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Prelude to Hungry Young Poets


We were invited to do a frontact to a new band..... and to my surprise it was Barbie Almabis on Vox and guitar, Ricci Gurango on bass, Im not sure if the drummer was Franklin Benitez or someone else and a lead guitarist that I didn't catch his name, really sorry because during the setup it was only Barbie and Ricci who came near us and help us do our soundcheck and familiarize with the gear and amps.  Ricci even offered his Bass effects and Bass amp but not his Bass guitar he said, it's precious to him and he wasn't joking around, was really serious about it and to our surprise when he showed it to us, it's fretless. Barbie again was using her Fender Strat and Korg toneworks multieffects guitar processor.  The drumkit, I think was Powerbeat and Zildjan Cymbals, Gibraltar hardware.

It was Fiesta in Culasi, Roxas City that time.  We played cover songs like, Sama-sama by Alamid, I Need You Here and Na Naman by Color It Red, I think we also sang Line to Heaven and Will I Survive by Introvoys because these are two of our best songs and also our favourite, and we played also Tag-ulan by After Image.  As usual our gear, Fender Precision electric bass guitar, Lyon Sunburst strat by Washburn, Yamaha PSR 500, Vic Firth drum sticks, big fan of Ernie Ball strings and pick but our lead guitarist is a fan of Dunlop heavy pick.

There was another frontact and they call themselves Blue Barbies, a newbie all-female band, young teens.  It was their very first gig and they played Bizarre Love Triangle by Frente and Cranberries' Ode To My Family and Free To Decide. I know them because indirectly I mentored them, I mean the older brother I mentored their band so the sister got interested and put up her band and they borrow instruments from us, and ask some help with songs, etc.  Good old happy days of sharing talents and amps and drums and guitars and bass and keyboards and..... it's a long story.

Barbie's band doesn't have a name that time and they said they call themselves temporarily as Batang M and during that time there's a movie I think, which was Batang X.  I can remember they covered Jewel's song Who Will Save Your Soul and If It Makes You Happy by Sheryl Crow, Supermodel by Jill Sobule and a lot more by Alanis and Cranberries.

I enjoyed and was dancing with Barbie's cousin Badong in front of the stage as everyone was not getting some of the songs but I knew all the songs and I kinda like those songs plus the band was really really good. Well, months and months later, they became famous and was known as Hungry Young Poets and released an album which I loved and catapulted Barbie Almalbis' career.

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