It has been an amazing week for the music scene in Mindanao. Trending.ph supports local artists and these artists from Mindanao have been going in hard with their new song releases over the weekend that we want to show how much we’re loving them. In fact, we have to delay this article just to squeeze one more release earlier this week, and boy, was it worth it!
1. Marckenny – Turn Back Time (Independent)
Genre: Acoustic Pop/Folk
Everything about it is *chefs kiss*. From its inclination for simplicity is beauty and endearing lyrics, to its instrumentation, and Marckenny’s sweet, sweet, earnest vocal delivery of any of those lines. This is a singer-songwriter through and through. As much as anyone might be comparing it immediately to his possible influences (Ed Sheeran sure comes to mind) he wears it in his sleeves and he wears it well. It also comes at the right time, especially now in this pandemic that we could sure need a cozy blanket of a song while we’re being introspective in isolation about where things are going.
2. Reversed Time – Y ARA (Warner Music Philippines)
Genre: Indie-Pop
And speaking of cozy, Y ARA’s latest single “Reversed Time” works well as well for an intimate night sound trip or a late night joy ride. Whichever works for you, you can’t go wrong with Y ARA with that. It doesn’t stray far with the duo’s last efforts, especially on “Be The One”, yet somehow reminiscent of adult contemporary ballads from the 90’s like Lauren Christy’s “Steep” and Selena’s “Dreaming of You”, but reworked for today’s musical sensibilities. Gillian’s voice is alluring as ever over this laid back track.
3. Byahe (Hunyo) – Kyle Raphael (VIVA Records)
Genre: Acoustic Pop/OPM
Coming off right after the soulful “Paraluman”, Kyle Raphael this time is back in his element as an acoustic balladeer. It’s a sorta follow up to “Buwan Ng Mayo” (“Month of May”) from last year, another month themed song. This easy going track is aptly named, as it wouldn’t feel far off on a long cross country bus trip playlist (preferably around afternoon, when the shadows of trees blurs past you), regardless of the sad, sad twist at the bridge.
4. Kalawakan – Paul Pablo (Warner Music Philippines)
Genre: Pop/Synth-pop
Paul Pablo, has been consistent with his releases so far. It’s definitely a great follow up from “Bangin”, this time working with 3AM lead singer Kyle Pulido along with Jhey Ehidio from Y ARA (who produced the previous single), to come up with this out of this world synth-pop song. Paul Pablo’s musicality is something to look out for, no doubt. He picks out his collaborators well. 3AM and Y ARA’s fingerprints are definitely recognizable in the record, while making sure Pablo’s sound takes front and center. If any one of the burgeoning local artists of today know what a groovy bop should sound like, you can definitely rely on Paul Pablo for that.
Overall, it’s a great week for releases. Trending.ph would love to make this a regular thing. Help us improve and serve better by giving your thoughts in the comments. If there’s any news regarding the music scene over at the south side of the PH, let us know in the comments, or feel free to message us!