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Good vibes at Hungry Young Poets’ reunion show rehearsal

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Rick Olivares

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Hungry Young Poets’ Franklin Benitez, Ricci Gurango, and Barbie Almalbis-Honasan. Photo by Rick Olivares" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/03/09/20230309-hungry-poets.jpg"/><figcaption>Hungry Young Poets’ Franklin Benitez, Ricci Gurango, and Barbie Almalbis-Honasan. Photo by Rick Olivares</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA -- There was a knock on the door to the music room at the home of Barbie Almalbis-Honasan. “This was like how it was back in 1997, guitar back slung on his back and wearing sunglasses when he first knocked on my door,” she said with déjà vu dripping all over. Almalbis-Honasan was then in college and living in Malate when a classmate of hers, Raymond Golamco, said she should meet this other budding musician. That was her introduction to Ricci Gurango. Incredibly, both hail from Capiz – “We’re aswangs,” joked Gurango – and yet, didn’t know each other until they met many years later. Cut to today, 25 years later and Gurango, once more in sunglasses and his hair standing up like he was cut from some New Wave MTV video, is there. “That is a good sign,” added Almalbis-Honasan. “This is good. Just good.” It’s the first rehearsal for Hungry Young Poets – vocalist and guitarist Barbie Almalbis-Honasan, bassist Ricci Gurango, and drummer Franklin Benitez – for her upcoming concert &quot;Firewoman: 25 Years of Barbie Almalbis&quot; on March 11 at the 123 Block. Almalbis-Honasan will be performing with her two former bands, Hungry Young Poets (HYP) and Barbie’s Cradle, aside from performing her solo material. But today, Wednesday, HYP is on deck. HYP drew raves and was a surprise hit in 1997 with songs like “Torpe” and “Firewoman” making their way into radio playlists. Almalbis-Honasan sang with a twee voice, wrote beautiful songs and was nimble on the guitar. There was Gurango, the young maestro with a grand plan in mind. And there was Benitez. Benitez who was not going to join the band. “I once played with Franklin in this show band and I was impressed with his work. I got his number thinking that one day, I would get to play with him,” recalled Gurango. When Gurango and Almalbis-Honasan were auditioning drummers for HYP, there were four others who came ahead of Benitez. They were to jam on several songs including a trick one. “We have this song that is a bit tricky because of its odd time signature,” added Almalbis-Honasan. “The other drummers got it, but they performed it last. Franklin? He played the song first before all the others. He got it the first time. We knew we had our drummer.” Except Benitez didn’t want to join. “I just wanted to see if I could play their songs,” admitted the drummer, which elicited laughs from his bandmates. Cut to the photo shoot for the back cover of HYP&#x27;s self-titled debut. Benitez and Golamco were asked to go to this venue. “Nagulat ako,” Benitez recounted of the incident. “Album na agad?” Almalbis pointed to the back cover of the compact disc of their album. “There were four of us in that photo. Raymond decided not to join, so he was cropped out of that photo,” she laughed. “And the rest,” chimed in Gurango, “is history.” A few songs into the rehearsal, Benitez’ son, Zild, a recording artist in his own right – a huge young star to be precise – arrived. “Wala akong ginagawa so I thought na manonood lang ako ng ensayo,” said Zild. Gurango and Almalbis-Honasan are his godparents. “Zild is a HYP baby,” noted Gurango. Zild is as old as Almalbis-Honasan’s career in the music industry – 25 years. “I saw them during their reunion show in 2011,” the young musician shared. “The hype about HYP is real – they are a really good band.” And now, old fans, including a new generation, will get to see the band that was a regular at the old Freedom Bar and Tipsies. HYP that was a fan favorite and was one of the best and brightest at the tail end of the 1990s. This time, all three members will be joined by their families including Gurango’s brood of six who all are in the Philippines not only for the show but to also meet relatives who their children have not met at all. “It’s more than a reunion of an old band,” summed up Almalbis-Honasan. “It’s a family thing.”

It’s the first rehearsal for Hungry Young Poets for Barbie Almalbis-Honasan's upcoming concert 'Firewoman: 25 Years of Barbie Almalbis' on March 11 at the 123 Block. 