Jhayzon Paredez: 90’s Rock and Roll (Part 2)
Levy Abad
Ang Peryodiko Volume XV NO.5
March 1-15,2017
Winnipeg ,Manitoba

In the first half of this article, I tried to dig into the influences of Jhayzon Paredes as a musician and founder of three bands: Palitaw, FourSight and Fhamathou. At this point, I will be discussing a bit on the bands, just to make sure that they will be documented.

Forming a band is not a joke and managing it is tougher.  You have to establish relationship and trust among the members for a band to survive.  Jhayzon, through the years, was able to maintain friendship with musicians who he came into contact with and this in itself is already a great feat and a contribution to the cultural tapestry of the community. 

Palitaw Band

As mentioned above, Palitaw (1994-2004) was one of the earliest bands that Jhayzon was a part of in the Peg in the 90s. Jhayzon explained to me that Palitaw, as the name suggests, means palutang or a float for a bait of a fishing gear. The pioneer members were Jhayzon Paredes on bass guitar, Fortune Caranay (lead guitar), Danny Lizardo (drums).  These three guys started playing alternative Tagalog songs and decided to concentrate on such.  As to influences, they claim they were avid students of Nirvana and Green day.  Back in March 1997 when the musicians organization FAMOUS (Filipino Association of Musicians and Other Unknown Artist)  was founded, Palitaw was one of the original convenors of FAMOUS.

When FAMOUS organized its first concert, Palitaw performed and got projected in the community that led to invitations to perform at birthday parties and wedding socials. Palitaw also became a front act of the 1997 visit of Mike Hanopol in Winnipeg. Eventually, the organization FAMOUS started to mellow down and together with it, the band Palitaw also faded in the background.

FOURSIGHT Band

In 2004, Jhayson Paredes known for tirelessly organizing events formed a band called FourSight..
 
  According to the FourSight’s web page, the group was formed back in Winter 2004 when it was terribly cold (-55) and boring.  It says that out of boredom, the members of the band came together and decided to call themselves FourSight. The one who coined the name of the band was Trexier (nickname of Lord Arwin Bautista), the vocalist of the group. The members of FourSight band (2004 to 2012) were the following:  Lord Arwin Bautista (vocals), Jhayson Paredes (bass guitar), Ricky Lontoc (lead guitar) and Dennis Francisco (drums).  By 2005, Brian De Nieva was the lead guitarist and James De Nieva played drums. Come 2006, the original lead guitarist Ricky Lontoc came back, but there was a new drummer in the person of Rod Dizon. The latest changes in band members happened in 2007 with Jeff Reyes playing lead guitar, Jan Castillo (2 2nd lead) and Chester Pangan (Drums).

In the website of FourSight , it says that that the group performed as front acts for bands that

performed here in Winnipeg like Siakol, Mike Hanopol, Parokya Ni Edgar, Slapshock and many more.  The band considers itself as a metal alternative band, a fusion of North American Metal, Grunge influences and Filipino Alternative music.

Fhamathou

The third band that Jhayson Paredes helped organize was the Fhamathou back in early 2006.

Fhamathou simply means Pamato /Pambato in Tagalog or star/ace, like in a star player or band. In the 90’s, it means a vanguard band. The original members of this band were the following:  Jhayzon Paredes –guitar and vocals, Rod Dizon- bass and vocals, Danny Lizardo on drums.  As to influences, they adhere to the 90s Philippine Alternative Rock tradition like the E-heads, Yano, Teeth, Siakol, Parokya ni Edgar, just to name a few. These were the bands that played at Mayric’s Bar in the 90s where I used to hang out as a folk singer during the time of Burt Chaves and Sazi Cosino as managers of Mayrics. The band also covered classic rock (Eric Clapton and Credence Clearwater Revival).

According an article written by Alfie Vera  Mella of Filipino Journal,  Fhamathou not only covers songs but also writes their own songs like “Chatroom,” “Sinayang Mo,” “Bakit pa?” to mention a few. Most of these songs were written by Jhayzon Paredes.  Jhayzon also owns a recording studio equipped with the latest instruments according to Alfie’s article, “Fhamathou: A pride of Pinoy Musikero of Winnipeg.” I had the privilege to visit Jhayzon’s place and he made me listen to some of his compositions that he also arranged. I must admit that I cannot do the things that he did.  In my case, I write the lyrics, put the melody and go to a friend sound engineer to lay in my songs.

As a Winnipeg band, Fhamathou has experienced big gigs as front act for famous Philippine bands

that visited Winnipeg like The Youth concert, Yano and The Teeth. Alfie wrote that Jhayzon Paredes produced concerts for both local and Philippine based bands and artists. Among the acts that he already brought to Winnipeg include Siakol, Parokya ni Edgar, True Fath, Pupil, The Youth, Dong Abay and Glenn Jacinto. If you want further reading on the background of Fhamathou, I suggest Alfie Mella’s article in Filipino Journal.

 

To date, Fhamathou performed as front act for Lolita Carbon’s Pagbabalik concert in the Peg.  Jhayzon played a huge role as the band leader of Fhamathou and as an organizer, he was instrumental for the success of the concert that was held at the Pampanga Restaurant on October 14, 2016 and at the Canton Buffet Restaurant on October 16th where hundreds from the Filipino community attended.

Summing up from 1994 up to the October 2016, Jhayzon  Paredes played  a crucial link in the band scene of the Filipino community.  Twenty two years of involvement is proof enough of his commitment to the cause of rock and roll culture in the Manitoba’s Filipino diaspora.   Together with the earlier artists who I mentioned in my previous articles, Jhayzon and his Metal Alternative rock and roll buddies must not be forgotten as they contributed and are part of the narrative. 

(Levy Abad is a freelance writer and also a singer songwriter/recording artist and a member of Migrante Canada-Mb chapter and also a founding member/ program coordinator of Winnipeg Multicultural Human Rights Forum, Levy has released three albums , Canadian Experience Vol. 1 (iTunes ), Never Give Up and Rhythms of Compassion CanEx 3. Levy is soon to release a his fourth album by fall titled "I Love Canada". You can reach Levy Abad through , lev67.abad@yahoo.ca or on Facebook.).

Nothing Personal

Levy Abad 

Migrant Perspective, THE DIVERSITY TIMES

January 2017,Vol.6 No.1

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Paskong Pinoy, A trailblazing event. December 17, 2016, what a day at the RBC Convention Centre where the Paskong Pinoy sa Canada event was held! It was spearheaded by the Asian Community magazine led by Bong Roscuata, Producer, and Lourdes Federis, Project Manager, together with 204 Filipino Marketplace, which celebrated its 1^st year anniversary and Christmas Party by giving away prizes to its growing members. Thank you for the warm welcome and, last but not the least, thank you too to Bobit Nepomuceno and Jun Isla of Vocal Arts Centre for inviting me to perform three songs (Dito sa Winnipeg, Paskong Wala ng Digmaan and my Toronto community hit song Na-shock Ako). Special thanks to the leadership of 204 Filipino Marketplace for inviting me to lead the opening prayer.

Bobit Nepomuceno, Artist Par Excellence.  Bobit is the classically trained CEO of Vocal Arts Centre. He organizes concerts and provides great mixing as an audio engineer.  One thing I really appreciate with Bobit is that he makes sure that the artists receive a little appreciation for the gasoline spent and for the time they devote in preparing for their performances. I heard that Bobit is planning to organize an MYMP (Make My Mama Proud) concert here in the Peg next year. Something to watch out for!

Understanding the Philippine Left.  As a member of Migrante Manitoba, activist and a singer songwriter, I used to go around and listen to the opinion of folks regarding Philippine politics.  The frequent commentary I hear is, “Why do activists keep holding rallies even when Rodrigo Duterte is already in power?”  As far as my research can go, activists are trained not to be loyal to personalities but to issues, ideas or ideologies.  Activists focus on programs like the people’s agenda on Nationalist Industrialization and Agrarian Reform. If a president’s leadership indicates a determination to implement these important changes, activists will support such initiative, but if a leader implements policies contrary to the people’s agenda (e.g. release of political prisoners), then you can expect that the activists will be there to criticize and remind the leaders of the people’s priorities .

On Political Prisoners.  I hope that President Rodrigo Duterte will be true to his promise of releasing political prisoners. One of them is a comrade in the social movement in the Philippines, Alexander Arias. I know him personally as a tireless advocate of landless peasants’ (farmers) rights. Alex is an intelligent and compassionate person who, instead of working to get rich, devotes his whole life on peasant liberation from feudal bondage. Release All Political Prisoners Now!

On Democracy. Too often, I encounter people who are into personality cults, meaning, looking at leaders as responsible for the progress of a country as contraposed to leaders who focus on social movements and capacity building. This tendency is so antithetical to the concept of democracy, which etymologically means demos or people and kratien or power, in short, People Power or people’s empowerment. Even the constitution of the Republic of the Philippines states that the “Philippines is a democratic and republican state, sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.” This is one of the provisions I memorized well from Law school and Political Science. I remember the great nationalist historian, Renato Constantino, who emphasized that the essence of democracy is freedom and its forms are varied, one of which is the Philippine democracy that we know. In the Philippine context, you have national democracy, liberal democracy, popular democracy and social democracy. These are ideological tendencies that interact and shape Philippine history. Most people embrace these according to their social situation.

 MPNP blues. The Conservative Party in power in the province of Manitoba is planning to implement an additional $500 fee to the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program, which supposedly will be “re-invested into the improved service standards and supports for immigrants and refugees.” This idea is being questioned by multicultural leaders like Helal Mohiuddin as comparable to head tax in the olden days. With this contentious issue in our midst, who do you think among the various communities of Winnipeg will be effective in waging opposition to this policy?

Perspectives on Jose Rizal. Last November 19, 2016, the Knights of Rizal-Winnipeg Chapter organized a Night of Poems, Songs and Essays Celebrating “Rizal the Artist.” In the event, different perspectives on Rizal’s ideas were expressed by youth participants like Johsa Manzanilla, Alfie Vera Mella, Cristine Mazur and Jon Malek. Some of the guests expressed the pacifist tendency of Jose Rizal while others expressed that Rizal espoused revolutionary tendencies.  We all know that the result of Rizal’s writings like Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo led to his martyrdom and eventually, his death sparked the revolution of 1896, which ended Spanish colonialism.  Is this a case of “you reap what you sow?”

The Story of the Goat and the Sheep. One summer in a farm, a goat and a sheep had a talk. The Goat known for his ego as big as the farm asked the humble Sheep, “How come you guys don’t follow me?” The sheep replied, “Well, you know, we love you and please don’t get us wrong, but you must always remember that you are a Goat.”

The Harry Paine I know

Levy Abad- January 1, 2017

courtesy of Cooking the Revolution

On the afternoon of December 31^st, I received an email from David Camfield of Solidarity Winnipeg that Harry Paine passed away. This is precisely what Harry told me early November when I picked him up and brought him home from a seniors’ event. Harry casually told me that he will be leaving by December. Although I know that this will happen soon, I was momentarily speechless upon hearing the sad news.

I vividly recall when I phoned Harry on November 10th to touch base and that was when he told me about his health condition. I volunteered to pick him up from a seniors’ event he was attending somewhere in Provencher Boulevard and bring him home.  I saw Harry with his shoulder bag going to and fro consulting with leaders of the seniors’ community.  Aware of his condition, Harry nevertheless went about his usual business.  He told me that he felt a bit dizzy, but as always, he added that the revolution has to advance all the time. Hearing those words reminded me that anyone who considers himself as a revolutionary should never slumber nor sleep.  A revolutionary has to advance and defend the gains of the struggle all the time.  

with Harry at the Grace hospice

From the seniors’ event, I brought Harry to his new place somewhere along Portage Avenue near Grace Hospital. There we had a nice chat.  I teased him about his room in the hospice that in the developing world, a room like that is only reserved for the comprador bourgeoisie, a layer of the bourgeoisie that is servile to foreign monopoly capital.  In contrast, revolutionaries die in poverty, unattended when they are sick. Meanwhile, Harry pulled out a list of books and told me that I could choose and he will gather and reserve them for me. I chose at least four books about the revolution in China. I asked him about the book that he was writing and he said that it is still an ongoing project and so I have to be content with his articles and his video titled “Cooking the Revolution,” a film by Dodie Graham McKay.

I commented to Harry that I am fortunate to live in a first world country and see for myself the dynamics of activism here which gave me a deeper understanding of comparative revolutionary theory. He showed me some of his stuff and when a Filipina health aide entered his room, I asked the lady to take a picture of me and “uncle” Harry, as I usually address him.  A few days later, I called him up to ask when I can pick up the books. Unfortunately, a snow storm hit the city on December 6^th, which prevented me from driving to his place.

Harry was a cadre of the revolution as he usually says. He never made excuses about his personal state nor heard him talk about his dire straits. The Harry that I know possesses a classic revolutionary attitude of not wasting his time on his blues. Everytime we meet, Harry and I would discuss about the issues and situation whether locally, provincially or federally. We also conversed on books, ideologies and the isms of the day. Theories that work and theories that don’t.  Even if we did not agree on some things, we agreed to disagree. We talked about the good old days when activists still know what to do and are still into immersing in the community.  I guess, Harry discerned my ideological preference, but has already matured to engage in ideological “ecumenism.” Harry’s love for the people and their welfare is beyond question.

Harry is a legend in the community.  Sometime in late 2015, I used to hang out at the kitchen of Mitch Podolak, the founder of the Winnipeg Folk Festival with another friend Pablo Herrera where we had coffee, cookies and sung Viva La Quinta Brigada, Bella Ciao and other internationalist anthems.  In our conversation, I learned that Mitch was also influenced by Harry into social activism back in his younger days in Toronto. In the hospice where Harry spent his last days, I saw a Certificate of Appreciation that recognized his 30 year contribution as a volunteer of the Winnipeg Folk Festival and a news article titled “Fixing the Food of the Folk Fest for 40 years, Mixing Social Activism and Cooking” by Carolyn Shimmin- Bazak. As a lone Filipino folk singer recording artist and social activist here in the Peg, I like the quote from Harry that “Music has always been a political statement.” Harry likes music when it is not created for profit.

From the time I worked for the government as a community outreach staff back in 2010 to 2016, I used to meet and consult Harry together with another friend, Boyd Poncelet, about the nature of the organizing process here in Canada and Manitoba. I learned a lot by listening in the discussion. Although I differ with Harry in areas concerning the developing world as I do not only have theoretical knowledge of the process, but also the practical experience, I am fortunate to have befriended  Harry Paine.  Hence,wherever you are  Harry, I thank you for all the times we had a chat about life and struggles and the revolution in the broad sense. You have devoted your life in fighting for and defending the gains of the Canadian social movement, and now it is time to rest. I know if you have a choice, you will go on serving, as dramatic antics of giving importance to yourself is not your cup of tea. In life, you gave light and endured burning. In your passing, rest assured that the movement will advance and your revolutionary dream will never die although it may take a different turn, as it has always been the case.  Long live Harry Paine! Hasta la Victoria Siempre! or in Tagalog ,"Sulong, Hanggang Tagumpay!"  In the midst of the differences and convergences, I will turn my grief into courage to struggle for the betterment of the community.