilo" from documento records and "mutual admiration society" from definition records, (this one is responsible for putting the philippines way high up there as one of the countries that produces top-class "indiepop" music). during this time, we saw a batch of really talented young upstarts among them were judith, populardays, weedisneys, spring boutique, daydream cycle. 2004 signalled the end of buzz night's happy period. maybe everyone got fed-up with indiepop. the core crowd decided who was cool and who was not. some of the bands found it hard to carry-on because of many factors. in short, buzz night ran out of bands. in fact, for two months in the middle of 2004, three of my bands plus a few bands who didn 't really fit in with the buzz concept had to play in one night. because of this, i decided to scrap the idea of buzz night being an all "indie" affair. in the succeeding months, i opened the door to bands who makes music that's challenging enough for my standards. and this time, i really had to lower my standards.


2. Do you have a criteria, or any specific genre that you require for the bands that you get to play in your gigs?

indiepop, dreampop, noise and shoegaze are the types that i really like to have in buzz night. aslo post-punk, old skul punk, synth, trip-hop anything that is musically and sonically challenging. pero as of the moment, i have to make do with what's there at present.

3. How many bands do you get to play per night?


six to eight bands per night playing 4-5 songs each...


4. Are there any mainstay bands in your prod?

for the past 8 months it's always been populardays, tether, sunsetdrive and candyaudioline.

5. Do you do this for the money or the music?

i'm doing it for the money. but in all honesty, it would really make me happy if new bands with almost the same calibre as that of sonic youth, malory, brittle stars, stereolab, the charlatans and even the damned start poping-up every now and then and become regulars at buzz night.

6. Frequency of prod nights every month?

there was a time that we were on twice a month but buzz night is now a once a month affair happening every 3rd or 4th saturday of the month.

7. Tell us about your worst and best prod nights.

the worst was during july 2004. because of a powerful storm, there was a power shortage in that part of España. from 220, power at mayrics way really low yet we still decided to push thru. the result was really a disaster to a point that the PA system at mayrics almost caught fire. as for the best, there are so many but here's one although i can't really recall the date. it was that time when nico of down boy down played his first ever solo gig. he was so nervous that he had a hard time finishing a song, still everyone was all eyes and ears for him. by the time for him to do his last song he decided not to push thru but everyone begged him to finish his set and to everyoner's relief, he did... music, humor, art, tension and beauty... fucking brilliant.

8. Any funny experiences?

i wasn't there to witness it but just last year, i guess, some stupid guy from one of the bands did a full-monty...

9. What are the freebies or perks you usually get from this?
not much really, i just get to meet new faces and make new friends. who we get to treat at mr. kabab or at timog food plaza while sharing with him the joys of being in an unsigned slightly off kilter band who gets to play stuff that they truly want and in the process, discovering that all of you like eating a lot, listen to mostly the same stuff and have the same dreams of being able to go inside a really cheap videoke bar, strip joint and gay bar

10. Do you sell merchandise?

not yet. there's nothing to sell...

11. What’s the prod’s favorite bar?

we only play ay mayrics where all great bands are........ great?

12. Least-liked bar?

13. What do you think of the music scene now? How do you contribute to its growth and evolution?

no coment... nasusuka lang naman ako... as for what i can contribute to it's growth and evolution? i've already done my part. hindi nalalayo sa situation ng philippine movies ang music scene natin... there was a time when some movies try to be a bit intellegent so that it would be at par with what is being offered in other countries. pero walang nangyari because most of the fans couldn't relate to it. same with the music scene. kailangan tumalino pa ng konti ang audience natin then growth and evolution would follow. sadly kung sino pa yung may kakayahang o nasa posisyin gumawa nito. sila pa yung dahilan kung bakit ganito tayo sa ngayon at sa matagal pang panahon.

eto na yun...

thanks...

we're almost there...again

candyaudioline's going at it once more. the past few gigs have been quite splendid specially the last one at 70's bistro where we did 10 songs stripped down. yes, no effects. next time, we'll try playing with acoustic guitars, an electric bass and drums using brush sticks.

i've been very happy with what's happening with us lately. for one, the two new members, dennis and kel have been showing great interest in the band and in the songs. in fact, there was a time during one of our practice sessions wherein the two jammed some of the songs for almost an hour and a half while waiting for me and ayn who got stuck up somewhere because of very heavy rains.

another reason for my being pleased is that we are just four songs short of being able to play the entire candyaudioline catalogue. this is very rare because as far as i can remember, there wasn't a single steady line-up that could perform an entire exsisting candy-catalogue during their respective period.

this line-up has also given new life to some of candyaudioline's older stuff. songs like "flaming walls", "all smiles", "can't sleep", "we've been there", "painful", "out of fuel", "if i could" and specially "nearby town" have been given a fresh approach without compromising their original essence and beauty. actually, all of these songs was released as an 8 track album on cassette called "paint your silver smile". after which i kept the master and was planning to release it on cd as "alone again at last" but decided to ditch the idea because of... yup you guessed it... line-up change... now because the songs have become fresh again i'm planning to record it once more. i'm still thinking if i'm going to add 2 more songs (old one's - i've yet to demo it to my bandmates - that was supposed to be included in "paint your silver smile" but didn't made the cut because the line-up at that time couldn't put up a decent version of those songs) or just to release it in it's original 8 track form. we'll just have to wait and see.

other songs that were improved are "waste my time", "pretend that we're smart", "felt so fine", "sad inside", "something wrong" and "better view".

just four more songs... i'm keeping my hopes high once more... we're almost there... again.