Shifting to third gear with Filipino alt rock band Cambio

Shifting to third gear with Filipino alt rock band Cambio

by rick olivares

When it was announced that alternative rock band Cambio was performing at the upcoming All of the Noise music showcase this coming November 23 at the Century City Mall Events Hall, the band’s lead singer Kris Gorra-Dancel said to this writer, “Cambio was not the band members’ only band. It became next to impossible to book a gig with all of us present so we stopped altogether.  There was no announcement or declaration to disband.  If there was, I might have missed it while being preoccupied with giving birth, family, socio-civic work, gigging and recording with Duster, Zach and the Action Pact, Humanfolk and Peryodiko, as well as trying to figure out how to finish a Fatal Posporos album.”

Nevertheless, the supergroup – as it is composed of such local rock luminaries as Ebe Dancel on vocals and guitar, Diego Mapa on guitars and keyboards, Buddy Zabala on bass, and Raimund Marasigan on drums – is back after a hiatus that stretches back to over a decade.

Regarding the All of the Noise slot, Kris revealed that it was Diego Mapa who initiated the idea: “He approached me about it.  I would have agreed to play any venue with Cambio.  I didn’t really know until recently that this one was for All the Noise, but I am grateful to them and rather in awe that it’s really happening.”

The band formed in the wake of the departure of Ely Buendia from the Eraserheads around 2002. The band needed to fulfill some remaining band obligations and they asked Gorra-Dancel, then the lead singer for Fatal Posporos to step in front of the mike. 

After Marcus Adoro left the band, the remaining members added Mapa and Ebe Dancel and renamed the band, Cambio. They released two albums, Derby Light and Matic. 

Gorra-Dancel reflected back on the changes in the local music scene at the time of Cambio’s formation. “The landscape of the music industry was changing.  People who cared about local artists and local music were on their toes and on the lookout for opportunities to push the scene forward.  Twisted Halo released an album under its own label, Guilty Pleasure Records, and was promoted by Admit One, a production it was a founding member of.  It blew everyone’s mind.”

“Bands and artists across genres were starting to cooperate with each other and bestow power upon themselves to create not just music, but also gigs, shows, merchandise, art, videos. This spirit of collaboration and cooperation would eventually lead to the first Rockestra at the Folk Arts Theatre.  It was a good time for Cambio to emerge.”

The musical landscape has once more changed. While many still opt to listen to music on streaming sites, the physical format of vinyl and cassettes have made a strong comeback. Even compact discs, once thought to be also on the way out is back. Music database and crowdsourcing site Discogs reports a 23% jump in compact disc sales in recent months.

There independent scene is alive and well and there are even more rock clubs for bands to perform today.

Reconciling members’ schedules has likely caused your old calendar apps to hang, but now it seems we were booked way ahead of time and advances in technology have made it possible for us to be together for one night.”

The rock supergroup will be headline the music showcase day of All of the Noise 2019, joining Grammy-nominated American shoegaze/post-metal group Deafheaven, British math rock icons Delta Sleep, and Singapore-based indie rock band M1ldl1fe.

All of the Noise 2019 will take place on November 22 to 24, 2019, which will focus on different music activities each day. The Music Talks (11/22) will feature a series of topics to be discussed by music industry experts from home and abroad, as well as performances from handpicked, up-and-coming Filipino musicians, the AOTN Feature Acts. The Music Showcase presents critically acclaimed artists from the US, UK, Singapore, and the Philippines. AOTN wraps up the festivities with Music Market, where businesses, brands, entrepreneurs, and musicians can offer goods and services to music fans and enthusiasts.