I’m So Tired

I’m so tired, sheep are counting me. No more struggle, no more energy. I’m So Tired, Fugazi. I like Minor Threat, but I just couldn’t get into Fugazi. I like one song of theirs, but mainly for the live version of it by a group of lovely ladies in sundresses. Was it called “Waiting Room”? Yeah, I’m not even sure. I like that song because, who doesn’t like ladies in sundresses rocking out a Fugazi tune? And I like this one as well, because of its title, because it’s slow, and it’s played on piano, which is probably the most hardcore non-hardcore thing the band has ever done.


Thursday night, I’m making Denise. Friday night, I’m making Sharise. Saturday night, I’m making Luis (?) Oh, why can’t I be making love come true? Tired of Sex, Weezer. Rivers made up an interesting situation here. He’s tired of banging different girls every night but he’s also sad because he’s missing something. Could this be a metaphor for work? Okay, I’m making this a metaphor for work, because there’s no way it applies to me in a non-metaphorical sense, as in being Rivers-(un)lucky, making girls come one each night — not because I can’t but because I won’t. Um, just want make that last part clear. Very clear. By the way, in its metaphorical, my made-up metaphorical reading of it, at work, it’s the bosses, the management that you have to make come. And I think I’m tired of that.


So tired, tired of waiting, tired of waiting for yooooooouuuuu. Tired of Waiting For You, Green Day. I think Green Day covered this for a soundtrack or something, maybe around the time Billie Joe Armstrong was getting into the Kinks, around the time he lifted inspiration from Kinks’ “Picture Book” for Green Day’s “Warning.” Edit: This was actually originally issued as B-side to “Basket Case,” which means Green Day recorded this way before they wrote “Warning.” By the way, “you” here means work — work with better pay and lesser stress.


Yeah, I’m waiting — for you, it’s been so long. Come Around Again, Jet. Yeah, this is from their debut album, which I think is fine, Pitchfork’s negative review notwithstanding. Some of their songs sound pretty derivative, as if they’re emulating Oasis, the Stones, or AC/DC. And I don’t think their lyrics are on par with that of Alex Turner’s on Arctic Monkeys’ debut. But you know what, I like some of the songs. It’s not a four star album, it’s not a classic, and I’m perfectly fine with that.


Tired Eyes. Neil Young. At this point, it should be obvious that I made this by searching the word “tired” on my Pulsar app (titles without the word “tired” are late additions to this playlist) whether or not they’re about being tired or not. In this case, it’s about drug murder in Los Angeles canyon, according to Neil Young. This is off the album Tonight’s the Night. And it’s not about being tired.

I’m so tired. I haven’t slept a wink. I’m so tired. My mind is on the blink. I’m So Tired, The Beatles. Yes, same title as the first song because it needs reiterating. I first heard the Elliot Smith version of this song. I think it’s Smith performing the song live. By the way, Elliot Smith also covered The Beatles’ “Because,” which appeared in the movie American Beauty, which won Oscars Best Picture, although film critic Noel Vera wasn’t a fan, and titled his not-so-glowing review for the movie, “American Boobies,” which I thought was apt, despite the fact that I like the movie, because it was highlighted by scenes featuring exactly that, American boobies! Still, that dream sequence where Mena Suvari is lying on a bed of roses, her privates barely obscured by petals of red red roses, and she’s floating from the ceiling above the main character’s bed, I think it’s one of the most iconic movie scenes I’ve seen. Or, maybe I should watch more movies?


I’m so tired of being alone. I’m so tired of on-my-own. Won’t you help me girl, just as soon as you can. Tired of Being Alone, Al Green. Tired of Being Alone? Here’s 7 Reasons Why You Never Attract A Healthy Relationship. Ok, that appeared on the search results. Also, based on my Google search, it says that this song was also covered by Texas in 1993. By the way, I like Texas’ “Say What You Want.” Who’s Texas? They’re a pop/rock band from, not Texas, but Glasgow. By the way, those lines are actually about getting that girl to join your team and help you because you are so undermanned (i.e., alone) and overworked.


You try so hard to be someone that you forget who you are. Hold On, Jet. I never listen to this song without auto-playing that scene in my head where Peter has to choose what to wear: is he gonna be Spider-Man tonight? Or is he gonna be just Peter Parker? That always comes back, that feeling, the struggle, the struggle to balance things out, the struggle to keep trying. I probably didn’t relate to this particular scene before the way I would later, the way I’m reading it now. Someone said on Twitter that the Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies were faithful to the character’s working class origins in the comics — something that has been lost in the other versions of the character in later, newer movies.


The damage has been done. I am not having fun anymore. Ann Don’t Cry, Pavement. I was wondering whether Stephen Malkmus wrote these particular lyrics before or during the recording of the band’s final album, Terror Twilight. I was wondering if these lines reflect how Malkmus felt about being in the band at the time. I checked the track listing of Farewell Horizontal so I can make an educated guess. Based on the tracklist, the first version of the song was recorded in Echo Canyon, Sonic Youth’s studio/rehearsal space(?) And in this version, Malkmus already sings the same exact lyrics. Which means, he must have written those lines already before things turns a bit sour later in the recording of the album. Which means, he wrote the lyrics not because he was kinda bummed about the difficult recording process of Terror Twilight, which, depending on who you asked, may have influenced the eventual dissolution of the band. Anyway, I’m just so fried.

A Walk To Remember

Once in a while, an old record pops in my head. Could be an old song I used to hear on the radio, or a record I used to listen to before. A couple of months ago, I remember the soundtrack of A Walk Remember. Remember that movie, with Mandy Moore and Shane West, and based on a Nicholas Sparks novel? Well, Nicholas Sparks’ movies are, for some people, these are the “shit.” For others, they’re simply, shit. Most of them are anyway, I suppose. In varying degrees of shitty-ness.

A Walk To Remember, the movie, is probably less shittier than the others. Though I can’t really say, I’ve only seen two of them, the other being The Notebook. And I trust Jolens with my life, when she said that The Notebook is one of the best examples of the movie being better than the book it was based on. But that’s probably mainly because the book is really shitty, there’s no way a decent movie could be worse than it, right Jolens? Between these two movies, I think The Notebook is the less shittier one. It’s more watchable, but only if you remove the part where the main characters are both old, and the old guy who used to look like Ryan Gosling with beard, can’t remember a fuck.

But first I want to ask: Can’t Nicholas Fucking Sparks just give his fucking characters a happy ending, a fucking real happy ending? In A Walk To Remember, bad boy Shane West finally gets the gospel girl (Mandy Moore), but then she’s terminal, she’s got cancer, and she died not long after their wedding. What the fuck? Then, in The Notebook, Ryan Gosling finally ends up with Rachel McAdams, against all odds, but then their story is framed as flashbacks or memories of two old people, both of whom are unreliable narrators, because you can’t really be sure the old woman’s memories are at least 50% accurate and true. Then, the old guy finally remembers, and them he dies. What the fuck?! And from what I heard, Kevin Costner drowns in Message In A Bottle, another movie based on a Sparks book. Yes, the girl in the story finds great love when she finds the guy who wrote that love letter inside a bottle, then the guy dies in a boating incident. What a twist?!

If you haven’t seen both movies, and can’t decide which to watch first, let me tell you this: The Notebook is worth watching for only one thing. And what is that? It’s worth watching for that very hot hot sex scene after the main characters get wet (no pun intended) in the rain, where Ryan Gosling has to walk up the stairs while carrying Rachel McAdams with his pants pull down to his knees. Honestly, it’s the pants pulled down to the knees part that made that feat so remarkable. And without tripping himself on the staircase! Really long strong pair of legs you have there, Mr. Gosling. Great balance too.

The scene plays out like this. Ryan and Rachel go boating on a river, a heated argument follows, then it rains. The two go for the banks, then Ryan picks up Rachel, her legs around his waist as they kiss. It’s still raining by the way. And they’re both soaking wet. Guy picking up a girl like she weighs nothing is already a feat in itself. Yes, haven’t tried it myself since it’d really look silly doing it with a pillow, but it’s not an easy thing to do.

Ryan goes inside the house, still carrying Rachel. I don’t remember how or who did it but his buckle gets undone, and his pants falls to his knees. Then he climbs the stairs, pants pulled down, while carrying and kissing Rachel. (This is what REAL multitasking is, not the one most managers in your office think. It’s something not everyone can do.) Then, Rachel proceeds to unbutton her top and takes it off. That scene could have go on further or longer but since it cuts after that, it would be too much already to ask for more, given how it already showcased a wet hot kissing scene and Ryan’s superhuman abilities.

On the other hand, A Walk To Remember has this really virginal scene where Mandy Moore lies on a picnic blanket while kind of trying to seduce Shane West into going to bed with her so that they can read the Bible together, while Shane’s busy with the telescope trying so hard to convince us, the audience, that these kids would rather put up a telescope and watch the skies or whatever rather than make out on the grass.

This is already longer than what I intended. And I haven’t gotten into the soundtrack yet. So, maybe next time I’ll write about the soundtrack, and Switchfoot. But before we end, which is worth watching first? Depends on your preference but I’d say The Notebook. Then, you can switch it off after the river-staircase scene described above.

Breeder’s Digest

May mga kantang nagkakapagpangiti, mayroon ding nagpapakilig. Mayroon din namang nakakapagpalungkot, mga kantang mapanakit. Mga kantang may melodies at lyrics na makapagpapadama sa’yo ng kung ano mang nadama mo noong una mo itong napakinggan, na magpapaalala sa’yo kung ano man ang nasasa loob mo, dinadala, o iniisip mo noong panahong narinig mo ito sa radyo, sa CD, o sa MP3 player. Nga pala, wala akong iPod kasi wala naman akong pera.

Hindi ako ang unang nagsabi at nabasa ko lang din sa iba, na sobrang underrated daw ng “Bakit Part 2.” Actually, di ko rin agad na realize na mas maganda ito kaysa sa “Bakit Part 1,” na siguro ay mas madalas ko mapakinggan kasi nasa Side A s’ya. Nasa Side B ang Part 2; kumbaga sa kung fu, deep cut s’ya. ‘Di rin ata ito nai-release bilang “single,” ‘di gaya ng “Eddie’s Song” at “Jopay” (Hindi ako nanonood ng GMA7 o ng Sexbomb, pero dahil sa kantang ito napasearch ako at nagka-crush din (ng konti) kay Jopay). Matagal-tagal ko nang hindi napapakinggan itong kantong ito. Pero noong minsan narinig ko sa jeep, bumalik lahat ng ala-ala ko. Nagkaroon kasi ako ng amnesia. Lols. Medyo mapanakit pa rin ang kanta kahit matagal na s’ya. Kung nagtataka kung ano tinutukoy ko. Pakinggan mo lang ang chorus, nandoon ang sikreto.

Maliit ang chance na maririnig mo ito sa radyo, sa FM dahil sobrang “indie” ng bandang ito. I’m talking about Ciudad. Sa Myx ko ata unang narinig at napanood itong “Monica (Karl’s Fantasy)” ng Ciudad. Na-hook agad ako sa catchy guitar riff sa intro. Na-hook din siguro ako sa lungkot nito. Walang malinaw na mensahe o meaning ang lyrics ng kanta kaya bahala na ang nakikinig kung ano man ang gusto n’yang interpretasyon. Basta dapat malungkot, one-sided love, parang ganun. Tapos dapat medyo geeky, dorky, at awkward pagdating sa girls. Si Mikey Amistoso na mismo ang nagsabi, hindi masaya ang kanta na ito.

Pwedeng fan ka ng mga kanta ng Ben&Ben at ang mga sawing kwentong nakapaloob dito, pwede din namang hindi. Pwede ring OK lang ang dating nila sa’yo, pwede rin namang medyo super slightly hate mo sila. Kung hindi ka fan, meron akong alternative. Hindi s’ya gaanong mapanakit. Pero interesting s’ya na alternative sa mas nakararaming love songs ng Ben&Ben, SUD, o Moira na halos magkakahawig na ang tema. Medyo informative din s’ya, kung dating (i.e., ligawan) ang paguusapan. “Easy Boys and Easy Girls” ng bandang The Strangeness ang sinasabi ko.

‘Di ko na maalala kung paano ko nadiscover itong kantang ito. Naghahanap yata ako noon sa YouTube ng mga kanta ng Smoking Popes tapos nakita ko itong “Megan.” Tingin ko mas una akong namangha sa fan-made music video nito. Ang video ay kuha sa isang camera na nakakabit sa likuran ng tren habang tumatakbo ito. Sobrang poetic nito; sobrang nostalgic din. Pero may sariling tema din ang kanta, sariling kwento, drama. Dagdag pa na nakoronahan bilang Miss World si Megan Young noong mga panahong iyon. Kaya tuloy imahe ni Megan Young ang pumapasok sa isip ko pag naririnig ko itong kanta, kahit wala namang nakakalungkot sa pagkakapanalo n’ya.

(Itutuloy…)

Peacemaker, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Tony Leung’s balls in Lust, Caution

Said goodbye to February without having done what should’ve been done — that which most people tend to do especially during the Love Month. Go on a date, eat out, engage in an unhealthy amount of unprotected or protected sex both — no, I don’t mean any of those. I mean watch movies. Don’t most people watch movies Continue reading “Peacemaker, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Tony Leung’s balls in Lust, Caution”

Breeder’s Digest

If you haven’t read or seen anything (trailers, reviews, clips) related to On the Job: The Missing 8, maybe the better, for maximum impact. Because that’s what I did. Of course, I knew that John Arcilla won an award, and I saw somewhere a meme-able Agot Isidro with the bangs. What I didn’t know was that Dennis Trillo is also in the movie, sporting a mullet and a broken nose — because mullet is action movie thugs signature haircut and having a broken nose is the surest way you can make Trillo convincing as a convicted criminal — something director Erik Matti probably learned in the first movie after they cast Gerald Anderson to play an inmate/hitman. Watched it as six-part mini-series on HBO and found that they split and re-edited On the Job (2013), the first movie, for the first two episodes. Episodes 3 to 6 is basically the second movie, The Missing 8 (2021), which was screened this year in the 78th Venice International Film Festival. It’s almost 4 hours long — maybe too long to watch in one sitting and probably works best as a mini-series. And if you’ve seen On the Job before, you can skip the first two episodes. If you haven’t, then this is the best chance to see it. And before I reveal more information about the series (since I’m recommending to go in blind), let me say that it’s one of the best movies/series I’ve seen this year. It’s despairing as it is entertaining. By the way, here’s pogi-rock classic for ya.

Breeder’s Digest

I’ve had two cups of coffee already. And I’m still not awake. Working from Sundays through Saturdays is such a soul-sucking whatever, as you probably already knew.

I’m still not awake. Where did I get that from? Had to Google it and found a song from some Rory Gallagher. Never heard of him; not the song I was looking for. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t from John Lennon’s “I’m Only Sleeping,” but had to Google it anyway just to be sure. And I ended up singing the chorus in my head. Please, don’t spoil my day, I’m miles away… Wonderful song to listen to in bed. But I’m not in bed. I’m sitting in front of my workstation and I’m supposed to be working.

Then it came to me. That line is from Ciudad’s “Friday Noon.” Now it’s a true blue Friday noon and I’m still not awake. Perfectly encapsulates. How I’m feeling right now. But today isn’t Friday. Nor is this song really about work. Nor does it say something about how work has become under late capitalism.

No, I don’t think the guy who also wrote “Due Dates” would have any thing insightful to say about work. Them with their posh condos with all the things privilege can afford, I don’t think so. So let’s not get into that. The song encapsulates the feeling, that’s all.

Don’t know what I’m saying here. I better go back to work. Cigarette break’s over. Let me mine some more Helium.

Daredevil Season 1, The Suicide Squad, and The Falcon And The Winter Soldier (is one long boring title)

Took a full day off today. Still nursing a mild headache, probably from getting slightly more sleep than the usual, and took paracetamol for wrist joint pain that awoke me last night. It’s probably gout (Shit! We’re getting old). And it’s probably due to eating too much meat because we don’t have much Continue reading “Daredevil Season 1, The Suicide Squad, and The Falcon And The Winter Soldier (is one long boring title)”

Breeder’s Digest: MYXposed, Ely Buendia, Diane Ventura

Was watching another MYX documentary the other day about bands and gangs, and drugs, orgies and stuff. Okay. Just bands, local bands and the music scene from early 2000s onwards, featuring interviews with the members of Sandwich, Parokya, Kamikazee, Pupil, Slapshock, Hale, Cueshe, Callalily Continue reading “Breeder’s Digest: MYXposed, Ely Buendia, Diane Ventura”

Breeder’s Digest: Zild, Oh Flamingo, Ely Buendia

Juan Luna’s Tampuhan

I was listening to Zild’s Homework Machine the other night, looking at the dark black sky on the window when an angel appeared to me. The angel, it looked horrifying. With multiple wings spinning like wheels, flaming swords and other indescribable things. Then, the angel spoke to me in Alan Rickman’s voice Continue reading “Breeder’s Digest: Zild, Oh Flamingo, Ely Buendia”

Breeder’s Digest: Fever Dolls, Teenage Fanclub, Sufjan Stevens

New artists you discovered recently?

This relatively new-ish band called Fever Dolls, which, if I remember correctly, is said to be an indie band that combines Saturday Night Fever and the punk rock theatrics of the New York Dolls. I won’t say I became an instant fan of theirs, but I like some of their songs, especially “Mrs. Carver” Continue reading “Breeder’s Digest: Fever Dolls, Teenage Fanclub, Sufjan Stevens”

Breeder’s Digest

My friend’s got a boyfriend and she hates that dick, she tells me everyday. He wants more dinero just to stay at home, and he thinks the coronavirus isn’t real. That it’s brought about by 5G. That it’s something that was created in China and that it’s up for a superpower like the US to oppose them. That Trump is playing the bad guy who would turn out to be ‘the good guy’ in the end like he’s some bad-ass character usually played by Samuel L. Jackson in the movies. Except he’s white. Well, Nick Fury used to be white. Then her boyfriend shared this video where thousands of people protesting in Berlin declaring the ‘end of the pandemic.’ I googled for news thinking Germany has been declared COVID-free already (not yet, but they’re getting there). Turns out it’s a rally by those who don’t believe in COVID-19, neo-nazis, right-wingers, anti-vaxxers, etc. And I was like, what the fuckin’ fuck?


A woman suffered from a locked jaw. A woman suffered from a locked jaw while performing. A woman suffered from a locked jaw while performing blow job. Yes, that’s probably the only thing I heard of the movie The Sweetest Thing, with Cameron Diaz and Selma Blair. It was Selma Blair’s character I suppose? I’m not sure. Then, they had to sing—together—Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing” to solve that locked jaw problem. I heard it was a chick flick, and based on what I heard, girls loved to talk about that particular scene. I heard girls talking about Gone Girl as well. Not because it’s a David Fincher movie (Seven, Fight Club) but because Ben Affleck’s schlong has like a one-second appearance in one scene.


The line “Di makapaghintay, nagpakamatay,” from Eraserheads’ “Ha Ha Ha”, is actually about Mike Hughes killing himself in an attempt to prove that the Earth is flat.


Let me tell you about my other friend now. This friend of mine, he said he has this friend, who once schooled him about the evils of socialism one time he (my friend) shared something about capitalism. And his friend told him that he should read more. He said he didn’t bother to ask his friend to elaborate further on the said ‘evils’ but my friend presumed he’d mention anything from what happened to USSR or some poor countries in South America or how millions died in China and Cambodia. And I was like DUDE! Pol Pot was a genocidal dude who dressed as a communist only because his neighbors in Vietnam were communists. This friend also sent him a YouTube video on how Capitalism works and why it’s OK and stuff like that. And its a video from a channel steeped on right-wing propaganda. I said maybe he should’ve sent him an article or something. He said he already thought that but decided against it. His friend, being a devout church-goer, there’s no way he could trojan horse something into his heavily guarded beliefs. Especially if they’re guarded by Jesus.


I’ve written about this movie before. It’s called King of Comedy. No, not the Martin Scorsese/Robert de Niro one but the Stephen Chow/Stephen Chow one. This is hands down one of the funniest movie scenes ever [link].


Awkward. That awkward moment when your friend slipped and you tried to catch her and you accidentally grabbed her boob. And how amazing was that split-second realization processed from the nerve endings to the brain that suddenly she tried to balance herself while you pulled your hand as quick as you possibly can like you touched a live wire or something that you kind of regret it afterwards. And you couldn’t say ‘sorry’ because that would mean you’re admitting to the crime. And she reacted like nothing happened though she couldn’t look you in the eye. So you both tried to brush it off but maybe—just maybe—think about it afterwards.

Top 10 Porn for Christmas

I missed the chance to make this post on Christmas Day so I am taking back that chance now. Because, what’s the difference anyway? Christmas, New Year? When you realized that the “new year” only gives you a false sense of discontinuity, as if the time is a timer that resets every three-hundred sixty Continue reading “Top 10 Porn for Christmas”

Movies: Porno, Supercop, The Whistlers, Zorro

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Just Another Movie Post

Last movie you’ve seen?

Live Free or Die Hard. The one with Justin Long and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. MEW, who’s gorgeous as ever, played John McClane’s (Bruce Willis, ICYDK) daughter. I went to my parents’ last week and I decided to dust off some old DVDs, movies which I haven’t seen before. We saw Die Hard Continue reading “Movies: Porno, Supercop, The Whistlers, Zorro”

Songs for Driving

photo of person driving a vehicle
Photo by UHGO on Pexels.com

Three typhoons in two weeks is no laughing matter. Five, if we include the tropical storms. And despite being constantly on Facebook for the latest weather bulletins and updates I found myself wondering the other day: “How come the last Typhoon was called Ulysses when the ones before them were Quinta and Rolly? What happened to S and T?” Continue reading “Songs for Driving”

Cutterpillow going 25; Circus redux/reordered

cutterpillow

So the #ultrasecret sessions actually did happen. With each member of the band recording their tracks separately in their own studios. Maybe the “Ligaya” guitar track uploaded by Marcus Adoro on YouTube was really from these sessions, not from the rehearsals during the ‘reunion tour’ as I’ve previously mentioned. 

Continue reading “Cutterpillow going 25; Circus redux/reordered”

Music: The Bernadettes, EndofContracts, Bembol Rockers, etc.

butchercons

Let’s talk about bands you probably heard of before but never heard from again.

Bembol Rockers. Chances are, you probably knew more about Bembol Rocco’s children than the band whose name was inspired by Bembol Roco’s children’s father, who’s no other than—take a guess—Bembol Roco himself. And you probably knew more about Bembol Roco himself and his escapades in Manila in the Claws of Neon and how he lost Ligaya (before the Eraserheads found her again) than these rowdy quartet who specializes in rockabilly and swing. One more thing this band specializes in: How to disappear completely. Unlike Bembol the actor whom you can still see on TV from time to time, Bembol the band hasn’t left much trace, scent, internet footprint or whatever that could be traced back to them. Found no articles written about them. They made one album apparently. Or maybe two. One is The Fabolous Bembol Rockers (according to Discogs.com) and two, this “Live” album found on pinoyalbums(dot)com which has the same tracklisting as the former.

The Bernadettes. I should probably stop writing this now because the band just released a brand new track last September. Like the Bembol Rockers, The Bernadettes were a hot commodity many moons ago. Never really heard anything by them until today, when I (re)discovered their song “Let’s Make Babies” on Lilystars Records’ Bandcamp page while looking for We Are Imaginary’s debut EP One Dreamy Indeterminate Hum. “Let’s Make Babies” is a great indie-pop song. Catchy chorus, great hooks. It’s like Nirvana’s “Molly’s Lips” meets Weezer and Oasis in a non-alcoholic bar and decided to have a threesome. Except all of them are males and therefore making babies is very much not possible at all. And the album cover featuring an elephant mounting a rhino? Not very wholesome, these guys. And I was really really disappointed when I found out that Bernadette Sembrano, Bernadette Allyson, and Bernadette Whatshername were not really the members of the band.

Your Imaginary Friends. Well, first off, they’re not real. Believe me. I used to have one when I was a kid. And my mom used to… Oh! You mean the band! Sorry, I thought… Okay, the band… Yeah, Ahmad Tanji & co. gave us “Nikita“, this EP and went into hiding, never to be heard from ever again. A lot of bands in Clem Castro’s Lilystars Records are like that, actually. The Camerawalls had only one album. The Gentle Isolation, The Viral Atmosphere, The Harsh Quarantines—all of them had only one album to their name. They’re still around actually, Your Imaginary Friends. Except they’re not your imaginary friends anymore. They turned out to be real. And they turned out to be not your friends. No, they changed their name to We Are Imaginary—I know, a little less catchy and imaginative if you’d ask me. At least they’re not imaginary anymore. Oh, wait, they still are.

The Butchercons. According to Stephen Malkmus, punk bands should release just one album and then break up. Maybe because there’s no merit in releasing same album over and over again. Maybe that’s The Butchercons’ credo too. One album and they’re done. Their album Coalesce may not be one of the best albums from the last decade but it’s a solid rock album. The guitars in this album totally owns, man! And these kids can really scream! Put this record on when you’re running low on energy. Or you can go to the nearest Family Mart and grab that energy bar. But if you have allergies, like me, then The Butchercons is your safest option. Of course, there’s also Cobra, Red Bull and coffee.

End of Contracts. You probably saw Edouard Canlas once on TV parading his bodega full of sneakers, but you probably never heard of End of Contracts, his musical alter-ego. End of Contracts’ lone CD Radioedito and Narda’s Discotillion came out around the same time. Thinking about it now, I actually regretted buying that Turin Brakes CD one time I was in Glorietta. Or Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah’s debut album. I should have bought Radioedito instead (and Moonstar88’s Todo Combo). I should have gambled on this one. It may not have been worth it but at least I wouldn’t be wondering now how the songs on this album sounds. I never really heard any song from this album, except for “Alamona”, which is actually a great song. Either it sounds like a long lost OPM gem from the 70s or a retro-hit in the vein of Itchyworms’ “Beer”, only it’s underplayed, underrated, and not a little bit vulgar.

Breeder’s Digest No. X

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Cats killing dogs, cocks killing cops

Tarantadong Kalbo posted a cartoon featuring a head of a rooster this morning. For a moment there, I thought it’s one of those revelations — that he’s also a Pavement fan, that it was a Watery, Domestic reference. Until I read the caption. The caption reads “Elmer <3,” a nod to Gerry Alanguilan’s graphic novel of the same name. (Just kidding about that Pavement bit, but TK made a Bly Manor reference just the other day, so…)

Continue reading “Breeder’s Digest No. X”

Breeder’s Digest: San Cisco, Neil Young, Oh, Flamingo!

Why Oh, Flamingo! should change their name to Oh Flamingo

What new artists you discovered this year?
Off the top my head, Khruangbin, Japanese Breakfast, Stella Donnelly, Marren Morris and Men I Trust. Last year it was Mitski, Lucy Dacus, beabadoobee… Khruangbin, Men I Trust and Japanese Breakfast I discovered via YouTube. Maren Morris and Stella Donnelly, I saw them on some website and I probably wouldn’t give them a listen if not for their respective album covers. Continue reading “Breeder’s Digest: San Cisco, Neil Young, Oh, Flamingo!”

Songs for the Pandemic

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You have your Sad Bastard Music playlist, your All-Nighter Playlist, your Daily Bus Ride playlist, your After-Five Overtime playlist, your Aerobics Playlist, your Daily Traffic Anxiety playlist, and so and so. Oftentimes, these playlists are more or less the same, interchangeable, except for the first one. Unless, of course, all your playlists are actually Sad Bastard Music with different names. Continue reading “Songs for the Pandemic”

10 Albums That Didn’t Change My Life

MTV Unplugged in New York. Thor, Norse god of thunder, once said that Asgard was just like Earth — only they didn’t have cable TV. Maybe we lived in Asgard then, ’cause we didn’t have cable as well. We only had either GMA (they used to air taped week-old shows) or the ABS provincial station, depending on the orientation of the antenna mounted

Continue reading “10 Albums That Didn’t Change My Life”