lunes, julio 03, 2006

up dharma down is the new... local band i really like!

i just finished calling mag:net cafe a couple of hours ago to make reservations to catch the up dharma down show with my brother at mag:net katipunan tomorrow. grabe, this is the only time, in such an effing long time, that i officially turn myself into a fan of a local band.

not that i'm being discriminatory and stuff. but the last time i felt (and acted) this way was with barbie's cradle, back when barbie almalbis was still singing well and the band was still together. in a musical landscape where that putanginangbandcueshe and starbucksandallothercoffeehousespressreleasepaolosantos were really hogging radio airplay everywhere, i just kinda tuned out on local acts.

i mean, sure, bamboo is kinda cool. but all the kids listen to 'em. all of them would throw their undies at ira cruz, and they'd swear bamboo isn't a druggie. orange and lemons sounded kinda cool also when they atarted out, with the new wave sound and all. but the whole pinoy big brother thing just turned me off big time. now, which leaves me to sugarfree, kamikazee or parokya ni edgar, among the many bands i can choose to be a fan of. but really, they just didn't fit my personality, the way i think, and my sensibilities, whatever categories they might cover. i can feign attraction or whatever, but it's just really come off plasticky. one thing i've learned from my many trips to the record store: magic has to happen. spontaneously, that is.

which brings me to up dharma down. i didn't really dig them at first, figuring the whole "broken mirrors and screaming turtles" sounded too western and precious for my taste. but everytime my brother daniel gushes over them like they're the best band ever (aren't we all like that with the bands/artists we really love? i used to be like that in my tori amos days), i couldn't just let the opportunity pass without trying a listen.

the first song that wooed me bigtime was "pag-agos." very trip-hop, very me. that's sooo my poppy guilty pleasure, without the sour overplayed aftertaste of "oo" (which i also liked, until love radio started playing it like it was on shabu or something). my brother got the "fragmented" cd on special pre-order at tower records, and i just had to know why he'd go to that length to get a copy. sure enough, i owned "sleeptalk," "we give in sometimes," "hiwaga," and "this is our playground and we will always be home." those were my songs, ang they were speaking to me like a memento lost to convenient amnesia.

i've heard angsty music before, but not like this. they're really good. and they have this penchant for losing the western on western themes and instrumentation, which i really like. like something that borders on cultural androgyny, however politically incorrect-sounding that term may seem. (maybe magnanimous is the right word?)

i'm really looking forward to tomorrow night, my first night out officially sanctioned by the parents in a fucking long time, and my first night out with my brother. too bad my sister's too underaged to stand the smoke and beer tomorrow night. but we'll bring home an autographed cd, photos, and just a really nice vibe. hehe

right now, i'm trying to get a copy of drip's official debut. for the uninitiated, drip is an local electronica band, probably the country's first electronica act after sound, which my brother and myself also really love. and also looking out here for the new radioactive sago project cd: "tangina nagugutom ang mundo fashionista ka pa rin." or something like that. i love the title!

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for those who care to know, my thesis is still on a snail's pace. gawd, i really have to get rid of the distractions and start working. but hey, the distrations work. they help me keep tabs on myself. i just don't know when enough's enough.

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budji's pr person emailed me this weekend, marked me and photographer jay as the "quickest and most hassle-free photoshoot in budji living history." yeah!

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still haven't started official work for the magazine (i.e., drafts). i'm still trying to figure out why i'm slacking off.

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speaking of slacking off, i didn't go to the gym today (for those who care to know). not because joints ached or whatever. i just didn't want to. after doing the usual thesis rounds, i got home, slept until 9p. this is serious slacking i'm doing here. i need help, i know.

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i looove the new close-up tv ad, the one where the announcer was telling the tale of the man with two thumbs. i thought it was an ad for a nokia two-way or something, then when he said breath so fresh, i thought it was a smint ad. and then it was close-up. misleading tendencies aside, i looove it! too bad it was just an import, though. i know the european context is different from ours, but is the whole song-and-dance pa-chicks bullshit the only way for us to market vanity stuff? remember sam milby and that whole rocksteddy jingle? add the new angel locsin endorsement for head and shoulders to the mix. scary.
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i just dropped by gateway on my way to some offices in the area, and i find, in my shock and horror, redloop jeans in the gateway levi's store. i thought it was the premium line? why, oh why, do i have to see it in a mid-end mall such as gayway? shit, diesels are the only way to go. too bad i can't stomach the idea of coughing up P14,000 for a single pair of jeans when i can use the same amount to buy three (or four) equally well-fitting pairs at levi's.

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nightcap for now, got class. wish i could blog like this more often. you know, in a staccato tone and stuff. too bad i might get a reputation for sounding clipped. not that it's a bad thing, though. hehehe

xananananananananananana