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VIVA ELECTRONICA a Meet the guy behind the Philippine's premiere collective of electronic artists.
published at http://you.inq7.net March 2003
His upbeat tracks strap listeners to an adrenaline-pumping and dizzying roller-coaster ride of sound while his down-tempo tracks drowsily spool listeners in to the dreamy hypnotic swirl of melodies that are as sensual as they are relaxing.
The man behind the music is 23-year-old burgeoning electronic artist Cyril Sorongon, also known as Silverfilter. An advertisement jingle arranger for TV and radio by day and live electronic artist by night capable of igniting the dance floor with his unique brand of beat-driven patterns and catchy and playful hooks, Silverfilter spent almost his entire life as a musician. In 1998, he started to experiment with electronic music. Empowered by the feeling of being able to make a track all by himself, he hasn't stopped working with music software since.
In 2002, Silverfilter created the Electronica Manila mailing list without expecting that the group borne out of his simple need for seeking out fellow electronic music enthusiasts would turn into the premiere collective of electronica artists in the Philippines that it is now. "We're basically one big happy family of artists and electronica enthusiasts," he shares.
"It's rare in the Philippines," says Silverfilter of live electronic music, which is widely spread in Europe and the US. "There're actually just a few of us who do this kind of music." But that doesn't seem to faze this determined musician. "In a way, my focus is...to let people know that we Filipinos also have a say in that respect. So if you're looking for electronic music, look no further, kasi we have our own material, we do our own stuff," he explains. "Right now, we have our electronic artists like me, Wolfmann, Rubber Inc.," he says, naming just a few of the more prominent artists in the Pinoy electronica scene.
So what exactly sets a live electronica gig apart from most conventional gigs? "When I do live electronica... I prepare a set for that night itself...I write new songs for that night," shares Silverfilter, describing what he does as "...a hybrid of the DJ vibe, which is the dance vibe, and performance, which is yung appeal of a live performance ng band."
"I want it to be an experience to those who come and watch," he says. "I bring lots of gears so the live element is really there when I work on my effects boxes, my synthesizers, my drum machines all at the same time," and that even "...the blinking lights themselves are really something to people who are exposed to (the usual) guitars and drums."
When asked if he thinks people will have trouble bridging genre divides, Silverfilter answers with an optimistic tone. "Bridging from conventional to electronica as a whole, I don't think they'll have difficulty...if you see the trend, people are into chill-out and lounge," he explains. "When I buy CDs, countless times, yung mga katabi ko na yuppies, naghahanap ng chill out, which is basically electronic music," he shares laughingly. "Workaholics na walang hilig sa electronic music, when they buy chill out, they buy electronica. It's as simple as that."
As a multi-genre artist who describes his music as "tasty, pumping and fun," Silverfilter's brand of sound is "a mixture of the styles that I cover -- chill out, lounge, drum 'n' bass, house and techno. Pero at the same time, I keep myself rooted to the style itself." An artist who does it "for the music, and not for anything else," he approaches music-making in an interesting way. "Before I make a track, I ask myself, 'What do I want to listen to after?' I want to listen to something I can be proud of kasi, so gawa ako." Though primarily influenced by Underworld, Fat Boy Slim, Armand Van Helden and Richie Hawtin, when asked about how he comes up with the melodic lines that he toys with in his tracks, he says, "I listen to all types of music and I'm open to it. So in a way, being exposed to different styles, you really feed off from them."
"In the Meantime," Silverfilter's five-track EP,
features a musical tapestry that finds the artist taking his skills of
rhythm-making and programming from his live sets and incorporating it with his
songwriting and vibrant production. With a hefty helping of richly-textured
house grooves, an ample dose of dance and a splash of ambient, Silverfilter
takes listeners to a surprising aural journey through some of the most popular
styles of electronic music: from the hypnotic and picturesque ambient chill-out
in "Losing Monina" to brilliant electro-pop in "Dreams and Realities" -- which
also showcases Silverfilter's smooth vocals -- to the sexy and richly textured
house grooves of "Can You Feel It?" to some adrenaline-pumping break beats in
"Niño's Breaks" and the energetic drum 'n' bass in "Listen," demonstrating his
capability of covering several genres on one album.
To those who have yet to be educated on electronic music, don't be left behind. As Silverfilter says, "Support your local electronic act!"
© Valerie V. Mayuga, 2005
read the youngstar article on silverfilter here
Visit Silverfilter at www.silverfilter.com. You may contact Silverfilter at [email protected]. To join the Silverfilter mailing list, log on to www.groups.yahoo.com/group/silverfilter. To join the Electronica Manila mailing list, log on to www.groups.yahoo.com/group/electronicamanila
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