PANTAYO OUT MAY 8 VIA TELEPHONE EXPLOSION
WATCH AND SHARE “HETO NA” HERE
PRE-ORDER PANTAYO HERE
“the total sophistication with which (Pantayo) introduce traditional instruments (kulintang, agongs, sarunays, gandingan, bandir, and dabak) into their music, which embraces elements of neo-soul, punk and art pop” CBC Music
Pantayo combine kulintang gong music of the Southern Philippines with soft-focus devotional R&B. … chiming percussion and shimmering electronics, produced in crystalline clarity by Yamantaka // Sonic Titan drummer Alaska B. It’s a fusion that sounds fresh and undeniably easy on the ears. NOW Magazine
Photo Credit : Sarah Bo // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
Today Pantayo is sharing the video for the new single “Heto Na” from their upcoming self-titled album out May 8 via Telephone Explosion.
“Pantayo, in Tagalog, means “for us.” In their song, Heto Na, they sing, “Umindak ka na kaya. Kaliwa dalawang paa. Pakapalan no mukha. (Ready, set, go strut your stuff. To the left, lock in both your feet. Own up to that funky shit).” Inspired by OPM (Original Pilipino Music) disco songs from the 70’s, this song gently nudges listeners onto the dance floor; a space where vulnerability and bravado are seamlessly entangled. This invitation to let loose and “own up to that funky shit” seeks out a reparative encounter that is at once full of confidence and concession. Heto Na means “here we go” and is one of Pantayo’s many songs that is oriented towards hope, justice and a commitment to seek out an ethical relation to Filipinx history, geography, migration and the queerness that knots all of these sites together.
WATCH AND SHARE “HETO NA” HERE
Pantayo explores what’s possible for contemporary kulintang music with the atonal blend of kulintang ensemble instruments with vocals and electronic production. The album features eight diverse songs speaking to Pantayo’s musical influences as queer diasporic Filipinas. Produced by Yamantaka // Sonic Titan’s alaska B, Pantayo was written and recorded from 2016-2019 in Toronto.
LISTEN AND SHARE “DIVINE” SOUNDCLOUD / SPOTIFY
PRE-ORDER PANTAYO HERE
Pantayo is an audio diary of how the ensemble has grown together as writers and performers. The songwriting process started with members workshopping and performing traditional kulintang pieces from the Southern Philippines, often instrument-switching on the kulintang, agongs, sarunays, gandingan, bandir, and dabak. Adapting kick drums and synths to the modal tuning of the gongs further expanded Pantayo’s ability to incorporate modern musical expressions such as punk and R&B. “If you listen to the recordings of our rehearsals and songwriting sessions, you can hear us deconstructing the kulintang parts section-by-section and practicing our songs in different styles” says keyboardist and vocalist Eirene Cloma. “You can also hear how close we’ve gotten and how our creative workflow strengthened over the years.”
Grounded in the interpretation of kulintang music, Pantayo can be a vehicle for discussions around diasporic Filipino identity. All five members have different experiences of settling in Canada and with that comes their relationships with music. Kat Estacio, co-founder of Pantayo, says “One way that we can make this world feel like home for folks like us is to mix the kulintang music that we learned with different sounds and song structures that feel familiar to us."
PANTAYO TRACKLIST
1. Eclipse
2. Divine
3. Heto Na
4. Bronse
5. V V V (They Lie)
6. Taranta
7. Kaingin
8. Bahala Na