Armed with the knack to make the combination of jazz, soul, funk, R&B and good ol’ rock n’ roll accessible and proudly Pinoy, 2007 will definitely be the year when Warner Music’s latest signed act SinoSikat? will break out from their underground/cult fame as the band to beat and once again prove that the Philippines is home to the freshest and most talented outfits via their self-titled debut available now in record stores and popular music shops nationwide.
“Pinoy Soul” is how vocalist Kat Agarrado defines the band’s sound, which is in comparison, not unlike the fusion of such artists as Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and Aretha Franklin into a more local, modern and exciting package. “You have to listen to it to be able to understand it,” says Agarrado by way of trying to nail the exact words to describe the music she and bandmates--drummer Reli de Vera and guitarist Nick Azarcon--have been cooking up for the past few years since the band’s inception in September of 2004. “Soul comes from within, what is true...the audience will surely feel it when they hear it. It’s something original. Made in the Philippines, made by Pinoys,” she proudly declares of the album’s 10 tracks, nine of them original and one cover of seminal 80s Pinoy outfit The Advisor’s “Telepono.”
In fact, the band’s first single, “Turning My Safety Off” is proof that the band’s sound, reinforced by powerful and well-received live performances, is both intelligent and accessible, as it enjoyed massive airplay on various radio stations like its video did in the country’s major music channels. Its sultry, slow-tempo groove best characterizes the direction, yet the band’s capabilities are taken up a varying notch with other dazzling displays of talent in tracks like the invitingly wily opener
“Akin Ka,” the cool slow jam-ish “So Blue,” and the pulling-out-the-stops progressions of the funkadelic “Praning” and the upbeat “Prayer.” There are also poignant moments where the band explores intimate emotion and sound textures, like on “Pag-Ibig” where Agarrado offers a fine display of vocal dynamics, and on the flute-spiced “Tragic Beauty” which is about as perfect as Sunday afternoon coffee as it is a breather from the traditional, straight up rock n’ roll the current music scene is riddled with. In a nutshell, SinoSikat? creates music perfect for every occasion, every person. Catch them live on April 20 7PM in SM City Cebu Entertainment Plaza.