Rock 'n Roll Supergroups in Pulp

MANILA, Philippines – Hot off its recently-concluded event Summer Slam 9: Countdown To Extinction, which featured Grammy-nominated international heavy metal act and is the biggest annual rock festival in the country, PULP Magazine marches on and features the best bands and artists in the country.

For May, Franco — the latest rock sensation to conquer the independent music scene and the large-scale, music-loving audiences — grabs the most-coveted spot on the cover of the country’s official music publication. Composed of vocalist/guitarist/songwriting genius Franco Reyes, the group is rounded off with luminaries from the current local rock scene’s biggest acts: Gabby Alipe, vocalist/guitarist for Cebu’s finest export Urbandub; Paolo “8” Toleran, guitarist for the hard rock outfit Queso; Parokya Ni Edgar; bassist Buhawi “Buwi” Meneses; and Ubrandub drummer Jan Jan Mendoza. Pulp editor-in-chief Joey Dizon interviews the band on its formation, its plans and how well fans and musicians are receiving their brand of space-y and groovy rock n’ roll.

And it’s not only Franco who comes together full circle this year. The most familiar names in songwriting and musicianship are also pooling their talents to reinvent local music as we know it.

Human Folk, which features Cynthia Alexander and jazz giant Johnny Alegre and electronic music wizard Malek Lopez leading the pack, will fuse musical styles once-deemed worlds-apart.

Acid jazz sees a new face/collective to up the ante as Yosha, made up of vocalist Yosha, bassist Karel Honasan, drummer Michael Alba and keyboardist Nikko Rivera, ushers in a new era in music that’s both soothing yet infectious and sexy. Pulp writer Karen Sy does the reportage on both outfits.

Writer Hershey Homol has an exclusive article on the current endorsement trend in local music: The commercialization of rock music via the active interest of corporate advertisers. Local music has evolved into being a “battle of the brands,” and readers will be glued to reading about this current phenomenon that has found its way in the psyche of the newer generation of music fans.

For the more adventurous, there’s more high energy and cutting edge features on bands who are all about having fun: Former punk rock kids-turned-rockabilly aficionados Hilera are hot off their release of their sophomore disc Nut House, as the still-young trio talk to PULP music editor Jason Caballa about their newfound direction and inspiration. Meanwhile, punk’s newer practitioners Concrete Sam strike a pose for PULP in celebration of their self-titled, independent debut disc now available in the market.

As usual, music fans are promised even more articles and beefed-up features in this month’s issue.

The Speaks, Franz Ferdinand, Electrico, you name it- plus cutting edge music columns from various personalities in music and a highly-reputable album reviews section will keep the generation’s defenders of great music informed and offer exclusive access to the stories behind their favorite musicians. PULP is available nationwide in leading magazine shops and bookstores for only P120.