BEAST JESUS

Beast Jesus is a four-piece chaotic hardcore / progressive metal / punk-rock / shoegaze /alternative rock /internet-core band hailing from the Philippines. They were formed in early-2016 by Francis Maria (guitarist/front man), Raphael Pulgar (guitarist), Enzo Zulueta (Bassist), and Josh Crae (Drummer). These meme digging, cat loving, genre-bending band members are from other bands like Disquiet Apartment, Joop, Game Theory, Ang Bandang Shirley, and Caitlyn Bailey. Maria, Raphael, and Josh of Caitlyn Bailey then added one more member (that is Enzo) for their new band , Beast Jesus. Imagine a shark drowning in a whirlpool while an orchestra of M16’s, Jets, and Hacksaws plunging right in the whirlpool. That whirlpool becomes this bowl of gory, brutal, dark material spreading in a sea of local music.

Growing up, I began listening to tons of black metal and sludge metal (very heavy music in general) in middle school; these albums include Liturgy, Behemoth, Dopethrone, and Deafheaven. Those entry level records eventually led me to rant and rave about the band that is Beast Jesus. I loved black metal for how extreme and heavy they were. I mean, who in their right minds can combine several genres in one track? Well, the answer to that question is their challenging and almost alienating material have been marked as one of those bands that are hard even to categorize or that doesn’t need a label to be called in a particular type of genre. With or without the typical ‘indie’ or ‘alternative’ tropes/banner that are waved around them.

Beast Jesus is the type of band that shouldn’t be called “innovative” or “new” by listeners who are laying at the surface of local ‘indie’ music or being called “fresh” by their peers. I would rather say that this band coupled themselves with formidable struts of sound and noise with other norms of music in general; which will result in getting their audience alienated for that matter. But these guys don’t care if someone says that they ‘defy’ the laws of physics in their music. There are still some good arrangements that can be found in their material.

Their debut EP, “In Various States of Disassembly” (2016), is an EP that needed to be discussed by the way it was structured. Insert the words ‘extreme’ and ‘heavy,' the EP switches from hardcore punk to chaotic metal to noise-rock to shoegaze to alternative rock. I can go and on and on and on talking about their first release. It gets crazy by the minute when listening to their headbanging masterpiece that is their ‘Disassembly.'

The band’s lyrical content is their bread and butter. With lyrics that lament about loss, grief, and hopelessness. There is subtlety when talking about this band’s material. The music you hear is getting its parts being split by machetes that are coming out of the sound monitor. And the next thing you know, this band becomes a high adrenaline thrill ride in a blink.

I can compare their second EP titled Eros Obfuscate (2016) to a nuclear blast. The EP didn’t feel like an EP at all. It had only one song on it, but the length of it is right around 17-minutes. And those 17-minutes were unforgiving and full of hel… pure destruction. I cannot explain this much context to Eros Obfuscate’s material that much. So please don’t kill me if I am not able to provide that much background information and points to why Eros Obfuscate isn’t an EP for everyone but it can be appreciated for how impressive it was. I still find their first EP to be a classic regarding crafting the sound to perfection.  

Beast Jesus can do whatever they want; they have the complete freedom to recreate whatever output they wish to create. Letting it fly while carrying a hodgepodge of music elements that come in each of their member's different backgrounds. Therefore, you get this product of music that was executed very well albeit disparate musical influences. In the current point of this band’s career, they’ve shown so much memorability in their music, and savagery through their Facebook page (we all thought that this was a meme page). Beast Jesus is an amalgamation of genres that succeeded in the past 20 years. Thank God for the Best Jesus.

I heard that their latest record would be different. Classic Beast Jesus always ready to surprise us. Hope you guys check out their other material!!  

IN VARIOUS STATES OF DISASSEMBLY (2016)

EROS OBFUSCATE (2016)

Moscow Olympics

Here they are, the forerunners of the indie scene in the late 00’s are here! You guys don’t know how much I've been waiting to archive this band for a long time. Moscow Olympics is special, and they cut the world for their incredible music and talent! This entry got some requests even before the Kitchen came to fruition. Because of the requests, it’s no sweat that we will summarize this band’s entire discography, but the endless amount of praise this band will get is innumerable.

(If there is more than Moscow Olympics’ usual discography; like unreleased material, unearthed songs that were not noticed on the internet, you can always add more stuff to this entry. Thank you. )

Moscow Olympics is a four-piece dream pop/indie rock band based in Valenzuela City, Philippines, that formed around 2006. Their music blends fuzz-heavy guitars, smooth songwriting, faint vocals, and the hazy atmosphere that surrounds their records. Combine everything, and you’ll get a recipe for endless bliss and astounding piece of music. In result, they’ve gained the attention of not only dream pop/shoegaze fans here but overseas as well. The band opened for Radio Dept. back in 2011 at the Hard Rock Cafe Manila

A few footnotes of influences have left me wandering around my mind when listening to Moscow Olympics; the melodic bass lines of Joy Division, the dreamy wall of sound of Radio Dept (wink! wink!), and the musical, rose-colored sky production of DIIV.

A music blog back in 2007 described their music as a "Blueboy leaping from the clouds and snogging The Wake in the sunset while drifting down over the Oresund bridge." Whatever that means, it sounded like the perfect description of the band’s sound.  

Their only album “Cut the World,” which was released in 2008 is a modern classic. One of the greatest shoegaze/dream pop albums of the decade or possibly of all time. Every track on that album featured easy and catchy tracks like “No Winter, No Autumn,” “Second Trace,” “Carolyn,” “Cut the World”, and their iconic dream pop anthem, “Still.” Their guitar scales compliment the wall of a sound this album embodies. Not to mention, the technical drumming in every track matches the mood of Moscow Olympics’ weather forecast.

This band helped shape the sound of indie music in the Philippines. Their album “Cut the World” is evidence on how to correctly craft dream pop music. Their limited edition material, which was released under a French record label featured additional songs in the post-Cut The World era that also includes a remix of their track, “Keep the Avenues Open.”

Moscow Olympics aren’t the only ones who are in the shoegaze/dream pop scene here in the country: Bands like Sodajerk, Outerhope, Sonnet LVIII, and Candyaudioline are the great founders of the flourishing indie scene of the early 00’s. Most of the mentioned bands above are either inactive or still running but have a different lineup of members. The question though remains, when will Moscow Olympics come back?

Since they began, many local music fans are going crazy seeing them live. The band is known to perform in gigs in rare occasions. It was a treat for indie pop scene kids who were able to catch them live in shows. They eventually stopped playing shows around 2011-2012(??). It’s present day 2017, and longtime fans and colleagues in the indie music scene have been praying for another one night only performance of this band. Moscow Olympics are the missing link the indie scene, and the indie scene needs Moscow Olympics.

The impact of Moscow Olympics has spawned a large number of bands like Beast Jesus (preferably their track Double Tuck), Atomic Sushi, Identikit, Na Mo, sleepersecond, no rome, just to name a few. Not only they kept the presence of dream pop active, but they strengthened it for future generations that inspired many. 

Click the image for all y'all guys to be automatically directed to the albums/tracks!!

Still (7" Single)

Author's note: The "Still" image link doesn't work. Go here instead: https://soundcloud.com/jeromevelasco/moscow-olympics-still

Cut The World (2008)

Youtube Full Album Stream Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYeT6FP_J6w&t=105s

Reprise 

+ Keep the Avenues Open (Magnus Wahlström Remix)

Alphonsine

Irrevocable

Irrevocable is a five-piece midwest twinkly / emo / alt-rock band from all parts of Metro Manila. Each of their members is also in bands such as The Oemons, Neverdie, Nyctinasty, Beast Jesus, Disquiet Apartment, and Browse In Bridge. If you’re a fan of the organic sound of “The Emo Revival” in the States, this band has got you covered.

What I can come up with describing their sound is a mix of Cap N’ Jazz’s energetic and almost haphazard instrumentation, and Algernon Cadwallader’s reckless tone and dynamics. Irrevocable will make you channel your inner teenage self that used to hang out on the balcony and let out the frustration to the world by screaming on the top of your lungs.

Their frontwoman Lenian Gaspar (from the band Browse in Bridge) contributes to a more ‘angsty’ element once joined in Tani Carińo’s (Neverdie, Small Hands, Lindenwood, and much more) moody guitar riffs and Josh Cræ’s (Beast Jesus, Disquiet Apartment) high-speed drumming. We’ve seen our favorite emo/post-hardcore bands come and go, but this one fits right in the bill of the revival, and Irrevocable still manages to pay respect to their punk roots; especially when the emo music we know and love are rising once again and has a change of pace stylistically.

Their only single that was released online titled “Night Shift” has that “Midwest” flavor as it progresses into this noodly mess of a masterpiece. I saw this band in The There’s No “I” in Tim Benefit Gig two months ago. From the moment they blasted their twinkly guitars, I was stunned by how a local band can quickly capture the sound of Midwestern Emo music in the United States. I will likely get to see this band live for the second time in Turnover Live at the GT-Toyota Asian Center in UP Diliman. They’ll be opening for the Virginia-based band along with other bands like Beast Jesus, Luncheon, Outerhope, and much more. I can’t wait for the commercial and more surface leveled kids to know what Irrevocable has in store. 

Irrevocable - Night Shifts

Irrevocable - Where is Home

Irrevocable - Come Out of Your Room