INdulge!
VOL.5 ISSUE 79 • JUNE 22 - 23, 2012
EDGEDAVAO
ARTS & CULTURE
Jad Montenegro
The Indie Muse: Jad Montenegro and her band
Jad Montenegro launches her first EP album RIGHT away, you can tell that Jad Montenegro is one of a kind.
It’s not just because of the shock of red hair, which could also be blue or green or purple or a curious palette of all of the above, depending on her mood. It’s not just because of the tulle skirts, chunky boots, and other ragtag elements that make up her personal style, prompting less liberal eyes to do a double-take. It’s the image that arrests you when you happen to catch her at the music bars where she can be found playing on weekend nights: the delicate, pale-skinned,
Khuko Luzada on guitar
wide-eyed pixie with the jarring hair and grunge-meets-RainbowBrite getup, hefting a guitar that looks enormous when strapped over her small frame, singing in a soft, childlike voice that’s no less commanding in its frailty. See, Jad is a musician. An indie musician. An indie musician in a place that offers a dearth of opportunities for people like her to advance their craft, never mind the shortage of audiences for the kind of music she creates. But does that bother her? “I’m perfectly fine with it,” Jad declares. As someone who once moon-
lighted as a pop-punk guitarist while a student in Quezon City, the move back to Davao is one Jad does not regret. “I spent college in Quezon City, going to a lot of gigs. Honestly, it’s a little bit of a rat race out there. Not that I’m saying I don’t feel up to the challenge, but I was truly able to listen to myself out here, in this quiet city called Davao.” With the help of bassist Pjoe Sabanpan, drummer Dave Ibao, and lead guitarist Khuko Luzada, Jad writes her songs, performs at gigs, and releases her material out into the online ether, a move that has lured a listenership well beyond her geographic location. In addition to getting airplay in local radio stations, she nabbed awards from Mindanao cable TV show Muzika Del Sur, which gave her the Best Pop Artist plum in 2009 and the Best Music Video honor for her single “The Backyard” in 2010. Recently, her folk-flavored acoustic croonings have reached discerning ears all the way across the country, landing her a space in Manila-based websites. Now, Jad and her bandmates are a day away from launching their self-produced first EP Fixed Points and Pendulums—all on their own initiative, ingenuity, and unbridled talent. I am one of those who have witnessed this delicate, paleskinned, wide-eyed pixie perform her gentle guitar rhythms in music bars on weekend nights. Wildly colored hair and grungemeets-Rainbow-Brite fashion aside, the experience has always
Dave Ibao on percussions
Pjoe Sabanpan on bass
been one that inspires hushed awe and admiration. But don’t just take my word for it. On Saturday, June 23 at 9PM, head to the third floor of Southspot Studios at 59-B Aala Bldg, Anda St. and see this Davaoena singer-songwriter play a strippeddown set of her originals in the first leg of the Fixed Points and Pendulums launch. Azimuth,
Anne & the 05s, and Foursided Circle will also be playing intimate acoustic sets. A door charge of P150 gets you in, and it comes with a CD copy of the six-song EP plus a free drink. For more information, visit jadmontenegro.com and facebook. com/jadmontenegro. For inquiries, email jad_montenegro@yahoo.com.