And She Said

May 15

[video]

Mar 25

[video]

Mar 14

sa panaginip (na) lang.  i first saw karl when my friend jet dragged me to a back to back gig with color it red somewhere on pasay road.  he barely had any tattoos yet and his band wasn’t that well known.  he was wearing a football jersey, stripes, red and black (or dark blue, bar lighting you know).  this was my first POT gig and was the beginning of fandom.  i followed POT around, as much as i could, as much as jet’s schedule would allow.  along the way i met a lot of well known musicians, but most of all, i longed to meet karl roy in person. tragedy struck and karl had to undergo a heart operation.  they held several gigs to raise money for this.  i wanted to pay for my ticket because it was for karl but russell told me there was no need to.  i told him i wanted to give my hard earned OT pay of P900 (back then it meant more than it does now) and again said that my support was enough.  i felt bad but didn’t argue. years passed and as my circle in the music industry grew, i finally got the chance to meet karl.  it was at mayric’s, one weekday gig, i think, and he was wearing one of his hospital gowns.  i was amazed at how small a man he was.  on stage he was bigger than life. fast forward to years and years later when i was tending bar at big sky and karl would come in late on a sunday night and order apple juice.  he had just finished rehab and was not allowed even alcohol.  once in a while that he would sneak a sip from someone else’s beer and smile at me with this twinkle in his eye.  more of a friend now than a fan, i’d make a face in disapproval. karl would always say “ate vi, sige na.” and it would start all over again. years later again, at third floor in katipunan, i would find myself in the same room as karl. i forget if it was some birthday thing or just tambay, but karl was there.  he was taking a nap when i arrived and i skipped the usual hello in favor of letting him nap.  by this time karl was back drinking full time.  when he woke, he stood up to greet me and tripped on something, hitting his head on the corner of a table.  there was my idol, my friend, standing in the middle of the room, blood gushing from his forehead.  we wanted to take him to the hospital but he refused.  andy and i had to make do with betadine and a tightly placed band aid.  after the bleeding stopped, he asked for my handkerchief saying “akin na lang ito ha. dugo ko yan eh.” my last encounter with karl was on kamias road. i was waiting for a cab and he happened to pass by. he stopped the cab to ask me if i needed a ride. i refused saying that i was going in another direction. (he was headed home.)  and, despite the honking of horns at the intersection, karl managed to “keep his composure” and insist one more time if i wanted a ride. i know i have many more small stories about karl.  they’re all mundane, nothing earth shaking.   in each he would be drunk or drugged up or high on happiness. didn’t matter then, doesn’t matter now.  all i know is that whatever it was, karl was karl. karl roy, wala kang kapantay. photo by bahaghari for rockEd Philippines.

sa panaginip (na) lang.  i first saw karl when my friend jet dragged me to a back to back gig with color it red somewhere on pasay road.  he barely had any tattoos yet and his band wasn’t that well known.  he was wearing a football jersey, stripes, red and black (or dark blue, bar lighting you know).  this was my first POT gig and was the beginning of fandom. 

i followed POT around, as much as i could, as much as jet’s schedule would allow.  along the way i met a lot of well known musicians, but most of all, i longed to meet karl roy in person.

tragedy struck and karl had to undergo a heart operation.  they held several gigs to raise money for this.  i wanted to pay for my ticket because it was for karl but russell told me there was no need to.  i told him i wanted to give my hard earned OT pay of P900 (back then it meant more than it does now) and again said that my support was enough.  i felt bad but didn’t argue.

years passed and as my circle in the music industry grew, i finally got the chance to meet karl.  it was at mayric’s, one weekday gig, i think, and he was wearing one of his hospital gowns.  i was amazed at how small a man he was.  on stage he was bigger than life.

fast forward to years and years later when i was tending bar at big sky and karl would come in late on a sunday night and order apple juice.  he had just finished rehab and was not allowed even alcohol.  once in a while that he would sneak a sip from someone else’s beer and smile at me with this twinkle in his eye.  more of a friend now than a fan, i’d make a face in disapproval. karl would always say “ate vi, sige na.” and it would start all over again.

years later again, at third floor in katipunan, i would find myself in the same room as karl. i forget if it was some birthday thing or just tambay, but karl was there.  he was taking a nap when i arrived and i skipped the usual hello in favor of letting him nap.  by this time karl was back drinking full time.  when he woke, he stood up to greet me and tripped on something, hitting his head on the corner of a table.  there was my idol, my friend, standing in the middle of the room, blood gushing from his forehead.  we wanted to take him to the hospital but he refused.  andy and i had to make do with betadine and a tightly placed band aid.  after the bleeding stopped, he asked for my handkerchief saying “akin na lang ito ha. dugo ko yan eh.”

my last encounter with karl was on kamias road. i was waiting for a cab and he happened to pass by. he stopped the cab to ask me if i needed a ride. i refused saying that i was going in another direction. (he was headed home.)  and, despite the honking of horns at the intersection, karl managed to “keep his composure” and insist one more time if i wanted a ride.

i know i have many more small stories about karl.  they’re all mundane, nothing earth shaking.   in each he would be drunk or drugged up or high on happiness. didn’t matter then, doesn’t matter now.  all i know is that whatever it was, karl was karl.

karl roy, wala kang kapantay.


photo by bahaghari for rockEd Philippines.

Mar 12

the-absolute-best-posts: a perfect gift for any one of The Ronnies.

the-absolute-best-posts:

a perfect gift for any one of The Ronnies.

Feb 21

crow's feet: "The World is a Beautiful Place" by Lawrence Ferlinghetti -

callhergreen:

The world is a beautiful place
to be born into
if you don’t mind happiness not always being so very much fun
if you don’t mind a touch of hell
now and then
just when everything is fine
because even in heaven
they don’t sing all the time

The world is a beautiful place
to be born…

my favorite from coney island of the mind, followed by i am waiting.

Feb 19

the-absolute-best-posts: A Chinese proverb says an invisible red thread connects those destined to meet, despite the time, the place, despite the circumstances. The thread can be tightened or tangled, but never be broken.

the-absolute-best-posts:

A Chinese proverb says an invisible red thread connects those destined to meet, despite the time, the place, despite the circumstances. The thread can be tightened or tangled, but never be broken.

(Source: georgiabrokensmile)

Feb 13

Theme?Yup! is back! first of this year’s theme night productions at Route 196.  not only do we have four great bands, we’re giving away a lot of stuff from PULP Live including 2 upper box B tickets to Cyndi Lauper LIVE!  not bad for a come back gig… and a shameless plug!

Theme?Yup! is back! first of this year’s theme night productions at Route 196.  not only do we have four great bands, we’re giving away a lot of stuff from PULP Live including 2 upper box B tickets to Cyndi Lauper LIVE!  not bad for a come back gig… and a shameless plug!

Feb 12

bravo, ms. houston. we will always love you.

bravo, ms. houston. we will always love you.

(Source: suicideblonde)

Feb 11

[video]