BULLET DUMAS
Usisa
IS it possible to shake, rattle and roll with an acoustic guitar? In Bullet Dumas’s hands, his strums alone induce a variety of emotional responses. He can start a tune quietly, then with soaring vocals and surging chords, displace the initial quietude into agitated zones of disquiet. Aided by electric guitars and a versatile drummer, his songs easily move from ethereal and light, to dark and heavy within the same track.
Plug-in lyrics that that seem personal on first hearing… But over the course of the song, it reveals a biting commentary on the state of things around us. Dumas shows himself to be more than capable of shaking, rattling and rolling as your favorite indie rocker.
Bullet ushers the listener to familiar territories: falling in love, living in difficult times, etc., and somehow his way with words render these terrains new again, alien even, so we can view previously recognizable situations with fresh quizzical eyes.
The title track begins in a serene mode, referencing: “Makuntento sa huni ng ibon…” then by the fifth minute, Bullet scats, “Ayaw mong labanan yang kapangyarihan at kalapastanganan, ayaw mong makita ang nabigong panata…/ Ang bansa maging mausisa, ang panggahasa ay lumalala.”
In “Umpisa,” he asks, “Kung nanatiling walang pakialam kahit na pilitin ang nakaraan/ Pinanghahawakang pinagkasunduan, anong kahihinatnan?” Indifference as a personal disposition seems to get projected as general apathy to communal compacts and by extension, those that bind a nation.
Both the music and lyrics conspire to burrow deep into your memory. “Usisa” could have been a batch of tender love songs, but Dumas and his electric compadres chose to put them into overdrive and the resulting psychic turmoil leaves a lasting impression.
LENSES
Sequence
SOME people label the music of this four-piece Pinoy act as “indie jazz.” Well, it’s indie only because their new album “Sequence” is a “DIY” project and not produced by a mainstream record label. The band plays jazz only as a belated local tribute to smooth jazz once uncharitably described as “fuzak.”
Some professional aesthetic is actually at work on the album with regard to high fidelity and refined production values. As such, the songs come out cool, crisp, luscious and totally entertaining even on crappy speakers capable of recreating images of a casual jam in an elite bar with a view of Manila’s fabled sunset.
That’s not to say the band cuts their music from the same cloth as the spineless side of ‘70s fusion jazz. Opening track “Nasanay” is as soft as smooth jazz can get and there’s a hint of the venerable Michael Franks in the vocal delivery. The next tracks kind of repeat the easy and mellow mood with enough varying elements mostly in the guitar playing and piano textures to prevent the album from falling into the “sameness” trap.
Quiet storm is a new term used to describe post-smooth jazz-soft rock, and Lenses’ music may be a reflection of this trend though from the sounds of Sequence, they’re too laidback to rock any pre-millennial boat.
THE BUZZER BEATERS
Something to Look Forward
SKA from Laguna! The 16-legged rhythm machine that’s The Buzzer Beaters are up to the same trusty tricks and manners that have powered similar groups from Jamaica to London town, and the look-back doesn’t hurt because the Pinoy band is in full control from start to finish.
Their debut EP cobbles together six original compositions and a remake. Despite its legacy influences, there a few notable things happening on this short set. “Pag-asa” shows off its punk undertones and its main challenge, “Subukan mo lang ako,” can hardly be interpreted as a love cry. Pop punk gives “Ingay Ng Mundo” its edgy moments and its sing-along lyrics carry a whiff of either loser mindset or suicidal tendency. Beat-happy What I Really Need revives ‘60s garage rock in riffage and light-headed lyricism.
Last track “Kahit Maputi Na Ang Buhok Ko” is simply an unfortunate choice for a ska makeover. Sharon Cuneta’s major hit song seems too stuffy to give in to the wiles of fun-loving indie lads.
RIVERS & ROBOTS
Discovery
THE previous recording from this UK worship band is an instrumental marvel of post-rock restraint. The trio loosens up a bit on their latest release and in openly giving the highest praise to God, the band from Manchester, England puts out a well-crafted album with variety, chops and conviction in pop-rocking for the Almighty.
Their name comes from combining the acoustic (e.g. river as a natural element) and electronic (i.e. robot). Within that electro-acoustic setting, lead vocalist Jonathan Ogden adapts singer-songwriter empathy to his husky muscular voice while his instrumental companions bring new levels of excitement in connecting mind, body and spirit. Collectively, they deliver an addictive rocking concoction without beating your head.
Best of the lot is Call Your Name, whose warm positive vibe can very well be an ode to anyone’s lifeline other than God: mother, father, wife, husband. Satisfy is a pop ballad whose cadence and lyrical motifs can be transposed to a personal communication of gratification. A funky undertow lifts up Provider from generic lounge music with snatches of electric guitar counterflow added to the mix. In Brighter Than The Sun, a woman’s warble helps Ogden send the song to a joyful consummation.
Worship music is a well-trodden tradition, and Rivers & Robots provides an inventive concept that aligns hymns of hope and salvation with contemporary musical climes.
Rivers & Robots will bless the faithful in a one-night engagement at Green Sun, Makati City on November 23.