Jackie Dosmanos

<figure class="op-social"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/03iyW4h0wgQ" width="560"></iframe></figure><div><strong>Loba y Lobos<br/>&quot;Panahon ng Ulan&quot; </strong></div><div style="padding:3px 3px 2px 3px;margin:1px 10px 20px 0px;width:250px;float:left;background-color:#cccccc;border:solid 1px #ddd;line-height:13px"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2016/nation2/05/16/051616_lobos.jpg" width="100%"/></div><p>There is much to admire about the debut album of Loba y Lobos. Comparisons with acoustic Neil Young and Asin will come in droves especially from old-time music fans. But the music isn’t nostalgic at all. Quite the opposite.</p><p>Surprises still abound on a record that essentially sells the drama on the bare bones of acoustic pop. “Unang Araw,” a love song for a girl from Diliman, opens the album accompanied by the unhurried strums of an acoustic guitar. “Carlos” progresses on plucked chords and the melodic swell of massed voices. Florante and APO show up in “Hindi Tayo Tatanda” which also borrows a few things from Neil Young’s “Four Strong Winds.”</p><p>“Huling Taon” stands on a Simon and Garfunkel edifice but its hooks have the finesse of Dragonfly Collector. Its fervent wish is both poignant and hopeful: “Gusto kong marating ang mga paborito mong bansa/Bago dumating ang mga huling taon/Harinawa kahit sino man ang sasagot/ Ibigay sana itong nag-iisang hiling ko.”</p><p>For one-man outfit Lobo y Lobas, less is more and he does not squander his strengths. In fact, he makes a well-worn genre like acoustic OPM still fascinating and compelling in this day and age.</p><p>*****</p><div><strong>Dosage<br/>&quot;Organismo&quot;</strong><br/> </div><div style="padding:3px 3px 2px 3px;margin:1px 10px 20px 0px;width:250px;float:left;background-color:#cccccc;border:solid 1px #ddd;line-height:13px"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2016/nation2/05/16/051616_organ.jpg" width="100%"/></div>Rap with an eye for the poetic gift of gab may sound pretentious. In the hands of Davao-based Dosage, however, the darn thing acquires its own charm, one that can move hearts and minds in the psychedelic ether.<div> </div><p>Right at the first track “Salaming Pang-Espiya, he essays a nightmarish account: “Tayo’y tuldok lamang, nakatitig sa mga aninong dumadaan sa harap ng pinto/Madaming panaginip pero wala akong napiling kathang isip/Ayokong maging alipin, pagod na ako sa kasalukuyan.”</p><p>In “Maulang Gubat,” Dosage drops this line: “Baliw ka lang, halimaw sila.” By the middle of the album, he’s talking about “tumatakbo ang mga patay.” Amid alternating metal growls and hip-hop beats, he imagines the final death of hope in the penultimate cut, “Balat Ng Puno.”</p><p>Hyper-realistic leaps of the imagination power Dosage’s journey in a landscape of shadows, intermittent rains, lush forest and love detained in a small room. The music that surrounds his summoning of a dark world ranges from one-riff guitar tunings to distorted synths. It’s enough backdrop to firmly etch his hyperventilation on receptive souls.</p><p>*****</p><div> </div><div><strong>Beyonce<br/>&quot;Lemonade&quot;</strong></div><div style="padding:3px 3px 2px 3px;margin:1px 10px 20px 0px;width:250px;float:left;background-color:#cccccc;border:solid 1px #ddd;line-height:13px"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2016/nation2/05/16/051616_beyonce.jpg" width="100%"/></div><p>Amid speculations that her marriage to label mogul Jay-Z is on the rocks, Beyonce Knowles foists upon us a new album that starts with intimations of betrayal and ends rather ambiguously in shaky reconciliation. The added shock value of her return is that the accompanying music is a logical move forward from its predecessor.</p><p>Where “Lemonade” truly advances is the cohesion that makes it worth hearing in its entirety. Despite the appearance of diverse co-performers who include neo bluesman Jack White, The Weeknd and electronica’s James Blake, the production is tight and the music crams soul, R&amp;B and diva balladry in ways Beyonce hasn’t attempted before.</p><p>The real action gets going by the second track “Hold Up.” Swathe in stuttering reggae beat, Beyonce sings of smelling her lover/husband’s secrets ‘cause she’s a f***k me up bitch. The “f” word shows up again in the bluesy rave-up “Don’t Hurt Yourself” that concludes in a veiled threat of leaving him for good.</p><p>“Daddy Lessons” tells of things she learned from her philandering father from whom Beyonce admits she gained the fortitude to face all sorts of troubles. That assertion of inner strength fuels “Freedom” whose attractive psychedelic pop styling does not hide its declaration of empowerment. The track can also be a viewed in the context of the current uneasy truce from the spate of police brutality against blacks.</p><p>The album ends in “Formation” where Beyonce puts herself up as a gracious forgiving bitch who’s now her own woman. For all its mad posturing and graceless war of the roses, “Lemonade” finds a civil exit.</p><p>*****</p><div> </div><div><strong>Little Mix<br/>&quot;Get Weird&quot; </strong></div><div style="padding:3px 3px 2px 3px;margin:1px 10px 20px 0px;width:250px;float:left;background-color:#cccccc;border:solid 1px #ddd;line-height:13px"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2016/nation2/05/16/051616_mix.jpg" width="100%"/></div><p>Now on their third studio release, former X-factor champions Little Mix lives up to their name—there’s a blend of everything in contemporary pop on “Get Weird.” In addition, the resounding voices of singers Perrie Edwards, Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, and Jade Thirlwall are matched by a handful of producers adept in navigating the current pop climate.</p><p>Smokey Robinson meets Meghan Trainor in the astounding “Love Me Like You” while Joan Jett rocks it out with the late Prince in “Weird People.” The girls are just as adroit at touching ballads as shown in “Secret Love Song” featuring Jason Derulo as well as on their own in “I Love You.” They ‘re in Rihanna mode without the risqué attitude in “Grown” then put on their best move being the Spice Girls of the moment in “OMG.”</p><p>Little Mix is the next best thing to a Spice Girls reunion. Watch them strut their ‘weird’ stuff live on May 20 at Kia Theatre, Araneta Center.</p>

Loba y Lobos makes a well-worn genre like acoustic OPM still fascinating and compelling in this day and age.

Music reviews: Loba y Lobos, Dosage, Beyonce, Little Mix

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Sudoku

Word of the Day

Lotto

Horoscope

Showbiz

Music reviews: Loba y Lobos, Dosage, Beyonce, Little Mix

Jackie Dosmanos

Published May 16, 2016 07:35 AM PHT

|

Updated May 16, 2016 09:39 PM PHT

Read More:

album reviews

Loba y Lobos

Dosage

Beyonce

Little Mix

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.