Scenes From Mash It Up! last September 19

First things first. Glitches are life's necessary evils. If we want to totally do away with them, then we're better off dead.

Bisikleta Productions' Mash It Up! last Friday, September 19 was not spared from glitches. For one, there was the heavy downpour during the early evening, though in spite of this, Bela Bar was filled up. Then there was technical hassle. As you very well know, Trash Radio Manila did not get to spin, no thanks to that guy whose mind has a semblance of that of a cretin's. And, in the heat of a band's set, a commotion stirred, which was promptly quelled.

But, fortunately for us in attendance, these glitches did not take away the fact that Mash It Up! had been a very enjoyable affair. Some points are in order:

1. The final line-up, aside from the four major acts (The GoSignals, Shuffle Union, Music Front, and Contras), consisted of T.R.A., King Kong Wasabi, Pink Cow, and Steady Movin' Beat.

2. I made the horrid mistake of typing Hong Kong Wasabi (instead of King Kong Wasabi) in my past post. To the band, I am sorry. For those who know me better, you would very well know that this error is, well, Freudian.

3. I have seen T.R.A. on a few occasions, and I find their demeanor onstage delightful, and their choice of covers good.

4. Contras - as far as I am concerned - gave the nastiest performance of the night. Cheers, lads!

5. All things taken, Hilboy scores once again. Congratulations!

Photos here.

T.R.A


King Kong Wasabi


Pink Cow


Music Front


The GoSignals


Contras


Shuffle Union


Steady Movin' Beat

Mash It Up! On Friday

Bisikleta Productions strikes back with Mash It Up!, a gig that promises to give you massive (must I say lethal?!) doses of punk rock, power pop, ska, and oi. On Friday, September 16, 2008 at Bela Bar at P. Guevarra St. in Greenhills, catch Music Front, The GoSignals, Contras, and Shuffle Union (and match the band with the genre, if you so desire). Plus, bands like Pulikats, Earthlings, Steady Movin'Beat, Pink Cow and Hong Kong Wasabi will be providing support. Sounds fun, yes?

And though this team of geeks running this blogsite has spinned in many occasions in the past (my favorite gig happens to be the one at Freedom bar some 3 years ago, which was cut short because the place was practically shaking with sonic energy emanating from the bands), this is the first time that we will be spinning as Trash Radio Manila. We are certainly looking forward to this event, for we do plan to play a good bulk of our personal favorites. Surprise, surprise. Just show up, will you? Entrance will set you back at P50 and it comes with a drink. Hey, ho, lezgooow!!! :)))

More details on the bands can be found here.

Trash Radio Manila Episode 4 Part 3: Break The Silence

Break The Silence is the latest offering from the Pinoy hardcore superstars out there in Singapore, T.S.A. (Hehe, nalagyan na kasi ng Kaya Jam.) Break The Silence is also the title of our newest all-Pinoy segment, which starts off with the Dead Ends' classic "Don't Drop Your Guns/Noise Barrage."

Next on the list is Sex Militants, which has presently reincarnated into The Nu Militants, and their signature song, "Bloody Nutter." And what would this list be without Urban Bandits? "Battle Of Mendiola," in spite of it being written some twenty-odd years ago, remains as timely as ever.

G.I. And The Idiots are also in with "The Flag," which came out of The Fascinating World Of Garbage album. The song is followed by "Violent Dispersal" by R.D.A. off the album Brave United In Trust.

After a few years and a round or so of line-up changes, the band formerly called The Mighty Contras is now Contras. Brave New World veteran Bong from Vex is the only remaining original member. The current line-up includes Ahmad on the mic, Nomer on guitars, Wang on bass, and Bong on skins. On the playlist is their song "Not A Skunx." On the other hand, I personally have not had any news about Huh!; I am not sure if the group has already disbanded. But they did come out with a self-titled album sometime in 2002, from which "Bored Generation" is taken.

Sadly, too, that Sputterdoll, the Fil-Am pop punk band from San Francisco, California, have taken an indefinite period of hibernation after "cheering up emo kids one show at a time." Out of the You Sing I Sing We All Sing For Icing Compilation Vol. 1 comes their contribution "World of Hazelle." You can check out their MySpace site here. (Dig the Hello Kitty strat!) Making noise down the Queen City of The South for quite sometime now is Left Of Center; in the playlist is the song "Break."

For the finale. We have selected two T.S.A. songs from their album Break The Silence. Two songs, because, they sing too fast and the songs are too short. (And of course, there's the Kaya Jam.) If you dig the songs, you know how to get in touch with them guys. Click here.

This segment's playlist:

1. DEAD ENDS - "Don't Drop Your Guns/Noise Barrage"
2. SEX MILITANTS - "Bloody Nutter"
3. URBAN BANDITS - "Battle Of Mendiola"
4. G.I. AND THE IDIOTS - "The Flag"
5. R.D.A. - "Violent Dispersal"
6. CONTRAS - "Not A Skunx"
7. HUH! - "Bored Generation"
8. SPUTTERDOLL - "World Of Hazelle"
9. LEFT OF CENTER - "Break"
10. T.S.A. - "Pull Me/Wala Nang Mura"

(Dead Ends' photo courtesy of HP and Jingle. Contras: Wang, Ahmad, Nomer, Bong.)

My sincerest thanks to Ojie and Pedro of T.S.A. for their generosity and humour. Here is a remembrance from the meeting a few days ago.

(Shiny happy people: Ojie, Pedro, Gigi, Je, Dennis, Jun, Bunek, Arnold)

Trash Radio Manila Episode 4 Part 2: Eat Some Pasta

This young man visited the house one day and listened to some cds, which were mostly the jangly-guitar pop type of tunes. He seemed very much pleased with his finds. And apparently, his friends go for the same type of music, and more: the more obscure-sounding the band's name is, the better. (To understand the kind of music he's into, check out his Multiply site.)

He's a special one, this young gentleman, so in this particular segment we've included songs that he might just like. Our playlist:

1. MATH AND PHYSICS CLUB - "When We Get Famous"
2. THE LESLIES - "Brave Ones"
3. THE RED BUTTON - "Ooh Girl"
4. KINGS OF CONVENIENCE - "Homesick"
5. POCKETS - "I Won't Be There Anymore"
6. THE FRANK AND WALTERS - "Plenty Times"

Now for the bands.

Out of Matinee Recordings' hearty catalogue of indie releases comes Weekends Away EP, released in 2005 by the Seattle-based quartet called Math And Physics Club. It is from the same EP that the song "When We Get Famous" comes from. Check out their MySpace site here.

The Leslies are from Endearing Records, a Canada-based indie label with a very diverse catalogue. Endearing has been around since 1995. The Leslies, though, was formed a little earlier in Sweden in 1993. In the list is their song "Brave Ones."

The catchy "Ooh Girl" is from the songwriting duo from Los Angeles called The Red Button. Seth Swirsky and Mike Ruekberg, having been around in the music industry for quite some time, teamed up to create the extremely well-received album She's About To Cross My Mind which came out in 2007.

Kings Of Convenience, as most people know by now, is one of Norway's best exports in recent years. The track called "Homesick" evokes images both lovely and poignant. The band's Scandinavian compatriots, Pockets, come next with "I Won't Be There Anymore."

Last but not least. The pristine "Plenty Times" is from the Setanta Records released Beauty Becomes More Than Life, an album by the great Irish band The Frank And Walters. They also have a MySpace account which you can check out here.

Young gentleman, we hope you enjoy this segment. Now go eat some pasta...

And for next week, wait up for our segments as we include tracks from Pinoy acts like Contras. See you all, and take it easy on the alcohol, please.

Pics (borrowed from the artists' and labels' respective sites, for which we have provided links): Math And Physics Club, The Leslies, album cover of The Red Button's She's About To Cross My Mind, album cover of Kings Of Convenience's Riot On An Empty Street, album cover of The Frank And Walters' Beauty Becomes More Than Life. B&W photo: Contras