A Conscience Left to Struggle... - The Strike interview

One of the gems of my old zine was an interview of an American band that was ( in my view ) slowly gaining ground in the international music scene back then. I forget how or why it came about it, I sent a letter to their address one day and thankfully, they replied and that was it. I really thought back then that they would be causing quite a stir as they played a pretty catchy/melodic style of mod/punk, a kind of that 70's sound that never fails to perk me up, plus me mga torotot sa ibang mga kanta nila which is a huge plus in my book. At that time, the video of their song  "Shots Heard 'Round the World" was doing the rounds and it was highly representative of their brand of fist raising, upbeat and left-leaning music. The song is inspired by the Haymarket affair and the video starts off with a shot of the August Spies / Haymarket Martyrs memorial where the following quote can be read:

      "The  day  will  come  when  our  silence  will  be  more  powerful  than  the voices you are throttling today." 

...be a martyr...get a monument...1887 Haymarket Martyrs Memorial from findagrave.com

The Pinoi Connection

No, this is not about our el presidente and his lame nickname, though I would have to admit, this is also about another Aquino ( not her either! ). Whenever I watch interviews/documentaries about the early American punk/hc acts, I notice that most of these groups, if not all, often mention this San Francisco club where they used to play back in the day. Jello Biafra fondly mentions this club in his interviews about "the good 'ol days". The name of the club, as you may well know by now, is The Mabuhay Gardens ( or in Jello's accent, it's Ma-bu-heey ). When I first learned of this, I immediately thought, hmmm teka, malamang pinoi me ari neto, para namang me iba pang linggwahe sa mundo na me salitang "mabuhay". And indeed, it turned out, the Mab ( as it was known ) was once owned by a certain Ness Aquino. Together with Dirk Dirksen, promoter and emcee, they hosted in the 70s, some of the more important names to come out in punk/hc like the Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, the Screamers and  the Ramones. I believe the Sex Pistols weren't able to play at the Mabuhay, Winterland ung last gig nila and it was SF where they broke up, but the fact that they were there in the area probably had something to do with the gestation of it all. Akalain mo yun?

Makati's Burning!

Tug-Pak-Tug-Tug-Punk # 2
July 5, 2013 - Saguijo, Makati

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I haven't watched a local punk gig in a very long time. 90's pa when I last witnessed a gathering of pinoi punk heroes. And if I remember correctly, kasama Philippine Violators sa lineup and Bad Omen too. Before the gig proper, I met this kid while loitering outside the venue. His name was "Gin", like the drink, and he  basically gave me a rundown on the city and the surroundings. We went to the gig together but when the doors opened we somehow got separated as the crowds came rushing and pushing in. And so I watched from the sidelines of the Pasay City Sports Complex as the critters came in and nearly tore the building to shreds. I remember being scared but exhilarated at the same time. I don't recall how the gig ended, it just somehow did amid the broken bottles and thrown monobloc chairs on the hardwood floor. I felt very strongly then that this shouldn't be how things should be and that was it for me.