Filipina DJ Katsy Lee makes top DJ lists for 2020

 

Filipina DJ Katsy Lee makes top DJ lists for 2020

By Rick Olivares

 

Katsy Lee’s head is spinning.

 

In disbelief that is.

 

The vivacious disc jockey (DJ) was named to two 2020 Best DJ lists -- the FDJ World List and the EDMDroid Asia. Lee, placed #95 and #25 (in the Asian category; #1 in the Philippines). 

 

“I don’t really expect these things and aside from the ones that do voting, I am not really sure how they come up with these lists and rankings, but I am still grateful,” gushed Lee of the feat. “I have been doing this for 10 years now and the recognition is nice. I’m just happy we all worked our butts off.” 

 

Lee who was a cheerleader during her college days at the Ateneo de Manila University is quite happy that her unexpected career path is paying off. 

 

“I took up Communication specializing in journalism in college and I wanted to do media work. But on the other hand, being into music – I was never a musician because I cannot really play although I took some piano lessons as a kid – was something that appealed to me,” she bared of her unique journey. “As far back as in high school at Immaculate Conception Academy, I dreamed of being a DJ.”

 

“I was scared what my parents might say but when they found out, they were cool with it. And they never actually talked me out of it.” 

 

During Katsy’s grade school years at ICA, she discovered ambient music, house, and chillout music. “It might sound like a cliché, but as it does anyone else, music saved me,” bared Lee. “It got me out many a sad and bored moment.” 

 

“Being a professional DJ has taken me to places I never thought I would DJ in or even travel to alone,” she further elucidated. “I’ve played in the Netherlands, England, America, India, Japan, and some of our neighbors in Southeast Asia.”

 

“I’ve also met a lot of people and made friends from all over the world. There’s much more to discover, but it has made me and other DJs feel like we are citizens of the world.”

 

That world is best encapsulated in a gig that Lee played this past New Year’s Eve celebration.

 

“I was coming off a small tour of India when I went to Vietnam for a New Year’s Eve celebration for a club,” related Katsy. “I curated a lot of Indian music during my tour including this Bollywood song that I really liked. What made the gig cool was not just because I got to play songs from different cultures in one gig but to see the reactions of the people in the crowd. They’d recognize a song in their language and they’d smile, clap, or give a thumbs up.”

 

“I was able to play songs from different cultures in one gig. What made it cool wasn’t just that but was simply that small pockets in the crowd smiled, clapped, and gave me a thumbs up. In a nutshell, it felt like such a global experience of what DJs can do.”

 

Another thing that DJs do is music production and Katsy has been studying it for some years, releasing some tracks along the way.

 

“One time, I went to Amsterdam to attend a convention for artists, DJs, and producers,” Lee recounted. “It was my second year going there as a music producer hoping to be signed to a label.”

 

“It was the third day of the convention and I felt that I hadn’t done enough demo drops, meetings, or legwork, and I was at my wits’ end when my artist manager told me there was this demo drop that might be perfect for my sound.”

 

“The slot was under progressive house, techno, and trance. Now, I love those genres, but the music I brought with me did not fit those categories. Then I saw the name on the list… it was BT (Brian Wayne Transeau who is an American DJ, singer, songwriter, composer, and audio engineer). I think artistically, and technically, he is a genius. He makes all sorts of music and he is just incredible. I thought that BT wouldn’t listen to my music but I leapt at the chance to know what he thought of the music I made.”

 

BT was quite accommodating and he quickly put Lee’s fears to rest. “He was so nice. BT and his wife actually said they liked my music. They gave me their email address and told me to send them further demos. They wanted to help me out. I was in tears at that point.”

 

This took place in a small room and all the other hopefuls overheard BT’s interest and vote of confidence for Katsy.

 

“Some of the guys went up and asked about BT. They heard pretty much everything and they were asking how it was like because some of them were scheduled next. They were way more experienced than me and another good thing to come out of that was some of those guys I met at the demo drop are now my friends. In fact, I have a collab coming up with one of them!”

 

DJ Katsy Lee isn’t going to take it easy with the accolades she’s received. “I want to venture more into music production. I do have my stuff out on digital (Spotify and Soundcloud) but now that you mention it, Sir Rick, I hope to have some of my work pressed on vinyl. That is... if it’s worthy to be pressed.”

 

Knowing DJ Katsy Lee… it’s just a matter of time when she gets to check these off her Bucket List.

 

Then as in today, her head will still be spinning in disbelief.

My records of Bob Marley & the Wailers' Legend

My copies of Bob Marley and the Wailers: The Jamaican first pressing from Tuff Gong, the 180-gram re-issue, the tri-color edition of which the vinyl sounds like crap, the DVD and CD, the CD Deluxe Edition, and the half-speed master that sound fricking brilliant.

The Jamaican first press from Tuff Gong Way back in 1984. 

 

Retro: Betrayed & 35 years of a Pinoy Punk Classic

 Retro: Betrayed & 35 years of a Pinoy Punk Classic

By Rick Olivares

 

The lead up to 1986 was tumultuous with the political upheaval that gripped the nation. 

 

The new year was barely a few days old when Filipino punk band Betrayed dropped their independently produced and self-titled album on cassette. Fans of the growing punk and underground scene already knew of Betrayed’s incendiary shows so there was some expectation.

 

“There were no venues for punk bands during those days,” recalled guitarist Buddy Trinidad, the band’s longest serving member. “All rock bands use to play at Shakey’s. We did our fair share of gigs at Shakey’s too.  The only gigs we played were the ones organized by Tommy Tanchanco of Chaos.”

 

And word of Betrayed spread by fans of the burgeoning underground punk scene or via Jingle magazine. As did the album’s cover that reprinted a racy cover of a tabloid that featured then sex kitten Vivian Velez.

 

“The album cover is an actual front page of the newspaper,” bared Trinidad “Manny (Pagsuyuin, the band’s drummer longest serving drummer who joined the band in 1984) came into practice one day and said "Ito na yung album cover natin."

 

And that was that.

 

Betrayed, the album was more than a cosmetic attraction.

 

The cassette released under the band’s own DMZ Records featured on one side the old songs from the first local incarnation of Betrayed that featured vocalist Eddie Siojo, drummer David Reyes (who was replaced by Carl Avecilla in Christmas of 1983), bassist Chris Carire, and Trinidad.

 

The second side featured songs from its more well-known line-up of vocalist Dominic Gamboa (who went on to form Tropical Depression several years later), bassist Boyet Miguel from Ethnic Faces, Pagsuyuin, and Trinidad.

 

“I saw Domeng perform with his band, Absolute Zero (with his former classmates from the Ateneo Grade School), and I thought they were pretty good,” said Trinidad. “When I met Eddie (at the University of the Philippines), he was totally into punk and introduced me to a lot of bands from New York City (where Eddie was from and where he formed an early version of Betrayed with American bandmates). “Domeng was more into punk bands from England. It didn’t matter where the bands were from. We were more interested in their sound that geographical location.” 

 

“I was always looking to play aggressive music I can sink myself into,” pointed out Eddie. “Betrayed although rooted in punk rock was a hardcore band from its inception.”

 

“In the summer of 1983, my classmate, David Reyes, and I started learning covers of the Clash, the Rolling Stones, the Romantics, the Rezillos, and the Sex Pistols to name a few,” shared Trinidad. “Then we met Eddie who told us that he could play bass for us. We started practicing and played our first gig as ‘Jump Boys.’ It was after that gig where we wanted to write our own music. Eddie presented us with the music of his band in New York that was called ’Betrayed.’ He said that if he wanted to play those songs, we should call ourselves, ‘Betrayed.’

 

Trinidad and Reyes agreed and the band was formally born. 

 

After five months, Siojo decided to concentrate on singing so his fellow New Yorker Chris Carire came on board to play bass. Reyes moved to the United States in Christmas of 1983 and Avecilla stepped in to man the drum kit. 

 

The new punk band’s influences included the Sex Pistols, the Damned, the Clash, Stiff Little Fingers, the Jam, the Buzzcocks, Generation X, Minor Threat, Circle Jerks, Black Flag, Dead Boys, and the Ramones. 

 

So Betrayed began plying the punk and hardcore circuit along with other bands who went on to released albums – Third World Chaos, Wuds, College, Sex Militants, and George Imbecile and the idiots. 

 

“During the time we were recording the album, we were approached by the dad of Jack Sickat (of Ocean Zoo and Ethnic Faces) to be on his label (Insect Records),” elucidated Trinidad. “Tommy Tanchangco also approached us to be on Twisted Red Cross.”

 

Two songs from Betrayed “Urban Assault” and “Betrayed By You” appeared in the very first Twisted Red Cross release, Rescue Ladders and Human Barricade in 1985. But when the Betrayed album was done, the band chose to release it independently.  

 

“We were friends of both so as not to pick sides, we decided to put up our own label called it DMZ Records,” revealed Trinidad.

 

Betrayed, the cassette, was sold in stores like Khumbmela, Apple Picker, and during the band’s live shows. The band also received their only radio airplay on DZRJ-FM (most notably during the show of the late disc jockey, Howlin’ Dave). 

 

The band put out its second album, Betrayed Again, in 1996 on BMG Records with Siojo back for lead vocal duties (Trinidad took over the microphone in 2001). With their third album, Why Must Everything Involve Politics?, the band returned to its independent roots.

 

“The music is from my ‘angry youth days,” said businessman Arnie Sison who saw the band during the 80s. “The band and its music were very influential. And that cover kicks up a wave of nostalgia.”

 

Eric Guillermo, who published Jingle magazine back in the day and heavily championed the local music scene said, “The Pinoy punk scene was extensively featured in Jingle. Betrayed, one of the forerunners of the genre, had loyal followers. Pinoy Rock groups had their glory decade of the 1970s so it was proper for a new breed of punk rockers to emerge in the languid local rock scene in the 1980s. Betrayed kept the rock and roll flames burning.”

 

 

 

 

 

Listening to Bob Marley and the Wailers' Exodus

I first heard the music of Bob Marley and the Wailers’ Exodus at Papadom’s old home at Provident Village. A very good friend of mine and batchmate from Ateneo lived near Domeng’s place, and he took me there one time. 

 

When we arrived at his place, Domeng was lying down on the floor while listening to some records. Exodus was one of them. Which is why when I listen to this record, I invariably think of Domeng.

 

Everyone knows that this album was recorded during his self-imposed exile in London after the failed attempt on his life. Hence, there were the usual political themes that are prevalent in the first side while the flip side is more on faith, love, and sex. 

 

I got my own copy of the record so I could play it in the solitude of my room. I have this playlist of records that I constantly listen to every week or month and Exodus is one of them.

 

It is one of those records where I have never skipped songs. It’s that darn good and impressive. In fact, it is consistently listed in all-time best lists. And it is in mine.