Band Hale Philippines and
the local Rock Music Industry
All about Band Hale Philippines. At the turn of the millennium, the Philippine music scene was taking a nosedive, with the airwaves chock full of copycats and wannabes.
There were desperate artists who wanted to make a quick buck, but the advent of quasi-rock bands such as Hale, Cueshe and Mayonnaise drastically changed all that.
These relatively new names to the Philippine music business (or as it is popularly known in the metropolis-OPM, Original Pinoy Music) heralded a new wave of young recording bands who wrote their own songs, mixed melodies and genres, and genuinely cared for the music.
It was a risky gamble for established recording studios, but it paid off: listeners wanted sincerity, and these new generation of pop-rock bands gave them that.
Hale was a new band but became quickly known. Originally from the southern part of Metro Manila, the fresh young quartet led by Champ Lui-Pio on vocals boasts two immensely popular albums going on platinum, and a repackaged CD in the bargain.
Their secret for success? Simple.
Band Hale Philippines gave the public what they wanted-sheer, unabated music. No frills, no pretensions, no false hopes. Just pure talent, coupled with the band's love of the music.
Hale is known throughout the country for their heart-on-sleeve lyrics, their melodramatic tone and their simple, poignant message.
Their heart-wrenching number one singles "Broken Sonnet", "The Day You Said Goodnight" and "Toll Gate" are so overplayed on the local radio stations that they have literally become the anthems of an entire generation, heralds of the current "emo" (emotional) phase.
Hale's bittersweet, almost melancholy mood is transcendent and belies an uplifting message for the listener-that in the midst of heartbreak and depression, there is a ray of hope, and to borrow a line from one of their songs, a "blue sky waiting tomorrow".
And apparently, there is a blue sky waiting tomorrow, considering Hale's almost meteoric rise to stardom, which started not three years ago.
Hale's second album seeks to upstage the success of their self-titled debut album, which had spawned more than four memorable singles and distinguished them for stardom.
This, in spite of fierce competition for the airwaves from other sophomore OPM rock bands such as Cueshe, Sponge Cola and Stonefree.
But then again, it's not a popularity contest-all these groups mentioned above are simply different facets of the evolving Philippine music scene, one that is gearing away from the commercialization of rock music, towards its appreciation as a noble art-music for its own sake.
Band Hale Philippines did music for its take. The new generation of Philippine listeners is proof of this gradual change: the youth are becoming more scrutinizing in bands' styles, advocating bands and singers because of talent and not merely because of popularity or fame.
The youth admire Hale's remarkable talent and unique style.
Concurrent with this movement is the proliferation of the "indie" (independent) OPM genre, composed of previously unheard of bands with independent record deals, as well as distinct sounds that defy all genres and classification.
This is further proof that the Philippine music industry is branching out and expanding, opening doors and harnessing an ingenuity and talent that is inherent to Philippine culture.
Filipinos, being innately talented people, their aptitude for music and expressing themselves through song is now being given free rein through the OPM industry, and the response to their boldness is tremendous. Unconvinced? Just ask Hale.
Taking a cue from Hale's philosophy as a band, the Philippine rock music scene is simply about captivating minds and souls through music. It's about bringing people together through the sincerity of songwriting and singing.
In the end, beyond all platinum awards, accolades, the fame and the royalties, creating great music is all that counts.
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