Viral beats

MANILA, Philippines - Dance music has come a long way since its disco days, evolving into house, hip hop, raves, and eventually its contemporary form, EDM (Electronic Dance Music). This was the topic at Globe Tattoo’s first ever passion forum, Trend Talks, gathering the best DJs and events organizers both locally and internationally to speak of their craft to a hungry audience. The open discussion started out looking back at the roots of dance music and clubbing in Manila—from old events newspaper clippings at Orange Juice, one of the first ever local clubs, to the moment the scene shifted, taking the DJ that used to play facing the wall and putting him on a glorified pedestal. “There were no pretentions. We all came together to make things bigger,” seasoned DJ Nicky Jurado recalled.

Driven Manila’s Domini Primero and Bigfish International’s Ricky Daker talked about growing the scene into the mainstream from its once underground and elite niche, choosing which DJs to bring in, and balancing business with passion. They discussed the tug and pull of finances and granting the artist the equipment that will enable the fulfillment of his artistic vision, to catering to the bigger mainstream market, while still enriching the soundscape with underground DJ’s and smaller clubbing events.

Skank house

As with anything that is newly gaining popularity, EDM has come under fire with the purists for selling out. Taking its roots from house music, which catered to a small audience who really understood it, EDM was admittedly birthed as a marketing tool by the American music industry as a broadly appealing version of house. It is the “Godzilla genetic mutation of House music, incorporating fist in the air, feel good music and lyrics.” Gender sensitivity aside, it has been compared to a good girlfriend gone skank, discussed Stephen Ku, leading events organizer and club owner.

 But selling and seeking to connect to a larger audience are part of creating art in our world today. DJ Mars Miranda attested even to how a DJ now also has to be his own promoter. It has its good points and its bad points, but playing to a crowd, making that connection, and finding the style that resounds with you are not necessarily antitheses of each other.

Around the world in music

Videos of underground party scenes all over the world, from Ibiza to London, were shown by well-travelled DJs, Katrina Razon and Mikhail Schem. They have since moved back to the Philippines, taking their multi-cultural influences with them to foster the growth of the local scene.

DJs Pav Parrotte and Ingo Vogelmann, on the other hand, brought us back to the illegal rave parties of the late ’80s — back when there were no permits, licenses, and people just suddenly showed up at a venue to hear the music that was presented, and be their weirdest selves without fear of judgment.

The highlight of the Trend Talks was of course DJ Armin Van Buuren, who rode straight to the SM Mall of Asia Arena after his open forum with fans for his Armin Only “Intense” concert. Throughout all the aspects of EDM that were discussed, from the business side to the underlying flavors of the underground that contribute to what is consumed by today’s masses, Armin agreed with everyone that it still all boils down to the music. And despite appreciating being hailed the top DJ in the world five times over, he doesn’t believe in formulating toward such a goal. “I will listen to everything. I want to understand music,” he says. He’s aware of trends and the genres that have a higher chance of selling his way to the top, but still chooses to play tracks and mixes where his soul can be found. “You can work with the biggest star in the world, but if the song is sh*t, it won’t work.”

Maybe purist snobbery is something every popular influence will have to deal with. But as long as there are people who are passionate about what they do and what they hear, issues of authenticity may very well exist only for those who do not recognize it. To close, DJ Nicky Jurado put it best: “Not one music style is better than the other, or more pure or true. It’s all about respect.”

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