REVIEWS

EP REVIEW: BINI – Talaarawan

Written by Louis Pelingen With the news of BINI breaking new grounds on the Billboard charts and eventually dethroning Ben&Ben on Spotify in terms of being the most streamed OPM group in around 2 years, it showcases a grand successful milestone not just for BINI themselves, but for the P-pop scene in general: a hurrah […]

MIXTAPE REVIEW: Cat Boy Jeepney Driver – DIARY NG POGI

Written by Louis Pelingen The artistic bond that Neytan and Areli have made ever since ‘FAR’ has flourished into something ecstatic beyond compare. When they first put that song out in the spotlight, their musical chemistry gels in an instant as their melodies echo their sonic influences such as Brockhampton and No Rome, and the […]

ALBUM REVIEW: FERVIDS – SONIC BOOM

Home to some of the spiciest dishes in Philippine cuisine and the beautifully shaped Mount Mayon, Bicol’s music scene is just as hot and active, with many names making strides from within and beyond their home province; DWTA, for example, has seen major success as of late, going as far as making it to the […]

TRACK REVIEW: Polkadot – Unstuck

If you look up “Unstuck” by Polkadot, you might be thinking that the thumbnail looks vaguely familiar. Is it because of the digicam aesthetic? Is it the vocalist looking sideways? Or is it the entire screencap lingering across your algorithm, nudging you until it convinces you at the very last minute to check it out? […]

TRACK REVIEW: koi. – Balingkinitan

Written by Elijah P. Dancehall’s time in the 2020s may be at its last legs with the rise of jersey club and drill still taking over the race of hip-hop’s production trends, koi takes it a step further by implementing a twist to it: sung wholly in Tagalog. Well, for the entirety of afrobeat and […]

TRACK REVIEW: UDD – Run Deep

Written by Louis Pelingen After Armi Millare left UDD when that was announced back in 2021, the question now hangs in the air: what happens next for UDD? After 20 years as a band that mainly flocks in alternative rock with dabbles of electronica alongside Armi’s evocative vocals, this leaves the curious thought of where […]

ALBUM REVIEW: Amateurish – A gentle reminder to rest

Baguio is quickly becoming the new source of music in the Luzon archipelago,  birthing the likes of Dilaw and Turncoats. From the most unexpected of places comes a new entry into the math rock/emo/pop punk ring: Amateurish. Don’t let the name fool you, they are nothing but. With tight instrumentation and relatable lyrics, the quintet […]

TRACK REVIEW: Shaira – Selos

Some call it “B-BOP” (Short for Bangsamoro Pop) and some call it “music you would hear at the public market” or straight up a “2000s Banger”, we call it a masterpiece. Moro Singer-Songwriter Shaira Abdullah Alimudin, better known by her stage name Shaira, has unexpectedly swept the charts with her single aptly titled “Selos.” If […]

ALBUM REVIEW: U-Pistol – Last Splinter

Written by Louis Pelingen A decade after he first popped up in the local music scene, Zeon Gomez has worn many masks under his belt through the multitudes of projects and collectives that he has worked on and contributed with, overall showcasing him as a jack of all trades within the local musical circles, namely […]

ALBUM REVIEW: Bling – PURE BLISS NO WORRIES 

PURE BLISS NO WORRIES is the second album released by Bling, a Filipino-American band based in Los Angeles.  Irony is an ever-present theme throughout this 26-minute record. The grainy noise gradually builds up together like an anxious thought, unlike what the album title suggests. Another irony is that “build-up” never reaches an apex. The tracks […]