coast2coast

By Rae JP

In case you didn’t know, there is a community here in Metro Cebu devoted to collecting and preserving vinyl records, or, colloquially, plaka.  Perhaps one of the best-kept secrets in the metro, the culture has long been active and quietly thriving in the peripheries of the local music scene.  A major proponent of this is Dino Domingo (aka Popdaze), the man behind Baihaus, and he has rounded up like-minded friends and new enthusiasts to form his crew.  The Baihaus crew (be it collectively or individually) has been the go-to selectors for the various playgrounds of the vinyl record community.  

As Fete de la Musique expands its stages for 2025, it also shines the spotlight at this long-running underground tradition through the Analog Stage.  Back at one of its original stomping grounds, the Baihaus crew treated the Saturday night patrons of Draft Punk with the genre-diverse playlists of 9 selectors: Bono Mars, Exploding Boy, Tarra Blones, Cang, Speedracer, Arcky Ramone, Analogeezer, Stereomafia, and Popdaze.

Rain poured, as did the music over the hidden-away corner of Juana Osmena street and the Mango Square parking lot.  Bono Mars opened the Analog Stage with famed 80’s Y101 radio staples with alternative new wave heroes Prefab Sprout and Aztec Camera.  The rain died down, but Exploding Boy kept the vibes alive with a hiphop playlist both east and west coasts could bump to.

A clear standout in the line-up is Tarra Blones, who is the lone woman selector.  Tarra, who identifies herself an audiophile, first started collecting cassette tapes but a propensity for being drawn to “unusual genres” of music led her to collecting vinyl records and enjoyed its “static effects and surface noises… [a] nostalgic feeling.”  With much anticipation, Tarra did not disappoint with her thoughtful playlist composed of soul funk deep cuts from legends such as DeBarge, Michael Jackson, and Heatwave.  Another cassette tape-collector turned vinyl record-collector is Speedracer.  If you’ve been to any of the local joints, you are probably familiar with his brand of 90s – 00s pop R&B with the likes of N.E.R.D. and Janet Jackson fused with contemporary takes from Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter, which he also showcased for Fete. 

Arcky Ramone, whose moniker is a call to eponymous (pun intended) punk band The Ramones, renewed the Analog Stage’s energy with the therapeutic sounds of Tycho and M83—themes you will rarely, if ever, get to hear in the mainstream scene.  Also a refreshing and sweet surprise set came from new-to-the-scene Cang.  Although the youngin is a newcomer to the selector stage, he has been collecting vinyl records for 11 years now (he is only 23).  With a collection that started with an inheritance from an uncle, he now boasts ownership of rare OPM 7-inch singles, mainly featuring Filipino bossa.  Truly a treat and something we need to witness more of in the community.  

The Analog Stage was also a reunion of some sort with the return of dormant and missed selectors Analogeezer and Stereomafia.  Frequent collaborators with Popdaze in the past, the trio used to hold regular all-vinyl sets in the exact same spot with Chewing Gum and Neon Dreams—admittedly a channel to show off newly-acquired Britpop and Shoegaze records respectively.  Analogeezer, without fail, shared his Shoegaze and Dreampop playlist with some Post-Punk sprinkled in.  On the other hand, Stereomafia served the crowd with moody faves like The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Sundays, and The Cranberries.  To cap the night off, Popdaze was at the helm, ready to send us off with an open-genre, no-fixed setlist including mixes of Lou Reed and The Stone Roses. 

While it is easy to neglect vinyl record selectors and their shows, it is hard to dismiss the careful thought that goes into the curation of playlists that one hopes would sway a crowd and keep them engaged.  The selectors may not be wielding electric guitars or a microphone, but what they possess is a sense of crowd control.  There is a gratifying feeling in the shared experience of just sitting back, cradling a bottle of Pale Pilsen, and entrusting the musical reins to individuals who have obsessively followed music all their lives.  The Analog Stage was not just the warm, soft-crackling, by-the-fireplace vinyl listening stereotype you are probably imagining (although there is nothing wrong with that too).  This was a hi-fi, ultra-curated, sonic outing that analog music is capable of producing through a pair of SL1200s and an Allen&Heath mixer.

Couple of things might run through a typical audience member’s mind during these all-vinyl sets: (1) I want to start collecting vinyl records, and (2) I can probably do that [be a selector].  We asked our Analog Stage DJs about this.  From the main man, Dino Domingo, himself: “vinyl DJing takes effort—handling records, cueing manually, no sync button…but the physicality is part of the joy. It teaches patience, precision, and presence. There also seems to be the inherent theme of individuality, as evidenced by the unique music preferences of the selectors.  Analogeezer says, “play the music that you like… music is about you.” 

For the Baihaus crew, what sets apart Fete de la Musique from their usual gigs is the “pure, open energy.”  Stereomafia adds, “music should be accessible to all and I always look forward to be part of something that celebrates just that.”  And what a celebration it was!