TRASH RADIO MANILA: Thoughts On An Incomplete Rainy Tuesday: Incomplete 2, Route 196, June 1, 2010

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Thoughts On An Incomplete Rainy Tuesday: Incomplete 2, Route 196, June 1, 2010

There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground,
And swallows circling with their shimmering sound;

And frogs in the pool singing at night,
And wild plum trees in tremulous white;

Robins will wear their feathery fire,
Whistling their whims on a low fence-wire;

And not one will know of the war, not one
Will care at last when it is done.

Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree,
If mankind perished utterly;

And Spring herself when she woke at dawn
Would scarcely know that we were gone.

- Sara Teasdale, "There Will Come Soft Rains"

Perhaps the end is indeed near. The weather has gone way haywire. Hot and dry to hot and wet. Temperature reaching 40 degrees Celsius. Then suddenly, acid rain. I thought of Sara Teasdale's apocalyptic poem, written way back 1920, as I was lingering on the sidewalk fronting Route 196, the site of the Incomplete Part 2 gig, last Tuesday, June 1, 2010.

How would you like to go, supposing that the red Tuesday night sky fall on you right that moment? My mind was playing morbid tricks on me. To this question I had a quick and equally morbid answer: I would like to go with a smile. (Pasintabi kay Joker, I borrowed that line from him. Hahah.)

I was in the right place, if that is the case.

It was a warm and pleasant night. And it was not just an acoustic night, for the gig featured the frontmen of some of the most prominent bands in the underground scene (Throw, The GoSignals, Shuffle Union, Coffee Break Island, Shoulder State, SDK). In spite of the rains, people came in, most of them arriving towards the middle of the show. Francis Aguilar opened the show and did the hosting chores. Albert Ascona came next, followed by Al Dimalanta, who played four songs despite the coughs and colds. (Tenacious!) Rio Vargas did a charismatic set, after which Mel and Dennis Maniego of The GoSignals provided the crowd with their brand of mod. Mae of Shuffle Union placed the audience on a trance with her magical voice, while Paul of Coffee Break Island was Mae's perfect foil, his raspy voice tearing the damp early morning air apart.

Jonas Pares (or fondly called Alkaline Duo, which is none other than Kyle and Spyk of SDK) played as well, taking over the slot of Arnold Morales who was not able to make it that night.

[Route 196, like Ten02 Bar, serves good food. I just have to say this.]

Oh, ok. Obviously, the end of the world has not come yet. The apocalypse can wait another day. But never mind. I still went home with a smile on my face.