Written by Elijah P. The year is 2024, and we’re currently at a stasis in how culture perceives sampling as a taboo subject and interpolations as a dubious activity in songwriting overall. Regarding the aforementioned topics, Shaira’s “Selos” made an impact by sparking a discourse on interpolations, while massive critics of the song bombard comments about its original source. But by the end of the day, who cares? It’s a catchy track. No one can ever take away our enjoyment. The same can be said for “Babaero,” which interpolates the Randy Santiago classic of the same name. After all the discourse and disputes, all of this fluff of copyright and ‘gotcha moments’ is all thrown out of the window because gins&melodies and Hev Abi already have a classic on their hands right away. Gently singing along to the lyrics on a Mac webcam with hearts flying out of their heads, “Babaero” is cheesy as it is evidence of interpolation, bringing the hook to a whole entirely different meaning in its contemporary setting; It’s less of a variety show singalong and more of an intimate, much more effective terminally online earworm. Surely, this is a testament to the consistent hook game and charm to both Downtown Entertainment and pop songwriting at large. Support the art & the artist:
Author: Elijah Timothy Pareno
EP REVIEW: Yung Masa – MY KARMA RAN OUT
Written by Elijah P. Being a jack of all trades can take you somewhere, especially when you can balance out the dynamics of being a producer and a songwriter. These particular skills are something to masterfully juggle throughout your entire career span. Moreover, up-and-coming rapper and songwriter Yung Masa takes on the challenge of balancing different subgenres of rap in his debut EP titled “MY KARMA RAN OUT,” teetering with synthpop, drum n bass, digicore, and 2020s anti-pop sensibilities, mixing them into this cauldron of a project. The end result? A hot mess scattered by a relentless number of influences that don’t consistently gel well. “PRELUDE (could’ve been)” is an opener that overstays its welcome, while “GOODBYE” expresses my excitement for this EP to be over—not to mention the weak hook and singing. “DOWN” has harmonies that yearn for a Christmas Time remix from Alvin and the Chipmunks, while “RUN!” wishes to write like contemporary local rappers that sound like RB Slatt. However, “LOSE MYSELF” and its overall production could have defined the EP as a whole, with emotionally resonant vocal delivery and drum patterns that pay homage to 2020’s electronica. However, one takeaway the listener can get from this album is to not mistake all the futuristic, cyborg, Blade Runner-like visuals for actual material substance. “MY KARMA RAN OUT” was a frustrating listen from front to back. Sometimes the possible influences can get in the way and act as a detriment to its content. It’s like Mokujin except the impersonations don’t fully resonate to render the journey victorious. Its punches are weak, the lyrics are out of it, and the bar is extremely low for the remainder of this debut EP. Yung Masa’s “MY KARMA RAN OUT” should be renamed to a different title; maybe “My Originality Ran Out” is more fitting. Link:
TRACK REVIEW: Jade Fake – isa kang PUTA
Written by Louis Pelingen Within just two extensive verses and a set of devastating refrains under a clattering, shambling production is enough foundation for Jade Fake to burst up all of her provocative confrontations towards men and all of their borderline pathetic sexual fixation. There is a genuine sense of rage that Jade Fake indulges in, her exasperated delivery and lyricism spilling out scathing whiplashes as the Arca-esque inspired production stiffens and shrivels around her—creating more discomfort as it goes along. The peak of this intensity slowly unravels as the production becomes the center point of all of this, covering up Jade Fake’s voice with its shaky, bleeping textures and its unorthodox melody progressing through with a stomping beat, eventually leading to this track embracing harsher electronics that gives an overstimulating unease and ending with the shrill noise taking control of the atmosphere of the song. It’s clearly an inflammatory pursuit that is portrayed well by Jade Fake in both her production and melodies, taking her lyrical flips to take the spotlight with a potent amount of disgust carried by her performance just before her production steals the entire show, complementing that sense of discomfort and elevating it to the point that it manages to execute its intended message exceedingly well, pricking everybody’s ear who have listened to the song for a single or even repeated listens. Pulling aside subtlety for an in-your-face approach might create some lopsided results, but when the anger toward the insufferable obsession with reckless sex is palpable, the harsher edge may as well permanently disrupt the climax point. Support the art & the artist:
TRACK REVIEW: stab. – watch you die
Written by Elijah P. As the hardcore community continues to expand in numbers, it has successfully passed on to the younger generations who are willing to help out in promoting a progressive mindset to all. Bands like Crepuscule, Gapas, Exit Wound, Shockpoint, and many more are emerging, performing in shows and venues everywhere. Bands like them continue to become more adventurous in terms of themes and technicality, yet Vismin bands like stab. are among the prime examples of experimentation and aggression to their fullest potential. “watch you die” features gritty reality and marks a massive turning point in the genre. The track opens with a sample dialogue: “If you’re gonna stop me, you’re going to have to fucking k*ll me,” followed by an amen break accompanied by a plethora of riffages that invade the listener. This is what happens when you mess with the people you love the most, showing that bands like stab. are examples of rage justified by means of autonomy. It’s a track worth lacing up your sneakers for. You get to appreciate its feral energy and experimentation in the first half and throw it down in the pit by the second. “Get fucking st*bbed, bitch” is a statement that sends shivers down your spine. Support the art & the artist:
TRACK REVIEW: Chezka – Fire Near a Toddler
Written by Faye Allego Chezka rose to virality on TikTok when she first released a video snippet of “Fire Near a Toddler” a couple of years ago. Since then, it has amassed over 600k views with thousands of comments coming from youngins who relate heavily to Chezka’s lyricism pertaining to losing hope in love because it was never taught in the first place. Despite “Fire Near a Toddler” being Chezka’s only song out on streaming platforms as of the moment, it is evident through her TikTok that she is a seasoned songwriter who has already figured out what her sound is and what she wants her lyricism to convey. When I listened to this track by Chezka, all I could remember were the origins, evolution, and importance of Bedroom Pop. As her fans are awaiting an album announcement, Chezka’s sound could potentially change, but I think it’s safe to say that her ability to just grab her guitar and sing lyrics with such intensity in emotions brings out a lot of Bedroom Pop elements. Most, if not all Bedroom artists we grew up listening to have grown to become major names in the industry and have shifted and experimented with different genres, but one thing they all have in common is that they all started out online, with a guitar on hand or unrefined productions on GarageBand, sharing their music through video form on platforms like YouTube and now TikTok. “Fire Near a Toddler” exhibits so many themes in under four minutes. It is impressive that Chezka’s storytelling ability invites the listener to a space of vulnerability with no shame. Her writing skills also allow the listener to come up with their own interpretations, I mean, her TikTok comments sections are almost filled to the brim with folks professing their relationship to the song as well as why that song relates to their particular situation. How comforting it is to see community being built upon a single song. Speaking of building, my only critique is that the buildup lacks a bridge, rendering the thematic feelings of anger a bit disconnected. The hollow, emptier parts of the track only justify the lack of meatier rhythms (i.e. electric guitar), however, the lack of a bridge still benefits the track because the listener’s attention is directed toward the lyrics. Many songs that are first teased on TikTok tend to focus on the peak of a song whether it be a high note or a guitar shred, yet, in Chezka’s song, it’s the storytelling, rhyme, and double meanings in her lyricism that strike appeal. So, how did Chezka write a song about feelings I didn’t even know I had with such precision? I think it’s safe to say that her precision comes from the art of self-awareness when it comes to love and longing. It is evident in the rawness of her storytelling that this artist possesses a songwriter’s vital ability to showcase vulnerability with no secrets intact. May she continue to pick up a pen and a pick whenever her writer’s cloak decides to visit her. Support the art & the artist:
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 for a lot of P-pop and K-pop fans where they celebrated the return of Bubblegum Pop in the mainstream local scene given the acoustic folk-pop chart dominance for a long time now. Although the Bubblegum Pop sound has been boiling in the local indie spotlights if you know where to look, there is still value to be had towards this groundbreaking success of BINI as it gives a fresh coat of paint to the local mainstream music scene right now. This all leads to the first EP of BINI, Talaarawan. To start, the performances and the melodies have a solid foundation throughout the EP, allowing the collection of cheery P-pop songs to feel vibrant and well-composed. The performances naturally carry off the loose and charming tones that are not just embedded into the hook-driven melodies, but also the writing and instrumentation that also surrounds them. While they do stumble a bit whenever they break out on the rap verses, they do at least manage to keep up the upward optimism that remains quite infectious. However, for an EP that is described to encapture the breadth of emotions and stages of life and love, that essential idea starts falling apart really quickly with a few glaring issues that sadly overshadow the melodies and the performances. The lyricism, despite the passing metaphors that differ from song to song, does not have enough intriguing flair to go alongside it. As it immediately goes into romantic platitudes where the sense of yearning and empowerment blurs into one another, Talaarawan lacks any detail that can open up the emotional depth of the writing, making it less special. Besides the writing, a lot of these songs still carry the same mixing issues as the previous BINI projects, where cuts like “Karera” go a bit too loud in the mix, “Pantropiko” and “Na Na Nandito Lang” having similar loud mixes and then some, and the inconsistent vocal fidelities that create a big distraction on those two songs. But this all rolls into the big frustration of this EP: the production. From the general synthetic instrumentation to the stiff and dated production choices, they never really allow the melodies to properly pop off and the vocal harmonies to be as stellar as they need to be, eventually taking away the brisk vibes that these cuts are going for, especially on “Pantropik” where the synthetic textures completely blemish the summery tone of that song. However, there are still moments of passing quality that BINI still pulls through: The effortless opener of “Karera” where the performances just go off amid the decently bubbly beat; the melodic glimmer on “Salamin, Salamin” remaining really sticky even despite the bass rhythms getting a bit janky on that song; and “Diyan Ka Lang’” that closes off the EP on a good note with enough remarkable synth lines that blend well with the retro-inspired drums. Even with all of that, there is a big missed opportunity for BINI to take a drastic swerve in terms of their sonic palette, especially when their shift in sound from project to project has always seen slight changes, taking the safest tangents instead of diving into fascinating genre influences and experiments that the contemporary K-pop scene has currently embraced. Because, if they did manage to take that colorful array of genre elements alongside production and writing refinements, it could strengthen the concept of this EP, where the variation within genres and production textures paired with the solid vocal and melodic foundations at the core can be an absolute boon to BINI. But, Talaarawan as a whole just does not go there. Instead, in every passing good note there are disheveled musical scribbles that overshadow the better aspects of the EP. Stuck in a stiff sound that doesn’t allow BINI to encapsulate the set of emotions they wanted to express in these diary pages, they at least managed to land on the important emotion that will guide them onward: joy. Support the art & the artist:
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 ruffled yet effectively tuneful production has enough to captivate not just the listener but perhaps even themselves. This pairing of their interlocking interests and styles eventually paves the way for this duo to make their own boyband under the delightful name: Cat Boy Jeepney Drivers. Under their long-awaited debut mixtape, DIARY NG POGI, there is something in the presentation alone that speaks about the duo and the interests that made them click together. Their fascination and appreciation for the 2010s mainstream and local pop culture, the intrinsically silly Pinoy references and exuberant experiences that they carry along through their songwriting and performances, and even their sense of musical wonder that is not just creative, but in a way does reminisce on how homespun a lot of the local music scene that was popping over in youtube back in the early 2010s. Where despite the limitations that those acts have to face, they still manage to push past that as they insert as much charm into their songs whenever possible. Of course, these inspired characteristics do plop over to the musical side as well, where both Neytan and Areli chain together their respective knack for sampling and melodic composition to create a delightful blend of incredibly enjoyable pop and R&B songs within this mixtape. The joyous bounce of “LOSER” just puts an instant grin from ear to ear due to the swiveling samples and rumbling grooves swirling around the effortless vocal melodies, “UNSINT A MESSAGE” that’s comprised of manipulated samples and shuffling beat carries the layers of vocal harmonies to soar and allow the cheeky yet sincere sentiments to succeed, “MARSHMALLOW HATDOG” with its near 4-minute runtime full of harmonic layers picks up more melodic swells alongside pileups of strings and distorted percussions that closes the mixtape to a grand finale, and their cover of Justin Bieber’s “BOYFRIEND” adds upon a certain menace on the track’s sense of cool through the hammering percussion and blown out vocal pickups that lets the song to become instantaneously glorious as a result. Even if the breakbeat samples on “POP CULTURE” and especially ”MAYBE MITSKI” didn’t have the same creative treatment as the other songs, the vocal melodic runs placed upon the quicker pace of these songs are still sharp enough to work within the structure of the mixtape. Defined by their past local and international sonic influences alongside their own experiences that mold the silly yet sincere moments in these cuts, Cat Boy Jeepney Drivers are willing to not just take notes on past glories but appreciate them by embracing a sense of wonder and charm into their song-crafting process. As a result of their adventurous brand of pop, DIARY NG POGI unleashes multitudes of ecstatic, creative, and excellent set of pop songs from a duo that lives and breathes pop culture. Overall creating a colorful and charming diary that definitely needs a next installment, for there is so much greatness on display. Support the art & the artist:
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? Truth be told, I was one of the chronically online viewers to fall for it, and my goodness it was worth my time. Carrying loads of distortion, booming snares and noisy fuzz, a couple of wits on-hand and a bunch of harbored influences from the 90s Matador and 2010s indiemo phase, the Bay Area’s Polkadot is a band that says a lot through its dirty amplifiers and honest-to-god songwriting. It’s infectious more than it is a drag to listen to. After releasing Feeling Okay in 2020, vocalist Daney Espiritu doesn’t run out of emotional whims while guitarist Matthew Estolano runs amok in melodic touches of fuzz rock from start to finish in their latest string of singles. And like all Bay Area DIY darlings, Polkadot’s “Unstuck” is an amalgamation of the band’s sound and attitude: good times, hard feelings, and amazing singles. That’s all there is to it, plus the algorithm is giving you good music this time around. Support the art & the artist:
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 dancehall’s 5-minutes-of-fame in the prime of late 2010s music trends, its revitalization is strongly credited with the strong presence of Tyla’s western R&B sensibilities. However, koi’s mentioned twist to the genre is effective in its catchiest form to date, ultimately elevating its form on the track’s sung language. Produced by underground’s up-and-coming heavyweights Pxyche, NJ, and esseca. The first two mentioned producers deal with actual heavyweights like Hev Abi and Sica, koi is in good hands from the very beginning, but his actual contribution of smooth vocals and delivery just feels like they’ve successfully passed the vibe check for the entirety of its track run. I am looking forward to hearing more stuff like this soon in the future. Support the art & the artist:
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 you think about the track carefully, there’s actual staying power with tracks that are as immensely effective as Shaira’s booming career alongside her Moro cohorts. The public perception of Disco Moro as being inferior shouldn’t stay any longer as the music thrives all over the country’s music scenes. Characterized by a rhythmic blend of colorful synths – whereas the melodies replicate the bamboo flute – and groovy electronic drums synonymous with Indonesia’s Dangdut and other varied selections of Western Disco and Malay Dance Music influences over the decades, Disco Moro has been a community staple for parties, weddings and other religious celebrations alike. But other than writing the celebratory anthems in Disco Moro, the most common themes are love, everyday dilemmas, etc. Shaira is one of those artists who proves that interest in Disco has never waned over the years among their communities. “Selos” is rich with hooks, humor and energy on a normal day. It is purely a pop anthem for many to listen. While there are existing discriminatory efforts to bring the music down, there’s actual community support from her Moro Singers, ranging from Koronadal City, Lanao Del Sur, Marawi, and many more cities from Mindanao who have a heavy roster of talented keyboardists and singers who are fully booked for months. This is a call for celebration for not just Shaira as an individual artist living in Mindanao but for Moro Music at large. Support the art & the artist: