~* SONIC BOOM @ 6UNDERGROUND *~

Last Saturday night, Tin and I went to 6Underground (Makati) to watch Faspitch and Dicta License. Haven't gone to a band gig for a loooong time now. I think the last one was back in March when Tin (always my partner in crime when it comes to rock gigs) and I went to San Mig Alabang to watch Urbandub, UpDharmaDown, etc. So anyway, it was such a great gig to go to coz not only did we get to watch Faspitch live for the first time, but we also got to see Dicta License again. The last time we saw Dicta perform live was hmm, late last year at 19East (Sucat). Really, it was due time for me to go out and have my ears blasted with loud music!

The gig last Saturday was a SONIC BOOM event which boasted of a band line-up of: The Ambassadors (second time for me to see these guys... last time was at SaGuijo w/ U'dub. The vocalist still tugs on his shirt when he sings. Green Day-ish type of music. And yeah, their video is that one with the robot and the cameos of U'dub), this other band from Olongapo (?) -- 'forgot the name (well if you sing a rocked out version of Bon Jovi's You Give Love a Bad Name... hmm. I don't wanna say mean things. hah!) Hilera (Nescafe Soundskool winner last year. Did the 80s punk-sounding Rhyme Without Reason which did well on NU107's charts. The vocalist somehow reminds me of Borgy Manotoc. Probably a stockier version of him), Dicta License (Strangely, the crowd was less than rowdy. They were probably too mesmerized by how damn good-looking the entire band is, hehe. Pochoy tries to draw attention to their socio-political lyrics but nah, I still can't help but switch my concentration between him and Boogie. Hah! No, but seriously, I commend them for trying to bring a certain social consciousness to the audience with their songs), Typecast (rockers from Laguna -- represent! woooo! Twas my first time to see these guys perform live), and of course, the band Tin and I had long been anticipating to see live -- Faspitch!

I only know Faspitch from their song A Day Before Pisces which was included in this compilation album called Full Volume which I bought around Jan 2005. I vaguely remember hearing their song in NU with the LSS-inducing line "... then I'll ask if it's all standard information that, it's all standard information that way...". Try listening to it. That line's really gonna stick to your head. I don't really get what the song means. Another disco is blown. Anyway, it rocks ;-) Been seeing them in MTV Sessions this month coz they're the Rising Star artist this month. Was pretty much blown away by their performance in that show so I was really excited to see them live. Henry is one of those vocalists who show real intensity when he sings/screams... a bit strange though coz he does these weird quasi-robotic movements that remind me of Max Headroom. Like he closes his eyes and then raise his hand and does this abrupt stop-go-stop-go movement. Hmm. Poor explanation there. You just have to see them live to see what I mean. They're aliw to watch when all four of them up front bang their head in unison with their drummer's hits.

So I got their album The Future of Ear Repair and I've seen them perform live. You'll hear tinges of U'dub sound in them but with crunchier guitars, screamo-growly vocals here and there -- definitely much much nosier than U'dub's music. The tempo varies within each song -- some songs start fast-noisy and then shift to slow-quiet; full crunch of the guitars/drums/screaming vocals and then later on some prominent bass lines/guitar strumming/soft vocals. Surprisingly, their songs are actually about love (encounters and endings) and a certain queen of the lyricist's heart. Strange comparison here: when Henry sings with his high almost-falsetto vocals, his voice reminds me of Jeff Buckley. And Russel (guitars) does surprisingly mean/angry screams which is layered with Henry's vocals. These two guys' screaming/growly vocals remind me of Pantera (Heh. Eww, I can't believe I'm making "old" references!). Anyway, I've got to say that Faspitch is really a kick-ass band. I sure would want them to get (or at least be nominated for) the upcoming NU Rock Awards' Rising Sun Artist which recognizes new bands in the scene. So there. Another great band from Cebu invades Manila. Indeed, Lighter Records is succeeding with spreading the sound from the south ;-)

And now for the photos of the night... (Sorry, most of the photos don't have the drummers on it coz the angle from where we sat didn't have a great view of 'em. Oh and they're quite dark coz I HATE camera flashing which totally spoils the stage lighting.)

the ambassadors
typecast
hilera

dicta license


faspitch

me & tin

caught boogie & pochoy (dicta license) outside 6Underground...

met the very affable henry (faspitch) after the gig


~oO0Oo~

Maybe I'll just dream of this tonight
Drive a stake into a love that no one finds...
~All Under Heaven, Faspitch