Wha-cha gonna do when there ain’t no jazz: The best music of 2006
THE OUTSIDER By Erwin Romulo
The Philippine STAR 12/29/2006
For this column, there really is no other way to conclude the year but
to cite the past 12 months’ best music. The list this year is considerably
shorter but that does not at all reflect our enthusiasm for Pinoy Rock
2006. Like last year, there was so much good local music released this year
that we barely had time to listen to anything else. But therein lies the
rub.
With so many exceptional albums, we can only say that a few really
stayed with us. Not surprisingly, most of them turned out to be quite
unconventional and wayward enough to be remembered – some have even
disputed if whether one of the entries is music. We were surprised ourselves
when we were drawing up this list.
Last year, among others, we singled out The Itchyworms’ "Noontime Show"
as one of the albums of the year – and now, almost a year later, everyone
is heaping this same accolade on it. Well, we were first and all of you
suckers are just imitating. But do we get any love from Kelvin or Jugs and the
rest of the band? Nada. Suits us fine – especially as we’re writing in the
editorial "we." Ours is a path best traveled alone – besides, those
‘worms are pretty heavy to carry.
Enough of the nonsense and let us proceed to the list. This year’s
artists are considerably leaner than their forbearers.
A.M.P.O.N.
"Dekoding Rhythm"
Probably the only local hip-hop release in a dry spell since 2000
that’s actually aspired to be more than their foreign counterparts, this
hip-hop collective’s independently released debut makes use of what we always
thought was the genre’s best weapon/tool: language. Nowhere else can
you hear Filipino hip-hop express itself so well and – dare we say it –
beautifully. Particularly standing out is a track called Malimit that
manages to spew revolutionary rhetoric that rouses even these jaded
ears. Of course, the music itself – especially on instrumental tracks by Caliph8
– is a dense affair that offers anarchies of samples as an alternative to
the mesocephalic redundancies of most hip-hop.
THE DORQUES
"Le Metronome E.P."
Although this release is technically only an E.P., there are no
throwaways among the five songs contained therein, so it deserves to be on this
year’s list. Quirky and pop-savvy, the songs are Technicolor wondercoats
compared to the drab garb of most rock ‘n’ roll – if anything it’s a welcome
relief from all the faux-goth and "emo" currently in vogue these days. With
the drummer the only musician (in the usual sense of the term) in their
line-up, The Dorques make up for it with conviction, playing as cheeky as they
want to be on the cleverly rude title track or as wide-eyed on Sun Just
Feels.
VARIOUS ARTISTS
"S.A.B.A.W. — An Anthology of Noise, Electronic and Experimental Music"
Of all the compilations and tributes put out this year, this collection
of local fringe music from as far back as the Eighties is the probably the
only one that can actually be considered a landmark. None of the artists are
household names and – as far we know – none of them have had any videos
shown on any music channel. You won’t hear any of them on the radio
either.
But the artists featured on the album, such as EAT TAE, The Children of
the Cathode Ray, Foodshelter&Clothing and Arvie Bartolome to name but a
few, are making the true, anti-Bagong Lipunan, anti-EDSA "Manila Sound." Mostly
foregoing harmony, melody or conventional song structure, this isn’t
the sound of the future. This is now.
MOON FEAR MOON
"The Floating Response To A Grounded World"
Enigmatic and alien, Moon Fear Moon’s brand of electronic music is
seemingly a hermetically sealed domain wherein the artist is free to make any
racket while rearranging his mental furniture. Usually classified under the
label "intelligent dance music" or IDM, the music is not out to win converts
or beg popularity – never subscribing to the credo to go for the lowest
common denominator and get those asses shakin’. This new album – available
only online so far – is by far Moon Fear Moon’s most accessible offering –
not that this makes things any less difficult or complex. What’s more
confounding is that he downplays everything to a degree no other local
electronic artist would be comfortable with, managing an intensity of
an ascetic’s sub-vocal prayer. If anything, the best tribute to the album
is that it is only less slightly imposing than blank silence. * * *
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