It is nothing new when you hear some cranky old-timers complain on how Filipino music has never been the same. (Don't get us started again with the OPM: dead or alive debate.) How their generation had Freddie Aguilar or APO, or The Eraserheads. And the younger fans have sure been quick to defend themselves; they've had the likes Up Dharma Down and Franco, to boot.
OPM has changed, indeed. But today, OPM has also been more in touch with its past as it has been more open to budding young musicians of the future. One can produce his stuff inside a fully-equipped studio just as well as with a laptop, inside the four corners of his own bedroom. OPM now also has an even bigger audience with Youtube, Myspace, and most recently,
Radio Republic, all happy to be sharing and spreading their love for the gift of music.
Many artists have come to pass, but any Filipino would agree that nothing hits home better than some good ol' (and new) original Pinoy music. Zach Lucero (drummer of Imago, frontman of The Action Pact) shares his thoughts on why OPM has remained undeniably astig and very much alive through the years:
The Rockfest, Fete de la Musique, Malasimbo, Pulp Summer Slam, Muziklaban and MYX Mo. All these concerts pack in people by tens of thousands.
Just take a look at Lea Salonga, Apl de Ap, Charice, Arnel Pineda, and Jessica Sanchez— the list goes on. And not just in the pop genre, jazz vocalist Charmaine Clamor was able to garner international prominence in the mid-2000 and has been regarded as one of the best and most important jazz voices of this generation by critics around the world since then.
Folk music and dances—our musicality dates back to the earlier times that even if harana and kundiman are already generations old, our modern music is still very much influenced by the thoughts and feelings that go into singing Pinoy love songs. Sigh.
The band scene is healthy, vibrant and so alive! More and more bars—19 East down south, 70s Bistro and Freedom Bar up north, the legendary Mayrics, the popular Hardrock Café, the hip Saguijo, and the newcomer B-Side—that host live gigs for musicians, old and new, are fully booked all year round. We should be so lucky!