Practical and daring acts of musical reinvention

By Nickie Wang /Manila Standard Today
15 July 2008

Reinvention is the word that best describes the reappearance of a prominent rock band, and the daring move of an artist who attempts to make a solid niche in the world of music. Battle-scarred Rivermaya, with new vocalist Jayson Fernandez, bounces back with a new album entitled Buhay, and Nancy Jane spruces herself up as the queen of Philippine house music with a self-tilted album. Turn on your CD player and let’s listen how they justify the word reinvention.

New life for Rivermaya

It became difficult for the rest of the members of Rivermaya to resurface on the music scene after losing front man Rico Blanco and being dropped by its record label. But, with a televised search for a new member, the band showed it was hell bent in reclaiming its position as one of the country’s prime band, even without Blanco.

Buhay may be the affirmation of the band’s continued existence, but it does not really equal the level of artistry of the previous albums (with Blanco still with the band) it had released. Take “Nice To,” the album’s opening track, as an example. Obviously, the vocals is not impressive even for a rock band. But for those girls who have seen Jayson Fernandez, they will insist that he is more than just a pretty face.

Fernandez’s raw, albeit unemotional style, works though with the other tracks in the album. While “AM” sounds as a good jingle for a toothpaste commercial, listeners will get bored with “I Want You,” “Pure” and “All For You.” They sound nothing more than the ordinary, and don’t have any of the elements that can easily attract our attention. The impression they make is they are love songs but they are actually to say something else.

Rivermaya, instead of narrating what it had gone through, switched to a more positive attitude, and that is evidently reflected in the lyrics of most of the tracks in the album. “Ligawan Stage (Nerbyoso Part 2)” is one catchy track, so is “Sugal ng Kapalaran,” which in a way comes close to the level of musicality of band’s pre-Jayson Fernandez phase. While it poses questions that we normally ask ourselves, the track has an excellent intro, not to say the imaginative arrangement. This also goes the same with “Closer” and “Maskara.” The first sounds like bubble gum rock, but repeated listening tells us that it is mature enough for many people to appreciate. The latter hinges it on simple arrangement, just drums and guitars.

Other notable tracks in this post-Blanco album are: “Checkmate” that resembles the sound of a British rock band; the classic- thudding “Restless”; the proud and confident “Hindi Ako Susuko”; and feel good “Piping Tom.” The track “Kemikal Reaction” gives the album a different flavor but somehow sounds not so like Rivermaya.

It’s interesting for ’Maya to come up with something slow yet still support its identity as a rock band. “Alone” is perfect example. It is the longest track, also the most emotional and quite a nice companion piece to “Sleep,” the album’s last track.

Who’s that Jane?

It’s Nancy Jane, and this year, as far as reinvention is concern, she is the only person to change her image with a certain degree of success.

Nancy Jane Castiglione wants to prove that she’s not just a pretty face.

With a self-titled album, Nancy Jane gambles to explore an ocean other artists would never dare to sail on. So, she comes up with a pure House Music album. House Music as defined by Answers.com, is a style of electronic dance music strongly influenced by soul and funk-infused dance music style of disco.

For those who have heard and seen “Love Song” in YouTube, they would agree that this song was made especially for Nancy. It’s not as impressive as the other tracks in the album but it creates a certain appeal that defines her reinvented image.

Opening track “Deep Inside” is unmistakably a club sound but this is a kind of music club-goers don’t actually listen to. It’s one of those tracks played by DJs to patch up dead air. “Attraction/Connection,” just like the previous track, doesn’t offer anything notable aside from collecting all the words in the dictionary ending with suffix “ion.” “My Perfect Diet” could somehow attract listeners with its title alone but it would disappoint you for it doesn’t offer something special.

Rivermaya’s former vocalist Rico Blanco lent his creativity by providing the music and lyric of the song “Control,” which has two versions in the album, the other one is from Leon Chaplain. “Control” mirrors Blanco’s ingenuity. The track can be arranged to perfectly suit other genres. Chaplain added digitally produced sounds to give the track a more vivid club essence.

If Beyoncé can convey to her audiences her being a strong and independent woman through her single “Irreplaceable,” Nancy Jane has her own version of women who can survive without men—“Without You.” Men would really run after her when they hear “(Driving Around) So Good Together” but they really go wild upon hearing “Moonlight Mood.” “Moonlight”… is perfect club sound for it can create a romantic midnight mood through its sensual lyric and innocently sexy vocal style.

Other great tracks to listen to are “When You Play Around,” “Hold You Close” and “Rock It.” Listen to them once and you’ll forget about Britney Spears. “Hold You Close” is a very sexy sound. Contagiously dance track “Rock It” proves that Nancy Jane can compete in the international market. Her vocal resembles that of Kylie Minogue’s.

It’s all praises for Nancy Jane. House Music in the Philippines has a very narrow target market and she is so brave to release this kind of material. Don’t be surprised if you would hear her tracks being played when you visit clubs in Singapore or Thailand, because her new image and sound simply resonate with international appeal.