Bad Memories

In May 1977, "God Save the Queen" by the Sex Pistols hit #2 on the U.K. Singles Charts, elevating punk rock from a largely underground sensation to a legitimate music genre. The loud, fast, and intensely abrasive three-cord sound brought raw energy and bad attitude back into rock music- which was becoming tame and pacified during that time. Spearheaded by vanguard groups like The Ramones, Sex Pistols and The Clash, punk became a global phenomenon that influenced the culture, fashion and even the political ideology of youths as far as Tokyo.

Time.com commemorates this milestone in music history with The 30 Year Anniversary of Punk, a multimedia photo essay narrated by Josh Tyrangiel, the editor of the website and a music critic who has worked for Vibe, Rolling Stone and MTV.

Watching the slide show gave me a sudden surge of nostalgia. I remember hanging out with friends after school, drinking beer, passing joints, and The Clash playing loudly off the speakers. “Career Opportunities” was among the frequently played soundtracks of my life as a juvenile delinquent during the early 80’s.

That was a long time ago, and I have already moved on to other forms of music. Punk is not even a genre listed on my iPod. I have also adopted a relatively benign lifestyle, but you can blame The Clash for the occasional streaks of bad behavior that I may still exhibit.

I Lost My Mojo!

This is not a good way start a blog. I am going to the hospital today and I will probably get confined for a day or two. I have been planning to see a doctor because of frequent attacks of migraine and fatigue recently, but I have never gotten around to it since there is always something seemingly important that I need to do. Today, after suffering from a severe headache for three days, I woke up feeling tired and without any appetite for breakfast. For someone who loves to eat, that is a very alarming symptom. So I decided to inform my clients that I am taking the week off, and scheduled an appointment with a doctor, who suggested that I should get myself confined for closer look. I am just hoping they have Wi-fi over there.

First Book Project

San Agustin Museum recently launched Philippine Church Facades - a coffee table book that features the architecture of 160 Catholic churches built in the Philippines between the 16th and 18th century. It contains more than 700 hundred photographs, with descriptions written by Father Pedro Galende, OSA, a foremost authority in Philippine church architecture, and author of several notable books on the subject, such as Angels in Stone, San Agustin: Noble Stone Shrine and San Agustin Art and History.

Father Pedro Galende , OSA, signing copies of Philippine Church Facades during the launching held at the inner courtyard of the San Agustin Museum . (Photo: Estan Cabigas)

For almost seven months, I worked with fellow photographer Estan Cabigas, taking photographs of the churches featured in the book. I went around the provinces of Negros, Siqiujor, Ilo-ilo, Antique, Capiz, Pampanga, Batangas and Cavite, and covered fifty churches for the project. Estan shot almost a hundred churches and worked on the digital post-production. The project seemed endless. I took countless rides on planes, boats, buses and jeepneys, slept on various accommodations ranging from comfortable to spartan, ate a myriad of provincial delicacies and gained calories that I am still struggling to burn up to now. It is interesting to finally see the whole experience compressed into pages of colored photos.

Philippine Church Facades is available at San Agustin Museum and in bookstores around the Philippines. Grab your copies now!