AFTER a successful one-night concert back in 2022, six of top Filipina rock singer-songwriters are reunited for a repeat performance.
Having first gotten together for TANAW, Acel Bisa, Aia de Leon, Barbie Almalbis, Kitchie Nadal, Lougee Basabas, and Hannah Romawac have joined in a formal collective for the Tanaw: The Repeat concert. The six OPM icons share the stage of the Newport Performing Arts Theater in Pasay City on Feb. 9.
These women have been collectively shaping the Pinoy rock scene for decades, with careers spanning time with some of the top bands of the 1990s and beyond and their solo work. Now they make up the Tanaw Collective. As a supergroup, they hope to explore “collaborative music releases, live performances, and other creative projects that amplify female voices in the music industry.”
They are set to release their first official single, “Landslide,” on Jan. 31. A stripped-down, soulful reimagining of the Fleetwood Mac classic, the song was self-recorded by the artists and mixed by Angee Rozul.
COLLABORATIONFor Ms. De Leon, their collaborations have been a result of jamming at each other’s houses, and not a strict schedule or deadline as was the case in the early days of their careers.
“We’re not high-maintenance. We understand the silence, the gaps in between. We’re moms now. And we have our own circles,” she said during a press conference on Jan. 22.
“The things that matter don’t always fall under the spotlight,” she added, reflecting on her time as the lead vocalist and guitarist for Imago. “The spotlight is a lie, traveling from one place to another at breakneck speed.”
Ms. Romawac, known as the vocalist and rhythm guitarist for sessiOnroad, said that the six of them forming a collective was a natural move to “experience the creative part of music.”
She explained that they are “there for the friendship,” as well as the creative environment. “It’s a pool where everyone can dive in.”
“We really support each other. When we each release music, we give comments and promote each other’s work,” added Ms. Bisa, who was the former vocalist of Moonstar88.
Back in October, she held a farewell concert alongside her solo album launch — as a last hurrah before she migrates to the Netherlands later in February.
“I already have a [plane] ticket,” Ms. Bisa said. “These girls pushed for another Tanaw. They said we should have one before I leave, so that’s why I pushed my flight to a week after the concert.”
GETTING OLDERFor Ms. Basabas, former vocalist of Mojofly, fans can expect interesting arrangements of their beloved songs as well as their new ones, with the Manila String Machine providing an orchestral twist.
On their rendition of Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide,” she said that they would often get emotional while singing the lyric: “But time makes you bolder / Even children get older / And I’m getting older too.”
Despite the melancholy of aging, the six remain excited by today’s local music scene. Among the young female artists they hope to collaborate with are dwta, Ena Mori, syd hartha, Keiko Necesario, and Clara Benin.
The title of their concerts and their collective, TANAW (which translates to “gaze”), reflects how they aim to fulfill a dual purpose: to reminisce, and to look ahead.
Ms. Almalbis recalled how, when they started out, it wasn’t as common for girls to carry guitars to school and jam out as it was for boys, something they are proud to see has changed.
“When we all started writing songs in our teens, it wasn’t a means to an end. We didn’t want to be famous. We just wanted to make music. Then, suddenly it became a job,” she said.
“We always go back to the reason we make music in the first place — for the sheer love of it.”
Tickets for Tanaw: The Repeat concert are available via https://tanawtherepeat.helixpay.ph. — Brontë H. Lacsamana
