• Pinoy Fries: Luxor
• Unplug and Play: Comedy Plus
• Musikalye: Funny Celebrity Pics

Congratulations to the winners! Keep on dropping everyone!

The original:

Okay let’s cut to the chase. I won’t be posting for a long while– that is, until August 14.

Why? I’m preparing for the Geology Board Exam, which is on August 12, 13 and 14.

So I could coax you to continue visiting this site and/or dropping your Entrecards, I will give a FREE AD SPOT FOR A MONTH on this site to the one who visits this site the most during the hiatus. If you check out this site on Entrecard, it has an average price of 16-32 EC per day of advertising. I’m giving away an AD SPOT FOR A MONTH.

I will be checking out my drops inbox at the end of this hiatus.

If you’re not Entrecard (why aren’t you?), you could just leave a comment on this post with your name and site/email so I could contact you later.

The one with the most visits and/or drops wins.

BTW, if you’re on EC, just drop, and if you leave a comment, just state that you’ve dropped your EC today, so double-counts may be avoided.

Also, in case of ties, I’ll give the ad spots to those who are tied.

Thanks!

The Video:

Here’s the Eheads version:

Enjoy!

So if you’re becoming a fan, you might want to add him there.

In this video, he covers a very new song by The Itchyworms, Penge Naman ako Nyan, from their latest album “Self-titled”. This song doesn’t even have a video yet! Maybe they could get Ako si Chris to star in their music video. Agree?

Here’s the very inspired performance:

Rock on!

Here’s his cover of Parokya ni Edgar’s Sayang:

Here’s the original:

Rock on!

In this video he covers Sugarfree’s Dear Kuya. Gotta love the accent and the heart. He sings as if it was his own language.

Here’s the original music video by Sugarfree for your reference:

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If you don’t love your local music, well someone else who has a different nationality than you does!

Yeng Constantino has made waves in the Filipino music scene during her stay in the Pinoy Dream Academy (via the anthemic song Hawak Kamay) and after she became Grand Star Dreamer of the very first season. Her album Salamat has already gone multiple platinum or whatnot, all I know is it sold like isaw (chitterlings a.k.a. pig intestines) and fishballs (you know, balls made out of fish), which are sold in pretty much every block in the Philippines.

Just like what I said in my review of Paramita’s self-titled, an artist may be measured by his/her second album. So, this album must be important to Yeng. And yes, I have her first album, and I must say it deserves all the recognition it garnered.

In this album, Yeng continues her pop-rock-ery and sings songs straight from her heart. Now that her band Morning Glory (comprised of her longtime friends) is ready and set to back her up during gigs, she punks out a little harder in some songs in the album. Her Journey has just started, really.

Pros:

• Catchiness. She writes most of the songs, and boy some of them are really hit-worthy. Ikaw Lang Talaga and Di Na Ganun, the first two singles off the album, will catch your attention all the time.
• Honesty. Yeng’s voice is very emotive, and some songs in the album bring out the best in her. Her expressions range from bittersweet (Promise) to assuring (Ikaw Lang Talaga) to heartbreaking (Tao Lang Ako). Even her cover of Asin’s Himig ng Pag-ibig sounds her own. Her singing style actually reminds me of Michelle Branch (oh, how I miss her).
• Song order. Kinda reminds me of Avril Lavigne’s Let Go, with that punk-a-minute-sentimental-the-next style of songs.

Possible Cons:

• Instrumentations. Maybe I’m just not a fan of too-polished pop-rock instruments played by studio musicians. But then again, even Michelle Branch doesn’t record her own guitars.
• Album art. It’s just too cluttered for me. Too many fonts and colors for my liking. Reminds me of the Let Go artwork again. To the producers, please don’t turn Yeng into an Avril. She’s way too better than to be just that.
• Replay value. I think Yeng’s debut is still better than this one. The replay value of that album is quite higher compared to this album. Some songs in this album could have been written better. But then again, it’s just me.

Ratings:

• Music - 80%
• Lyrics - 85%
• Album Art - 70%
• Replay Value - 75%
• Overall - 77.5%

Standout Tracks: Di Na Ganun, Ikaw Lang Talaga, Himig ng Pag-ibig, Habambuhay

While listening to the album: Eat, or chat with your bestfriend over the net or over the phone.

Chock full of Links:

Buy Journey online
Yengsters Unplugged on Multiply
Yeng Constantino Network
Yeng Constantino Rocks
Yengnatix
Preview the album

Music Video for Di Na Ganun:

Sandwich is a superband. They are famous in the Philippines for walking on the thin line between being radio-friendly and being innovative. They started out as a punk-sounding band (their debut album Grip Stand Throw), then they added elements of hip-hop and electronica (Four Track Mind and Thanks to the Moon’s Gravitational Pull), before becoming a full-fledged pop-punk-ish band (Five on the Floor). Their continuous evolution was the key to their longevity–they are now celebrating their tenth year in the Pinoy rock scene with their 5th album <s> Marks the Spot.

I was able to attend their album launch at the UP Sunken Garden, during the UP Fair 2008. I must say they really pumped up the party with their cool stage design and lights show. Okay, moving on to the album.


The album is a two-disc set, the first one featuring all-new originals and the other one featuring various remixes, alternate versions of their past hits such as DVDx (trust me, there’s a version for each member of the band, with him/her singing the verses) and other songs of the band released commercially (e.g. Zaido from the GMA-7 show of the same name).

Pros:

Musicality. If you aren’t amazed by this band’s production quality, then you must be deaf. A quick listen to the opening track Procrastinator proves that the band relies on simple studio methods to achieve the sound they want.

Catchiness. Betamax, the second single off the album, will surely have you singing “Wala pa nung Myx, wala pa nung MTV..”.

Humor. The filler track Greenpick will surely bring a smile to musicians’ faces:

[Pick na ginupit
Galing sa green cross alcohol
Cymbals na biak
Drum ng tubig ang tambol
Pwede na ring bass amp
Ang lumang karaoke
Kahit kulang ang kwerdas
Tuloy pa rin ang jamming bukas]

(Cut-out pick
From a green cross ™ alcohol bottle
Cracked cymbals
Water container as drum
The old karaoke can be a bass amp
Even though we are out of strings,
Tomorrow’s jam is still happening)

Other tracks focus on social norms, pop culture and whatnot. Listen to Primera Fluxxe and Rambol.

Unpredictability. The song Text in the City is quite surprising, with lyrics [Text if you wanna sex me/Beep if you'd rather sleep]. I never expected that “explicit” a song from this band, but it’s a pleasant surprise.

Variety. Dozens of instruments, dozens of different arrangements. Nuff said. Okay, listen to Candelaria, then to Ang Pagbabalik.

Packaging. Maps of Philippine areas such as Bulacan, some parts of Manila, etc.? Cool! There are also stick with the packaging, though less than the sticker-iness of their previous album Five on the Floor.

The second disc. If you aren’t amused by the different versions of DVDx, what the hell are you listening to?!?!?

Possible cons:

You could still say Sandwich have sold out, but it’s your choice if you want to miss out on their music.

The production sound of this album sounds very much like Pedicab’s latest and vice versa. Maybe it’s because they were recorded at the same studio and the two bands have two similar members?

Ratings:

Music - 85%
Lyrics - 80%
Album Art - 90%
Replay Value - 80%
Overall - 83.75%

Standout Tracks: Procrastinator, Betamax, Text in the City, DVDx Myrene (Disc 2)

While listening to the album: Party!

Links:

Sandwich on Myspace
Yahoogroups
Buy the album on Tititikpilipino
Preview the album

Betamax Music Video: