TURNOVER LIVE IN MANILA 7/14/17
TURNOVER LIVE IN MANILA 7|14|17
Sleep walking along with 800 people may seem a little bit silly in words but east coast band Turnover combines different elements of Alternative Rock, Dream Pop, and Punk music and turns it into something special for every listener in the planet. What you get is that you weave through the atmosphere of Turnover while closing your eyes is almost super natural. Their self-titled debut EP (2011) was proto-pop punk to some. The EP includes the hit single, Sasha, Turnover were making a name for themselves in the pop punk revival that was happening in their home state. Their first album, Magnolia, was technical and it became an instant favorite among fans and dubbed it to be one of the most underrated albums in 2013. Raving about their technical performance, magnetic songs (Most of the Time, Seedwong, Wither, Shiver), and overall sound that becomes an inception of their second release and surprising change of direction, Peripheral Vision (2014). That was the first album I ever heard from Turnover. I instantly gave in for how awesome it sounded. The album boosted Turnover’s career by doubling the ethereal guitars (Diazepam), ambient production (Cutting My Fingers Off, New Scream), and simple but infectious choruses (I Would Hate You If I Could) into something we couldn’t imagine from a Pop Punk band. Run For Cover records’ role models are in a world tour to show their magic on stage in front of thousands and thousands of fans and non-fans of their music. And by the end of each night in their long but fruitful tour, everyone was leaving with smiles on their faces.
Sleeping Boy Collective aren’t the usual “prod” or “org” that puts out shows and gives everyone what they want. Sleeping Boy Collective are opening doors for not just a punk community, but for all communities in the music scene. Unifying every element of sound in one night. I usually come across as a skeptic when seeing a mixed bill of bands where each one performs in a different type of genre, but my goodness Sleeping Boy pulled it off so well, it even exceeded my expectations for how a small group of aspiring artists and musicians can hold up their biggest show yet.
There are no genre boundaries shown in the event. All of the six local bands that performed went side by side and provided the best of what they have in front of a massive crowd. Most prods whom I seem to observe nowadays are following the trend of what’s sick and what’s hip, they even invite bands that they don’t mind researching about. Local prods that have a diverse lineup aren’t done by the way how it should be. Consistency is what they have but most ‘orgs’ today haven’t perfected the execution of actually putting up a good show. What’s important to most bighead prods is the name and the status. For me, Sleeping Boy Collective isn’t all about popularity contests and who rakes the biggest numbers. It should be about the community and how they manage to welcome everyone who supports the scene.
Turnover arent the only ones playing for the night but six bands in different backgrounds play their cards in 6 songs or more. One is a classic pop punk band from Bulacan, the other is a dreampop duo which are the most celebrated acts in the independent music scene, and one is an OG manifesto of rage and good influence punk band from Cebu City. It’s almost epic in proportion if you think about it. But you’ll be surprised by the turn out.
Beast Jesus were the ones who opened the night and welcomed everyone with a brash and violent set that was too delicate to those who are new to their internet cloaked monstrosity. They played two brand new tracks from their upcoming EP which is slated to release later this year (and I hope the boys won’t release the material by the end of the year so they won’t fuck up my year ender list). I can assume that their new songs were a little on the side of black metal, which features spastic screams and heavier weights of noise, guitar, bass, and drums which made their first EP, In Various States of Dissassembly, looked like a warm up release. No signs of two-stepping yet since people were stuck on traffic in this time of the evening, but I was stuck and dizzy from headbanging to their set.
The second to play are the ‘indiemo’ kids from Marikina, Luncheon. The feeling of having your band opening for an international act you actually adore can be batshit insane and anxious at the very moment. Luncheon has those same feelings towards playing for Turnover at that night. They showed their usual playlist of songs (in which you guys should definitely check out after reading this) and the twinkly guitars that sparkled everyone’s emotions in the front row. Toshi and Raphael’s back and forth vocal work and tandem are keeping the tone stable as their drummer, Yosh, maintained their heavy sound into something that are both enjoyable and relatable to younger audience. With hand waves and constant shouting of defending Pop Punk to its core, Luncheon definitely saved pop punk.
Pop punk from the north, Stoplight Go. Made it halfway through the night with their sonically pleasant sound of easygoing music. Was a pleasure seeing them play live right in front of a big crowd. Since they’ve been playing for quite a while, they definitely deserve to open up for Turnover. Wasn’t really that much invested by their performance in my opinion. I guess I got a little bit of Typecast vibes in it but I’m really happy that they got to show their talent in riff writing, and showmanship.
After a 30-minute recess, twinkle town heroes, Irrevocable, followed with their energetic blast of Glocca Mora and Snowing. Most of the crowd were new to the style and I couldn’t get myself over for how jumpy they were and unsteady but melodic in a good way. Their set was decent, had not much to say since the gigantic sound was so overwhelming for me to hear.
Dream pop duo Outerhope then came along with a set that I really enjoyed in a while. My first two encounters of the band didn’t really excite me that much. First was in Mow’s where their set was too long and had a bit of a technical problem, then second was in the Ang Bandang Shirley’s Favorite Album in Pasay, where their sound was too muddled because their performance was an open field and it was outdoor performance. I prefer their music to be in a intimate setting but my god my doubts on seeing this band again live disappeared on that night. Not only that they changed their setlist and excluded their old songs but their synths, samplers, and drumpads sounded amazing. The sound engineers really did an incredible job tinkering the sound and the levels of Outerhope’s transcendental effect on most dream pop weavers. It really is a treat standing right next to the speaker, even if I was close to it, I can still hear the instruments meld together harmoniously It really did save the ambient production beautifully in their forthcoming album. Really great that I never dozed off their set. Looking forward for their upcoming comeback album, Holiday.
Next up are Cebu City’s finest punk band, Tiger Pussy. These guys know when to start some heat in the venue once they got on stage. Hardcore punks stormed the front as they were setting up. I had the urge to become that wild and crazy guy that I am in hardcore shows and it is finally coming out once Tiger Pussy laid down fire that was setting on stage (not literally but you get my point).
Everyone was joining in the circle pit, I even had a few friends who even participated for the first time( and even tripped for the first time) and I cannot forget that moment where Tani Cario himself stage dived and disappeared in a black hole. The non hardcore punk people joined in the mosh. It came to my senses that some of the people who I moshed with a while back tried to convince the crowd as hard as they can to join in the fun. And well well well, they actually joined in. A few of the audience stayed on the side as quick as they can to get away but not that they can avoid a random crowd surfer who can aim anywhere on your path.
Tiger Pussy’s set was quick but it was long as it can get for people to huddle together and express their frustration in the world. This is what Tiger Pussy are good at; Their plain notes and guitar riffs can count as dance punk to some but the fiery bass and drums followed up on their frontwoman’s fierce and charismatic presence makes up for a goddamn awesome performance.
The last and definitely not the least, the band that everyone came out for, Virginia USA’s very own Turnover let the crowd know what’s up in a stellar 10-song set. The band are currently touring around Asia, announcing that this show was their biggest one yet. I was proud and I almost came to the point of fainting by the time they opened their set with Cutting My Fingers Off. The crowd remained calm but they collected their voice box to singalong to the lyrics as loud as they could. Everyone was waving their hands and all but when it came to the last couple of songs (which were Hello Euphoria, and their encore, Dizzy On the Comedown) the crowd used all of their energy for the night and formed a giant mosh ball of feelings as they try to reach to the top of their lungs. The band ended their set short as everyone expected. We’ve been crossing our fingers to a Magnolia but we’re also sure that they won’t play it due to some reasons and experiences the band wanted to move on to. Nonetheless, Sleeping Boy Collective put up one heck of a show. The real heroes aren’t just the ones who played up front but the ones that organized it. The show became a home for every walking human being who are passionate and enthusiastic to see their favourite band, whether it would be an up-and-comer or an established artist. Seeing all of them come to life in a big stage is almost surreal.
Thank you Turnover for coming over to the Philippines and props to Sleeping Boy Collective. See you guys in future gigs and events! <3 <3 Xoxoxo
PHOTOS BY THE LOVELY ELLYZA SARANILLO CUA <3