Trash Radio Manila Episode 17 Part 2: Nalugi Na Ang Barberya Sa Dami Ng...

If you can finish the above statement, which happens to be a line off Bentot's "Jeprox", then you must have been around for quite some time, when long hair was still in vogue, jeepneys were sporting Kiss posters, Rizal Avenue was wide and bright, and a hundred peso bill was more than enough for shopping at Good Earth Emporium and snacks at a nearby ice cream house....

Those were also the days when a former army draftee turned jeepney driver turned bus driver decided to form a rondalla with his fellow drivers, and wrote a song about a very significant event in Philippine history. The song, "Magellan", was released under Kinampay records courtesy of the owner of the bus company, and the rest of this talented man's story is history.

For this segment we pay homage to Yoyoy Villame and Bentot, two artists from an era slowly slipping away from our consciousness, as we play some of their songs that we digitized from the records which come straight from our vinyl collection. (Yes, we are very lucky to have that rare original pressing of Yoyoy's "Magellan" out of Kinampay Records in our possession. Bentot's record, too, for that matter.)

Also in the playlist is Lolita Carbon of the folk group Asin and her session band Nene. The song "Bayle Ta" was written by Cocojam's Rolly Maligad (who also shared vocals with Lolit) and was released in the early 90s, shortly after Carbon's stint with the musical supergroup Lokal Brown.

Shuffle Union is in the list with one of those Long Island Dub permutations of their hypnotic song, "Batty Boy." Up next are tunes from two bands who had played in some editions of Skamax. Steady Movin' Beat, as far as I can remember, derived their name from a line off Put3Ska's "Short Stories", and are said to be singing about a rather unpleasant real-life situation in "Corporate Fool". On the other hand, Hopskatch, who started out covering Operation Ivy songs, did their take on a Deceased original titled "Abandoned Youth". Deceased? Covered by Hopskatch? Sounds interesting? Keep it here and find out how the boys fare. :)

Yes, yes. It's the start of another "jeprox" week. Glad to have you around, as always. Playlist is as follows:

1. YOYOY VILLAME and the MB LINER RONDALLA - "Magellan"
2. BENTOT - "Jeprox"
3. NENE (with COCOJAM'S ROLLY MALIGAD) - "Bayle Ta"
4. SHUFFLE UNION - "Batty Boy"
5. STEADY MOVIN' BEAT - "Corporate Fool"
6. HOPSKATCH - "Abandoned Youth"
7. YOYOY VILLAME and the MB LINER RONDALLA - "Tsuper ng Jeepney"

Photo creds: Battle of Mactan from this site. Pic of Pugo and Bentot care of this site. SMB logo from their MySpace site. And the photo of the Magellan vinyl comes from my personal album ;)

Trash Radio Manila Episode 11 Part 1: LIKE A JUGGLER RUNNING OUT OF HANDS

Happy Easter folks and welcome to our 11th episode.

Here is this segment's playlist:

1. ELVIS COSTELLO and the ATTRACTIONS - "Welcome To The Working Week (Pathway Studios Demo)"
2. SUGGS - "I'm Only Sleeping"
3. BAD RELIGION - "Kerosene"
4. VOLBEAT - "Radio Girl"
5. DOGS OF IRE - "Let's Not Leave Like This"
6. URBAN RIOT - "Skindergarten"
7. I.O.V. - "Yankees"
8. G.I. and the IDIOTS - "Nine Years in Service"
9. JUAN DELA CRUZ BAND - "Project"

A high bitrate version of the playlist can be downloaded here.

As you may have probably noticed, we have included a sprinkling of tracks from two Fil-Am and three all-Pinoy bands. Dogs Of Ire are from California; "Let's Not Leave Like This" comes from the album "Reach For The Burning". A Fil-Am band to a lesser extent (because only one out of five members is Filipino), Urban Riot, which have sadly disbanded last 2006, come from New York City. I.O.V. and G.I. and the Idiots, rollicking bands off the legendary 80s Pinoy Punk era, each contribute a song to the list.

It might come as a surprise that we have included Juan Dela Cruz Band in our playlist. I was surfing the net a few nights ago and came across a few blogs talking about the etymology of the word "Jeprox". A blog post says that "Jeprox" is short for "Jeepney Rock", pertaining to the hard rock music being played in jeepneys that ply the streets of Manila in the 70s. The meaning of the term "Jeprox", the post asserts, has been extended to include young males "who sported long hair and lived the rock n' roll lifestyle".

I wish to bring the post's definition of "Jeprox" (or "Jeproks", for that matter) to another level.

IMHO, "Jeprox" roughly pertains to the Projects (Project 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8), and of course, its denizens, who were mostly perceived to have been more morally upright (read: benign folks) as opposed to their more urbane counterparts (who lived in the real urban jungles of Manila), and needless to say, were more "rock" than anyone else.

Now, if we'd have to think further, we'd have to remember that in the late 1970s, the Projects were regarded as suburban areas, home to the middle class families. And Pinoy Rock, by then, had gained much of its popularity (and consequent notoriety), so much so that it was nearing mainstream levels, if it hadn't actually hit at all. As a natural outcome, Pinoy Rock had begun to somehow take a banal, boring route. Very suburban, very safe. Thus, the term Jeproks (or Jeprox, for that matter) was actually more derogatory than a moniker of praise. (Think "punkilitos" or "kupaw", or even "jologs", depending on which generation you come from.)

Ironically, some of Pinoy Rock's most enduring icons came from the Projects (or at least the nearby vicinities). (Think of Kamuning Road juxtaposed to Projects 2 and 3.)

Quick! Show me the way to Kawilihan Bakery. Map courtesy of http://basurabin.homestead.com

It is safe to say that out of these doldrums of long hair and forever-lasting guitar solos came the monster that was punk rock --- loud, fast, and rabid.

OT but not quite: The mini-buses flying across EDSA were definitely more rock 'n' roll than the jeepneys in the gutter (except those plying the Marikina, Antipolo, and Rizal routes, of course).

So, if anyone disagrees, sue me then. We are all entitled to one another's opinions. ;)