Café Antonio Sessions: Building Hometown Confidence in Los Baños

·         The wholesome, natural union of the celestial and the organic can only be witnessed in one special place: the coffee shop. It is where we experience music (the celestial) and coffee (the organic) inevitably married and intertwined producing caffeinated offspring in the often obscure form of musicians and music fans.

·         When Café Antonio, Los Banos was founded three years ago by my friends and I, music was already a strong driving force behind our business philosophy. Aside from making and preparing, great, artisan espresso-based beverages (we’re professional baristas) we made it a point that people would come to our place and listen to music that’s not being played on mainstream radio. That’s where our café’s image kind of revolved around in. Rotating local and foreign indie artists on our painstakingly-customized and researched playlists provided us an awesome soundtrack that helped solidify our quirky, free-spirited, Do-It-Yourself image setting us apart from the more corporate-looking and quiet cafes in our small university town.

·         We used to have a 37 square meter café where we crammed art exhibits, poetry readings, gigs, and monologues. It was easy to fill up the place with people, we get thirty standing people inside, and then it’s a party. Now that we’ve moved to a bigger place in LB Square, we were given room to conceptualize and formalize our artistic contribution to our community in the form of Café Antonio Sessions.

·         Café Antonio Sessions was the brainchild of me and my friends Eric Soliven and Jegar delos Reyes. Taking inspiration from AOL Sessions, Levi’s Pioneer Sessions, Paste Presents, VH1 Storytellers, MTV Unplugged, and acoustic nights at the now defunct Kofiholics Anonymous (where Eric and I used to play on our respective bands), we decided to start our own music scene at Café Antonio.

·         Café Antonio Sessions held its first gig at Café Antonio, Los Banos in July 3, 2010 featuring Eric and vocalist, Lenard Gabriel of indie rock band, LIME, and me and Gelo Arboleda of our acoustic punk band, Juniper Face the Corner. After three intimate acoustic gigs, Calamba/Los Banos-based OPM rock band, Yield Avenue, joined in the group. Soon afterward, UPLB-based artists such as singer-songwriter, Gabes Torres, and dance rock quartet, Segatron became our first student recruits forming the core of our roster of artists. New bands Sweet Symphony, Sitting on a Cornflake, and Pathway are our newest recruits.

·         I was able to sit down with each of the bands and ask them about their involvement with Café Antonio and Café Antonio Sessions, and their thoughts about the music scene in our hometown of Los Banos.

·         ON INVOLVEMENT WITH CAFÉ ANTONIO AND CAFÉ ANTONIO SESSIONS

·         Francis “Khitz” Contemplacion of Yield Avenue: I had no idea na mahilig sa music ang mga barista doon. Nalaman ko lang ang café through Sherwin Felicidario (one of Cafe Antonio’s regular customers) kasi ginamit nila (College of Development Communication, UPLB) yung song namin na Tungkol sa Pangarap for the indie film, Limang Pasko. And then ginawan namin ng tribute video ang Café Antonio gamit ang song namin na Hanggang Dulo bilang pasasalamat. Nagkataon na may shooting din sa cafe ang NHK channel ng Japan, narining nila yung song naming tapos ginamit nila sa documentary na ginawa nila for Café Antonio. Bale, dun nagsimula ang involvement ko sa Café Antonio.

 

·         Gelo Arboleda of Juniper Face the Corner: High school palang ako tambay na ko ng café. Nagustuhan ko dun kasi same wave-length, at artsy-fartsy ang crew dun sa café. Dream ko kasi yung setting na may café tapos parang may jazz na atmosphere, yung chill lang. Nawala yung career ko sa music nung nag-college, na-revive lang uli nung nag-jam kami ni Kuya Jabez. Tapos dahil sa musical similarities namin, binuo namin ang Juniper Face the Corner for the first Sessions.

·         Christian Gonzales of Segatron: Once lang ako nakapasok dun sa old site. Nakita ko maraming tao tapos may gitara sa loob. First time ko talaga sa Café Antonio sa new site na sa LB Square nung nag-gig ang Segatron nung Café Antonio Sessions VIII. After nun nakahanap na kami ng bagong tatambayan.

·         Eric Soliven of LIME: Gusto lang tumugtog ni Lenard Gabriel. Kaya nung July 3 nag-gig kami with Juniper Face the Corner. Pa-jam-jam lang yun. First gig namin as LIME nung Female Artists Tribute Night na, kasama na kapatid ko si Ian at drummer naming si Maya Miranda.

 

·         GabesTorres: First time ko manood nung Sessions nung third gig, Dave Matthews Band Tribute Night. Sinama ako nung friend ko na si Marisse Bautista tapos sinabi nya kanila Kuya Jabez na marunong ako kumanta tapos pinakanta nila ko tapos niyaya nila ko mag-gig. Dun na-rekindle yung desire ko tumugtog uli.

·         THOUGHTS ON THE GROWTH OF CAFÉ ANTONIO SESSIONS AND THE LOS BANOS MUSIC SCENE

·         Gelo: Sa music itself, may potential ang bawat banda. Yung growth ng Sessions napaka-sporadic at medyo unstable pa in the sense na parang masyado pang mabilis ang mga pangyayari at dumadami ang mga gigs at mga artists na sumasali.  But ang goal nga ng Sessions is ma-share natin ang ating music at tulungan ang mga artists sa Los Banos na mag-grow. Yung pagiging organized representation of a music community ng Sessions ang may kapangyarihan mag-connect sa mga artists dito.

·         Khitz: Passion ng bawat isa ang kelangan, musicians, photographers, videographers, fans…as long as may support ng ibang tao may future ang Sessions. Pero ang cycle nga ng music ay napaka-unpredictable. Di kakagat agad ang mga tao, kelangan ng matinding influence. Maraming gusto makibagay, marami din gusto maiba.

·         Ian Soliven of LIME: Medyo humina ang music scene dati sa Los Banos. Nabawasan din ang mga nagko-concert sa loob at labas ng campus. Mahirap kasi maraming residential areas satin, di pwede mag-ingay masyado. Problema din kasi wala din confidence ang mga taga-ELBI na tumugtog dito kasi may connotation na baka “tayo-tayo” lang yung manonood. Kaya dati lumuluwas pa kami ng dati kong banda sa Manila para mag-gig. Bihira din kasi yung mga bars na papayagan ka tumugtog ng mga original compositions mo. Ang sa tingin ko ay kelangan muna ma-establish ang music scene dito bago tayo lumabas. Problem kasi masyado tayo nagre-refer sa mga music scene sa labas. Kelangan muna natin magtiwala at mag-build ng confidence sa Los Banos.