Aural Amalgam of Art and Angst

Alternative Rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became popular in the 1990s. 

Alternative rock consists of various sub genres that have emerged from the independent music scene since the 1980s, such as grunge, Britpop, Gothic rock, indie pop, and indie rock.

Some examples of alternative rock bands that have achieved commercial success and mainstream critical recognition are Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M.,Coldplay, The Smiths, The Cure, Jane's Addiction, Nirvana, Foo Fighters, The Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day, Oasis, Weezer, Radiohead, The White Stripes, and Muse.

Why am I telling you these things?

Mainly because of two reasons;

1. Alternative Rock is one of my fave genres.
2. I would like to feature one of the promising indie Alternative Rock bands in the Philippines, AvayaDown.

AvayaDown is composed of 4 guys who share the same vision of bridging the gap between musical differences. It is radio-friendly but not Pop Rock, you can play it mainstream but will always be alternative and most of all not Heavy Metal.

Michael Hernandez - Guitar 2

Nico Navarro - Drums & Vocals

Aaron James Mollo - Vocals & Guitars

Christian Morales - Bass Guitar

Same as how they describe their music, I agree that mixing hexatone-scale-oriented-melodic guitar riffs, heart-pounding drumbeats, solid Bass lines, husky-yet-steady vocals and lyrics will stand out amongst mainstream music. 

James agreed to an exclusive interview. However, due to our busy schedules we weren't able to meet halfway. But don't worry, I know that even without the Q&A portion, I'm sure that you'll still gonna love these guys.

Check 'em out here!

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FOREVER BLUE (MTV)

♪♫ Driving my way in the dark

I just can't find the light

But if destiny will lead me back to you

Our love will be forever true...

Don't turn away... Don't turn away...

Don't turn away... Don't wanna be alone...

Forever Blue... ♪♫

(excerpt from Forever Blue -AvayaDown lyrics)

                                                                             

FIT or not FIT?

Miss me guys? Yeah, I know and I’m guilty about it. It’s been what, a month?! Errr...

I can’t think of a good reason, so I’m just gonna use the same old phrase. “I’m busy.” 

Seriously, I can’t think of any topic for the past weeks. And that’s one of the reasons why I haven’t posted anything. I was really frustrated yesterday because of that, so what I did was to ask a fresh mind for a new one. He said I should write something about what’s trending now. First few suggestions were not passable until he mentioned “GYM”.

Hmmn…

What made me choose this topic? 

As you can see now, a lot of people have been going out to the gym. 

(I remember when I was a kid, my mother used to go there to attend aerobics class).

Back then, the gym is just for oldies, you will barely see a minor there.   

Nowadays, people who go to the gym are getting younger and younger.

And not only aerobics can be seen in their list of offered classes. 

They now offer boxing, dance, self-defense, yoga etc. 

Even kids have their own version of the gym too! "The Little Gym"

So what happened?

What made those yuppies and not –so-old people (hehe) decided to enter the world of physical fitness?

To answer all my questions and your curiosity, I interviewed some people I know that frequently goes to the gym, to give us some insight about it.

Before & After

At what age you started going to the gym?

I started at the age of 17.

What does it benefit you?

My passion is basketball. And I know that if I work out, it will help me more in the game.

-Kevin Paquiz

Are you using supplements or any sort of body enhancers? 
I did. But I stopped after 2 months due to side effects. So now, I can proudly say "it's all natural". My goal now is to practice a healthy lifestyle.

Before & After

How would you encourage someone to get fit?

In my own opinion, encouraging someone is not an easy task. It should come from within, self motivation is a must and there should always be a goal to reach. Not because someone just persuaded you to do it.

-Meg Moreno

Before (2008)

What made you decide to go to the gym?

I started workin out because of my beer belly. Before, I was so fat that I have 3 necks and huge stomach. Another factor would be peer pressure. Since I stopped skateboarding and sports, coke and eating became a daily hobby.. So from 95lbs i became 185 in 3 months. I also became a common joke because of my huge flab when with other people. Then a friend asked me to go to the gym. I remember bringing a liter of Coke to drink instead of water. From there, started to love what I do and saw improvements in my body.

How many hours and how often do you work out?

After (2011)

A typical workout for me would be 1 hour long. But when I’m with my friends, it goes up to 1 ½ hours. My workout schedule depends on what I want to do with my body and the type of season. Since its cold nowadays, I always tend to bulk up a bit. I'm currently 117lbs last June and now im 126 . But during summer time, my heaviest weight would be up to 115 only 

Do you agree that going to the gym is a waste of money?

NO. Working out for me is more of physical fitness and a lifelong investment. A healthy body will always surpass any disease (I hope AIDS as well). If you are strong physically, you can do right things.

-Ralph Racca

What I can say about this is that I really admire those people who go to the gym regularly and people who practice healthy living. People should start living healthy not just to look good but also to balance life as well. Exercise benefits every part of the body, including the mind. 

So, are you fit to do it?