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| Somedaydream |
To
say that Somedaydream had a breakthrough year back in 2011 is such an
understatement. Rarely does a new artist achieve phenomenal mainstream success
through a new song (Hey Daydreamer) featuring a sound uniquely his own.
Consider also that he achieved this without the backing of a major television
network or by being a product of a reality talent competition. While other
artists have found their way to popularity through online videos, they did so
by doing covers unlike this young man who did it with his own
compositions. And with the guidance of his manager and mentor Champ Lui Pio, he is poised to get
even bigger this 2012.
I
first heard about Somedaydream (Rez Toledo in real life) when one of my young
friends asked me if I could play his songs on the piano. I had to ask my friend
to repeat the name since it was an unusual one. His music also turned out to be
unusual as well since it was very much unlike what is being heard on the radio in recent years. Well, it didn’t take long for others to hear his music since a snippet of his song Hey Daydreamer was used in a
television commercial for Selecta Cornetto. Soon enough, people of all ages
(from toddlers to grandparents) know the song making Somedaydream truly one of the
major breakthrough artists of 2011.
I’ve
had a few chances to catch Somedaydream perform live but I wasn’t able to
attend any of them. I wanted to catch him during one of his appearances at Astroplus stores when he launched his self titled debut album under Mecca Music and MCA Music and yet I failed to do this as well. Finally, I’ve had my moment to be up and close with him during
the Somedaydream’s 1st Bloggers’ Meet-Up that was held at the Blue Onion Bar and Restaurant recently. I was really interested to hear how he sounded
live since his album featured a lot of electronic effects and overdubs which is
not easy to replicate in a live performance. I also admit that I’ve had my reservations
about him since he may be just all hype considering that his market consists of
much younger listeners. But like a trooper, Somedaydream showed what he was
made of during his performance and carried himself with such poise when answering
questions from the bloggers during the event. And I noticed that it was actually Champ
who seemed to be more nervous during the whole event while Rez remained cool.
A lot was known about the young Rez during this event. One thing that we found out was
that he isn’t given star treatment or gawked at campus in Ateneo de Manila
where he studies. When asked if he is bothered by this since he is received a
lot warmer while performing in other campuses, he just shrugged at this saying
that while some of his friends tease him about him being Somedaydream, he is
still regarded as just one of the normal students in campus. He was asked about
his music influences and his songwriting process as well. And it was really surprising
to find out that he wasn't actually a fan of Champ’s former band Hale back then and
only started to like them upon the release of Bahay Kubo. He said that he is open to all kinds of new music and
that his style of songwriting is organic. He added that he usually writes the lyrics and the
music simultaneously. He also mentioned that he didn't expect for his success to be this fast.
And it seemed that he isn’t crumbling under the pressure of
maintaining the momentum that he has going on for him. A lot more could be
learned about him through the January issue of Pinoy Magazine, a special issue with
features that are almost entirely devoted to him.
While
Somedaydream remained calm and collected, Champ was brimming with excitement
when he teased that a lot is in store for his protégé this 2012. He hinted that
there will be a major product deal that would elevate Somedaydream’s profile a
lot more. Promotional tours in support of the album and performances around the
country are also in store for him enabling more people to see and hear him
live. As for me, I am looking forward to more music from him. His debut release
only has seven tracks with a running time of just barely half an hour. I can
understand the reason about releasing EP’s at first but based on his
unprecedented success, I do hope that he comes up with new material soon. And I
would like it very much if he includes a song or two in Filipino since he
pulled one off nicely in Delivery Boys which contained some re-worked portions
of Batang-Bata Ka Pa by the Apo
Hiking Society. Somedaydream may have had some people confused with his unique
sound with a lot thinking that he’s a foreign artist, but this young man is a
local pride who is contributing to the diversity and richness of the Filipino
music landscape.
Somedaydream's 1st Bloggers' Meet-Up was made possible by MCA Music, Mecca Music and Pinoy Magazine in cooperation with official online partner Orange Magazine TV and Blue Onion Bar and Restaurant. Special thanks to Bose, Terranova, Keds and Selecta Cornetto.
Somedaydream
Tracks:
1.
Intro
2.
Hey Daydreamer
3.
Do-do With You
4.
Delivery Boys
5.
Break
6.
Sing This Song
7.
Hey Daydreamer (Acoustic)
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