The sound of Letter Day Story

MANILA, Philippines - Good things come to those who wait and members of new alternative band Letter Day Story know this only too well.

Although they formed the group way back in 2002 when they were still schoolmates at the University of Santo Tomas’ Conservatory of Music, it took six years to get their break by emerging as Grand Winner in Nescafé Soundskool, and another two years to have their full-length debut album under Sony Music put on record shelves.

 “We learned a lot along the way,” said lead singer/chief songwriter and guitarist Dex Yu of their struggling years. “From people posing as managers to get their hands on your music for free, to rejection from record labels and gigs that don’t pay — we’ve seen it all.”

Fortunately, their love for music is stronger than any hindrances that came along. Through it all, the band maintained a no-nonsense work ethic that compelled them to keep rehearsing, writing music and knocking on doors.

The climb could be the reason they chose a straightforward name for their band. According to drummer Ejay, the key to understanding their music can be gleaned from each word in the whole.

“‘Letter’ because the messages of our songs are in a way, being ‘sent’ out. ‘Story’ because we write about people’s lives. ‘Day’ because the stories are usually based on day-to-day experiences,” he said.

Even the title of their first hit, Ikaw Pa Rin, seems right-on. However, the band prides itself for having come up with a song that transcends musical arrangement. The smash tune, after all, has been embraced by the public both in its upbeat and acoustic mutations — right up to the point when the band became finalist in the Favorite New Artist category in the 2009 MYX Music Awards and Best Performance by a New Group in this year’s Awit Awards.

The universal appeal of its music should come as no surprise. Given the members’ educational background, the songs in their album namely Sama Sama (their latest single and title of their debut album), Sulong, Kung Maibabalik, Isang Umaga, Makasama Ka, Paano, Nababaliw, Mithi and Ikaw Pa Rin are products of instinct and intellect.

“We first listen to the songs in their barest form; usually just guitar and voice. Then each of us plays the instruments according to taste. And then we jam and from there, we discuss the merits of choosing an arrangement over the other. Walang lider — ang bida ay kung ano ang pinakamabuti para sa kanta,” said Oliver, the band’s bass player.

Letter Day Story’s musicality has attracted other artists to work with them. To date, Letter Day Story has collaborated with Gloc-9 (Martilyo), pop-rock singer-songwriter Yeng Constantino (Kung Maibabalik), and Jaq Dionisio of new band Kiss Jane (Isang Umaga).

Album producer Jonathan Ong gave the tracks in their album a grander aural dimension. Letter Day Story member Not-Not is all for it, believing that the considerations that go into making an album are different from playing live.

“More meticulous care is taken when it comes to making albums because people will listen to it over and over. The songs should be as close to perfect as possible because it’s for posterity. Sa live naman, anything goes. Energy and spontaneity naman ang bentahan dun,” he said.

This thrust is the reason Letter Day Story is still embraced in the underground scene.

Clearly, the band is no sell-out, but merely moving up.

Sama Sama is now out in CDs under Sony Music. To download your favorite Letter Day Story songs straight to your cell phones, just type CONNECT and send to 3456. Or go straight to their musiConnect micro site, just type LDS and send to 3456.