Updated  17 AUGUST, 2005

(From left:) Bob Magoo, The DOCTOR, and Barbie, backstage during PULP's Summerslam at the FORT, 2 or 3 years back.

JUAN  dela CRUZ band        

by :   Ramon ' the DOCTOR '  Zialcita

Fresh from the successful Juan dela Cruz (JDLC) reunion concert held at the World Trade Center in Manila Last July 19, Pinoy Rock legend Joey "Pepe" Smith clad in black leather pants and jacket, relaxes in his seat with this writer at Villa Romana in Baguio City, the Philippines' Summer Capital. Despite the controversy hounding him on his first solo effort release "Idiosyncrasies," wherein his former manager Pete Daza reportedley sold the masters to Alpha Records, the 58-year old son of a former American Navy pilot and Filipina housewife was calm as he talked about how he first got into rock music up to his latest venture which will see him team up once again with JDLC bandmate Wally Gonzalez. Smith formed his first group The Villains in 1962. Prior to picking up the guitar, Smith began his career splitting time on drums and vocals. "We were basically an instrumental band doing covers of The Ventures and The Shadows," says Smith, who claims while studying in an American school for half breeds in Clark Air Base, Olongapo, he was blessed that he able to listen to rock n' roll personality Wolfman Jack over the Armed Forces Radio. "When The Villains disbanded, I put together The Blue Jazzers, but we didn't play a bit of jazz."

 In 1965, Smith joined D' Downbeats, a rock n' roll showband. Highlights of Smith's career with D' Downbeats was opening for The Beatles, Peter & Gordon and The Dave Clark 5, recording some songs in Hong Kong, meeting Del Shannon, sitting in on drums for two gigs in Japan with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers and trying his first drug, marijuana- known as Cambodian Reds when playing in another band D' Surfers for American troops stationed in Vietnam. D' Downbeats keeled over and buzzed out in 1967. Smith went on to jam with other rock outfits, which saw him join forces with future JDLC members Mike Hanopol on bass and Wally Gonzalez on guitar for the very first time when he reformed D' Downbeats Phase II. "It was then when I started listening to the likes of Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, the Grateful Dead, Country Joe McDonald, Cream and the The Allman Brothers Band," stated Smith. "I was offered by a friend who owned a shipping company if I wanted to go to Japan for free." While in Japan, Smith hooked up once again with Hanopol and Gonzalez in Zero History. For the record, Zero History was the first Philippine rock band to tour Japan.

When Zero History, who was able to open for Pink Floyd in Tokyo show closed shop, Smith met guitarist Shinky Chen and bassist Mabao Masayoshi, and went on to form Speed, Glue and Shinky. The power trio released two studio albums, "Eve" and the double disc "Tiger," which saw Hanopol replace Masayoshi (who was fighting his drug problem) on the cables for the recording sessions. "When I left Speed, Glue and Shinky to go back home, the music scene in Manila was erupting, " barked Smith. "I joined The Psyclones for a while which later became Maria Cafra and then it was a stint for me in Anak Bayan." During this time, Wally Gonzalez formed the first line-up of JDLC with four others and waxed it's first record "Up In Arms" which bore no singles. Gonzalez then got together with Smith and Hanopol to form the second generation of Juan dela Cruz. The big break for what became the rock supergroup of the Seventies came in 1974 following the release of its second stab "Ang Himig Natin." The song of the same title immediately received airplay on radio station DZRJ-AM, "The Rock of Manila." "Ang Himig Natin" through time became Pinoy Rock's national anthem. " I wrote that song shortly after the declarion of Martial Law in 1972," remembers Smith. "I penned it behind the stage during a show." The following year, Juan dela Cruz cut it's third studio offering- "Maskara." Due to indifferences, Juan dela Cruz folded up in 1976. All three members embarked on solo projects.

Of the three, it was Hanopol who was most successful with the monster hit "Laki Sa Layaw" in 1977. The following year, Smith, who made the switch to guitar and Gonzalez issued singles of their own with "Summer Wind" and the Jeff Beck-inspired instrumental "Wally's Blues" respectively.Three years later, record company executives forced the issue for Juan dela Cruz to reunite. The roster which carried Smith, Hanopol and Gonzalez released their final album together- "Kahit Anong Mangyari." They did one reunion show at the Araneta Coliseum and again went seperate ways to pursue their respective solo careers. In 1998, JDLC reunited once more. There were big plans brought up by the organizer of a JDLC nationwide and U.S. tour coupled with the release of a new studio album and a TV special of the reunion. Sadly none of these transpired save for a bootlegged album of the concert now available for sale on the net. The reunion was not promoted as expected and it flopped badly despite having Razorback, Teeth, Advent Call and W.E.B. (Gonzalez’ band he starred in 1995 together with his nephew Brian on drums and vocals and Watawat’s Eggpie de Castro on bass) to open up. I wasn’t able to watch the event (I did however go to one of their closed-door practices, the only writer that was invited) since I had to attend to something personal but a friend of mine who went disclosed that The World Trade Center was . Moreover, you could’ve gone skating on the floor while the concert was going on if you wanted to. “We should prevent this thing from ever happening again. For God’s sake this is JDLC we’re talking about here. It doesn’t look good for the scene if they can’t fill it up,”

Danny Barrozo, the organizer of the third official JDLC reunion (the group actually got together for a glorified jam in an Angeles City nightspot two years ago)must've studied what went wrong in 1998 and didn't leave any stone unturned in re-staging the reunion show one more time at THe World Trade Center. The promotion was visible on TV, radio and print. He had JDLC wrote and recorded one track to support the reunion titled "Ang Pagkalas." Additionally, to drive home a point, Barrozo even had Smith, Hanopol and Gonzales brought centerstage one-by-one riding behind a Harley provided by The Mad Dogs, a local motorcyle club. As a teenager, Barrozo idolized JDLC but couldn't go to the concerts of the legendary group because he couldn't afford it. Now he was at the helm, not only watching the show, but also producing it. There was no support act on the bill but special guests such as Lourd de Veyra (Radioactive Sago Project), Marc Abaya (Kjwan), Hannah Romawac (Session Road), Kat Aggarado (Sino Si Kat) were enlisted to perform with JDLC. The back-up unit was composed of DNDI Ledesma on bass, Wawi Posadas on keyboards, Wendell Garcia and Karl Messer on drums. JDLC performed their biggest hits in front of a decently-packed crowd like "Beep Beep," "Rock n' Roll sa Ulan," "Project," "Balong Malalim" and "Sarap ng Buhay" among others. To the younger generation, who don't respect rock from the past, JDLC may be dismissed as aging rock relics, but there's no denying the group's influence and legacy to the rock bands that followed them.

LOKOMOTIV:   GET ON, OR GET OUT OF THE WAY! By: RAMON “The DOCTOR” ZIALCITA                  Long before the formation of Southern California’s hard drivin’ quartet- Lokomotiv, three of the members hailed from two of the Philippine’s hottest rock bands. Frontman Basti Artadi and drummer Wolf Gemora used to belong to the heavy metal group Wolfgang, while guitarist Dave Aguirre was a member of the hard rock outfit Razorback. The fourth member is bassist Danny Gonzalez, a Mexican raised in the States.  Curiously, both groups, who are considered brothers-in-arms were under Sony Music Philippines for a long period of time. Wolfgang has recorded six albums before their disbandment in 2002 (two of the remaining members who stayed in the Philippines joined The Dawn and formed DRT respectively): “Wolfgang” (1995), “Semenelin” (1996), “Wurm” (1997), “Serve In Silence” (1999), “Acoustica” (2000), “Loaded” (2001) and “Black Mantra” (2002).  On the other hand, Razorback cut 5 discs namely “Hebigat Sounds Vol. 1,” (1995), “Beggars Moon” (1997), “Star” (1999), “Razorback” (2003) and “Greatest Hit-Hits” (2004). To date, the swine unit remains in circulation in the live concert circuit. In addition, Wolfgang and Razorback have appeared in the “Stone” comic book compilation and some of its key members collaborated to form a studio band Brain Salad, which likewise carved an album with the same name in 2000. For the record, Wolfgang and Razorback have opened up for foreign rock acts, who toured Manila- Metallica, Bon Jovi, Rage Against the Machine, Silverchair and played alongside Collective Soul. Shortly after Wolfgang called it quits, Artadi flew to the States in May 2002, followed by Gemora in November and Aguirre the following year. Gemora built Lokomotiv with Gonzalez and James Macdonnell (vocals/ guitar). Artadi, who was living in the San Francisco area joined the progressive metal unit Kitaan. Gemora enlisted the services of Aguirre shortly after his arrival. An invitation was extended to Artadi to come aboard soon after when things didn’t work out with Macdonell.  The reunion was sealed when Artadi accepted. When asked by fans ‘what happened to Kitaan,’ Artadi answered on-line saying “The answer is simple. I was given the opportunity to work with two people who I looked up to and admired for the past 10 or so years and I took it. I told the guys in Kitaan that I was moving on and they accepted it, no bad blood left there. And besides this is the kind of band I wanted to be in 5 years ago. The music is f---ing awesome! Wait till you hear what we’ve been doing together, it’s gonna blow you all away! As of this writing, Lokomotiv has waxed a 5-track disc and just shot it’s first music video for the song “Five Alive” with independent director Graham Baglagon, The band is also fresh from headlining “Bottlefest” held last May in New York. The event featured Fil- American groups such as The Speaks, Hydrant and ex- Teeth frontman Glen Jacinto, who is now based in California. We interviewed Wolf Gemora via cyberspace to find out more about which direction Lokomotiv is heading for. Hear the train a comin’. Get on, or get out of the way!  22nd Century Rock: What made you decide to tap the services of Basti Artadi to join you in Lokomotiv? What happened to the original frontman James Macdonell? You must be overjoyed to have Artadi and Aguirre join you in this venture?  WG: When Basti decided to leave for the US in ‘02, Wolfgang’s future was very uncertain. My goal since I was 13 years old was (and still is) to have a fruitful career in the US as a musician, with or without Wolfgang. So before he left I told him that whatever happens I wanted to be in a band with him over here. And him being the best rock vocalist in the P.I., how can you deny that? James was not too happy with having a legitimate vocalist since he wanted to front the band and that’s where the conflict of interests lay. Our bassist Danny Gonzalez was on our side with that issue so we had to ask James to leave the band. I’m not just overjoyed but feel very blessed that Dave and Basti came over to my neck of the woods to be in this band. They are both very brave to have uprooted and moved their lives here to pursue their dreams with me.  22nd Century Rock: Did the arrival of Dave Aguirre have anything to do with the departure of Macdonell, who also plays guitar?  WG: Before Basti made any hints of joining us, James needed a second guitarist to lighten the load for him to sing better. That’s when I suggested David to them. Again, James was against the idea, but I had my own agenda, hehe. For a couple of gigs the two-guitar line-up sounded great, very lethal. As Basti’s intentions of joining were becoming a reality, we had to move James out of the equation. It was the best move for both parties.  22nd Century Rock: Would you know who replaced Artadi in Kitaan and why he left?  WG: Don’t know. Don’t care. From Basti’s accounts, the other members of Kitaan were not as driven as he was so they did not have a concrete plan on how to gather a following and all the things needed to move forward in the music business here. We do.   22nd Century Rock: Without Artadi and Aguirre on board yet, Lokomotiv has cut a 4-track demo with the songs “All You Can Be,” “Misery,” “Turn It Up” and “Middle Man.” Does Lokomotiv still perform these songs live and will be part of a future album?  WG: We don’t play those songs anymore coz those are all basically James’ songs. After the split, Danny and James agreed on which songs of Lokomotiv Mark 1 he could keep and which ones we could keep.   22nd Century Rock: The CD you sent me featuring 5 tracks with Artadi and Aguirre. Who wrote those songs and where did you record?  WG: ‘House of Lies’ and ‘Ashes of Home’ are from David’s bag of tricks while ‘Inert Passerby’, ‘Five Alive’ and ‘Ride With Me’ are Danny’s initial ideas. Of course, when those songs come into the creative process and Basti and myself put down our parts, the song belongs to the band.  We’ve got a whole bunch of other songs waiting to be recorded that are just as killer as this first batch. We recorded in Lo-Fi Studios in Loma Linda, California that is about an hour’s drive inland from Orange County. We had to use this studio despite the distance coz it’s one of the few studios left in Southern California that use both analog and digital recording equipment. It was a MUST that we tracked the instruments on analog tape before mixing on Pro Tools.   22nd Century Rock: From the 5-track cd you sent me (and thank you for that. I enjoyed listening to it, great work) which is the single you’re planning to release for Philippine radio and if possible, elsewhere?  WG: As far as singles go, we’ve been making plans with a couple of indie directors to shoot videos for both ‘Five Alive’ and ‘Ride With Me’ which would be the single material for this first batch. Both songs are loud, fast and quick to the point. But let’s hope we can actually get an album out soon to have singles on the radio.    22nd Century Rock: Why did you choose the name Lokomotiv?  WG: I was brainstorming for band names and a Jethro Tull song called ‘Locomotive Breath’ came on the radio. I thought Locomotive would be such a cool name for a heavy rock n’ roll band so I just adjusted the spelling to make it more interesting. Then a friend of mine reminded me that it was the same name of a football (futbol) team in Russia called Lokomotiv Moscow. We’re a rock band; they’re a football team, no problemo.   22nd Century Rock: What's the latest on Lokomotiv?  WG: Doing weekly gigs in and around the Los Angeles area. We hope to start playing the college circuit soon before summer begins. We are still in search of a manager and agent.  22nd Century Rock: What are the plans of Lokomotiv in 2005?  WG: The music business here in the US is so much different from the P.I. Before a record company can even consider a band they need a manager (a real manager, not their buddy), an agent and a lawyer to handle the business side of things. So for now, we’re managing ourselves and slowly building up a following thru gigs anywhere we can get them and hopefully attract the right people to back this band up. It’s hard road ahead but this band’s heart and determination (and kick-ass music) is what will carry us through and bring us success.   22nd Century Rock: Do you plan to release an album in the Philippines?  WG: When it happens, the Philippines will be the first to know. For now, we’re spreading our music thru the 5-song cd which is on our website (www.lokomotivrocks.com) as well.   22nd Century Rock: Describe what’s life playing like in the US. I hear you guys carry your own gear, set it up and pack up? WG: That’s the truth. We have our own backline gear (amps, guitars, drums) and the clubs provide the PA. You gotta carry it, set it up play your set and pack it up just like everyone else. Bands in the P.I. have it good and they only have to bring their instruments. I’d rather set up my own drums that are in great condition than play on a crappy one that’s provided by the bar. 22nd Century Rock: What gear/ equipment does Lokomotive use and abuse? WG: My drums are Tama Rockstars and I'm still very loyal to Zildjian cymbals.  I use a Pearl maple snare drum that I bought in New York in '01.  Danny uses a Rickenbacker bass that has such great tone and holds the bottom together like super glue.  He also uses a SWR bass amp and speakers.  David has four guitars now.  His two old ones, a Fender Stratocaster from the old Kalye days and a PRS.  Plus his two latest weapons, a black Epiphone Gothic Flying V and a white Gibson Flying V which has a great look and sound.  He also uses a Peavey Virtube guitar amp and Behringer speakers.  22nd Rock Magazine: Now that your band is 75% Filipino. Do you wave the country’s flag in the US by blaring to your audience that you are a band from the Philippines with the exception of your bassist Danny Gonzalez (Mexico)? WG: We don’t do that. It wouldn’t be fair to Danny who is Mexican-American. We are not a Pinoy band. The three of us are Pinoys playing in a band in the US. We just get up there and play loud, fast and heavy rock n’ roll and try to kick the crowd’s ass at every gig. Where we came from really doesn’t matter, yet.   22nd Century Rock: How would you define the music of Lokomotiv and what are your musical influences?  WG: The best definition of Lokomotiv's music is heavy rock n' roll.  It has the riffage of old school metal, the bluesy overtones of hard rock and the speed and almost wreckless abandon of punk rock.  The influences of this band is everything that is good about rock music.  The only difference that we consiously made from our previous bands is that we won't go into any long jams within songs that Wolfgang and Razorback have been notoriously known for.  We just write kick-ass rock songs and serve them in a big can of whoop-ass without beating around the bush.  22nd Century Rock: How many songs have you already written with the new line-up and do all of them get played live?  WG: We have around 12 completed songs and five in the backburner.  Since the usual set lengths that clubs give bands here is 30 minutes, we usually play the five songs on the cd plus two others called 'State Of Mind' and 'Anthermthrfcker'.   22nd Century Rock: Do you cover any foreign songs on your live sets?  WG: We've been opening our longer sets with Thin Lizzy's 'Are You Ready'.  But with the more originals we have ready for the stage, we're gonna phase out all covers from the set.  It's not cool to be doing covers if you're not a pure cover band.  Most bands do all original songs in their sets, which is the way to go.  22nd Century Rock: Does Lokomotiv cover any songs from your former bands- Wolfgang, Razorback or even Brain Salad?  WG: No we don’t and no we won’t. We will be covering Joey “Pepe” Smith’s (Godfather of Philippine Rock) classic song ‘Summer Wind’, though. The rest of the world needs to hear that song.   22nd Century Rock: Does the band plan to write, record and sing Tagalog material?  WG: No Tagalog songs for us.  Like I said, we're not a Pinoy band and we have our sights set on all kinds of people from all walks of life getting in to Lokomotiv's rock.  22nd Century Rock: Are their plans for Lokomotiv to come back and do a Philippine tour in the future?  WG: No plans yet. But it is a possibility. Basti, David and myself will never forget our Pinoy roots no matter what.  22nd Century Rock: Is it difficult to crack the US rock market? WG: Yes, it is very difficult. Especially these days when popular music is so stale and unoriginal. Bands have to build their own followings before record companies will even consider signing you up. You really need to work hard and be smart enough to not let people take advantage of you and your music. A lot of venues require bands to sell tickets to play a 30-minute set and selling tickets is a bitch! Fortunately, there are a lot of smaller, independent record labels that support “real” music and will give these bands a chance to spread their material.   22nd Century Rock: What’s the difference between playing at home and playing in the States?  WG: Better equipment. Better chances of making a career out of music. I do miss playing in places like Cebu, Davao, Iligan, Zamboanga, Bacolod and Iloilo where the fans are just awesome. We’ll definitely play those places again one day.   22nd Century Rock: Is the crowd you play to more of the Filipino Community or more of a melting pot?  WG: A melting pot but so far majority are Pinoys. We’re starting to branch out into other scenes. We don’t want to get stuck in one scene. We’re aiming to play some colleges in the next few months and that’s where the audience is.   22nd Century Rock: Have you opened up for any big name act yet as Lokomotiv?  WG: Not yet. Don’t forget that this line-up of Lokomotiv is less than one old. There’s a whole lotta road to travel and a whole lotta rockin’ to be done.  22nd Century Rock: What can you say about the Filipino bands based in the States?  WG: I would have to say that there is a small number of Fil-Am bands that are pretty good in terms of songwriting and performing.  The others are just the 'run-of-the-mill' types.  One advantage of Philippine-based bands is the amount of support they can get.  Over here, it's just a small community of Filipino music lovers that you can expect support from. It's even harder if the music caters to only Filipinos and if you deliver the songs in Tagalog. Then you're only limiting yourselves to that scene. That's why Lokomotiv's music will always be in English to cater to a universal audience.  22nd Century Rock: What can you tell your fellow bands from the Philippines and/ or outside the US if they plan to try their luck over there?  WG: Get ready to work your ass off and get homesick for at least a month, if you’re lucky. But if this is what you want to do, go for it. Where the weather takes you, let the weather take you. Where the music brings you, let it bring you.

WOLF SAYS HI...

Despite being miles and time frames apart, we regularly stay in constant communication with Wolf Gemora, drummer of Southern California’s rock n’ roll express Lokomotiv. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, we can communicate faster than a steam engine can chug-along. Here’s a recent e-mail (partially edited) from the Wolfman on what he’s been up to lately.

Hello friends,

“I hope everybody's in good health and good spirits as you read this. I figured I'd let everybody know some good news about me in one go than to repeat myself
with the same story.

“Anyways, Michelle (Pritchard, ex-Imago member- RZ) had signed me up to apply for a course called Career Connection and specifically Recording Connection. The good news is that I've passed all interviews and am going to be starting with the education and apprenticeship in a recording studio in North Hollywood called Clear Lake Audio under the
guidance of head engineer Brian Levi.

“This studio is where No Doubt recorded their hit album with the song "Don't Speak". Other artists who have recorded here are Crosby & Nash, Jimmy Eat World, Me'Shell Ndegeocello, Jason Bonham, Asia, DAVID
HASSELHOFF and Melissa Etheridge. Some great producers like Paul Rothchild (The Doors) and Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd) have worked here too.
“The difference with this program from a recording school is that I'll get to work one-on-one with my mentor and have a more personalized approach to learning. There will be group sessions with other students on the weekends which would be fun as well. I'll be sitting in with pro sessions too. The good thing about is that if I do well as the course progresses and gain my mentor's trust then it'll be easier for me to get a gig with that studio or other ones as opposed to someone who went to a school and becomes a "gopher" before they can even touch the console. But most importantly, it's my foot in the door of the music industry and it'll help tremendously with the band getting a "break" as I'm sure to be meeting some interesting people...Lokomotiv, if you guys forgot.”

Speaking about Lokomotiv. The latest on the band is that they have finished shooting a video for the song “Five Alive” with independent director Graham Baglagon. The hard-drivin’ quartet is also fresh from headlining “Bottlefest” held May in New York and and “Film American Fun Fest” staged in Six Flags, Magic Mountains last month. In both Festivals, Lokomotiv saw action with other Filipino-American rock outfits. According to Gemora when I asked him on how he considered the Pinoy groups based in the States, he says “there is a small number of Fil-Am bands that are pretty good in terms of songwriting and performing. The others are just ‘run-of-the-mill’ types. One advantage of Philippine-based bands is the amount of support they can get. Over here, it’s just a small community of Filipino music lovers that you can expect support from. It’s even harder if the music caters to only Filipinos and if you deliver the songs in Tagalog. Then you’re only limiting yourself to that scene. That’s why Lokomotiv’s music will always be in English to cater to a universal audience.” Lokomotiv which will be recording a full-length studio album in September, features Basti Artadi on vocals, David Aguirre on guitar, Danny Gonzalez on bass and of course, Wolf Gemora on drums.
 

MIGUEL ORTIGAS

Miguel Ortigas is another rock brother we keep in touch with on a regular basis. Ortigas who migrated to the States last February used to pound the skins for Razorback, The Breed, Battery, The Blue Rats, Wally Gonzalez and DRT. Last April, Ortigas got to perform with guitarist Perf de Castro and ex- Teeth vocalist Glen Jacinto and bass player Peding Narjava, who are all based in the US. “I jammed last night with Perf, Peding and Glen at Zen Sushi in Silverlake and it was a blast!,” wrote Ortigas. “The crowd was shouting ‘Razorback, Razorback!’ when I got on and off the stage. Cool! 95% Pinoy crowd and it felt like home with them.”
Ortigas currently works for a real estate listing company in Los Angeles and is saving enough money so that when he jets back home, he plans to get married long-time girlfriend Trici Gomez, who sings for The Blue Rats and probably move to Australia together.

INTROVOYS

The latest on the Introvoys is that the 5-man pop rock group will be holding a reunion concert tour titled “A Brighter Day” which will officially begin on July 22 at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, California. The Introvoys will definitely be holding more reunion shows but no other dates have been announced as we write this. The Introvoys is composed of original members Jonathan Buencamino (vocals), JJ Buencamino (keyboards), Paco Arespacochaga (drums) and new recruits Jonathan Manuel (guitars) and Henry Abesamis (synthesizer bass).

From the End, A New Beginning
By Ramon Zialcita

Effective this month, Barbie Almalbis will officially embark on a solo flight. Barring any hitches, the former singer/ guitarist of Barbie’s Cradle is dead-set on opening a new chapter in her life.
The Roxas City native will be turning 28 next month and it might be the best time to test the waters as a soloist. Almalbis will be managed by Roca Cruz and Tommy Tanchanco of B.Live (pronounced “believe”) Artist Management, the same team that takes care of Kitchie Nadal’s professional career. Curiouslly, it is Tanchancho who discovered Almalbis when she was still with Hungry Young Poets (Barbie’s Cradle was shortly formed when HYP disbanded). It is interesting to note how the new management will fare in handling the careers of two artists who fall more or less under the same music genre. Prior to going solo, Nadal used to belong to Mojo Fly. Meanwhile, there is a possibility for the remaining members of Barbie’s Cradle to exercise the options of using the same band name with a new singer or fold it up all together. Barbie’s Cradle has released three studio albums- “Barbie’s Cradle (1999), “Songs From the Buffet Table” (2001) and “Playing In the Fields” (2003). This columnist was able to sit down with Barbie Almalbis for an exclusive one-on-one, no holds barred interview:

RZ: First of all, I would like to ask you what
happened? Why the break-up? Was this pre-planned?

BA: All this wasn't planned, it really caught everyone by surprise, including me...though when I knew in that I wanted to leave, it was without a doubt and it was something i had really prayed about so I let the guys know right away. My talk with Wyngard was a good goodbye. He understood the decision and didn't close any doors to working again in the future. It was really hard breaking the news to my bandmates though. We really had a good thing going on, musically and relationally we are stil going through the breaking up pains but they respect my decision. They're such great musicians and I know they'll do so well. The guys are still so professional about it though. We're still playing lots of gigs on our last month (June) and we still work as a team and have fun.

RZ: Did your fellow band members understand your
decision in pursuing a solo career?

BA: The plan to go solo was the second step. When i left, i didn't know exactly what i was going to do, then I hooked up with two long-time friends, Tommy Tanchanco and Roca Cruz, and we agreed that they would manage me. We were still thinking about whether I would do gigs by myself for a while or form a band or get session players ...all of this is actually still in the works.

RZ: Would you know what their plans are now that
Barbie’s Cradle with you in the roster has ceased to exist?

BA: I'm not sure if they're thinking of getting a new singer. I know they're also doing session work (gigs and recording) with other people.

RZ: Did your previous management arm (Artistation) have
anything to do with the band members going separate
ways?

BA: No.

RZ: Were you happy with the way Wyngard Tracy was
charting the band's direction?

BA: Yes. I think that Wyngard's team did a great job with Barbie's Cradle. We learned a lot from working with Artistation--musically and professionally.

RZ: How do you feel right now with the closing of the
chapter of Barbie's Cradle and turning the page?

BA: It's bittersweet because I'm still hurting from the change but I'm also already looking at the future.

RZ: So does it feel like from the end, a new beginning?

BA: Yes, it feels like a start.

RZ: How is your confidence level right now?

BA: Personally, it's tough to start anew and I feel so humbled by all this and the thought of the near future where I'll start to gig without Barbie’s Cradle, but my confidence is high on God. I know he'll take good care of the guys too.

RZ: What about the songs intended for the fourth studio
album of Barbie's Cradle? You have been playing some
of these during your sets. Will you be keeping these
songs for a possible solo album or will you be writing
new ones?

BA: We've all been writing new songs, so the guys will keep the ones they wrote. I could also leave some of the songs I wrote which we've worked on if they want to use them with a new singer.

RZ: Do you have enough material for a solo release?

BA: I might. I haven't gotten to that part yet. I'm still finishing school now, but I'm always writing and compiling songs.

RZ: Will you be hitting the studio, record and cut an
album or play live first?

BA: I'm not sure yet.

RZ: Your former bandmates- Kakoi Legaspi (guitar),
Rommel dela Cruz (bass) and Wendell Garcia (drums) are
such fantastic musicians. Do you feel you can round up
a cast of equal calibre or even better musicians to
back you up?

BA: To be honest, I am really a big fan of my bandmates, and I think they know. I'm just starting anew now, I'm not going to try to replace them or come up with another Barbie's Cradle, though. I am also looking forward to playing with great musicians.

RZ: What can you tell your fans and what can they
expect from Barbie Almalbis as a solo musician?

BA: Our fans are so loving and very very supportive. Some of them are sad about the change, but everytime there's a change, I am hoping that they could grow with us and also be excited about the new things. I'd want them to know that the break-up was truly not caused by a fight or anything negative within the band. We're really just walking into a new season in our lives and I'm hoping and praying for the best for everybody.
 

DAHONGPALAY refers to a breed of snake that is considered to be one of the most venomous in the planet. In English- A Ricefield Snake / "Green Snake". As per the Book of Snakes; A Dahongpalay can kill its prey two ways - 1) By its venomous lethal bite and 2) By a mere touch of its scales.  Wanna die in minutes? Go get yourself a Dahongpalay and piss the fuck out of it.I asure you, it will bring you instantly to a quick encounter with death. Who could ever forget Dahongpalay? Considered to be one of the Pinoy Metal Prime Movers during the early 90s when FM Station LA105.9 ruled the pinoy airwaves. Formed / managed by Rock Radio Legend Ramon "The Doctorâ" Zialcita, Dahongpalay really marked its venom to their audience and listeners during those times. After a few gigs and tons of radio airplay, the group earned the title of The Philippines's answer to Black Sabbath  and was even later christened as "The Philippines'Kings of Dark Metal".  The rest as they all say is history. The band has appeared in almost all of the compilation albums of Tone Def Label and in 1996, Dahongpalay released its debut album entitled "Kapatiran ng Bakal at Apoy" under a major label's Ivory Records. The sales of the album went up to gold. They also made a rendition of Florante's "Pinay" and was included in Ivory Records Himig Album 1 and gained a lot of airplay in LA105.9 and even other stations as well. After a long hiatus and after a series of member changes, The Kings are back and definitely back for good. Their return marked a series of gigs and events all over Manila and news in the Local Metal / Underground Community about their return spread like wildfire. They toured all Manila's Clubs, campus shows, out of town gigs, invites from friends and even became part of San Miguel Beer's roster of talents for their yearly Oktoberfest events. They have appeared in all of PULP Magazine's major events Pulp Anniversary Gigs, Freak Show in The Fort, Pulp Summer Slam 1(Fort) and Summer Slam 3(Amoranto Stadium) and Pulp Phenomena Tours. Pulp's venues cater to 30,000 - 50,000 people during the said events and whenever Dahongpalay plays, people tend to go extra crazy. The casualty rate is minimal though amidst all the chaos initiated by the Kings. A Metalhead was interviewed in one of Dahongpalay's gigs and we quote : - "It's a good thing Dahongpalay reunited. We really missed this kind of Metal Music"  Dahongpalay has just rounded up its 2002 EVILIZATION and EPIDEMIC OF EVIL 2002 Tours along with their co-family members in IRON FANG LABEL PHILIPPINES and FROZEN HELL MUSIC.They are currently doing their regular Club Stints, out of town gigs, campus shows and of course- NU107 and PULP Events. They are also in the studios preparing for their second album release in 2003 entitled XIII- (Thirteen) under IRON FANG LABEL PHILIPPINES. Catch them this 2003  in their  CHILDREN OF SHADOWS TOUR, FACES OF ROCK TOUR, and GODS OF METAL TOUR along with Dominion and other guest bands under S U B K U L T U R E. They have also played in Singapore's Raffles Stadium last February 2003 and  will be out  of the country again in August 2003 for they will be playing at Japan's yearly METAL FESTIVAL in Budokan  Hall, Japan. They will also be in Guam and Indonesia this year for a series of concerts promoting their up-coming album XIII. Dahongpalay is composed of three extra ordinary individuals hailing from different realms in the underworld.