raincontreras.com | one pinoy pundit points and shoots

Before I write about the gig of the year (for me, anyway), two things. One: this is very, very late, but please welcome me to the already long list of LCD monitor owners, since my LG CRT monitor conked out mid-week, after a pretty dismal 3-4 years. Got myself a Viewsonic VX1932wm-LED the day after. Two: took a 5 hour commute to Tagaytay for my college best friend’s wedding last Saturday, and settled on the idea that I will spend the entire day there, since no one else from our circle of friends could make it. All it took was a cheek-kiss, a congratulations, and a hand-in-hand gesture after the church ceremony saying, “I have to go.”, and I was excused.

See, I had to be at the Shonen Knife concert.

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I’ve rendered myself in inactive gig photographer mode for the last half of 2008, with very few exceptions. However, this based on this lot of 15 photos (arranged by date [earliest to latest]), I didn’t think I did badly.

Brigada

Descant Gott

Chubibo

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Armi of Up Dharma Down

I said this back in 2005:

Up Dharma Down’s current single [Maybe] is good, and frantic with energy. The rest of their stuff sadly doesn’t deliver as much.

Then when Fragmented came out, I was abroad as an OFW, so I settled for one of those mp3 copies you can find over the interwebs. I proved myself wrong about my previous proclamation, forced the officemates to listen to ‘Oo‘ (which they dismissed, but got into when they became aware it was popular back home), and have made it a point to watch the band when I get back home, and yes, get a copy of their cd.

Despite their current mass appeal, I still don’t think Up Dharma Down’s music can really be that much of a major draw in the local music industry. When I got to hear their newer songs live, I honestly believed the next album would be a stretch for your casual OPM fan. I loved where they were going, with the swirly shoegazing, and post-rock power, underlined with sort of drum programming that recalls recent Radiohead. It was clearly undeniable that this was a music collective that may be too massive, too complex, not enough pop to it. I didn’t factor in Armi Millare’s singing in, because that’s one factor a listener can’t help but be in awe of; even if pogi-rock followers say her singing’s just too odd.

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So I did go out last night.

Been a month since the last gig I shot, and the chance to cover Jack TV’s Boombox event again this year was tempting. Last year’s photos were not bad (see ‘em here), and I’m sure to get good stage lighting.

Taken By Cars at Jack TV’s Boombox 2008 event

Also, I was itching to test the Takumar 200mm f/3.5 lens that Mari Arquiza (aka redsago) gave me, along with her high school camera, a Pentax Spotmatic with a Super Takumar 55mm/f1.8 lens. Both lenses come in the M42 mount, and I already have a lens adapter for my ancient EOS 350D DSLR camera, so these vintage babies did come to a more than willing daddy to adopt them.

And there goes the challenge: can I cover a multi-band gig fiddling with the focus ring from start to finish, since Auto-focus was absent in the test lenses?

The answer: Yep.

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I’m counting my last weeks in the morning shift. ARGH.

So despite the fact that most of the people in my social networks in Twitter and Plurk went to gigs last Friday, I went on a Saturday. And I really think the only thing I missed is not seeing those people, and not the bands that night.

Duster

Anyhow, I went to Big Sky Mind to watch Ang Bandang Shirley, Duster, and a few other bands I don’t know. I only did get to shoot the aforementioned bands,

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