heart on sleeves and rusted strings : An intimate gig in Ateneo part 2

As promised, here are the last two winners of the music review contest in that Journalism class of Mr.Rick Olivares. We always find it fascinating how young minds, with all the distractions of technology and borderline attention disorders, be able to sit for 30 minutes of overly sensitive pop songs from a whiny, beer bellied man. Turns out, they are more perceptive than one can  expect. Read on and enjoy!

Pop Rebellion and Pink Targets

By: Lou Callet

At a time when some « Free Tibet » T shirts’ owners ignore Lhassa’s location, amazing coherence between Ahmad’s tee-shirt and his performance couldn’t remain unnoticed.

While Ahmad Tanji is singing, Che Guevara looks straight at the audience through a pink gun target. “Rebel” is printed on the South American icon’s face.

Before performing Ahmad warns the audience about the difficulty to classify his music, it can be named “ indie pop, or new wave pop. Let’s call it pop music,” he simplifies.

“Reality comes with the season/ It’ll still be all right/Tonight, oh oh tonight/Oh Liza”. One feet on the chair, Ahmad keeps his eyes closed when he speaks to Liza. Over the course of the notes, he puts her minds at rest. She’s 24, she’s virgin, she’s worried about a possible first kiss tonight. Ahmad’s large hands on the acoustic guitar stand in for his shut eyes. First chords call the next ones to create a flowing pop melody. « I tried to put myself into a girl perspective, » he explains. And when the soft voice jumps to high pitched tunes to reach Liza’s minds, a part of the audience imitates Ahmad and eyes close by themselves.

Through his pinkish pop target, Ahmad points at the weaknesses of the Filipino relationships. This young wavy long hair man proclaims his commitment to romance and love. “Courtship is dead as far as I can see,” he says with a large smile before to hurry Rowena. “If u wanna love him then go/ it may hurt sometimes, then it’s part of the show/ come on, it’s your time to score”. In a society that can sometimes appear hooked to some established principles about love and relationships, freedom and spontaneity desires can be read by some in the lyrics of Ahmad.

This singer easily crosses the wide spectrum of pop’s repertory to reach the folk side. “Baby, you’re going to hell/ how wish you would be ready/ why can ‘t u change for me.” This exclusive song is a straight dive to a male perspective. The voice gets some groovy accents to beg the song inspiring girl to be less reluctant. When he is asked if this song is inspired by a friend, he artfully answers that it is actually an “ex friend”. Liza, Rowena, Nikita- singer’s favorite song- Ahmad is surrounded by people in his lyrics as he is in his musical creation. At the beginning only written by the singer, songs are now cosigned by all the members of Your Imaginary Friends-the band in which Ahmad is the regular singer.

“Hello, we are Nice !” “Hey, they are Nice !” The explanation of their first band’s name idea makes audience laugh. “We are Your Imaginary Friends”, the joke still works and it perfectly highlights their musical creations. Through those songs, the audience feels as meeting the friends of those buddies from Bicol.

From his friends as from his daily life, Ahmad extracts and creates the best instant feelings and ideas to put it … inside his phone. “My cellphone is really important, I have a special folder” where he takes notes to feed his lyrics creation. “Yes, they know,” Ahmad promises with a smile. The smile becomes mischievous when he precises that songs are presented to their inspirational friends when they are completely finished.

“Filipino are addicted to melody, they forget the importance of the lyrics”. For him, lyrics come first. This psychologist graduate definitely value pop’s credibility by his sensitive analysis of Human’s minds. Aware of writing’s importance in his life, it was not a surprise to discover the name of his two kids tattooed in Arabic script on Ahmad’s arms. He is actually half Palestinian. No one in the audience dared to ask if the singer had found a long run muse.

At the end of the performance, Ahmad leaves discretely the room while the Che have a last severe glance at the audience. Is Ahmad a pink rebel? Audience will be the only pop revolutionary trial.

article found here: http://thesteaklibrary.blogspot.com/

Imagine

By: Stu Balmaceda

When I asked my professor who was going to perform and found out that the lead singer, as well as his band, plays amongst other indie artists I recognize, a sense of anxiousness mixed with the right amount of curiousness kicked in. Ahmad went in smiling, he was excited and all the more confident. Judging from his appearance, it seemed to me that the dude has game, he’s legit but I had to lower my expectations just so I wouldn’t be disappointed if ever what I was about to hear isn’t my type. Well, I had the right choice of lowering my standards and the wrong choice of not knowing about this person and his band until I heard him in that conference room.

He played unplugged, sang without a microphone and used his leg to rest his guitar. That seemed independent to me and as the saying goes about the essence and rawness of an acoustic performance, it brought out his true form as well as the music that came through him. Ahmad possesses a cold-clean voice which is very much appropriate for the type of music Your Imaginary Friends creates. The 80’s in him was evident in his voice as well as in the melody and the well thought out meaningful lyrics. Indeed, I heard the Morrissey in him as he sang, but of course, a more modern one. Being an 80’s and a New Wave fan made me value this.  I was also reminded of Orange and Lemons and The Camerawalls which, of course, are both local and claim that the 8o’s has played a big part in their music as well. I’d like to think that the music Your Imaginary Friends play can somehow be serious and moody, as I have heard “Oh Liza”. It can also be playful though, despite the lyrics. Basing on the second song, “Baby You’re Going to Hell”, this was possible. Listening to Ahmad also gave me this feeling of being in a very steady and lazy atmosphere. It’s as if you’re so slow but at the same time your surrounding is moving otherwise. It made me feel like I don’t want to get up and all I wanted to do was just to think about all those moments that I still wish could have happened. If I may give it a definition, I say I had a feeling of playful melancholia.

I give high regard to music, whether it makes me feel ecstatic or nostalgic. Listening to Ahmad’s performance made me realize once more how much I love new music and how much I appreciate this way of self-expression. I was there once, and even though at that moment I missed performing, being a spectator still is one of the best positions a person can be in. I put my hands down, kudos to Ahmad and Your Imaginary Friends for making me feel once more, that if you can’t be the one creating music anymore, being a part of the crowd, appreciating the scene is still kickass as I have imagined.

article found here: http://kentuckyfriedveins.tumblr.com/

the mandatory class picture!