12/31/2015 3:00:36 PM
The post was supposed to be named "Fridays and Saturday Nights to Remember" only to realized a few things: first, gigs are happening every single weeknight; second, most of them aren’t even planned by yours truly to attend; and third, I have been to almost 70 gigs for 2015.
2015 has been a heck of a good year for me as I discovered Philippine music anew -- and it broods at the place where minority of people knows -- the independent scene. Over the course of time, I attended about 50 events starting from a random night out that happened 24 January 2015 at Route 196. I was then supposed to watch my college friend whose already a musician.
And since then, the Philippine independent music scene became another world conquered by yours truly. I became part of a production group; I was posting anything about gigs for most of the time; and indie music also served as a venue for me to grow as opportunities came from out of nowhere -- be it writing or anything else like photography and videography.
Fast-forward to the year-end, despite attending the last one or two music events of this year from small-time gigs to the big or concert-level ones, I can say I had a lot of memorable evenings.
EDGES (21 February 2015 / Route 196 / Docdef Productions, FRINGE MNL)
Music and arts converged at the time of celebrating another holiday known as the Chinese New Year as photograph exhibitions were slated at Route 196’s Jack Room. Plus selected art pieces were also for sale, and live digital art was made during the sets of Tom’s Story and Autotelic. Truly a night to remember from a collaborative effort from Docdef Productions and FRINGE MNL.
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| Coeli San Luis |
Elements Jam Night (4 May 2015 / Route 196 / Elements)
Two members of Alasmedya invited me to attend the jam night of the country’s leading songwriting camp. Explored the likes of The Benjamins, Coeli San Luis and Mic Llave right there. It might be an almost-stripped-down vibe Monday, but we all need this sometimes. Where you hear musicians jammed the night away with their peers. Thus saying, OPM is really alive in the process -- as artists showed their camaraderie to each other in terms of craft-making and having fun.
A Not-So-Silent Night: Mind Money Circuit EP Launch (19 December 2015 / Mow’s Bar / Docdef Productions)
Second time I have encountered this band. Perhaps that’s courtesy of Gab Palanca, whom once I crossed paths at SaGuijo, Route 196, and even SM City Marikina. And their EP launch proved they can offer more, and Math Rock is a genre rarely people would know.
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| Fools and Foes |
I admit: I only knew two three songs right before their EP launch. Turns out they got five. And what makes it an evening to remember for me is that I was one of the people who manned their EP sales during the evening. Yes, I did so after attending iBlog11 up north and right before attending its second day. Totally busy, right?
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| John Ray Reodique of Alasmedya |
Stripped (2 December 2015 / Route 196 / Route 196, Docdef Productions)
The first time I hit an all feel-good vibe gig at Route 196, with no hosts around, just organizers, musicians, and friends around. Stripped showcased the “other side” of each performer where they performed some of their band hits, personally-made covers, originals, or even seasonal tracks.
And since it happened on Christmas month, it’s quite obivous: each musician performed Christmas song. Now that’s a chillax way to greet everyone a “Merry Christmas!”
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| Kai Honasan w/ Josh Villena |
Coffee Barn Session 2 (10 October 2015 / Coffee Barn / Gabi Na Naman Productions)
The first Coffee Barn Session happened on July was very successful. So, why not have a second coming, right? With popular guys like Kai Honasan, Aia De Leon, and Glaiza Castro headlining the all-acoustic night while you sip a coffee or bear on a full-house Coffee Barn at South Triangle, it was another notable Saturday night for your truly.
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