MANILA, Philippines — Red Horse Beer’s Pambansang Muziklaban lit up the stage in Sta. Rosa, Laguna last Saturday with shattering sets and rambling riffs in search for the next best Filipino band.
Showcasing local rock acts, the world’s No. 1 strong beer hit hard and heavy by bringing back the country’s top rock competition after a four-year hiatus.
The scene at the grounds of Paseo de Sta. Rosa was a culmination of a year-long competition that started in 2024 with preliminaries to determine who gets to represent the different regions for this nationwide battle of the bands. The 12 bands that took the stage competed in two different categories – LAKAS, which bannered hardcore rock bands, and AKLAS which featured band that play alternative rock.
After hammering hardcore hits, Daks Not Dead from Batangas came out on top of the LAKAS category, while Interstate from Cebu bested the AKLAS field. Both bands took home P500,000 cash prize from Red Horse Beer.