SLEEPING BOY COLLECTIVE PRESENTS: CAVALCADES X BRUISED WILLIES
Cavalcades (UK) - Live in Manila After a successful show that brought fans in utter joy as they jump around to the tracks of Virginia dream-punk quartet Turnover, and it seems like Sleeping Boy Collective isn’t resting from their biggest show to date. Yet they are still bringing in bands coming from different parts of the globe, showcasing their pieces of music and whatever they have to present to the Philippine crowd.
It’s not just one international act that Sleeping Boy Collective brought this time, those bands are post-hardcore four-piece from Scotland/UK Cavalcades and punk band from Singapore, Bruised Willies. but there was a double headliner in three shows in different legs of their tour. Although, this isn’t the first time Sleeping Boy Collective put up a show that headlines two bands. Having a fair amount of knowledge of who these bands are and their origins intrigued on how these guys will sound like live. I guess from what I know of bruised willies is that their frontman is a member of the now-defunct Singaporean punk band The Caulfield Cult. While the main headliner of the evening, Cavalcades, are heavy as ever and are very likely to encourage you to bring a box of Kleenex while hearing their material.
It’s quarter to 8, I arrived semi-early to the venue only to find out that there were waiters of Kowloon who were bringing the tables outside. Most of the attendees, collective members, and even the bands themselves faced the heavy Payday Friday traffic. Making me and my photographer (JLE Music), the early birds of the night. It took them two hours to set everything up. As I patiently waited, the show started around quarter to 10 and I am pumped as ever even if they were 2 hours late. I did a quick rundown of SBC to my photographer since it’s his first time in a hardcore gig.
Starting up the show was the melodic hardcore band, Lindenwood. The guys put on show their own brand of melodic hardcore tinged alternative rock. It wasn't the first time I saw them live. And this was those rare instances where a band I saw for more than a couple times, made me appreciate their live performance more than their recorded material. [Their album by the way which is titled Steady Lives, is a terrific piece of heavy music, but it didn't bring much heaviness as it did in their gigs]
The attendees were scattered around the venue, some of them were staying on the side while they stare on the performers. I, on the other hand, occupied the central part of the floor, I enjoyed the rest of the night flailing my arms to the beat of the hard-hitting drums. The sound system was solid and loud, probably the loudest I have experienced in Mow’s Bar.
Sound Architects were my second favorite performers of the night. Their ginormous wall of sound was striking, blow-by-blow, and whopping as a four-piece band. Witnessing a post-rock act perform in their most intimate show yet is necessary to cross out of your bucket list. The gods of post-rock, Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Mogwai, would be proud of these guys right now.
Third to play were Rizal-based metalcore band Cadenzabler. I wanted to point this out before I go in the band, the drummer here is freaking fast and agile. I am not kidding. I would like to commend the drummer of Cadenzabler for putting up a very consistent play on the band's music. While that happens, the frontman's visceral screams brought so much to the band's intensity. Cadenzabler's music was abrasive, everything from the vocal work, the drums, and the guitars, it all looses control. Cadenzabler might literally sound 'insane' to hear live.
Up next is pop-punk/twinkle-core band Neverdie. Same with Lindenwood, this band took me a while to appreciate and I am happy to finally enjoy these guys in this show. If anyone asks what Tani Carino band I go for in 2017, I would pick Neverdie because, well, I am a sucker for twinkle-core bands.
The fifth band to play for the night are Olongapo City melodic hardcore kids PALEPATHS. I've been waiting to see these guys live outside of their hometown, their performance was on par with the local performances of the night. Their own version of melodic hardcore didn't impress me that much live but it did show dynamic power and that alone made me smile on how young these guys are making effective hardcore music.
The night then proceeded to the main headliners of the show, and the first of the two headliners to perform are Singaporean punks Bruised Willies. The trio were the standout band of the night. Their heavy display of classic pop-punk and sprightly energetic performance was amazing to see live. They performed almost every song in their entire discography, and up until to this point, seeing Bruised Willies live didn't feel like 30 minutes at all and I insisted to hear more of their stuff live but that's the joy of pop-punk. Catchy and spectacular, Bruised Willies fit the bill in both non-hardcore punk and hardcore punk shows.
The last and not the least, the band that we've come to see are European based post-hardcore outfit Cavalcades. The Scottish four-piece who were (I think they still are) the sonically howling post-hardcore troupe are now sorting out other kinds of diverse genres such as shoegaze and a little bit of gloomy alternative rock, the sound that I would never expect in the first place. Cavalcades are decent live, it didn't really follow-up to Bruised Wiillies performance that much. Just to point out that their harsh vocals didn't meet in their performance at that night, instead, i was met with faint vocals and shy shoegaze-y vocals. I prefer swapping Cavalcades' place to Bruised Willies, that way the momentum really build upwards. Cavalcades didn't really hit me that hard in some of their tracks, it happened way too fast.
While I wrap up this entire write-up, I would just like to commend Sleeping Boy Collective for still putting out amazing shows and curating spectacular bands in their shows. My visit was worth the effort in a payday Friday even if most people weren't able to come after a tiring 3-hour traffic. I still appreciate the bands that came over in a busy week and they still brought up good music in our country.
Thank you, Sleeping Boy Collective for another great show! Now, time to look for some Ducks now. <3
and BIG BIG Thanks to JLE Music for teaming up with me in this show. It is an honor hanging out with you Mr. JLE. Looking forward to working you in more shows in the future!