Chapter 106: 106
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May 3, 2012 – Thursday 7 pm – Zolano Street, East Ouigab
As I reached the front of the green room's door, I found something strange. The usually chatty waiting room is loud enough for one to hear from outside the room even though its doors are closed, but this time, it's oddly quiet. Did the performers bail? That couldn't be.
I slowly opened the waiting room's door and peeked inside, cautious of what I might see. What I saw though, are the musicians, 11 or 12 of them belonging to different bands, gathered in the corner of the room, watching something in Ike's laptop.
Ike, Percussive Corrections' drummer is one social butterfly that every musician that plays in my bar like. It is not unusual to see the kid chatting happily with other musicians. What is unusual is that he's surrounded by them like this. I silently entered and saw that Ike's band members, five other college kids, are not participating in the huddle.
"What's going on?" I asked quietly to Ramil, Percussive Corrections' saxophonist and vocalist. "They're watching Tayaw's recent performance in America last week." Ramil replied. I nodded in understanding.
Tayaw, who was the best performer in my bar, never came back to perform after his supposed 'vacation' last year. I was also surprised that one day, the members of Percussive Corrections walked in my office to sign up for a spot, without Tayaw. It surprised me even more when they said that Tayaw left the band. But after being informed of some news by the members of his former band, it made sense.
Tayaw, who I thought quit music, suddenly became famous in Nashville, the world's country music capital. Nabla Observer even wrote an article about him recently. He's now an all-out star. I was planning on keeping him in my bar for a few years at least, to train him, toe give him experience. But after catching up to speed to Tayaw's songs in the internet and his country songs, I felt almost embarrassed of my foolishness.
"Shiiitt.. That's Tayaw? Wow. He was holding back on us all along, boss. Haha." Kiyong, Beyond Cape Town's guitarist and leader suddenly commented. "Yeah. He was. He didn't sing his best songs in the bar when he was here." I replied. "Yeah. That too. But take a look at this! Ike. Let the boss watch it." Kiyong said.
As Ike passed his laptop to me, the small group behind the kid also dispersed. Really? They're doing that? Hmm? Laptops are this light nowadays? Weird. Anyway, I tapped on the kid's laptop to play the video. What I'm seeing is a re-arrangement of his song 'Invisible Man', sung by him and a band I never saw before. It sounds nice. If the original song was of a lonely man's story, this one feels like a story of two confiding 'invisible men'.
What almost gave me a heart attack though was Tayaw's guitar solo. It's a through-and-through improvisation, smoothly done almost effortlessly. This guitar display goes beyond my experience for me to assess. All I know is that it's the best guitar playing I have ever seen. I wish I saw it live. Looking at how Tayaw's hand picking was blurry and I can't see the details of how his fingers pressed against the frets, Tayaw's speed with his fingers and hands must have been too fast for the camera to capture.
"Boss. Look at the views." Ike said after he heard the video end. I looked and my eyes widened at the number: '3,276,998'. I looked read the information below the video and it was 'published' on May 30; just three days ago. "Is this how many has seen it?" I asked Ike, finding it unbelievable how many people have already watched in such a short time. "No. That's how many times the video was watched or opened." Ike replied. I processed it for a moment, and found the difference. No matter, I still found it amazing.
I carefully closed the laptop and passed it to Ike. Even though Tayaw left the bar, and would probably never perform here again, he introduced me to young talented kids. Ike, Hoon, Jenna, Ramil, Bay-an, and Inson. The six of them, even before Tayaw left their band, are known collectively as 'Percussive Corrections'. I saw these six grow as musicians.
When the six of them first walked in my bar, I still remember how nervous they looked and it almost disappointed me how inexperienced they looked. However, because it was Tayaw who introduced them, I had to give them a chance. Then, they stepped on my stage for the first time, and I saw how awkward they looked. Even though Tayaw was with them, I still felt the most anxious I've felt in a long time. I was so afraid they were going to mess up because of their nervousness.
When they started playing though, my anxiety was replaced with the most relief I felt in a long time. They were stable. They looked boring, but they sounded good. Since then, they've been performing in my bar at least twice a month, with or without Tayaw. At times when Tayaw wasn't with them, the band made up for it with their skills with their instruments.
Since they started, I've noticed them quickly improve their skills. They also became more and more comfortable on the stage. Despite their improvement, they are still not complete without Tayaw. Even though they're talented, I thought they were all just going to stay as instrumentalists. That changed however, when Tayaw left their band, for good.
I think Tayaw's departure from the band did Percussive Corrections a favor. Since January, The band has gotten even better, and even added something they always relied Tayaw on; vocals. Jenna's voice is getting better and better; she can hit lower notes and has started using vibrato in her voice. Ike also started singing and brought back the 'singing drummer' that was the trends in the 80s. And when Ike does backing vocals for Jenna, their harmony sounded fantastic.
The most pleasant surprise to me regarding the vocals though, was Ramil. The kid's rough tenor voice is perfect when the band plays rock. So with Ike, Jenna, and Ramil singing together, they finally covered the void that Tayaw left.
"So, is Tayaw going to be active now in the US?" I asked the members of the Percussive Corrections. Even though Tayaw left their band, the band said that they're living in Tayaw's house.
They looked at each other strangely before Bay-an did the talking. "We don't know too. I mean, he came back immediately after he performed with Strawberry Front, the guys you saw Tayaw play with in the video." Bay-an said. I see. I hope he plays more here in Teungeb. I found it strange that Americans got to know him first before Teungebians did. Thinking about it however, he got famous with country music. F.u.c.kin country music that Teungebians rarely enjoy, but is beloved in The States. Probably the only country music I enjoy is the old classics, and Tayaw's.
*Applause* The waiting room heard the audience clap for Amelie. ~sigh~ Amelie. The Tayaw-less Percussive Corrections blew by her when it comes to the number of fans in the bar. "You six. You're up next." I said. "Yeah. We know, boss." Ike said and he closed his laptop. After some gentle scuffling of things, the six kids finally stood up and headed to the bar room with their instruments. I followed behind them and found a vacant table in the bar room where I could watch them.
I've seen the other performers enough that I honestly grew tired of listening to them. The Percussive Corrections however, I always look forward to watching. Maybe it's because they only perform four times a week at most, but I find their gigs very valuable.
While the Percussive Corrections were setting up their instruments, the audience is already clapping for them. The percussive Corrections have already become the favorites in my bar. The other musicians also accepted and admitted that the band deserve the recognition and favor as even Beyond Cape Town, one of the most experienced regular performers in my bar, could barely match the stage that Percussive Corrections give.
A few moments later, they are ready. "Hello boss." I was startled when someone called out beside me. I looked and saw Tayaw, already sitting down to join me at my tablee. I almost did not recognize him as he's not wearing his three piece suit in his videos, or the South American collared shirts he wore when he played here. He's currently wearing his sweatshirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of rubber shoes. His outfit when he first performed in my bar.
"It's been a while, kid." Is all that I could say. I never admitted it, but I actually missed the kid. It also feels weird that just a few minutes ago, I was thinking how big of a star he became, and now he's standing in front of me, still looking like how he looked when we first met, only much more handsome now.
"What are you doing here?" I asked. "What? Am I banned now?" Tayaw jested. "No. I thought you were busy with whatever stars do." I chuckled and jested back. "What star? It's just a few songs that got famous." Tayaw replied. I almost slapped the kid's head. 'Just a few songs that got famous'? What the f.u.c.k? It's already hard being a one-hit wonder!
"Come to think about it, I don't think you've seen them live on stage, right?" I asked, which a valid question is as I only saw Tayaw with his band in the same place if they're performing together. "Yeah. You're right. While I was busy, how were they here?" He asked. "They were just fine. Although they can't put out as many arrangements as you did, they're still a good cover band." I informed him.
"Well. That's good to hear. Alright. Here they go." Tayaw said and when I returned on my eyes on the stage, Hoon already started playing the intro.
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May 3, 2012 – Thursday 7 pm – Zolano Street, East Ouigab
As I reached the front of the green room's door, I found something strange. The usually chatty waiting room is loud enough for one to hear from outside the room even though its doors are closed, but this time, it's oddly quiet. Did the performers bail? That couldn't be.
I slowly opened the waiting room's door and peeked inside, cautious of what I might see. What I saw though, are the musicians, 11 or 12 of them belonging to different bands, gathered in the corner of the room, watching something in Ike's laptop.
Ike, Percussive Corrections' drummer is one social butterfly that every musician that plays in my bar like. It is not unusual to see the kid chatting happily with other musicians. What is unusual is that he's surrounded by them like this. I silently entered and saw that Ike's band members, five other college kids, are not participating in the huddle.
"What's going on?" I asked quietly to Ramil, Percussive Corrections' saxophonist and vocalist. "They're watching Tayaw's recent performance in America last week." Ramil replied. I nodded in understanding.
Tayaw, who was the best performer in my bar, never came back to perform after his supposed 'vacation' last year. I was also surprised that one day, the members of Percussive Corrections walked in my office to sign up for a spot, without Tayaw. It surprised me even more when they said that Tayaw left the band. But after being informed of some news by the members of his former band, it made sense.
Tayaw, who I thought quit music, suddenly became famous in Nashville, the world's country music capital. Nabla Observer even wrote an article about him recently. He's now an all-out star. I was planning on keeping him in my bar for a few years at least, to train him, toe give him experience. But after catching up to speed to Tayaw's songs in the internet and his country songs, I felt almost embarrassed of my foolishness.
"Shiiitt.. That's Tayaw? Wow. He was holding back on us all along, boss. Haha." Kiyong, Beyond Cape Town's guitarist and leader suddenly commented. "Yeah. He was. He didn't sing his best songs in the bar when he was here." I replied. "Yeah. That too. But take a look at this! Ike. Let the boss watch it." Kiyong said.
As Ike passed his laptop to me, the small group behind the kid also dispersed. Really? They're doing that? Hmm? Laptops are this light nowadays? Weird. Anyway, I tapped on the kid's laptop to play the video. What I'm seeing is a re-arrangement of his song 'Invisible Man', sung by him and a band I never saw before. It sounds nice. If the original song was of a lonely man's story, this one feels like a story of two confiding 'invisible men'.
What almost gave me a heart attack though was Tayaw's guitar solo. It's a through-and-through improvisation, smoothly done almost effortlessly. This guitar display goes beyond my experience for me to assess. All I know is that it's the best guitar playing I have ever seen. I wish I saw it live. Looking at how Tayaw's hand picking was blurry and I can't see the details of how his fingers pressed against the frets, Tayaw's speed with his fingers and hands must have been too fast for the camera to capture.
"Boss. Look at the views." Ike said after he heard the video end. I looked and my eyes widened at the number: '3,276,998'. I looked read the information below the video and it was 'published' on May 30; just three days ago. "Is this how many has seen it?" I asked Ike, finding it unbelievable how many people have already watched in such a short time. "No. That's how many times the video was watched or opened." Ike replied. I processed it for a moment, and found the difference. No matter, I still found it amazing.
I carefully closed the laptop and passed it to Ike. Even though Tayaw left the bar, and would probably never perform here again, he introduced me to young talented kids. Ike, Hoon, Jenna, Ramil, Bay-an, and Inson. The six of them, even before Tayaw left their band, are known collectively as 'Percussive Corrections'. I saw these six grow as musicians.
When the six of them first walked in my bar, I still remember how nervous they looked and it almost disappointed me how inexperienced they looked. However, because it was Tayaw who introduced them, I had to give them a chance. Then, they stepped on my stage for the first time, and I saw how awkward they looked. Even though Tayaw was with them, I still felt the most anxious I've felt in a long time. I was so afraid they were going to mess up because of their nervousness.
When they started playing though, my anxiety was replaced with the most relief I felt in a long time. They were stable. They looked boring, but they sounded good. Since then, they've been performing in my bar at least twice a month, with or without Tayaw. At times when Tayaw wasn't with them, the band made up for it with their skills with their instruments.
Since they started, I've noticed them quickly improve their skills. They also became more and more comfortable on the stage. Despite their improvement, they are still not complete without Tayaw. Even though they're talented, I thought they were all just going to stay as instrumentalists. That changed however, when Tayaw left their band, for good.
I think Tayaw's departure from the band did Percussive Corrections a favor. Since January, The band has gotten even better, and even added something they always relied Tayaw on; vocals. Jenna's voice is getting better and better; she can hit lower notes and has started using vibrato in her voice. Ike also started singing and brought back the 'singing drummer' that was the trends in the 80s. And when Ike does backing vocals for Jenna, their harmony sounded fantastic.
The most pleasant surprise to me regarding the vocals though, was Ramil. The kid's rough tenor voice is perfect when the band plays rock. So with Ike, Jenna, and Ramil singing together, they finally covered the void that Tayaw left.
"So, is Tayaw going to be active now in the US?" I asked the members of the Percussive Corrections. Even though Tayaw left their band, the band said that they're living in Tayaw's house.
They looked at each other strangely before Bay-an did the talking. "We don't know too. I mean, he came back immediately after he performed with Strawberry Front, the guys you saw Tayaw play with in the video." Bay-an said. I see. I hope he plays more here in Teungeb. I found it strange that Americans got to know him first before Teungebians did. Thinking about it however, he got famous with country music. F.u.c.kin country music that Teungebians rarely enjoy, but is beloved in The States. Probably the only country music I enjoy is the old classics, and Tayaw's.
*Applause* The waiting room heard the audience clap for Amelie. ~sigh~ Amelie. The Tayaw-less Percussive Corrections blew by her when it comes to the number of fans in the bar. "You six. You're up next." I said. "Yeah. We know, boss." Ike said and he closed his laptop. After some gentle scuffling of things, the six kids finally stood up and headed to the bar room with their instruments. I followed behind them and found a vacant table in the bar room where I could watch them.
I've seen the other performers enough that I honestly grew tired of listening to them. The Percussive Corrections however, I always look forward to watching. Maybe it's because they only perform four times a week at most, but I find their gigs very valuable.
While the Percussive Corrections were setting up their instruments, the audience is already clapping for them. The percussive Corrections have already become the favorites in my bar. The other musicians also accepted and admitted that the band deserve the recognition and favor as even Beyond Cape Town, one of the most experienced regular performers in my bar, could barely match the stage that Percussive Corrections give.
A few moments later, they are ready. "Hello boss." I was startled when someone called out beside me. I looked and saw Tayaw, already sitting down to join me at my tablee. I almost did not recognize him as he's not wearing his three piece suit in his videos, or the South American collared shirts he wore when he played here. He's currently wearing his sweatshirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of rubber shoes. His outfit when he first performed in my bar.
"It's been a while, kid." Is all that I could say. I never admitted it, but I actually missed the kid. It also feels weird that just a few minutes ago, I was thinking how big of a star he became, and now he's standing in front of me, still looking like how he looked when we first met, only much more handsome now.
"What are you doing here?" I asked. "What? Am I banned now?" Tayaw jested. "No. I thought you were busy with whatever stars do." I chuckled and jested back. "What star? It's just a few songs that got famous." Tayaw replied. I almost slapped the kid's head. 'Just a few songs that got famous'? What the f.u.c.k? It's already hard being a one-hit wonder!
"Come to think about it, I don't think you've seen them live on stage, right?" I asked, which a valid question is as I only saw Tayaw with his band in the same place if they're performing together. "Yeah. You're right. While I was busy, how were they here?" He asked. "They were just fine. Although they can't put out as many arrangements as you did, they're still a good cover band." I informed him.
"Well. That's good to hear. Alright. Here they go." Tayaw said and when I returned on my eyes on the stage, Hoon already started playing the intro.
May 3, 2012 Thursday 7 pm Zolano Street, East Ouigab As I reached the front of the green room's door, I found something strange. The usually chatty waiting room is loud enough for one to hear from outside the room even though its doors are closed, but this time, it's oddly quiet. Did the performers bail? That couldn't be. I slowly opened the waiting room's door and peeked inside, cautious of what I might see. What I saw though, are the musicians, 11 or 12 of them belonging to different bands, gathered in the corner of the room, watching something in Ike's laptop. Ike, Percussive Corrections' drummer is one social butterfly that every musician that plays in my bar like. It is not unusual to see the kid chatting happily with other musicians. What is unusual is that he's surrounded by them like this. I silently entered and saw that Ike's band members, five other college kids, are not participating in the huddle. "What's going on?" I asked quietly to Ramil, Percussive Corrections' saxophonist and vocalist. "They're watching Tayaw's recent performance in America last week." Ramil replied. I nodded in understanding. Tayaw, who was the best performer in my bar, never came back to perform after his supposed 'vacation' last year. I was also surprised that one day, the members of Percussive Corrections walked in my office to sign up for a spot, without Tayaw. It surprised me even more when they said that Tayaw left the band. But after being informed of some news by the members of his former band, it made sense. Tayaw, who I thought quit music, suddenly became famous in Nashville, the world's country music capital. Nabla Observer even wrote an article about him recently. He's now an all-out star. I was planning on keeping him in my bar for a few years at least, to train him, toe give him experience. But after catching up to speed to Tayaw's songs in the internet and his country songs, I felt almost embarrassed of my foolishness. "Shiiitt.. That's Tayaw? Wow. He was holding back on us all along, boss. Haha." Kiyong, Beyond Cape Town's guitarist and leader suddenly commented. "Yeah. He was. He didn't sing his best songs in the bar when he was here." I replied. "Yeah. That too. But take a look at this! Ike. Let the boss watch it." Kiyong said. As Ike passed his laptop to me, the small group behind the kid also dispersed. Really? They're doing that? Hmm? Laptops are this light nowadays? Weird. Anyway, I tapped on the kid's laptop to play the video. What I'm seeing is a re-arrangement of his song 'Invisible Man', sung by him and a band I never saw before. It sounds nice. If the original song was of a lonely man's story, this one feels like a story of two confiding 'invisible men'. What almost gave me a heart attack though was Tayaw's guitar solo. It's a through-and-through improvisation, smoothly done almost effortlessly. This guitar display goes beyond my experience for me to assess. All I know is that it's the best guitar playing I have ever seen. I wish I saw it live. Looking at how Tayaw's hand picking was blurry and I can't see the details of how his fingers pressed against the frets, Tayaw's speed with his fingers and hands must have been too fast for the camera to capture. "Boss. Look at the views." Ike said after he heard the video end. I looked and my eyes widened at the number: '3,276,998'. I looked read the information below the video and it was 'published' on May 30; just three days ago. "Is this how many has seen it?" I asked Ike, finding it unbelievable how many people have already watched in such a short time. "No. That's how many times the video was watched or opened." Ike replied. I processed it for a moment, and found the difference. No matter, I still found it amazing. I carefully closed the laptop and passed it to Ike. Even though Tayaw left the bar, and would probably never perform here again, he introduced me to young talented kids. Ike, Hoon, Jenna, Ramil, Bay-an, and Inson. The six of them, even before Tayaw left their band, are known collectively as 'Percussive Corrections'. I saw these six grow as musicians. When the six of them first walked in my bar, I still remember how nervous they looked and it almost disappointed me how inexperienced they looked. However, because it was Tayaw who introduced them, I had to give them a chance. Then, they stepped on my stage for the first time, and I saw how awkward they looked. Even though Tayaw was with them, I still felt the most anxious I've felt in a long time. I was so afraid they were going to mess up because of their nervousness. When they started playing though, my anxiety was replaced with the most relief I felt in a long time. They were stable. They looked boring, but they sounded good. Since then, they've been performing in my bar at least twice a month, with or without Tayaw. At times when Tayaw wasn't with them, the band made up for it with their skills with their instruments. Since they started, I've noticed them quickly improve their skills. They also became more and more comfortable on the stage. Despite their improvement, they are still not complete without Tayaw. Even though they're talented, I thought they were all just going to stay as instrumentalists. That changed however, when Tayaw left their band, for good. I think Tayaw's departure from the band did Percussive Corrections a favor. Since January, The band has gotten even better, and even added something they always relied Tayaw on; vocals. Jenna's voice is getting better and better; she can hit lower notes and has started using vibrato in her voice. Ike also started singing and brought back the 'singing drummer' that was the trends in the 80s. And when Ike does backing vocals for Jenna, their harmony sounded fantastic. The most pleasant surprise to me regarding the vocals though, was Ramil. The kid's rough tenor voice is perfect when the band plays rock. So with Ike, Jenna, and Ramil singing together, they finally covered the void that Tayaw left. "So, is Tayaw going to be active now in the US?" I asked the members of the Percussive Corrections. Even though Tayaw left their band, the band said that they're living in Tayaw's house. They looked at each other strangely before Bay-an did the talking. "We don't know too. I mean, he came back immediately after he performed with Strawberry Front, the guys you saw Tayaw play with in the video." Bay-an said. I see. I hope he plays more here in Teungeb. I found it strange that Americans got to know him first before Teungebians did. Thinking about it however, he got famous with country music. F.u.c.kin country music that Teungebians rarely enjoy, but is beloved in The States. Probably the only country music I enjoy is the old classics, and Tayaw's. *Applause* The waiting room heard the audience clap for Amelie. ~sigh~ Amelie. The Tayaw-less Percussive Corrections blew by her when it comes to the number of fans in the bar. "You six. You're up next." I said. "Yeah. We know, boss." Ike said and he closed his laptop. After some gentle scuffling of things, the six kids finally stood up and headed to the bar room with their instruments. I followed behind them and found a vacant table in the bar room where I could watch them. I've seen the other performers enough that I honestly grew tired of listening to them. The Percussive Corrections however, I always look forward to watching. Maybe it's because they only perform four times a week at most, but I find their gigs very valuable. While the Percussive Corrections were setting up their instruments, the audience is already clapping for them. The percussive Corrections have already become the favorites in my bar. The other musicians also accepted and admitted that the band deserve the recognition and favor as even Beyond Cape Town, one of the most experienced regular performers in my bar, could barely match the stage that Percussive Corrections give. A few moments later, they are ready. "Hello boss." I was startled when someone called out beside me. I looked and saw Tayaw, already sitting down to join me at my tablee. I almost did not recognize him as he's not wearing his three piece suit in his videos, or the South American collared shirts he wore when he played here. He's currently wearing his sweatshirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of rubber shoes. His outfit when he first performed in my bar. "It's been a while, kid." Is all that I could say. I never admitted it, but I actually missed the kid. It also feels weird that just a few minutes ago, I was thinking how big of a star he became, and now he's standing in front of me, still looking like how he looked when we first met, only much more handsome now. "What are you doing here?" I asked. "What? Am I banned now?" Tayaw jested. "No. I thought you were busy with whatever stars do." I chuckled and jested back. "What star? It's just a few songs that got famous." Tayaw replied. I almost slapped the kid's head. 'Just a few songs that got famous'? What the f.u.c.k? It's already hard being a one-hit wonder! "Come to think about it, I don't think you've seen them live on stage, right?" I asked, which a valid question is as I only saw Tayaw with his band in the same place if they're performing together. "Yeah. You're right. While I was busy, how were they here?" He asked. "They were just fine. Although they can't put out as many arrangements as you did, they're still a good cover band." I informed him. "Well. That's good to hear. Alright. Here they go." Tayaw said and when I returned on my eyes on the stage, Hoon already started playing the intro.
