Originally published on Philmusic.com
Thursday, 05 April 2007
(Updated 06/27/2024)
With the recent resurgence of the Pinoy band scene in the country today, hundreds of new bands from all over the country have started to pop up and appear. Each hoping to have a shot to have their music be heard. All roads would lead to Metro Manila. Long considered as the mecca and the yardstick for bands to be truly considered that they have "arrived."
Outside of Manila, it is only Metro Cebu who has an active and working local music scene that does not necessarily need to go to Manila in order for their songs to be heard. With a decent recording studio and a strong Radio support, they have produced and contributed to the country's rock music scene through bands like Urbandub, The Ambassadors, and Sheila and the Insects to name a few.
Outside of Cebu, not much is heard from other places, bands that are truly homegrown from their respective provinces. But here in Cagayan de Oro City, does music actually exists that is good enough for national consumption?
CDO has never been short with talents. In fact, they have an arsenal of hidden gems all waiting to be discovered, all waiting to be given a crack at national prominence. I have followed closely the developments of CDO's music scene since the 90's band explosion. There were a lot of bands that were explosive enough to warrant a chance to grab a recording deal. But since going "Indie" and Do-it-yourself recordings was still not the "In" thing to do, a lot of bands died down along with their music. Their memories only limited to those who were able to witness their shows. Allow me to share some of the bands that I have witnessed and had personally come to know.
Oblivion
In the mid to the late 90's, there was one such band that became a byword in the CDO music scene. The band named Oblivion.
Their status in the CDO music scene can be considered as legendary. They were perpetual winners of battle of the bands competitions, often representing the city in Mindanao wide regional finals competition. With the only stain to their name being their constant runner-up finish to hometown favorites from Davao.
The band was so good that they were even given the opportunity to have a barangay tour. Bringing their music all over the city. This gave them the platform to have their music shared to fellow Kagayanons in every nook and corners of the city.
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| Oblivion's Debut Album, Echoes of the Mind |
Their voices got noticed by a couple of producers. One foreigner even bankrolled their unofficial debut album, an album that consisted of songs written by the band and other composers. The album was good enough for its intentions, which was for a fund-raising project for the Homeless kids of CDO. With that recording experience, their lead guitarist decided to invest on recording equipment and studied the art of producing and recording.
After a few years that passed by, along with the band’s busy gig skeds, the band was finally able to sit together and record their official debut album, Oblivion: Echoes of the Mind. The album blew everyone's mind with the bands' sheer talent. Exhibiting their knack for killer guitar shreds, chord progressions and guitar solos, exploding drumbeats, and thick basslines on top of the joyous free-spirited vocals. The band remained faithful to their primary influences, delivering songs that are reminiscent of the band named Dreamtheater.
Tracks that stood out were Shadows, Runaway, and the moving ballad Times Goes By. While the quality of this record was not that good by today's standards, it was still good enough for their number of fans. As they would enjoy listening to their songs in the comforts of their CD players all over and over again until the CD-Rs gave in. This was their initial experimental "Indie" offering. And like all initial "Indie" offerings, this never made it to Manila. But they achieved what they wanted to achieve, and that was to be able to record and share their music to their Kagayanon fans.
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| the crucifixion, the sophomore album of Oblivion |
A few years later, the band decided to record and produced their second album, which sadly would also be their last. The album The Crucifixion would be the band's final offering. With better sound quality over the first album, the songs Shadows, and Runaway were re-issued.
The carrier single "Crucifixion" would lead the whole theme of the album, which was the death and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. However, this was the band's last stand. With no clear organization and direction of the CDO music scene, the band eventually broke up.
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| The CDO Blues Experiment, the solo album of Wilbert Tan post-Oblivion |
Their lead guitarist (Wilbert Tan) would soon go on a solo project. The experimental album aptly titled CDO BLUES PROJECT, an album full of folk/rock Visayan songs (An album that could probably rival Budoy's Jr. Kilat) heralded by the song Manang. This last offering would be the final nail in the coffin for the band. Thus ended the legendary story of Oblivion.
Nuncyspungen
While Oblivion never really made it to Metro Manila, there was another CDO band that got that far. Nuncyspungen would be the first CDO alternative rock band that would gain national prominence. Before the big break came, the band had been seen touring all over the Vis-Min archipelago with their brand of Art-Rock music, gaining a decent following.
They gained new fans in the process when their "Indie" album was released and distributed prominently at a local Music record bar, bannered by the hit song “One Grand of Something”, which kept the entire CDO city abuzz.
With that ticked off their bucket list, the band decided to bravely appear one day at NU107 (the largest Philippine Rock Radio station at that time) and handed their demos personally. Their song was played in NU's In the Raw radio program and caught some ears listening. Their big break then came when PULP Magazine's (the largest Rock Music magazine that was in circulation) homegrown segment featured them. Thus, introducing them to legions of Rock Music fans all over the country.
Their "Indie" efforts paid off quite nicely. As even before Pulp recognized them, the band had already solidified their fan base and core support group through friends, relatives, and their peers. The PULP Magazine feature would be their springboard for the band to be plastered on the nation's consciousness. Thus, gotten them to be invited in big and essential rock events and festivals all over the country, such as the annual PULP Summer Slam and others. MTV Philippines also featured them on their MTV Siesta show, and from there, they became a regular in Metro Manila's Rock music circle
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| Self-titled debut album of Nuncyspungen |
With their fast-rising popularity, the band managed to snag a recording deal with a Cebu based record label named Lighter Records (home label of Urbandub and other Cebu bands) via their self-titled album Nuncyspungen.
The album featured the same songs from their "Indie" release, but with a better sound. Currently, the band is undergoing personnel changes, and is on a brief hiatus. Nuncyspungen opened the doors for CDO bands. Manila bands would figuratively call them as "That band from Cagayan de Oro."
UPDATED:
Check out Oblivion's lead guitarist's songs on Spotify with his current solo project under the pseudonym "Wile Lile"
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