Cog At Route 196

My band Cog playing at the Amplified anniversary event at Route 196.

The Old Guy's 7 Things to Remember When Pursuing a Hobby or Career in Music

After reading an article by my friend Joey Santos (7 Music Myths New Bands Should Avoid), I figured that somehow, I do have some thoughts on music – coming from being a 41-year-old “hobby” musician. Here goes:

1. Every time you question why you are making music, ask yourself this: Is it because you want to make a living from it, or is it because you love it? If you want to make music seriously, music that you love and you want to make a living from it, then you should start planning everything out. After all, a serious music career is about the same thing as setting up your own company.

2. Making the music that you like is not the same, mostly, as making music that other will like to hear from you. There are no hard and fast answers to this conundrum, because the line in the sand that you must draw between being true to yourself, and accepting that you want people listening to you and buying into your music (literally, as in they will pay you) will be up to you. Sorry, there are no easy answers for this one.

3. Building a fan base is just about as difficult a process as making music you want. That's because you have to choose, in a way, what sort of fans you want to have. There's a delicate balance in between “being true to yourself” and “I will be attractive to a larger fanbase than my friends.” And yes, it takes time and effort, on the same level or near to making the music that got you into all this in the first place. If you want to remain reclusive and just known for your music, then you have to accept that you won't have that big a fanbase, or you better be sure you are a songwriting genius.

4. The question of becoming part of a musical movement, be it based on the music itself, on a generational surge, or a visual look, will always be one of how long you're willing to ride the proverbial wave. In this sense, you have to be as savvy as Madonna at her peak: being able to ride successive trends while retaining a basic identity. Conversely, you can also choose to be independent of any trend – but you have to make sure your individuality is such that your practically an icon waiting to be enshrined.

5. Forget the physical proof of music – in other words, say goodbye to CDs. In fact, the idea of a long-playing album is also suspect. What is important now is to have a regular presence in the online world, be it with a personal blog they can follow, singles that are released regtularly, or with a merchandising plan that keeps people aware of you. These days, you are selling you, aside from your music. People want to buy into you and your music.

6. Gigging is not everything. And the same holds true for writing songs in the studio, as it is for merchandising efforts as well. In other words, balance everything. Yes, this can be very difficult if you have band members to worry about. Again... time management is the key.

7. Do make sure that you have a strategy for using as many social media platforms and communication sites. E-mail lists are important, since you can use them across multiple platforms and mass-emailing services. The same goes for making sure that you maximize your content in two ways: for a general feed, and with some tweaks to maximize for the specific social media platform you will use.


Finally, and this is the #8: HAVE FUN. If you are not having fun, then what the hell are you doing spending so much time on all this in the first place???


*Photograph by Garon Honasan of Cog.

Pakitang Tao: The Civil Game

Filipinos are famous for being conscientious employees when in other countries, but when it comes to working here in the Philippines, we usually have a darker side – and it ties into a somewhat disturbing cultural trait, the pakitang tao. There are good and bad sides to this cultural habit, and it’s important to know how it can even make some social interactions smoother.


Read more at the Philippine Online Chronicles.

Photos (from Flickr.com):
“slack,” by Tim Patterson

Single, by choice

When people talk about being single, there is usually a mix of loneliness, bitterness, and a bit of despair, as many people think of being single as an unnatural situation. People, after all, are meant to pair up as couples (or more, if so inclined). Living alone seems to be an untenable thing, and single people are usually suspected of having issues and problems that prevent them from being in a relationship.

However, a person can be single by choice, and be very much happy, at peace, or both (there is a difference).


Read more at the Philippine Online Chronicles

Photo, c/o Flickr.com:
“Snuff Buff,” Gaer Tonnesen

De-Glorifying the Dad Bod

On March 30, 2015, Mackenzie Pearson wrote “Why Girls Love The DadBod,” and it sparked a strange flame war across the online world. On one side, you had people who hailed it as the new “average” that people should aspire to, so as not to have “excellence” issues. For others, it was the nadir of self-imagery, that people would be content with just, well, a dad bod.

I personally have the equivalent of a dad bod myself, being a former Judo varsity player in college, who then went on to have utterly no regular physical fitness regimen until late last year, when my 40-year-old body decided to surprise me with Type-2 diabetes. Since then, I've removed thirty pounds from my then-200-pound 5'3” frame, and have since been more or less on a regular exercise regimen. I've gained about five to ten pounds back, but this time as healthy muscle mass.

Even with all that, 175 pounds at my height still makes me look the better part of chubby and dad-bod-ish.

So, it makes sense that I should be happy that my sort of body type is becoming sexy, right?

Well, not really.

My issue with this whole Dad Bod thing is that I am all for it being touted as natural, but I am not all for it being used as an excuse for slacking off from basic fitness. In my case, I have to be a bit more careful with my exercise routine, as my health concerns can be a problem. But for people who have the time and resources to have a better-then-average physique, then I say, go for it!

For those who know that they only have enough time to remain reasonably healthy and have a pleasant-looking Dad Bod, all I can say is: I feel you guys.

But that does not mean we should be content with the Dad Bod. If anything, it should be a reminder that while we shouldn't shame people for being out of shape, there is always the challenge of becoming better than what you are now.

If you guys are wondering, my current physical trainer, good friend, and taskmaster is Jay Lopez, and he runs RX Strength, over at the Athlete's Lab in Liberty Center, Shaw Boulevard.

Photo:

"Hiking in Scotland 0," by Ed and Eddie (Flickr.com)
* as an aside comment, the guy in the photo I used for this article is a good example of a dad bod. Holy crap, he's HIKING IN SCOTLAND.