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Written by Ted Reyes
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Tuesday, 16 December 2008 |
IN the late 80’s and early 90s, the British music scene burst into the world scene once again. In a time when the charts were being dominated by American grunge bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam, a handful of British artists took it upon themselves to counter the American grunge assault and invented, Britpop.
While the term Britpop was not coined by any of the founding British artists but rather by the British tabloids, it would become the name that would define a movement that had far reaching influence.
Fed-up by the grunge invasion British alternative rock bands decided to shun the “Yankee music” from across the Atlantic and came up with a counter-assault. The music, first and foremost did not tackle any of the prevalent grunge themes of alienation and despair, instead, it was all about being a Brit. In other words, it was British music for British people.
Bands like Blur, Suede, Pulp, St. Etienne, and later on, Oasis wrote and sang songs about what is important in the Britain the they were living in. Most of these bands even employed thick cockney accents to expound the fact that music can be as British as the Queen. Their subjects are often small town British stories or anything common in their culture. It was “Nationalist Rock” at its rockiest form.
Damon Albarn of Blur once said that their music is anti-Grunge. It was everything that Kurt Cobain was not. It was about their “British-ness.”
All Brits young and old admired these Britpop bands’ adherence to their national identities. Perhaps they realized how rich their musical tradition is. After all, their musical heroes are equal, if not, greater than their American counterparts: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath–these are not lightweight artists but generation defining groups that happen to be British.
Most appealing, however, is Britpop’s resolve to sing about what they really are, instead of abstract and heavy emotions as perpetuated by grunge. It is appealing because it makes sense for Filipino-American artists as well. Filipino-American artists should represent and bring forth their “Filipino-ness” to the American audience. Like the Britpop bands, we as a people have a lot to tell, and if we put these stories to words and music, it would introduce Filipino culture to foreign ears more than any medium there is.
Nothing is too mundane and too trivial in representing our heritage. Yes, we could sing in English, but with Filipino concepts. In the rock scene, The Kuwagos did this in their debut album back in 2007 and it is a marvel to behold. Chicago’s Bagwis did this too when they released Imulat Mo.
Now, my band the Happy Analogues will follow suit with our new album, School Tales, which will tackle school life in the Philippines. I know there are many Fil-Am rap artists like Deep Foundation and Apl De Ap, who propagate Filipino ideas through their music and we should all emulate them. If we write music that comes from what we really are, then everything will fall into place and we will be recognized and not be seen and judged as just a bunch of brown-skinned Asians trying to be American or British.
Tags: britpop grunge nirvana pearl jam blur suede oasis the kuwagos bagwis the happy analogues |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 24 December 2008 )
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Written by Soulworks Records
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Friday, 12 December 2008 |
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Steel Polly 
Rayzed
NEW YORK– The second batch batch of features about Rock in the Box 2 artists are now on MYX TV.
Maryland's Steel Polly and California's Rayzed were interviewed by ABS-CBN's Cable Music Channel, MYX during the launching of the historic Fil-Am compilation album last August 30, here in New York City. Now the segments are on air.
Earlier last month, the first batch was shown featuring ACI9 from Chicago, and Then Again from New Jersey.
You can watch these segments on Direct TV channel 2067 or on MYX's website. Also visit Soulworks Records
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Last Updated ( Friday, 12 December 2008 )
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Written by News Desk
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Monday, 08 December 2008 |
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 LOS ANGELES, CA - December 8. The greatest Filipino-American jazz artists in the United States will unite onstage on December 27 (Saturday), when JazzPhil-USA's 4th Annual Fil-Am JazzFest Presented by ABS-CBN returns to Hollywood's famous Catalina Bar & Grill Jazz Club.
The yearly JazzFest has demonstrated a unique ability to attract attention to Pinoy culture from the mainstream media. Consistently a "critic's choice" from all the major Los Angeles publications, the annual celebration of Filipino jazz has earned praise from the toughest music reviewers. The chief jazz critic of the Los Angeles Times, Mr. Don Heckman, wrote of last year's Fil-Am JazzFest, "The program was a delight, a nonstop string of first-rate performances testifying to the high quality of Philippine musical talent as well as the global reach of jazz."
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Last Updated ( Monday, 08 December 2008 )
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Read more...
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Written by Feliza
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Wednesday, 03 December 2008 |
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Sensitive Guys with Guitars is an initiative started by Fil-Am artists Jay Legaspi, John Violago, Marq Romero, and John-Flor Sistante, with Japanese-Jewish-American singer/songwriter Danny Katz to benefit 2 charities: --Gilas-short for Gearing Up Internet Literacy and Access for Students, their goal is to address the inadequacy of Internet connectivity in the Philippines high school system and wire all 5,500 public high schools to the Internet within 5 years, ultimately preparing the next generation of graduates in the county for the quickly evolving digital age. --Team Kaila (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) - Team Kaila was formed in support of Kaila Arcenal, a person friend of the Sensitive Guys who has been diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. The funds we raise for Team Kaila will be donated in her name to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the largest funder and advocate for Type 1 research. Sensitive Guys with Guitars kick off their fundrasing at THE FIVE POINTS L@B show in Silk Road Cafe, 30 Mott St., New York, N.Y. 10012. The show is on Friday, 12 December 2008, at 7:30pm. Admission is $10 (includes 1 free drink). For more information please check out www.sensitiveguyswithguitars.com
Tags: Sensitive Guys with Guitars. Jay Legaspi John Violago Marq Romero and John-Flor Sistante Danny Katz THE FIVE POINTS |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 09 December 2008 )
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Written by News Desk
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Wednesday, 26 November 2008 |
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NEW YORK-CPMS or Chicago Pinoy Music Scene, the Filipino-American artist community in Chicago announced their latest project for 2009: The CPMS Compilation Album.
The project is open to all Chicago Filipino and Filipino-American artists who write their own materials. Here are the criteria for artists who want to be a part of this historic compilation in Chicago:
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 26 November 2008 )
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