UP Radio Skit Reborn

For those of you who listend to DZUP in 1997, you might have tuned in to Live from the Bahamas, comedy talk radio by two funnymen nickamed Dead Nuts and Diva 2000. Relive the good old glorrreh days with Live from USA.Philippines as these jokers revive their show on Internet Radio. Listen to them wax philosophical about dead fish and optimus prime and how He-Man is gay (he wears fur brips and suspenders, for She-Ra's sake!).

ElectronicaManila Fete Fotos!

Thanks to Cyril AKA Silverfilter for this collection of photos. Check 'em out and more of them too at his multiply site.


Big me because this is my blog, dammit!


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Plus a little me for good measure.

Before I Offend...

some of the Summit peopleses, some of the content on this blog was written for Summit's Preview magazine, namely the Mishka Adams, Juan Pablo, (some of) Sago, articles, plus the short "safe" music reviews. Hehehe.

I want to post the fete photos I've received but unfortunately I currently do not have any Photoshop installed. Hintay lang kaunti. Salamat po.

Mishka Adams from Miles Away

Youth should never be an impediment to making your mark in this world, a sentiment that, no doubt, jazz singer Mishka Adams relates to. At only twenty years of age, Mishka should be considered a fledgling by her (slightly) older jazz peers, but she is not. It isn't the age but the talent and the dedication to constantly let that talent flourish that set this confident young woman apart from all the pop fads that clutter our airwaves. We managed to Blackberry her in the midst of a busy gigging schedule in the UK and here's what she had to say.

Where did you grow up, the Philippines or the UK? Now that you've tasted living in both, how does it compare?
I grew up in the Philippines till I was nine years old then I studied in an English boarding school till the age of 18. It is very different being in the two places and both have their advantages. I have friends in both and I think I'll be moving back and forth a lot as I have been for a long time.

While your peers were listening to Smashing Pumpkins or other bands of the mid-90's, how on earth did you get tuned in to jazz? It's not exactly a genre for the young. Did your boarding school classmates think you were odd?
No not at all! At my school we were exposed to jazz at quite a young age. At 10 I played the sax for 3 years which was a good introduction and then when I moved schools I started singing in the jazz trio and big band. From there I started collecting cds and discovering new artists.

Your mom taught you to sing folk songs. Do you remember what your first folk song was? Your favorite folk song? What is currently your favorite jazz piece?
The first folk song I learnt was Circle Game by Joni Mitchell. She is one of my favourite folk singers. At the moment my current favourite jazz piece to sing is Love Came On Stealthy Fingers by Bob Dorough and Irene Kral.

How does it feel to be at a relatively young age and already signed to an international label?
It still surprises me every now and then when I think about it... I never expected that anything like this would happen so soon. I always thought it would take a lot longer!

I hear you used to go to Malate. What do you miss about it, now that it's been transformed into a brightly lit commercial trap?
I miss the bohemian feel about it. There used to be a lot of artists and musicians hanging around. I also miss the regular Spy gigs on wednesdays in Verve Room!

Right now you're being positioned as a jazz vocalist extraordinare. Is singing your first love or is it the saxophone?
Singing most definitely. I really enjoy the sax but it is more of a "learning instrument" for me. It is my vehicle for learning jazz. But singing is definitely my main instrument.

Some songs in your repertoire are French. Do you speak the language? What other languages do you speak?
I studied french in school for a few years and spanish as well. My spanish is better than my french though.

You use the Celina symbology in your album. Can you explain to us its significance?
It's my middle name and the name of my godmother.

A world full of boy bands or death? What would you chose?
Well I don't want to die! I'm sure there would be a way to convert all those boy bands to jazz!

What do you have to feel blue about?
Nothing!

What can we expect from Mishka Adams in the next year?
Lots more gigs and work on a new album! We will be releasing the album in the UK at the end of the year.

Electronica Manila at Fete dela Musique 2005

Calling all bleep freaks, breakbeat boys and dance maniacs! Electronica Manila will have its own venue at this year's Fete de la Musique, over at El Pueblo, Pasig. I think we'll be playing at Pasto or Pazzo or something that vaguely sounds like that. Cyril, please confirm - I forgot eh.

Here's the line-up of Beautiful People with Midi Cables for necklaces and Drum Machines for best friends.

3:30 - 4:00 Makkina
4:00 - 4:40 Crystal Echo
4:40 - 5:20 Chox
5:20 - 6:00 Names are for Tombstones
6:00 - 6:40 Flipperbaby
6:40 - 7:20 Bagetsafonik
7:20 - 7:40 One Lone Clone -- AKO ITO!!! AKO ITO!!!
7:40 - 8:20 Daydream Cycle

(break for Fete kick-off)

9:00 - 9:40 Drip
9:40 - 10:20 Morse
10:20 - 11:00 silverfilter
11:00 - 11:40 wolfmann+
11:40 - 12:20 rubber inc
12:20 - 1:00 neon8
1:00 - 1:40 Dayuhan
1:40 - 2:20 Trip M
2:20 - 3:00 Skies of Ember

Terno Au Go Go Tatlo

Terno Records' supershindig is back for a third time. Hepcats, hipsters and groovy scenesters are all invited to go-go the night away. Radioactive Sago, Drip, UpDharmaDown, Juan Pablo Dream and Wahijuara, all for just fifty bucks. That's less than a friggin' DOLLAR! Cheap, pinko bastards.

Amita Tata Young*

Amita Tata Young sits in a makeup chair just one foot away from me. I break the ice by telling her about Eat Bulaga, where she will be guesting the following day. When she realizes how big the show is, she says with widening eyes, "Wow, that makes me really lucky."

Tata Young or simply Tata, as she is known by her millions of adoring Thai fans, is in town to do some promotional work for her latest album I Believe, her first all-English album. The pop star, born and raised in Thailand, wants to break into the world market, and before comquering the West, she first has to conquer the Far East.

Outside Thailand, few people are familiar with Tata. Make no mistake, though, she is not a "new thing," having produced six earlier albums. "I've been singing in Thailand since I was fifteen," she says proudly. "I had my first album then. Since that time, I've sold over 12 million copies in Thailand. I've been working in the business for nine years now."

Her self-titled debut album was Thailand's Album of the Year and garnered her the distinction of being the Best Recording Artist of Thailand in 1995.

"I started singing when I was eight. I entered a very popularo contest in Thailand, something like American Idol, and I won. A label company saw my performance on TV, and they got really interested. They approached me, and that's when I got started with the gig." Opening up new markets outside Thailand to the talent of Tata Young might seem daunting, but this energetic lady relishes the experience. "The English language album gives me more exposure. It's like a new challenge, and I love it. I have to start again, just to introduce myself, and that's more like it. How many people can say they've had that experience? I can name Ricky Martin, Shakira, just a few."

Tata's biggest single off the album - Sexy, Naughty, Bitchy - has its share of detractors, especially among conservatives who see the song as a negative influence to young fans. As one of Thailand's "10 Most Influential People" and one of the "25 Most Influential Trend-makers in Asia, Tata has this to say: "To picture myself as a role model is really something difficult because humans are humans. It's not like we're perfect people. We don't do everything right all the time."

In 2001, Tata Young was estimated to be worth some US$ 2 million. What was she worth now, I asked, wondering if this question would be a touchy one. "Honestly, I have no idea. My manager handles those things. I just do what I do, sing and perform. The money is a good thing when you're in the business but honestly, I don't care. I'm from a pretty wealthy family myself, so the money is not the big priority in being an artist."

"I wish I had beachfront property," she shares. "I think land is probably the best thing you can invest in in Thailand. It's smart! There's no risk. It's always yours. It's not like stock where you have to depend on it going up or down. Land is always there."

Part of the Tata Young machine is her fan club, where fans can keep up-to-date with the life and career of Tata, and purchase Tata merchandise. While marketing like this isn't new, what is surprising is a full thirty percent of all merchandiese proceeds goes to Tata's pet charity, the Human Development Foundation.

"That money is given to the Human Development Center in order to help people with AIDS, kids who caught it from their moms, women who caught it from their husbands. This is all run by Fr. Joe. It's a Catholic organization."

In an industry where image is all important, Tata Young knows how to project, protect, and maintain hers. She is very particular about the clothes she wears during the shoot. She refuses to let her hair done a certain way. She seems upset during the first few set-ups, and I almost walk away with a negative impression of her. Then comes the bathroom shoot.

For the first time in the afternoon, I see this young lady having fun, in control, and really enjoying herself. She loves the whole concept and poses gamely for the cameras in a dirty men's room, not just doing glam shots but playing it up with more provocative ones.

Tata Young is a girl who knows what she wants and is unafraid to go out and claim it. She says she wants to conquer the world. Maybe she will.

*I wrote this for Manual magazine a year ago.

The Seven Autumn Flowers

Trembling Blue Stars
Universal Records

It seems apt that Bobby Wratten, head honcho of Trembling Blue Stars, entitles this album The Seven Autumn Flowers – this album evokes images of red-crowned trees and a hint of winter chill. An absolute darling of the Indie scene, Wratten crafts his songs like little vignettes of longing, regret, and other aspects of the human condition. While the album is full of beautiful songs, it is difficult to stay focused on it for an extended period of time (and the album does take up said extended period of time, running at 1.2 hours over 16 songs). All the tracks have that trademark “indie” sound and, unless you’re really into that scene, it’s best that you partake of this album in bite-sized doses. Pay attention to The Rhythm of Your Breathing and Kensington Gardens.

Ariels

Bent
Universal Records

Give this album a spin and you’ll discover that Nottingham has more to offer than the evil sheriff of Robin Hood fame. The dreamy, emotional sound of Ariels comes from the musically imaginative minds of Simon Mills and Nails Tolliday, who both hail from Nottingham. Although less quirky and more accessible than Bent’s previous efforts, Ariels still delivers breathtaking song-driven electronic/acoustic pop. Play this during an evening drive along the Tagaytay ridge with your windows rolled down to get the maximum feel. Make sure you listen to Sunday 29th and The Waters Deep.

Sith Lord I Want to Be

What is probably the finest moment of scratch DJ-ing I have ever seen. John Williams' Imperial March has never sounded this, uhm, scratchy.

Scratch that URL. Apparently, files on that page get archived and thus URLs are relative. Just go here and look for the video Keltech Strikes Back. Good hunting!

Juan Pablo Dreamin'

It’s a fuzzy feeling we get whenever a band this good gets their music video played on music channels. Funky, funny, and snappily dressed, the Juan Pablo Dream is set to win hearts one hepcat soul at a time. Here’s what they have to say about themselves.

Who is Juan Pablo and why should we care about his dream?
Nobody in particular. It could be you, me, the man on the street. Other than that, Juan is the quintessential Pinoy name for males. Pablo is for Picasso, because half of the band are visual artists. The dream is for the Filipino dream so we should care about "the dream".

Who are the members of the band, what instruments does each play, and what is unique about each member?
Bing! – Vocals
Alexander dumlao – bass
Aue Castro – guitar
Igor carpio - trumpet
Eman tabojara - saxophone.

Bing’s fashion plate motto: sacrifice comfort for style.
Alexander races cars in his spare time.
Aue paints and does graphic design,
Igor closely resembles Bruce Lee and is the lady killer of the group.
Eman has fine set of lungs and a pair of fangs!

What is the Juan Pablo Dream sound? Please describe it.
It's Soul. 60's soul when R&B was really rhythm and blues unlike the way it is now. It doesn't mean though that we totally box ourselves in with that sound but it's the main foundation to the overall outcome of the material we end up making. We can sound very 60's pop too, at times. Very MOD. Simply, we prefer to call it "good' music really.

What emotions or reactions would you like to get from your audience?
Of course we want positive reactions. Though we know that we cannot please everyone and yet, during gigs, we’ve had everyone groovin' and movin' so far...so good.

Who exactly does your music speak to?
People who know how to have a good time.

What's with the clothes? Is that a statement?
That's the MOD narcissistic angle kicking in high gear. We're very much influenced by the 60's MOD culture and we like to be well dressed. We always want to look clean and proper. It's inevitable we're into looking sharp.

What was it like working with the great Tony Ferrer?
Syempre ang galing!!! Matinik pa din hanggang ngayon...he da man!

What’s the scene like in Bulacan?
As far as clubs, bad! But there are a lot of good bands in the underground. In fact some underground bands from manila even go all the way to Bulacan to play in underground Bulacan gigs cause the bands and (underground) audience in Bulacan are more open to different sorts of new music.

What should we expect from Juan Pablo Dream in the next few months?
LOVE and more groovy tunes.

Now that Benedict is pope, will you consider changing your name?
Hmmm we don't think so, unless he can sing Percy Sledge's "when a man loves a woman" really well...

Cascading Style Sheets

Aaaaagh! I hate style sheets! This is all new to me!

Push the Button

Chemical Brothers
Astralwerks

The Chems are back and in excellent form on this, their fifth studio album. In Push the Button, the duo of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons are all over the place, with their analog squelches and screams washing over their trademark arena electronic tectonic sound producing powerful and ultimately danceable tracks. The album sometimes departs from the usual big beat oomph in tracks like the odd Shake Break Bounce or the chanty, rappy track Left Right. Overall, Push the Button proves that, despite being around for over a decade, the Chemical Brothers can still be fresh and relevant.