My Top 10 Random Filipino Music Moments of 2011

I must say it was pretty difficult to decide on which ones since there are so many wonderful moments that always happen when you’re surrounded by great musicians. I wanted to do an EVERYTHING Highlight of 2011, but decided to just separate them all into different categories, and the easiest for me to pick were the random ones.

These are my personal choices, based on how each event affected me. I’m sure each one of us have our own highlights, but these are the ones which are relevant to me and which I saw with my own eyes.

Click to check out the photo descriptions and bigger sized photos below.

10. Touring with Red Horse Beer Bands:

This is part of my favorites of 2011 because this shows me that there’s actually so many more really cool band moments I’m going to probably see (and hopefully capture) in 2012. This is just the start of my tour with them and I can predict the series of gigs are all going to be endless party fun.

9. Pinoy Rock Myx with Francis Brew & Chino Lui-Pio:

This show just started last summer. It hasn’t been a year yet but it’s gaining quite the viewership. This was the one and only time since that I was able to catch their taping in ABS-CBN and their spiels are not only limited to simple verbal commentary but physical as well. These two are crazy!

8. The Itchyworms 15th Anniversary Gig:

What a lot of people didn’t know is that Chino Singson (guitarist) had a special entrance where he’s going to pop up on a large birthday gift box on stage. For that to happen he had to be on a hydraulics lift. Here he is seen frightened to death of getting his limbs chopped off but still smiling. If anything had happened to him, obviously I wouldn’t be posting this. LOL.

7. Jay Contreras of Kamikaze punching Gloc-9 outside 70s Bistro:

There are quite the stories of brawls that occur at gigs, rarely do we get a photo of it. As a frustrated conflict photographer, this is the closest I can get to capturing conflict, and it’s NOT even real. Jay said that he did that because Gloc-9 is too nice. I agree. He is.

 6. Sesame Street Kid Ako:

What my mom never knew is that I’m really a Sesame Street fan more than a Disney fan. My sister cried when she saw Mickey Mouse. I didn’t. So when Sesame Street organized a series of rock events where our musicians covered our favorite Sesame streets songs and the same event included a meet and greet with our favorite characters. I was really, really stoked to see Oscar the grouch and Cookie Monster together. I can die now.

5. Kitchie Nadal preparing for our photoshoot:

As you all probably already know she’s actually THE FIRST musician I met in this industry. We haven’t really spent that much time together since she’s been travelling the world for the past few years, but she’s back now and I went to her house and just did a random photoshoot which you can call playing dress-up. One of those photos ended up in UNO Magazine. She is and will always be one of my best friends. I love her.

4. Basti Artadi watching Parokya Ni Edgar:

Wolfgang to me is one of the most untouchable bands in the scene alongside Razorback. I’m scared of them. When I went to 19East to watch Parokya Ni Edgar, seeing a slightly drunk Basti shouting, “DON’T TOUCH MY BIRDIE” really shattered my perception of him. He and Tirso Ripoll were actually shouting, but Basti was very insistent on getting his favorite song played. It was hilarious.

3. Armi Millare arrived as herself circa 2006 for Halloween: ENOUGH SAID.

2. Raimund Marasigan watching Ely Buendia: The rehearsal was for a David Bowie tribute night happening in Saguijo. I was there documenting the rehearsal when Raimund arrived. I think an epic music list isn’t epic enough if you don’t have members of the Eraserheads together on your list.

1. Bamboo Mañalac at Mark Escueta’s birthday party:

Two days before the announcement of Bamboo the band’s split, we were all at Mark’s party. I wasn’t at all surprised to see Bamboo there, knowing that he and Mark had always been good friends, but Bamboo’s speech was priceless. He said that, “It’s been a while, but I’m glad that when I look across the table, I still see my old friend.”” and then two days later I found out about the band’s split, which made the whole experience even more surreal.