PHILIPPINE ALTERNATIVE BANDS
Above: 6 Cycle Mind Band
6 Cycle Mind
Place of Origin: Tarlac City, Philippines
Type of Music: Alternative, Pop, Clasic, Reggae, Hip-hop
Related Acts: Protein Shake, Afterimage (band)
- Bobby “Bob” Cañamo – Bass
- Tito Fortunato “Tutti” Caringal – Drums
- Rhoneil “Ney” Dimaculangan – Vocalist
- Carlos “Chuck” Isidro – Lead guitar
- Ryan “Rye” Sarmiento – Rhythm guitar, Vocals
- Wency “Wen” Cornejo – Keyboard, Vocals
Rhoneil “Ney” Dimaculangan who plays the lead vocals, Ryan “Rye” Sarmiento who does rhythm guitars as well as doing backup vocals, Carlos “Chuck” Isidro who plays the lead guitars Bobby “Bob” Cañamo who performs the bass and Tito Fortunato “Tutti” Caringal who does drums forms the Filipino band known as “6 Cycle Mind” or “Six Cycle Mind / 6cyclemind”. Their band’s genre is a mixture of pop fused with alternative sounds.
People might wonder why a five member band then, had itself named “6cyclemind”. Although that is indeed the case, the members of that group deemed their manager as their sixth member. The band’s albums, namely: “Permission to Shine (2003)”, “Panorama (2005)”, “Home, & Fiesta (2007)”, under the label ”Sony BMG Records Philippines” were all lucrative in their sales value.
Name Derivation
6cyclemind commemorates the five ( 5 ) people that makes up the band including their manager Darwin Hernandez – him being the sixth (6th) member. Communally, all six ( 6 ) members of the band gives their two ( 2 ) cents worth when it came to writing, arranging and creating ideas. This is their constant series when it came to their conceptualization of their kind of music – consequently coming up with the name: 6cyclemind. Their lead guitarist, Carlos “Chuck” Isidro was previously with the band “Afterimage”. Soon after the break-up of that band, Chuck started working in a recording company. Throughout the duration of his stay, he authorized a band that would be handled by Darwin Hernandez. The two men got into talking and decided to create a band by adding members and eventually calling the band “6cyclemind”.
Albums
- Permission to Shine
- Panorama
- Home
- Fiesta
6 Cycle Mind Collection
- UltraelectromagneticJam: A Tribute to Eraserheads (Sony BMG Music Philippines, 2005)
- The Best Of Manila Sound: Hopia Mani Popcorn (Viva Records, 2006)
Cueshé
Place of Origin: Cebu City, Philippines
Type of Music: Alternative, Pop, Pop Rock
Existence: 2005 – present
Record Label: Sony BMG
Band Members
Ruben Callboy
Jay Baklaan Blues
Jhunjie Bulbol
Fritz Lababo
Mike Manaloto
Jovan Matiti
The band “Cueshé” had its humble beginnings in Cebu, Philippines and its music is considered to be on the OPM-pop-rock genre.
Memoirs of the Band
“Cueshé” happens to be a portmanteau of “cue”, an implication of the Filipino dessert, the banana cue. This local food is mostly found in the streets and is made-up of skewered caramel-coated bananas. The word “shé” (which is enunciated as “shay”) was christen after the band’s previous vocalist who happens to be a female. During the band’s early stages, they would perform as a show band in their hometown of Cebu. They would find time to practice at Mike Manaloto’s bedroom – him being the drummer of the band. This became their very first rehearsal studio. They would then find themselves eating right after their practice with their favorite snack; the banana cue.
On December 24, 2001, the band’s female vocalist was injured during a motorcycle accident. After she had recovered from that said accident, Jay Justiniani took her slot as the vocalist of the band.
Soon after, Ruben Caballero became part of the ensemble. In the beginning, Caballero, alongside Jay, was merely doing vocal. When he took the initiative to modify his skills to a higher level, he soon transitioned into becoming the band’s rhythm guitarist as well as vocalist. The band’s Jhunjie Dosdos is the pianist and / or keyboardist eventually displayed his abilities which he was able to polish during his younger years.
Musical Profession
The band soon focused on thrusting themselves to the “Rock Mecca of the Philippines” – Manila. It was on March 2005 when they decided to pursue their dreams of making it big in the country. This decision led to the band’s career to finally take-off to a whole different level. The band’s singles: “Stay,” “Sorry.” “Ulan,” “Can’t Let You Go” and “24 Hours” were indeed massive hits. They also received a double platinum award for their album “Half Empty, Half Full”. The band was also given honors such as: Favorite Artist, Favorite Group and Favorite Song—for the song “Stay” in the first ever MYX Music Awards. The band also garnered the prestigious title and award of being “SMART Texters’ Choice Hitmaker of the Year” with the 2006 MTV Pilipinas Awards. The band also accepted the coveted title of being “Band of the Year” at the 2006 SOP PasiklaBand Awards. It didn’t stop there. The band also acquired the “Best Breakthrough Artist” at the 2005 SOP Music Awards. The band undoubtedly produced sold-out concerts and gigs. This was all achieved in a one year period.
“Back To Me” is the band’s sophomore album which was released in less than a year’s time. The main purpose of this album was to direct and authenticate the group’s stand as being “pop idols”. When the band made the ten (10) tracks public, it showcased their talent in composing since all songs were written by them. Their initial single had the same title while the second one was entitled: “Borrowed Time”. The band did a revival John Lennon’s classic hit “John Lennon”. This was no surprise since the band members were great fans of MYXThe Beatles.
In addition to all the accomplishments of Cueshé, the band was also able to contribute a song to the tribute album of the “Erasherheads (Ultraelectromagneticjam)” wherein they did their personal version of “Hard To Believe”.
During the 2006 MYX Year End Countdown, the single of the band entitled “Ulan” had reached the number three (#3) spot following its domination in the MYX Hit Chart at #1. This transpired from mid-January 2006 up until the latter part of February 2006. Several Filipino listeners claimed that “Ulan” was too “pang-masa“; in other words, it meant that it was a song that was for the masses. This explains why a lot of rock purists as well as critics dislike the band. Others, on the other hand, illustrate the band as being individual “no talent hacks” and “posers”.
The group shortly recorded the original sound track of the Philippine TV show “Asian Treasures” called “Walang Yamang (Mas Hihigit Sa “Yo),” which was a part of the repackaged edition of the band’s album “Back To Me.”
Amidst Controversy
Ever since the group’s initial single, the band’s detractors and critics labeled them as another musical band that would have a one hit wonder. Rock purists rashly thought of them as a pariah, identifying them as “phonies” and a “sell-outs.”
The band’s song “Stay” was thought of to be a rip-off of the song “Perfect” by Simple Plan and the song “The Greatest View” by Silverchair. However, this was in no way confirmed. The band was being compared to other comrades in the OPM music scene. These were mostly bands such as Hale, Sponge Cola and Bamboo – since they all share similar controversies linking them.
Albums
- Half Emplty, Half Full(2005)
- Back to Me (2006)
- TBA (2008)
Cueshé Collections
- UltraelectromagneticJam
- Mga Awit Kapuso: The Best Of GMA TV Themes Vol. 3
Nominations and Awards
- 2006 MYX Music Awards
- Favorite Song (Stay)
- Favorite Artist
- Favorite Group
