Ang Bandang Shirley re-releases debut album, Themesongs, on vinyl

Ang Bandang Shirley re-releases debut album, Themesongs, on vinyl

by rick olivares

Ten years after Ang Bandang Shirley released their wonderful and thoughtful debut album, Themesongs, this most tuneful indie pop band with clever wordsmiths and a knack for melody have re-released the album on vinyl. Make that on pink vinyl that makes for fetching eye candy.

Happy Birthday, indeed!

Themesongs on vinyl is more than celebrating a great album or for fans who weren’t able to get a copy of its hard-to-find compact disc that initially came out on Terno Recordings and now under Wide Eyed Records (which is also run by member/manager Kathy Gener). It’s a wonderful way to enjoy once more some great songs.

Re-mastered in conjunction with Diego Mapa, Noel De Brackinghe of Rubber Inc., and co-produced by Jay Amante of the Grey Market, Themesongs on vinyl is the way the music should be listened to. It is far richer in its sound. The vocals have more timbre in them. And it doesn’t sound like you’re listening to music in a vacuum.

What else is different?

The cover of the jacket was re-edited from the original file. The ring tone at the start of “Kagabi Nanaginip si Morrissey na may Nagmamahal sa Kanya” has been edited out. It might be infinitesimal but it’s just right. I thought it was out of place to begin.

Furthermore… there is an unlisted bonus track at the end of the album, right after, “Bato”…. titled “Bato” except this is an old demo with Selena Salang.

Speaking of Selena, she isn’t the only member on the album who is no longer with the band (having left after the release of Ang Bandang Shirley’s third album, Favorite). Bassist Jing Gaddi is gone (after Tama Na Ang Drama) as is keyboardist Heidi Pascual (after the first album).

So, listening to the re-release is like looking at an old high school or college yearbook.

For an old fan like me who purchased the CD when it first came out, this is being more than a completist. It’s like falling in love with the band all over again.

When Themesongs first came out, the harmony and melody immediately reminded me Broken Social Scene which I swore by since I first saw them in 2003 when they were promoting their incredible album, You Forgot It In People, in New York City. Of course, the band has their own stamp on things with their use of the vernacular. And that is part of the appeal – their songs are rich, full of life, and well, it makes you fall in love for our language which is so expressive.

There too is a playfulness to the songs; something that has continued all their way to their next albums, Tama Na ang Drama and Favorite.

I think re-releasing Themesongs on vinyl is great. It gives fans a chance to get a physical copy of what they have or do not have and with the sounds just right. I heard they are selling this as a bundle pack that goes with an exclusive hoodie. That’s great! I wish though they that each side of the record is marked whether it is Side A or B and that they also re-produced the inner sleeve with its lyrics and pictures and notes. It adds to the experience after all.

And that begs the question… will they give the same vinyl treatment to their last couple of albums?

Having said that, Themesongs is still a must have for fans of Ang Bandang Shirley and good music.