I had previously heard of them, of course. “They were former members of 90s cult bands Pedro’s Cannabis, Jamox and Pound Yard.” “Their Music keeps you off-balance.” “The chord changes, pare…unpredictable!” “Better than anything Radiohead has done since O.K. Computer.” “The true sound of urban decay.” I found all of this hype a little hard to swallow…especially considering that this was an unsigned band that had yet to produce an album. But in the minutes leading up to the count-in of my first experience with The Christmas Lights…I don’t know…time just seemed to stop. The band nervously shuffled around the stage, checking the temporary rigging of a (gasp!) megaphone. There was a muted chord here. An abrupt drum roll there. All in front of an expectant crowd that seemed to be waiting for a bomb to drop. And then, without much pomp or circumstance, it inevitably DOES.
By the intro of the second song, I was scribbling frantically on a purloined note pad. I found myself, embarrassingly, coming up with my OWN hyperbolic statements. Shit like, “true ambient Music!” “Nick Drake resurrected!” “Too beautiful to be grandiose!” “Full of sage observations!” And, invariably, “I wish I had the goddamned lyrics sheet!” To be completely honest, I didn’t know whether I wanted to blow my brains out or jump for joy. The Music was just that VISCERAL. The session keyboardist, under strict supervision, punched out anything from white noise to diffusive, atmospheric chirps. Basil Silva’s Matt Cameron-esque drumming patterns were sinister gunshots resonating through saGuijo. I could almost feel Niño Valmonte’s acid-blues guitar leads melting the skin off my ugly face. Ross Pleyto’s percussive heartbeat of a bass run nailed the band, and the crowd, firmly onto the floor. And lead songwriter Ponchie Buenavista’s vocals and fretwork? Brutal. Carnal. Positively intense. He didn’t PLAY that guitar. He WRESTLED it into submission. A cold sweat formed on my panicked brow. There was NO WAY I could hope to write a “traditional” profile for The Christmas Lights. I’d come off sounding like a pretentious dick…not that I usually don’t…but this was different. It was something I couldn’t put off. This was a band that NEEDED to be heard. Right now. And I realized that my words would pale in comparison to their own:
Chris Carlos: Okay…I need to ask: how did you come up with THAT particular band name? Do you realize what an utter act of futility it was to try and “google” info about your group?
Ponchie Buenavista: We thrive in relative obscurity, I suppose. The name was an accident. I was in the office with my sister and, in the midst of my musings of how perfect a gig would be if we had Christmas lights and go-go dancers, she (obviously not paying attention) blurted out: “What? Pangalan ng banda ninyo ‘The Christmas Lights!?!’” It was a eureka moment. Now, if you want a more profound answer, Christmas is the happiest season of the year (except for Goths) yet it’s also the time where statisticians see a rise in the incidents of suicide. Finally, it’s just a name. I mean, I’m sick and tired of “tigas” names for a band. Y’know, it’s like having to name a superhero nowadays! I just wanted a name. It’s better if it sounds stupid. I want people to realize that it’s not about the name or personalities…it’s about the body of work. If you heard the name “Smashing Pumpkins” before hearing the songs, you probably would’ve laughed!
CC: “That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet,” huh? Point taken. Moving on. Tell me about those first gigs as “The Christmas Lights.” Any battle scars?
PB: We were poorly received. I don’t know whether the music is too obnoxious or we’re just terribly unmarketable (more so the latter, methinks)…but it never really affected us. Ross and I agreed that there could only be two reactions – either the audience loved it and applause would fall from the heavens or the audience would be too dumbstruck or pissed off to generate any reaction from them. Anything in between would be unacceptable. We don’t want sympathetic clapping.
CC: It can’t have been as extreme as that! Granted, your Music is a little unapproachable as compared to, say, The Killers or a Maroon 5. But, in my opinion, this is simply because the “sound” you guys create is so…ummm… “intellectual.” Did any of you major in Fine Arts, Literature, Philosophy or Music by any chance?
PB: Neither of us took up those courses. None of us studied Music and theory. I DID love reading books, though, and I DID revel in the drama of my life during the time those songs (on the website) were written. If you are really into the moment, you’ll come up with something. At that time, I was reading a lot of Neruda, Rushdie, Hesse and Gaiman’s graphic novels. My main Bible was Kahlil Gibran’s “The Prophet” so that’s how I got the ‘language.’ I also watched a lot of X-Files.
CC: Speaking of influences, you and I have bantered about bands we love on previous occasions. You’ve mentioned The Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev, Sparklehorse, Jane’s Addiction, Porno For Pyros, Mogwai, Sigur Ros, Jeff Buckley and Radiohead, among others. Watching you guys play live, I’m also detecting a bit of The Cure, Nine Inch Nails, Pink Floyd, The Who, Belle and Sebastian and The Velvet Underground. Am I talking out of my ass here?
PB: All the bands you mentioned have a connection: me and Ross. We grew up with New Wave. We love New Wave Music as much as we love the new, obscure “alternative” bands so it comes out in our songs. Robert Smith is one of my guitar heroes…never technical…always about the song. I spent six months listening to NIN’s “The Downward Spiral” when a family member of mine passed away. I love reliving Pink Floyd’s psychedelia. I think bands should trip out on their stuff more because it has so much audio and visual power. Did you hear Radiohead and Sparklehorse’s version of “Wish You Were Here?” Stunning! I fell in love with my girlfriend after she made me listen to Belle and Sebastian’s “Seeing Other People”…which is my paradigm for the ultimate piano-driven song…a sort of Vince Guaraldi Trio style. Pete Townshend continues to be my hero for songwriting. I guess I was lucky to grow up with brothers who had a “combo” during their days and a family who genuinely loved Music.
CC: I’m a Music snob…Angelo is a Music snob…and, from the influences you cited, you guys obviously are as well. Are you ever afraid that your Art will alienate more “casual” listeners? The people who listen to Music just for pleasure? If performing is supposed to be a two-way conversation, just WHO is it you are speaking with?
PB: But what’s a Music snob anyway? I don’t think you and Angelo are Music snobs. You guys know your Music and you know it very well but you NEVER stopped anyone from getting into the stuff you like. A Music snob, to me, is one who is selfish about Music. “I know a lot of good stuff and you don’t.” You and I have never put ourselves above anyone. We’re just more adventurous. But I’m not afraid of alienating people. It’s all up to them. If they can keep an open mind, they’ll learn to like or hate it. Music has always been personal. Every musician, I believe, writes for themselves. It’s probably to deal with something or to recall a moment. The listener just happens to find something in the song that they can relate to so it becomes THEIRS as well. But the songwriter should never set out to write something with the audience specifically in mind. Music and performance? It’s just like painting. You do a painting and you show it to people and you go, “so what do you think?” But you can’t paint something with people telling you, “hey, put this color here” or “hey, put that image there.” You go up onstage, you play, and then you telepathically ask: “So what do you think? But I really don’t care.” We’re making Music for ourselves and we’re talking with ourselves. The audience is an incidental jury.
CC: That’s a pretty brave thing to admit. Do you ever foresee a time when you would make concessions to a more “masa” crowd? That is, would you sacrifice originality and integrity…“tone things down”…to appeal to a larger audience?
PB: Sadly, no. Unless they gave us three million dollars (dollars ha, hindi pesos!) EACH… and throw in four Natalie Portman clones (the “Leon: The Professional”-era Natalie Portman, not the “Star Wars”-era). Besides, it’s so hard to write a Tagalog song. Every suit will tell you to make one so you can sell, but it’s so hard. I mean, I speak in Tagalog everyday. Malutong ang Tagalog ko. I don’t use the soft “r” to make my Tagalog showbizzy. ‘Di ako conyo. But it’s just so hard. Every time I try to write one, it just ends up sounding so contrived.
CC: I know a LOT of “ethnic” sounding bands that would take exception to those comments you just made. So let’s just tackle that issue head-on. If some Pinoy Rock veteran called you a plagiarist and accused your work of being too “western,” how would you respond?
PB: I would tell them I never bothered to comment on THEIR Music before…I just listened and enjoyed. But I DON’T want to sound that way. I grew up on The Who, Genesis, Bowie, Steely Dan and even fucking Guns & Roses. Of course it’s gonna come out in what I do. The problem with “serious” veteran bands is that they’ll say new bands are emulating western sounds…but then if the new bands stop doing that and start emulating THEIR sound, they’ll say naman that the new bands are plagiarizing THEM! Basically, they just want the whole scene for themselves. I hate politics. There’s always politics in whatever we do here in The Philippines. Puro tirahan. And the worse thing is, they can’t say it to your face. They always say it behind your back and when you’re face to face na, it’s “uy, galing-galing!” Me, I’m a fan. I love all bands. I love watching them. But here’s the bottom line: every band, every single one of us, famous or obscure, copied from someone. We all had idols. We’ve all heard some album and decided, “oooh, I want to make Music like THAT!” To pattern oneself after something is not a bad thing. I mean, one should even ADMIT it because you’d be giving tribute to whomever that influence is. The whole point is to admit it and give credit where it is due. The only big sin is ripping-off a song entirely.
CC: O, sige. MY opinion is that you guys are a one-off at the moment. Nobody sounds quite like you do. But what if some “gaya-gaya” band emerged and plagiarized YOU?
PB: If by some strange occurrence somebody DID plagiarize us, I really wouldn’t mind. But I’d be a bit disappointed because if they did copy us, then they would have heard us somewhere. So where were THEY when we were playing gigs? If there was a band that I’d copy, I’d go watch them! If they DID watch us, then why didn’t they applaud? I think the real problem with the scene is not that it’s small, but that (certain) bands have become so full of themselves. There’s no more unity. Whenever we play with other bands, we always stay to watch them. All these new bands split the moment they’re done playing. Either that or they stay outside and buy balut. It’s kinda crappy. There was this one time at saGuijo…it was my birthday…we were playing this incredible set, connecting and chatting with the audience. The air was electric. I was totally feeling it. When suddenly, before the last song that we were really psyching up for, this long-haired Chewbacca comes up to me and goes “ilang kanta pa kayo?” Jesus, wait yer fucking turn! Ruined my wave. One of the motivating factors why I would want to record an album is for us to get a little credit for the sound. I’m very sure that in a few years, there will be a band with the same vibe as us and they’ll be famous because they have a good-looking singer or something. At that point, I just want people to say, “Oh I heard a band. I forgot their name. But they were making stuff like THAT before.”
CC: Breaking Musical boundaries DOES seem to be your calling…your modus operandi. It’s a little sad to think that most of your audience hasn’t even been BORN yet. What do you think?
PB: I don’t think we really matter much in Pinoy Music. I don’t believe we have an effect. But we do what we do because I think people should allow their minds to roam. Bands have a duty, if they want the scene to thrive, to keep pounding new ideas into the audience. We have to force feed them to people so that they will realize that there is more amazing Music out there…like Daydream Cycle or Severo…to enjoy than just yer usual “sounds like Led Zep na Pinoy” or “New Wave” or “ang cute ng singer” or “nakakatawa sila sobra” thing. The Pinoy audience must be allowed to mature. Bands should reinvent themselves as often as they want to guide their listeners to new paths and, thereby, open the scene up for struggling bands to come through. If bands don’t, then we ALL might as well write funny songs, sell tons of records and grow old looking like fools.
CC: So how DOES it all start? These songs obviously mean a lot to you. But where is it all coming from?
PB: As I mentioned earlier, they are, normally, instances in my life…and maybe the Discovery Channel. I find it hard to write about other people’s experiences. I like to observe and live vicariously through other people’s lives…but I’m a bad storyteller. I can see a girl riding a bike and I’ll put down that imagery in a song, but it will still be about me. ELY BUENDIA’S Music was so great because he could tell a great story. HE IS THE REAL TUNESMITH OF OUR TIME. He’s our Lennon. Songwriting can also be triggered by a great song I might hear. I’ve also realized that it’s easier to compose when you’re depressed. It’s so hard to write a happy song. I’m in a relationship that’s going well right now. I’ve got a small business that’s going steady. I’m learning to surf. I’m playing gigs with bandmates that I have a good time with. In short, I’m kinda happy. So it’s not surprising that I’m experiencing a god-awful writer’s block lately.
CC: Ouch! Anyway… “Art for Art’s sake” Ponchie?
PB: It is as it should be. It’s like poetic license. You can do whatever you want because it’s Art. If you’re making Music, you must…MUST…consider it as Art. So let it go! Don’t start thinking of money kaagad. Don’t worry if what you make sounds strange the first time you listen to it. Music, painting, poetry…Art…the whole point is to give people something new or something different to listen to. All great artists…and leaders, for that matter…never really thought of the people when they did something. They never thought, “oh, the people would like this.” No. They just thought, “I believe THIS to be right and THAT wrong.” They stayed true to their vision…to their convictions…after which, the people came to a realization and followed them.
Fine words indeed. And something we ALL will have to think about for a very long time. The funny thing is that I’m not particularly surprised as to the depth (and philosophical implications) of these answers. Art is merely a reflection of its creator. That’s just the nature of The Christmas Lights’ Music…unexplainably DEEP. And not in any elitist way either. Hell, I can take a tape recorder, step outside my apartment, and “capture” the sound of a dog urinating on a Sunday morning…slap some drum loops on that motherfucker and call it “Piss Piece.” I would be hailed as an avant-garde genius! But that would be too easy for Ponchie and his cohorts. Much as he claims that the audience is a secondary concern in the creation of his work, he is NEVER arrogant about it. What scares people about “experimental” Music is that it keeps its listeners at arm’s length. It’s like an in-joke that very few are privy to understanding. THIS stuff, meanwhile, embraces us. Case in point: I attempted describing to my girl what it was about The Christmas Lights’ Music that so fascinated me. Needless to say, words failed my normally loquacious tongue. I sat her down in front of the laptop and brought up the band’s BRILLIANT website. Being believers in “open source,” their Music was ready to be downloaded at no fee. She didn’t seem to “get” it. Disappointed, I went outside and smoked a cigarette. A few minutes later, I walked into the kitchen…only to find her singing the chorus of “It Only Takes A Day” as she pulled something out of the fridge. The catch, of course, is that she absolutely DESPISES “experimental” Music. The Christmas Lights? They’re something else.
To quote one of Ponchie’s favorite shows, “The truth is out there.” I would go on record as to say the “truth” is in each of these songs. What sets these tunes apart is that they are never presumptuous enough to impose THEIR own “truth” on ours. Meaning and message? We find them on our own. This is Music with which to climb Mount Everest. For when you dive into the deepest abysses of the Marianas. As you spit off the Eiffel Tower. Trudging through Bohol’s Chocolate Hills. Or even sitting at home on a rainy day. Its complexity is such that you “find” something new with every “listen.” It builds up to a crescendo so completely thrilling that you don’t know where it can possibly go. You are assailed by such a marvelous mixture of feedback and silence that finding a resolution seems impossible…and yet there it is. But don’t take MY word for it. You have to hear it to believe it. And when you eventually find your own “truth” in these songs, the knowledge will be sublime. Stark. Absolute. Pure.
-C.C.- |
