Good day to everyone! I have been a member for years now but I just drop by once in a while to look for gear. I recently stumbled upon an old thread that was actually dedicated to discussing my guitar skills and was surprised, amused, and had all sorts of reactions. Wow! You guys were actually talking about me, and some were even fighting hahaha. Anyway I know that this was a long time ago but I just wanted to say thanks to those who appreciated my work and also to the people who gave criticisms, constructive or otherwise. I would like to say that everyone is entitled to his own opinion and that Im not offended. I will take your advices as we move along to wherever our band takes us. I would also like to make a few points regarding issues that caught my attention.
I love playing the guitar and it has been my passion for the last 20 years, 16 of which was spent as a "proffessional" playing in a "proffessional band" no matter how "amateur" we may sound. I don't brag of any guitar mastery, I just love to play and I translate into the guitar melodies I feel will spice up a song.
These are what some of you said:
constipation:
Ok naman siya pero masiyadong pangkaraniwan parin eh, nakakasawa mga licks niya tunog pang-kanto( you know what i mean) i think kulang sa research.
- Yes you can define my sound as "pangkanto" because that's where I came from, and that's what it is. I play by ear. Im not schooled in music and I know none of your arpeggios and legatos and your circle of fifths. I play for the satisfaction of my own ears and my bandmates and not for the approval of guitar gurus, supersonic shredders, and critical know-it-alls...
constipation:
...Tingin ko din marami pang kakaining bigas kung magsosolo career, i doubt na magsolo ito.
- hindi ako kumakain ng bigas. sinasaing ko muna para maging kanin. eh ikaw, palay pa lang... anyway kun magsosolo ako hindi bilang gitarista, kundi bilang pornstar!
Geronez:
Ako din naman hindi ko sya gusto, pero sana hindi ito maka offend sa kanya... ako man din ay hindi sure kung gusto ba ng mga nakikinig ang music/style ko.. di ba?
You can't please everybody....
-tama!
grasyaps:
...plenty of us wouldve chosen to be famous, playing what people want to hear (april boy is famous too) and then have girls and money. but plenty of us also are in for the sake of music, not for the frills.
- I don't think you can CHOOSE to be famous. Ano ka, sinuswerte? Ako oo. sinwerte lang ako. But I gave it my all and no one can take away my integrity. I don't have the skills but I have the passion, and music is my way of life.
guitarwiz02:
It all boils down to talent and creativity, imagination so to speak. No matter how dull or simple a song is, if you're a consummate guitar player, you can just go wild with your guitar lines and still make it sound brilliant. I think Darius lacks creativity and imagination that's why he loves to play it safe.
- I believe my creativity and imagination suits our kind of music just fine. How many songs do you think have we recorded in more than 10 albums for the last decade and a half? 200? maybe more... most of em had solos if not all. Yes Im not flashy and my tone is raw, but I think I did good a good enough job because we are still here. Im still here!
guitarwiz02:
Take the band DaPulis for example... this band used to play corny/ funny or masa songs just like PNE. But the band's guitar player, Jay, was creative and bold enough to shred the hell out of his Ibanez over a very simple song and made it fit.
- Every band has their own sound that defines their own music so I think you just cant compare. I dont need your intergalactic myxolidian sweeping modes because Kurt Cobain made it with the basic major scale and his power chords. No offense to Da Pulis, I know them personally. My tone may be raw and my fingers may be slow, but that's how I want it to be. I think people appreciate them. I bump into people who don't recognize me but whistle the melodies I created. How many people can actually claim that?
Several comments focused on the issue of my tone and the sloppy intonnation of some of our early material. I apologize for that as we started recording while we were still trying to learn the basics of our instruments... and we still are. Through the years I hope we sounded better but if you think we did not or if we proggressed minimally please dont hate us. We are not proffessionals in the specific sense of the word. We are just regular guys lucky enough to play our own kind of music. And we are proud of it! We enjoy what we do and for me, anything beyond would be trying too hard, hypocritical, and just not us! I don't dream of being great. Im actually living my dream right now, for quite some time now actually, and maybe until we're lolos I wouldn't mind do'in the same lick in Buloy...
Thanks for all of the other appreciative comments! I hope I did inspire beginers and slowhands out there that we can make it big with just "tunog kanto"... maybe even bigger than nathanmanansala's fast shredding hometown hero who blew my ass right out of the water.
Wag na nga naman mag away sa mga forum na ganito, Meron may ayaw at meron may gusto. Ok lang yun. Let us respect the differences in our opinions and just support OPM in our own ways. Peace and Rock n' Roll!
Darius Semaña