Short + sweet + oh so worth it

Nothing sparks creativity so much than constraint. Take the Japanese haiku, where in 17 syllables and only three lines, an evocative picture is painted. Or the epitaph (pardon the gloomy example), in which a human being’s lifetime is commemorated in a slab of rock. For something more modern, there’s this online thing called Twitter, whose 140-character limit brings out the aphorist in us.

In the domain of performing arts, we have Short + Sweet, a global festival featuring 10-minute plays. Its vision, to put it shortly and sweetly, is: “A more creative world ten minutes at a time.” Founded in Sydney, Australia over a decade ago, Short + Sweet serves as a platform for emerging and established artists — from actors to writers and directors — to test, showcase and develop their skills and materials.

Performances of selected entries during the festival run are judged by a panel of experts along with the theater audience. Winners are rewarded with cash and industry prizes on the Gala and Final Awards Night.

Short+Sweet premiered in the Philippines last year at the University of the Philippines – Diliman and it returns this September with a new home in Samsung Hall at SM Aura, Taguig. I was lucky enough to have my fill of the festival by catching the opening week main show.

Realized I didn't follow directions and skipped the checking part. Shame. Anyway: 'A good deed for Mr Stinky' is clearly number one (wanted to say 'best-acted play' but it was the only well-acted play), then triple-tie between 'The sculpture gallery', 'Position vacant', and 'Urinalysis'. That said, I think Short + Sweet deserves a bigger audience. Watch it, guys. Commendable concept.

A photo posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on Sep 6, 2015 at 10:27am PDT

The plays were short, yes, but sweet? I would say so, in their own radical ways. Subject matters were diverse — from finding one’s life purpose to pulling off a heist; story treatments went from the funny to the philosophical; and the genres ranged from drama to black comedy.

A clear standout was A Good Deed for Mr. Stinky, directed by Karl Jinco and written by Judith Duncan. A call center professional finds herself dead in a car crash and couldn’t quite get to the other side until she meets a hobo, whom it turns out she has a lot in common with. A Good Deed was tightly-written, adhering closely to the conventions of story-telling. Because set within their milieu, viewers instantly identified with the characters and their situations, chuckling at pop culture -related one-liners, which were delivered to move the dialogue forward and not merely to elicit laughter. Where it soared, though, was the on-point delivery of the two actors, who genuinely gave their material justice.

Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said of the other plays, wherein the tentative, oftentimes awkward stage acting took away from the gravity of the script. That said, not one entry (out of the eight featured that night) was anything less than engaging.

Another memorable piece was Rachel Welch’s and Bunny Cadag’s Keeping Annabelle, where we saw two young siblings get caught up in an abduction role playing game, doing and saying things that a captive and captor do and say, including the harsh swear words. Us the audience were also held captive in our seats wondering if the kids were still in the realm of imagination or not. “Will they cause pain to each other?” we thought, all along hoping that neither of them would be hurt or was capable of harm.

And that’s a major achievement of Short + Sweet — making its viewers feel and think. The writers, directors and actors may have grown in the process but the theater-goers are also given the means to deepen their appreciation for the art form. Asked to judge and rank the entries they’ve seen, they are forced to consider the merits of each play and form a cohesive opinion on why one play works and another fails.

Never mistake Short + Sweet as theater for the attention-challenged. Watch it if you want to be moved, if you want something different, or if you want an introduction to performing arts. Not if you want to pass time. As it has done in Australia, I hope the festival creates in this country more and better story-tellers.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

Meeting the under-celebrated Marivi Soliven

Literary figures have an air of mystique about them, perhaps brought by the many worlds and lives they’ve lived — besides their own — through the stories they’ve read and written. Marivi Soliven arrived at the Writers Bar at Raffles Makati with that very air, looking every bit of a dignified author out to pen the next visceral novel. One couldn’t help but peg her as someone minding an important business. Because she was. That day Soliven stopped by two TV networks to talk about her new book before going to Raffles Hotel for one-on-one interviews with the press.

Soliven’s The Mango Bride follows Amparo Guerrero and Beverly Obejas, Filipinas who left Manila for Oakland in search of greener grass. Strangers to each other in the beginning, the two crossed paths and in the course of their encounter shared a life-changing secret. The novel in English earned the Palanca Award before it was published in 2013 by Penguin Books. It was then translated in Spanish in 2014 and this year in Filipino by professor Danton Remoto.

The mystery quickly died when I opened our conversation with a question about falling in love with fiction. “The Mango Bride is a fiction story but I would say about 95 percent of it is true,” she said, explaining that her work was a product of calls she had to take in her job as a phone interpreter in California, where she currently lives. She heard accounts of domestic violence among other immigration woes that eventually found their way in her first novel.

Her answers were straightforward, her views practical, and her tone matter-of-fact. She caught me off-guard till I figured that that’s where her charm lies: in refusing to dwell on the romanticism of literature. Because guess what, there’s real, gruelling, sometimes mundane work that goes behind it.

A photo posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on Sep 5, 2015 at 12:06pm PDT

Marivi Soliven on the young writers' bad habits

I think that because of this culture of instant gratification, I notice that with a lot of writers, their first goal is to have an audience then get published rather than to write a good story first. So I guess I’m kind of old-fashioned that way. I’d rather write a good story then have its audience find it.

Her advice to aspiring writers

I definitely am a supporter of the routine. If you make writing a part of your daily schedule, along with exercising or brushing your teeth, then it becomes something that you regularly do; instead of going, “Oh I’m gonna wait until I get inspired, then I’ll write.” Because that never happens. It sometimes happen but if you get inspired once every two weeks then you don’t really have much of a writing practice. To write good stories, like with anything else, you have to do it every day. Then you get better. And to be a writer, I think the best thing you can do is just read. Read, read, read. Read whatever catches your fancy, everything from the best stuff to the worst stuff. Eventually you’ll figure out what good stories are.

On the importance of awards

I think that they are good in terms of getting you noticed. They can get you published here in the Philippines. Even in the United States, many of the award giving bodies have prizes that include publication. So it does help. But I don’t think people should focus on winning contests as the main reason for writing.

—Full interview on GIST.PH

For the rest of his life

That Syrian child on the beach. I don't mind the image. He looks in peace.

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Regret is funny. How can you feel bad about something that didn't happen. Things could've gone in so many ways other than what you imagine.

Medium of interrogation

“I grew up not being able to ask a lot of questions. The camera was the first tool in which I was allowed to explore, to ask the questions that I wanted to ask,” shares National Geographic Young Explorer and documentary and travel photographer Hannah Reyes. “It’s a good tool to immerse yourself in something and make you get out of your shell.”

The fun and prestige of photography is not lost on anyone who has ever tried pressing the DSLR shutter button or even a digicam’s and begin to feel a new sense of wonder evoked by seeing what they have just captured. It’s no surprise that bulky cameras aren’t only carried by men and women in tourists spots and popular events — they seem to be everywhere, every time. In fact the device has become as commonplace as a hat or a pen that it has found its way to arguably one of our top daily necessities: the mobile phone.

Shutterbugs have a new toy in their smartphones. While conservative photographers can’t be bothered to take snapshots with their phones and photo enthusiasts are already more than happy to have clear photos as keepsakes, Hannah takes an altogether different view on smartphone photography.

In four words, she approves of it. “What I like about mobile photography is when people use the camera to get closer to people. Because it’s so tiny, they can get intimate with their subject. It’s also easy to show them your photos right after,” she explains and further highlights the practicality of it: “When I was at Intramuros — they’re super strict now with cameras — they didn’t care when I was just taking photos with a smartphone. It doesn’t scare people unlike when you’re holding a DSLR; they’d stop and look more.” Most of all, Hannah states that with a smartphone, which is almost like an extra limb to most of us, you don’t have any excuse not to practice photography.

Calm, good-natured, and with what appears to be a fragile frame, you wouldn’t be able to tell that Hannah has gone through Cambodia’s Cardamon Mountains to cover the illicit production of an ecstasy precursor, or that she’s been in the midst of a crossfire during shanty demolitions in Manila. Her work — and hard work — caught the attention of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian and Lonely Planet, all of which published her photos. Given this record, does she feel powerful enough to influence positive change through her chosen medium of expression? Hannah muses, “Photographers are vain when they say photos can change the world. I don’t know… But it can make people see.”

—Originally published in a different version on GIST.PH

Light and verve

I.

“I don’t think I’m gonna be making electronic music forever, so enjoy it now,” Zedd (Anton Zaslavski) told the press prior to his August 8 Manila gig. It wasn’t a threat but a recognition of the natural course of things. Zedd is a classically trained pianist, whom at age 11 became a drummer in a metal band then later on went to test the EDM waters. He eventually released “Clarity,” a dance album that produced club staples, chart toppers and a Grammy award-winning record.

In his second outing, “True Colors,” Zedd makes a statement on his artistry, showcasing his musical depth. The tracks are even more melodious and diverse that you can take them as pop songs with a touch of electronica rather than melodic EDM, which is characteristic of his previous works.

We still get hints of “Clarity” with the opening tracks Addicted to Memory, I Want You to Know and Beautiful Now, though it goes in completely different directions from there on. Standouts are the rock-infused Transmission, folksy Daisy, indie-pop Illusion and clear-cut rave piece Bumble Bee.

For the third album, Zedd only had this to say: “I honestly don’t know.” But he was generous enough to share that he’d like to compose for films, do more orchestral stuff, and promised us that whatever he creates, it shall pass strict quality assurance. “I would not make music that I did not enjoy. I love making every single song I’ve ever put out,” he remarked. “I would never put my name on something I don’t like. And if it happens that there’s more rock in the next album, then that could be it. But for now I’m having fun to be honest with you.”

So we had to take him seriously when he said enjoy his music now. Sure they’re digitally preserved, but experiencing them in a room among kindred spirits, with Zedd himself behind the decks, orchestrating the party? That’s unrepeatable.

II.

Neverland Manila Presents: Zedd True Colors Tour began with that familiar keyboard riff in Hourglass smoothly leading to Spectrum’s chorus. When our ears were ready to take the full song, the chords drifted to the hook of Beautiful Now, Zedd’s current single. “Pa-pa-pa papa pa-pa-pa papa pa-pa-pa-pa papapa papapapa…,” chanted the glow stick-wielding audience of 12,000 at the Mall of Asia Arena. In front of them were huge LED panels in which hues from the “True Colors” album cover splashed about.

Crowd pleaser that he is, Zedd, on top of playing his hits, gave his remix of music fan favorites like Clean Bandit’s Rather Be, Maroon 5’s Sugar, Magic’s Rude, David Guetta’s Titanium, Coldplay’s Sky Full of Stars, Bastille’s Pompeii and Jessie J’s Bang Bang.

To an outsider, EDM is equal to loud bass plus mindless rhythms. In a careless DJ’s hands, it may be so. But there’s something about it that’s exhilarating. Perhaps it’s the amplified, repetitive beats connecting with our own pulse, waking our senses up. Hearing it for hours, though, is tiring, boring. And this is what separates Zedd from your standard disc jockey: the man knows how we’d like to jump around, latch on to a melody, cry out lyrics we take as divine oaths, and sometimes do all three at once. In Zedd’s hands, EDM is poetry and rave.

Mah peborit @Zedd track along with Transmission. #ZeddTrueColorsTour #NeverlandManila2015ZeddTCT

A video posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on Aug 8, 2015 at 12:35pm PDT

There’s no doubt that he owes this musical instinct to his classical training. “When I started making electronic music, I had no clue about it,” shared Zedd. So he wrote Spectrum entirely on the piano then made it electronic, and it has been a process which he adopted for his two albums. “It’s the easiest way to do it. Writing music on the piano already makes it more organic,” he continued. “Playing all those classical pieces, I kind of learned what is right.”

Sticking to the same writing practice, Zedd simply had to take cues from his surroundings when it came to producing a cohesive album. “After hearing four to five songs, I realized that all I’ve written were kind of different,” he replied when asked about the intention behind “True Colors.” “They have totally different colors and I thought that’d be a great concept — for every song to be some color. When you close your eyes, I want you to feel something in every single song.”

How anyone could keep their eyes closed during a Zedd live performance, I have no idea. One can only be drawn like a fire-hungry moth to the lights blazing throughout the arena. “The visual aspect is just as important for me as the actual music,” said Zedd in the documentary, Moment of Clarity. Unlike the random slivers of light that go on-and-off at nightclubs, the electric lights and graphics in his concert had a language of their own.

At one point, I found myself moving like the dangly neon straws projected on the screens. It was hypnotizing, to say the least. And when he played The Legend of Zelda theme remix accompanied by scrolling pixelated images of a video game character, nostalgic smiles flashed on people’s faces. Zedd might have been working his voodoo on us, but we would gladly submit to it again and again.

Towards the show’s final minutes, Zedd, going full circle, reprised the anthemic Spectrum and climbed the deck stand carrying the Philippine flag. Before saying good-bye for the night (he has always expressed a fondness for playing in the country), he had us dance to True Colors.

III.

“I would love to be remembered as somebody that made a difference in the electronic music scene… someone that had a big influence in its change towards something slightly more musical, more classical” was Zedd’s quick reply to questions of legacy. “There are certain bands that I look up to — Queen, Genesis, Beatles. Even when their sound changes, they’re still legends. They changed rock, they changed their genres.”

Touring the world at 24, making non-EDM listeners pay attention to the genre along the way, may not be a bad start. “I have a whole new respect for dance music, for how it comes together and the artists behind that beat that you’re dancing to,” Hayley Williams of rock band Paramore said as much after working with Zedd on the track, Stay the Night. And if my opinion counts, Anton’s true colors have just made me an even bigger, unapologetic fan of electronic music.

—Originally published in a different version on GIST.PH

What's cool?

When a young, talented, not to mention good-looking band that flies around the world to perform in front of adoring fans have their vocalist sing, “I wish that I could be like the cool kids,” it’s quite difficult to be convinced.

American band Echosmith — a play on words echo (sound) and smith (maker) — is composed of the Sierota siblings, namely Sydney, Noah, Graham and Jamie. Hard as it may be to conceive, they have been around for almost a decade, but only recently broke into commercial success with the smash hit Cool Kids from their 2013 debut album “Talking Dreams.”

Sydney shared that the group wrote Cool Kids to express that universal desire to fit in. “There are times when I’m hanging out with a crowd and think, ‘Man, I don’t look like these people; I don’t act like them or talk like them,’” she said and further noted that the song is all about self-acceptance, which to her is essentially what makes any person cool.

She continued by confessing that they still feel pangs of insecurity “for some random reason,” whether together as a band or individually. “It just proves that no matter how much success you’ve had, you still go through that. We’re still learning,” remarked the 18-year-old.

So a highlight of my July 2015 was skyping with #Echosmith's Sydney Sierota, who really sounded like a level-headed girl. I felt stupid for shouting and enunciating each word, afraid that, along with poor reception, she might not understand my accent. My story about the band is in this issue of GIST (out today with The Philippine STAR). It's also online at GIST.PH.

A photo posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on Aug 9, 2015 at 12:20am PDT

Cool Kids no doubt has introduced Echosmith to the world, but the foursome follows it up with what may well be their signature song: Let’s Love. “We always thought from the start that it’s going to be a single eventually. That was the first song we wrote where we went, ‘Wow, this is the kind of song that we wanna go for, a song that really feels like Echosmith,’” shared Sydney.

Upbeat, positive, with barely a trace of angst or cynicism that pervade the works of artists in their teens, “Talking Dreams” is an album your mother would approve of and your friends would have blasting on the car radio during a summer road trip.

“Everybody naturally gets negative sometimes, but we definitely like to go for the positive things because it feels better that way,” said Sydney in explaining their musical philosophy. “We want people to feel better after they listen to our stuff or after watching us live, and even upon meeting us. That’s our goal. We might as well use the platform that we have the best way we can.”

And they seek to spread good vibes. When asked what’s the best thing about being in a band, they said it’s touring. “We mainly love going out to eat and roam. That’s one thing,” said Sydney, who also confessed to being a heavy sushi and rice eater.

Beyond the perks of traveling, though, it’s the magic of seeing what they do grow before their eyes that pumps up the siblings. “To see — after we go to the same city a million times — that the crowd gets bigger and the passion becomes stronger each time… from under a hundred people coming to 2,000 then to 15,000… it’s kind of crazy to watch that, it’s definitely the best part.”

With a Philippine concert slated in August, Sydney, Noah, Graham and Jamie will be able to witness how their following in the country has multiplied since their first visit last year. Manila’s intensity didn’t escape the group. Sydney recalled, “It was amazing. It was our first experience having people waiting at the airport and at the hotel for us.”

The show itself has a room in her memory: “It was such a good crowd. Everybody was so passionate, so excited. You don’t want anything more than that when you’re in a band. I’m just excited to go back,” she added. “We might throw some balloons, some confetti, some surprises,” shared Sydney upon prodding her into divulging their plans for the upcoming concert. “But our goal is just to have fun, jump around and play music. We might do a few covers.”

It may appear that the Sierotas are living the life all kids out of high school dream of. But young as they may be, touring has taught them that time isn’t on their side. “There are only 24 hours, which sounds like a lot at first, but we’re flying and driving, and that takes a lot of our day,” explained Sydney.

“I’m now realizing that quality time and time are different,” she continued. “We have to be careful how we spend our few free hours. So instead of looking at IG for hours and hours or watching TV, I make time to call a friend or a loved one.” The four even believe that they still need to hang out as siblings and talk about matters unrelated to music. “We’re still learning how to have balance, but we’re getting there,” she added.

Another lesson that the band has learned and wishes to impart to start-up bands is commitment. “If you really love something and you know you want to do it, just stick with it. We’ve been a band for nine years. Now it’s working and it’s awesome but it took a long time for us to get here. It could happen overnight or it could happen in a span of ten years — you’ll never know,” said Sydney, adding matter-of-factly, “You have to be prepared to wait.”

In a generation where many are spoiled by instant gratification and have somewhat lost their capacity to wait, Echosmith — whose oldest member is only in his early 20s — preaches patience by example and that’s pretty cool in our book.

—Originally published on GIST

See the world: notes on traveling

(An officemate dug this up, because it was his job to dig things up in the newspaper archive. This was written as a filler, and over a year later, I got praises for it.)

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There used to be, at least on my part, a great sense of romanticism when it comes to traveling. It is what you do to “find yourself”, “escape”, maybe meet “the one”, and if you’re truly lucky, discover a purpose in life. These may well be clichéd notions, but they are nonetheless alluring.

Not to say that the idealism is now entirely lost on me, only that travel has become such a buzzword in the past years that its initial glamour and mystery have somewhat waned. If you love traveling, or would like to try it, safe to say that it is easier these days. Travel deals and promos abound. All you need is some cash, time to spare, and an open mind. And this is perhaps where the difficulty lies, and why I haven’t been traveling as much as I’d like to: it is one thing to prepare the luggage, but quite another to prepare the mind.

When I said I love food, I didn’t mean I love all food. This was my first mistake in traveling with a group for the first time. Little was I aware of my biases, and instead of taking the chance to get acquainted with the unknown, I opted out.

Others would surprisingly confess that one of their mistakes when traveling is bringing a camera. Capturing the moment removes them from the moment. This is not to say that taking a photo in your trips is despicable, rather, it is a reminder to pay attention. Among all the things we associate with travel, we could at least agree that it is an occasion to see the world.

What I look forward to seeing and seeing more of is nature and architecture. What nature does is humble you with its vastness and inexplicable grandeur, and realizing that you are part of it is empowering. My faith in the universe is strengthened as a quiet voice says, everything is in its proper place.

Architecture, on the other hand, strengthens my faith in humans. Not a church-goer myself, I can stay for hours inside the Miag-ao church in San Joaquin. Why? Because these structures standing for centuries show that mortal hands can create something beautiful and enduring. It proves that we are intelligent creatures who care for each other.

I vow to get out more this year, and along with this is the promise to be more open and attentive; but this time, not just to nature and works of art, but also to other people. If I may borrow poet Mark Doty’s words, when people are “real” to you, you begin to understand them for who they genuinely are and not as part of a category.

If there is one thing I’ve learned from my few travels is that traveling can never be mere passing by, checking things out, and taking photos for proof. Most of all it shouldn’t be an escape as it ought to teach us to be “in the present”, and that seeing — giving your absolute attention to the littlest things — must be a way of life.

Heavydirtysouth

Cool Saturday afternoon with no threats of rain. You’d think everyone has already flocked to the malls, but Alabang Town Center (ATC) was met with light foot traffic. But then again, this was Muntinlupa, south of the metro, where the residents are known to take it easy.

At the shopping complex’ activity center, things were a little more interesting. A stage was set up and people gathered by the barricades. A shopper, obviously unaware of what was happening that day, asked the security guard, “Who’s performing?”

To those who had no clue, the baby grand piano might’ve deceived them and made them think that a crooner was dropping by. When the show started at 5 p.m., two masked men took to the stage and amplified the noise that the screaming crowd was making.

It was Twenty One Pilots’ debut performance in the Philippines and they treated the July 18th ATC concert no different than their other shows. Singer Tyler Joseph and drummer Josh Dun have a reputation for outrageous behavior — all in the name of good fun — and they served it up along with their genre-defying songs, which lyrics and inflections the audience knew by heart.

The duo began with Heavydirtysoul, the opening track of their newly released album, “Blurryface.” Tyler sang on a microphone suspended in air, speculated by some fans as representative of a noose; but if you asked us, it was simply a visually appealing arrangement.

As expected, Tyler was all over the place, meaning he sprinted, got atop the piano, jumped down from it and back on it again. By the third number, Tyler dove into the pit and rapped the first few verses of Holding On To You while being carried by the lucky few who were staying where he landed. Josh also got into the action and somersaulted from the piano to the ground (was that piano ever for playing?).

Tyler Joseph scales one of the nearby pillars.

To be honest, a concert at a mall is quite an odd affair. People go there for different reasons and while a public space, aren’t guests entitled to a piece of privacy? Imagine how a customer at the adjacent café, who wanted nothing but to sit in silence, felt when the audience shrieked, “Somebody stole / my car radio / and now I just sit in silence.” For the ticket-holder’s part, it may be unfair that interested passers-by can watch for free. In addition, it must be difficult to head-bang when others are staring.

But Twenty One Pilots and their “Skeleton Clique” were caught in a world of their own, with an understanding that “sometimes quiet is violent” and if music were curative, they’d take it wherever they could find it, onlookers be damned.

In a GIST exclusive interview, Tyler explained that Blurryface is a made-up character symbolizing a person’s insecurities. “People are drawn to music. We say the things they’re afraid to say, we are their outlet,” he shared. A segment of the entertainment scene may communicate empowerment and it’s admirable but, when overdone, is also alienating. We have our inner rockstar, yes, but we also have our inner Blurryface, who, whether we admit it or not, care about what other people think.

And this honesty, which is far from self-deprecation, expressed in rhyme, catchy melody and energetic beats, is why we trust Twenty One Pilots to take us on a musical ride.

It doesn’t hurt that they’re a riot on — and off — stage. Tyler has a habit of climbing whatever he could climb and when we thought this antic wouldn’t be possible in such a family-oriented establishment, the singer scaled one of the nearby pillars.

For the finale, Josh and Tyler each banged on an acoustic drum poured with water — at the mosh pit, above the crowd.

The show only lasted for an hour but everyone had a satisfied look on their face after. Twenty One Pilots brought sixty minutes of madness to an otherwise peaceful south, and we were all the better for it.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

In pursuit of the noble beverage

The men and women behind EDSA Beverage Design Group (EDSA BDG) are an idealistic bunch. They trust that Filipinos are ready for specialty coffee, bottled cocktails, and a startup with a unique business model.

You may have learned about EDSA BDG while going through your Instagram feed and stopping to check out a photo of its now-famous glass door where the words “In pursuit of the noble beverage” are printed.

This shop, which is a few meters from the historic EDSA Shrine, has created a buzz among coffee and cocktails aficionados, as well as lovers of all things artistic; but little do the patrons know that EDSA BDG, for all the coziness it serves, is a business-to-business company.

“We’re really consultants. We help you out with all your beverage needs — from recipes and supplies to trainings,” says EDSA BDG general manager Trissy Perfecto.

“It all started with coffee,” narrates Perfecto. Founders Jericson Co and David Ong used to frequent Craft Coffee Workshop in Quezon City, which is said to be the first specialty coffee retailer in the country. “Coffee brings people together, and true enough, they became friends,” she continues. From there, they put up The Curator in Makati City, a speakeasy that, along with specialty coffee, offers craft cocktails.

Soon after, the friends launched EDSA BDG, bringing a whole new concept in beverage design and service-oriented business. “Our main thrust is to educate Filipinos. We should all start drinking better,” says Perfecto. “The place is really supposed to be education in itself. It introduces new ideas.”

Bags of beans and intimidating contraptions greet visitors upon entrance to the two-storey studio. The ground floor is where the team roasts beans for delivery to clients, while upstairs is what appears to be a retail space, but is in fact a showroom of products and services.

A photo posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on May 26, 2015 at 4:58am PDT

One remarkable spot is the Honeycomb Co-working Space, where customers can rent seats and work with high-speed Internet while drinking an EDSA BDG beverage to fuel the mind and body. The space is also designed to encourage collaborations.

Perfecto notes that the interiors are mostly made of glass to embody transparency: “We want people to really understand what they’re taking in. We want to be socially responsible.”

For now, coffee is EDSA BDG’s most holistic brand. Aside from supplying coffee beans, they also offer barista training, workshops for enthusiasts, machines, preventive maintenance, and even coffee subscription.

Down the road, they aim to go directly to farmers. “We’re helping a local farm in Davao. They bring harvested beans to us and we roast it ourselves,” shares Perfecto. “We realize there’s high potential there. It’s not specialty grade yet, but it can be. And that’s the goal — not just to bring the [premium coffee] experience to the Filipinos, but also for Filipinos to be known worldwide.”

Within a year since its opening, the company launched “#YKW Roasters Manila” specialty coffee; “Coo” bottled fizzy sodas; TGBG, or Tito Boy’s Ginger Beer; and the “Better Common” bottled cocktails, which takes its name from the promise of producing and consuming better products.

As with any noble pursuit, though, the road can be bumpy. Innovations will always have doubters. Better Common, for example, have been received with a few raised eyebrows, what with cocktails being equated to theatrics and fancy presentation.

There’s also the tough balancing act of pleasing clients and adhering to personal principles. “There’s a fine line between putting up a business to earn profit and putting up a business to educate,” admits Perfecto. “It’s hard to make money because you sacrifice a lot. That for me is a major obstacle in this business model.”

To clients who can’t be convinced and customers who can’t wrap their heads around liquid cuisine, Perfecto invites them to their workshops. Visiting the studio and talking to the staff is a good idea, too, as they’re more than willing to share their knowledge. Education, after all, doesn’t happen overnight. And even the founders continuously travel worldwide to attend food and beverage conventions.

A little over a year old, EDSA BDG has just taken the first step towards becoming the go-to expert in beverage design. Its clientele is turning out to be an impressive list with the likes of Wildflour Café and Bakery, Satchmi, Todd English Food Hall, and SpiceBird Boracay, among others, carrying their creations.

But the ultimate dream is to be known internationally as the product of the Philippines. “It’s a passion project,” says Perfecto. And maybe it’s only fitting that they’ve named the enterprise after a landmark of history-changing revolution and an emblem of Filipino passion. “EDSA is the highway that connects everything,” she adds. “That’s how we see the business growing.”

—Originally published on GIST

Nothing but a feel-good throwback to the ‘80s

A musical adaptation of Bituing Walang Ningning (originally a Nerissa Cabral serialized comics strip made into a movie in 1985 and a TV series in 2006) is somehow inevitable. It tells the story of singers Dorina Pineda and Lavinia Arguelles — the former intent on building a career and the latter, on staying on top. The drama of show business, its spectacle, not to mention the celebrities’ occasional histrionics, can be fully realized in theater.

As such, the creative team behind Bituing Walang Ningning the Musical exploited the medium, creating set pieces where Lavinia (Cris Villonco) and Dorina (Monica Cuenca) can perform like true divas. Particularly memorable was the Pangarap Na Bituin number where Dorina sang solo on center stage, her gown blending with the starry sky backdrop, making it appear as if she herself were among the stars.

It’s amusing that there is some degree of parallelism between lead actors Villonco and Cuenca and their characters (we’re not sure if this was the intention during casting). Villonco has been around in the business as a theater mainstay and has become a darling among theater-goers. But the similarities with Lavinia end there. In an interview, Villonco shared that being the bad guy onstage was unfamiliar territory to her and her angelic face was a liability at first.

And like Dorina, Cuenca is a newcomer who bested hundreds of auditioners vying for the role that Sharon Cuneta popularized in the movie adaption. The musical was her debut on the big stage, but those who didn’t know it might not be able to tell with the way she managed her nerves.
The ladies were joined by Mark Bautista and Ronnie Liang, who played Lavinia’s boyfriend-slash-manager Nico Escobar and composer Garry Diaz, respectively.

But the brightest stars of the show had to be veterans Jon Santos, who was Auntie, Dorina’s aunt and guardian; and Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, who was Edith, a no-nonsense entertainment journalist. The two took on their roles with ease, allowing the audience the pleasure of seeing characters and not actors.

With a well-known narrative at its disposal, the show banked on the audience’ readiness to go down memory lane. It featured OPM hits of the past (Points of View especially pleasing the crowd); referenced ‘80s fashion, which was marked by big hair and flamboyance; highlighted the emergence of compact disc, which overthrew the cassette; and even brought in a Kuya Germs variety show.

While all these were entertaining, the dimmer spots in its storytelling couldn’t be ignored. The tension between the divas was barely felt. Lavinia was catty but far from conniving, or at least not convincingly; and Dorina’s switch from avid Lavinia fan to worst enemy and back to supporter all happened without an equivalent motivation.

Even the conflict between Nico and Gary, who were both after Dorina’s heart, didn’t have the chance to properly brew.

At best, Bituing Walang Ningning the Musical is a massive feel-good throwback to the ‘80s. Expect to have lots of fun but little empathy towards the characters.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

Up

Up Dharma Down is accessible in many ways. The band plays at least once a week in bars up north all the way down south, and you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg to get in. On social media, they allow the public a peep at their private lives, cat snapshots included. And their music, though distinctive in sound, touches upon the familiar: love, longing, confusion.

On the flip side, theirs is a career anyone with musical aspirations can only dream of — anyone who knows how challenging and, to some extent, discouraging a creative endeavor is. As for artistry, their work gained the admiration of many, including Scottish band The Blue Nile’s Paul Buchanan, who even agreed to lend his voice in a track in their latest album, “Capacities.”

They make heartbreak, because beautifully written, noble and reason for people to commune in a bar, cognac in hand, shouting to someone in particular, “Ba’t di pa sabihin ang hindi mo maamin?” They also make the dancing-averse feel like it’s safe to jig. (What’s the Tagalog word for it? Ah, indak.)

It’s no surprise that in this year’s edition of club series Hennessy Artistry — Philippines, Up Dharma Down has been the brand’s hand-picked artist. Through its run we’ve seen Armi Millare (vocals, keyboards), Paul Yap (bass, synth), Ean Mayor (drums, synth) and Carlos Tanada (guitars, synth) stun strollers at Bonifacio High Street with a surprise show; collaborate with another band, with Armi singing a duet with Yolanda Moon’s Cholo Hermosa; and, in Armi’s words, “make the biggest club in Asia sing to [their] songs.”

Light shower out of beat. #HennessyArtistryPH #GISTPH @hennessyph @uddofficial

A video posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on Jun 5, 2015 at 12:37pm PDT

Their spirit (and yes, Hennessy) brought us on a high, but how was the experience on their end? Why aren’t they playing in an arena yet? And how’s that new album going?

GIST: What made you say yes to Hennessy Artistry? What is it about the brand and concert series that resonate with your principles as musicians?

UP DHARMA DOWN: Because it’s a good project wherein a corporate brand recognizes the importance of evolution and provides support to artists who are pushing the envelope.

How was the Hennessy gig different from your other gigs — from the crowd to the venues?

Well, it was different in a sense that some of the venues are places we don’t normally play at. It made it possible for us to reach another set of audience.

Which acts impressed you the most during the entire artistry series and what have you learned from them?

We’re definitel y impressed by the growth of Cholo Hermosa of Yolanda Moon. Not because he’s our label mate but, objectively, because of how he’s matured in just a few years as a songwriter and a musician. We can’t wait for Yolanda Moon’s album to come out. It was also a blast to have him sing with us a song of ours and for us to do our version of Yolanda Moon’s track Leaving Soon live!

Armi posted on Instagram after the Valkyrie show, “I never thought we could make the biggest club in Asia sing to our songs because the idea just sounds downright impossible.” After this, will you consider playing in bigger venues?

We have and continue to play in bigger venues side by side the smaller ones. What Armi meant was for a club audience in a dance club, she didn’t expect them to be signing along or reacting the way they did.

Has anyone — a fan or otherwise — asked you to stage a stadium concert? Will we ever see you do one?

That has been suggested many times by fans, promoters and producers; but we don’t think our fan base is that huge yet that we will be able to fill a whole stadium! We’re not opposed to doing such a scale but we’d rather build our audience steadily as we go through the years and we’re more comfortable when the gig is more intimate.

Was there ever a gig where you didn’t perform Oo? How does it feel, seeing fans don’t seem to tire of it and scream like it’s the latest hit on the radio the moment they hear the first few notes of the song?

Yes, there are gigs wherein we don’t perform Oo and there are times when they don’t seem to mind. But for places wherein it’s our first time to perform, we try to play the hits as well as the album favorites. It feels good of course to see and hear people singing your songs, even more when it’s the album cuts and not necessarily the hits.

Describe to us the pressures of creating Album no. 4. If it’s okay to share, your fears when writing an album, especially this one.

There’s always pressure after every album, as we want to better ourselves as musicians and songwriters; and obviously there is no other way but up and we strive to top the previous albums. So yes there is pressure on ourselves, but no pressure from Terno Recordings, who will always just say, “Do what you want to do as long as it’s of quality.”

Give us four words that you associate with the upcoming album.

Celebratory, up, vibrant and colorful.

What’s the best way a fan can show appreciation for your music?

By purchasing the CDs and vinyl and going to the gigs!

If Up Dharma Down were a cocktail, it would be…?

Mint julep — because we would like to give our audience that chill, cool vibe.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

Dislocation

Neither feel safe nor free in my own house.

The world through prism-vision

“We’re going all around the world spreading light,” said Katy Perry on “Vevo Tour Exposed” in describing the Prismatic World Tour, which is in support of her fourth studio album, “Prism.” According to billboard.com, Perry originally intended to make an acoustic record with “depressive shades,” but instead “found inspiration in more positive places.” The site quoted the singer: “All the light hit me and it influenced the songs.”

On May 7, the tour marked its first anniversary and biggest show to date at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan. For two hours, Katy Perry fans, also known as “KatyCats,” were transported into and enraptured by Perry’s Prismatic world.

The show was divided into seven set pieces, each one showcasing Perry’s music and personality. The first part, “Prismatic,” opened with the pop star’s recent #1 single, Roar and immediately raised the room’s energy to stratospheric heights.

Perry came out on stage donning a gladiator-inspired suit, not without a touch of Katy quirkiness — glowing cats eyes on the chest, lights at the seams, and more strands of light flowing from her ponytail. Around her were dancers wielding fluorescent spears.

She was just starting. Next up was the “Egyptian” section where the audience saw their princess riding a mechanical horse around the stage and a giant snake dancing as she sang Dark Horse. At this point, it was difficult not be impressed by the elaborate stage production and be convinced that “more is more.”

After the stormy performances, the playful, campy Katy Perry we knew surfaced, taking on the role of her cat Kitty Purry (or was it the other way around?) in the “Cat-oure” section, which was packed with every visual and aural cat pun and reference — from the theater theme that was reminiscent of the musical, Cats to making a catwalk out of the stage. A highlight within this highlight was Perry sashaying in a glittering fishbone dress to the tune of Madonna’s Vogue. In this part she sang an early hit, Hot N Cold and International Smile, a potential new hit from “Prism.”

The singer displayed both her warmth and sense of humor in the “Acoustic” section, dishing out emotional songs like By the Grace of God and the soaring ballad, Unconditionally. In between she talked to the fans and even asked a die-hard KatyCat to come up on stage and teach her Tagalog.

A video posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on May 8, 2015 at 12:56pm PDT

“We may have different languages but we both share the love of music. We all came here and went through the traffic because we love music,” she remarked and continued in a more serious tone, “We hope that you come out of this show feeling happier than when you came in.”

The following section, “Throw Back” was all about good ol’ fun. It began with dancers grooving to old-school hip hop beats like Good Vibrations before Perry came back on stage to perform Walking on Air, Last Friday Night and This is How We Do, employing humble props like SUV-sized flying emojis (the poo emoji a crowd favorite) and an inflatable car.

Later on Perry brought the California vibe to the Philippine Arena in “Hyper Neon,” where the audience reveled in Katy classics, Teenage Dream and California Girls. Meanwhile the dancers played with their colorful version of the HOLLYWOOD sign, spelling out words that define our time: YOLO and LOL, among others.

Perry ended the night belting out Firework. Here the audience was encouraged to put on the prism-vision glasses that diffract light — a final kaleidoscopic touch to the spectacle that preceded it.

The Prismatic World Tour had every intention do dazzle and succeeded. It’s a rare concert where one can say, “I’ve never seen anything like it before” alongside “Ah, that’s where my money went.”

It’s one thing to mount a show with a scale as grand as Prismatic’s and quite another to replicate it (from production quality to energy intensity) in 138 cities across different continents. “I’m proud that we never had a major injury or show cancellations,” declared Perry in the middle of the concert. “We get tired, we get homesick, but we show up every single time because we said we will show up.”

On behalf of the 30,000 people who went to the Philippine Arena last Thursday, we thank Katy Perry and her crew, who came over bringing music, humor and, as promised, light.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

Forever 15: Backstreet Boys still make us giddy

Right after their opening songs, Nick Carter, 1/5 of the Backstreet Boys, walked solo on stage and scanned the arena. “Are you guys for real? Are you all Backstreet Boys fans?” he told the audience, who filled the Mall of Asia Arena to the rafters on May 5.

To be honest, I was surprised myself and had to ask the same question. As an early bird, I witnessed the slow arrival of concert-goers. Most of the seats were empty with only a few minutes left till showtime.

But as the lights dimmed, more people started coming in and when the first notes of The Call struck, loud screams reverberated. I looked behind me, saw what Carter saw, and thought, “Wow, The Backstreet Boys’ charm hasn’t waned a bit.”

Nick Carter, Kevin Richardson, AJ McLean, Brian Littrell and Howie Dorough were quick to note that they — no we, them and their fans — are old(er). Right away (and this shall be quoted in all BSB Manila 2015 concert conversations) Carter set two rules: (1) Act crazy and (2) act like 15-year-olds. Later on Richardson commanded, “Party like it’s 1999.”

A photo posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on May 5, 2015 at 11:11am PDT

The crowd didn’t really need the instructions, but those words fuelled everyone’s desire to go deeper into the whole nostalgia trip, back in the days when we were still collecting copies of Teen Beat and Bop, and praying that song lyrics were included in the sleeve of the cassette tape we saved our meager allowance for.

The entire arena was transformed into a sort of huge karaoke house with everyone singing along with the band for two hours. My only complaint was security wouldn’t allow us to get on our feet — at least not until the party went into full swing. My companion joked, “Of course they’ll put chairs, the fans are oldies.”

In the middle of the show, the five men took a break from dancing and sat down to play acoustic instruments. The moment was easily a highlight because it was refreshing to see them doing something different, but more than that, the acoustic set underscored the fact that we just love belting out their songs.

Over-romantization alert: It was like their way of giving us a chance to shower them with adoration. Yes, after all these years, we still know the words by heart!

A video posted by Razel Estrella (@fishpeep) on May 5, 2015 at 10:43am PDT

Boy bands and pop songs often get a bad rep, the latter pegged as mere feel-good tunes, without aspirations to elevate the spirit. But who doesn’t want to feel good? And on that night, the Backstreet Boys were masters at making us as carefree as bright-eyed teenagers.

I’m no expert but perhaps the reason why they’re still here is that they continue to put out songs we can sing along to, melodies that stick, plain and simple. And it helps that they’ve taken good care of themselves (read: they’re still eye candies).

Backstreet Boys shared that the “In A World Like This Tour” is in celebration of the band’s 20th anniversary. “We’ve been together for 22 years now and we’re still happy to do this,” they said. It didn’t sound that impressive until I made calculations in my head. Because if you were 30 now, that means you’ve been a fan since you were 10. In other words, you’ve been a fan since grade school till you got a job, got fired, put up your own business, right up until you got married and had children.

They’ve got it going on for years and they promise to keep going. “The Backstreet Boys will go back to the studio,” disclosed Bryan towards the show’s end. And before they finally bid their good-byes, they told the all-smiles crowd, “We’ll see you again with a new album and a new tour.”

Okay then. I bet everyone in that room will have another reunion when that time comes, and count me in when the group announces their jubilee concert.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

'The whole of life calls for tears'

I understand breakdowns. When celebrities get mocked for it, I'm sympathetic. Sometimes I ride a cab home and wish it crashes.

We have given up on trying to meet others; we just meet ourselves

Muriel Barbery. The elegance of the hedgehog. Paris: Editions Gallimard, 2006.

Pages 140 – 141:

This is the first time I have met someone who seeks out people and who sees beyond. That may seem trivial but I think it is profound all the same. We never look beyond our assumptions and, what's worse, we have given up trying to meet others; we just meet ourselves. We don't recognise each other because other people have become our permanent mirros. If we actually realized this, if we were to become aware of the fact that we are only ever looking at ourselves in the other person, that we are alone in the wilderness, we would go crazy. When my mother offers macaroons from Ladurée to Madame de Broglie, she is telling herself her own life story and just nibbling at her own flavour; when Papa drinks his coffee and reads his paper, he is comtemplating his own reflection in the mirror, as if practising the Coué method or something; when Colombe talks about Marian's lectures, she is ranting about her own relfection; and when people walk by the concierge, all they see is a void, because she is not from their world. [my emphasis]

As for me, I implore fate to give me the chance to see beyond myself and truly meet someone.

Got around to finishing The Elegance of the Hedgehog—which I received last December as a Christmas gift—this Holy Week. The book is a full home you can live in but that passage is a room washed in sunlight.

I have never thought of knowing another that way.

PS: I lost it on page 306.

Lindsey Stirling's advice to fellow artists

It’s funny how, sometimes, taking comfort in your uniqueness and not pretending to be like everybody else, can lead to hearing things like, “Sorry, the world has no place for you.” Take Lindsey Stirling, for example — a dancing dubstep violinist once deemed “not cool” or “not marketable” enough.

For so long, she has struggled with putting her music out there: “I tried lots of ways, from traditional ones like going to record labels and talking to agencies to joining America’s Got Talent — that didn’t lead to anything,” shares Stirling.

So she took matters into her own hands. “I got sick of waiting for somebody to sign me, for someone to say, ‘Okay, you’re good enough,'” she continues. “So I started making videos, uploading them to Youtube and setting up shows.”

Stirling’s Crystallize became the eighth most-viewed video on Youtube last year with 63 million views and her channel, “Lindseystomp” garnered over 6 million subscribers. That was when record labels, for a change, came knocking on her door.

No.

“I was like, ‘No, I don’t want to be signed,’” says Stirling, who later on sealed a record deal in Asia. “I don’t live here. It’s a different world that’s why I signed with a record label here, but I still act very much as an independent artist,” she adds.

Her new album, “Shatter Me,” might well be a confessional. Far from the “happy-go-lucky” vibe of her debut record, Stirling admits to exposing the darker side of herself in her latest outing. “At that time, I was going through depression and anorexia,” she shares. “But the album is also a celebration of breaking free from whatever it is that haunts us: other people, ourselves, our fears.”

This freedom from fear is best represented in the titular single with a music video that shows a violin-wielding ballerina trapped in a snow globe. “As she starts to express herself (through music and dance), the globe begins to crack,” narrates Stirling. “But she’s afraid of what’s happening. ‘If I break, will there be anything left?’”

It’s difficult to imagine Lindsey Stirling contained in any form of barriers, especially after seeing her perform live. On March 13 she returned to the Philippines to open for Incubus at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena and for a moment made us forget about Incubus.

She is always moving — going from one point of the stage to another, involving every part of her body in the performance. And even in her craft, she couldn’t keep still. In “Shatter Me,” Lindsey collaborated with Dia Frampton and Lzzy Hale of Halestorm. Asked if we could expect more from the trio, she said that she wishes to create different sounds in the future and work with different people such as Zedd, Haley Williams, Ellie Goulding, and Ryan Tedder of One Republic to name a few.

Right now, Lindsey is touring, and on the side, writing a book with her sister. Somewhere in the future she hopes to score for a film, work on a video game composition, and maybe squeeze in an acting gig.

Lindsey Stirling with reporters

Following her arena performance in the Philippines, Lindsey got a little closer to her fans and held a small show and a meet and greet at SM North EDSA The Block. As much as the fans were delighted to meet their idol, they were clamoring for a full concert from the dancing violinist. Their plea didn’t escape Lindsey, who told everyone who came, “I’m planning to come back, I’m going to do a full show as soon as I can.”

Later in the afternoon she laid down her bow and picked up a pen to sign copies of “Shatter Me.” But her CD wasn’t the only thing fans wanted autographed; a lot of them brought their own violins and guitars — a reminder that many of Lindsey’s fans are aspiring artists as well. And to them, Lindsey’s biggest message is simply: Don’t give up.

“Artists are so hard on themselves. They are the most critical of themselves,” she says. “Failure is just one of the many steps that comes in the line of being successful, so pick yourself up again and don’t be too hard on yourself.”

—Originally published on GIST.PH

Dancin' and singin' in the rain

The best things about the One Direction concert have little to do with One Direction. Well the entire night wouldn't have happened if not for 1D, but let me talk.

OTRA Day 2 pass

First of all, am no Directioner, just someone who appreciates music. The way I see it, there's ambition and achievement. Louis (my crush), Niall, Harry, Liam, and Zayn aim to be a cute boy band singing singable danceable tunes and they do it well, so I like them. That's why when there was a chance to watch the group live, I grabbed it.

I attended the second night of the On the Road Again Tour – Manila leg. It was fun but not as magical as I hoped it would be. Maybe because I could barely see the boys and maybe because it was 1D sans Zayn.

Anyway, we've already settled at a nice spot in the middle of the concert grounds late in the afternoon. So it was basically a waiting game from then on. By 6pm it started to drizzle. Then rain. Then back to drizzle. Then solid rain. Non-stop rain. That made me anxious and cold.

Our view

Until a DJ KC came out on stage and the next thing you know, I was in the midst of a rave party and loving every second of it. Except when his set finished and the rain stopped as well.

It was as if all the good things I own in the world were taken from me. I was wishing for more rain and dancing.

Instead, there was more waiting.

When One Direction finally showed up, performing song after song, I was simply going through the motions. Humming, swaying, hands up in the air; replying with a howl when they say, 'How are you, Manila', 'We love you, Manila', 'Thank you we wouldn't be here without you'; and taking a couple of photos and videos as keepsakes.


Of course I went wild when they sang my favorites—One Thing, What Makes You Beautiful, and Night Changes.

It was fitting that they closed with Best Song Ever (imagine when you have a song with that title and the melody's crap?). That was a pure moment I had with One Direction coz I was dancing and singing like crazy to the best song that night, which was punctuated by fireworks—their final good-bye.

While fun, the show wasn't as magical as I hoped it would be. Maybe because I could barely see the boys and maybe because it was 1D sans Zayn. Or maybe because I would've liked it for the rain to keep pouring and the band to never stop singing so I may carry on dancing.

In a Sing state of mind

As early as five in the afternoon, people already came in droves at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena, chanting, “We want Ed! We want Ed!” They meant Ed Sheeran, the British singer-songwriter who broke into everyone’s music consciousness with hits like 'Lego House' and 'The A Team'. To those who still don’t know him, he’s the artist behind that song you keep hearing everywhere, that song you can’t get out of your head and will probably play on your wedding day — Darling I will / be loving you till / we’re 70. Sheeran brought his Multiply Tour to Manila on March 12 and a couple of hours before taking the stage, we had the chance to sit down with him for an interview.

X memories forever frozen still in digital photographs

“I was expecting a good gig, but I think this might be one of the bests in the tour just based on the reception I’ve got. Everyone is so excited and that makes me more excited,” Sheeran said when asked about his expectations of the show.

We were surprised that he was surprised by his level of popularity in the country, to which he replied, “On social media (you have an idea of your fan base), yes. You can see the amount of tweets that you get but you can never really tell until you step into a country and feel the electricity.”

His doubts must’ve been cleared now as the 16,000-seater arena was filled to the brim, and with how the audience behaved (or misbehaved — blocking aisles to get closer, for example), it felt like there were 30,000 people in the room — which Sheeran effortlessly commanded.

Those who watched the concert fondly speak of how the 24-year-old musician in jeans, polo, and messy hair only needed his voice, guitar, and loop station to rock the night away. Meanwhile, those who were able to meet him, talk non-stop about his kindness and humility.

How can one be a rock star on stage and a grounded human being off stage? (Sheeran once remarked that thank goodness he wasn’t selling albums based on his looks.) The answer, at least for Sheeran, is to separate the musician from the man. “The artist side of me is the one who is successful and the normal side of me is not. You have to separate the two,” he said.

X

Ed Sheeran is the third act featured in MMI Live’s British Invasion 2015 concert series. Before him, The 1975 and The Vamps performed in Manila in January and February respectively, and following him are One Direction on March 21 and 22, and Sam Smith in May.

What is it about British music that resonates so well with the rest of the world?

“I don’t think the invasion ever stopped,” offered Sheeran. “Because before us there was Adele, Coldplay and Mumford & Sons; and before them there was James Blunt, David Gray and Travis,” he continued. “There’ve always been British bands — Oasis, Blur — It’s the same for the Swedish, they’re good at songwriting. England, UK and Ireland just produce good artists.”

Lucky for us they’re now crossing continents so we can watch them perform live. Before we let Sheeran off, we asked which one of his songs best reflects his current state of mind. He paused to think, then said, 'Sing' — the upbeat tune he co-wrote with Pharrell Williams. “I’m having a wonderful time in the Philippines and I just, I feel…” he couldn’t find the words, so maybe he just really felt like singing and letting go. And that he did at the MOA Arena last Thursday.

Sheeran closed his first Manila concert with Sing. Towards the song’s end, he told the audience to sing the song’s hook, O-oh o-oh-oh o-oh-oh o-oh-oh oh-oh… and to “never stop singing” even as he put his guitar down and left the stage. The crowd obliged.

It was, to reiterate and to understate, a memorable night. And in case you’re reading this, we’re still singing, Ed.

—Originally published on GIST.PH

Over the hillside

32. Last year, my theme song was Petshop Boys' 'Being boring'. This year it's The Blue Nile's 'Over the Hillside'.


I tried and tried to make good sense. What's the good to try it all again?

Except that I don't end where the song ends, I continue to try.