Pinoy rock icon Karl Roy passes away

(UPDATE 2) Karl Roy, the icon of Pinoy funk and rock music and frontman of Kapatid and P.O.T., died early Tuesday, Pam Lunar, his manager, confirmed. He was 43.
 
"It is with deepest sadness that I share the news of Karl's passing. He was called Home today at 1:01 a.m. Manila time (Tuesday, March 13th), surrounded by those who loved him most - mommy, Keith, Kevin, Krys, his daughter Arianna, and our cousin Jack (Roy-Duavit)," Karl's sister posted on her Facebook wall.

"Please continue to pray for Karl. He brought so much joy to others but, unfortunately, did not have enough of it in this life. He's in a better place now, with Lolo Pepe, Lola Conching and Daddy," she added,
 
Karl’s brother Kevin, who is a member of Razorback, posted on his Facebook wall:

Growing Up With Karl
2012 in New Manila, QC
Karl was an inspiration.
Seeing Karl at 13 years old made me want to be him.
Karl was The Man. I soooo wanted to be him.
He asked me to be myself... and I did.

I learned my rasp from him....
I learned some moves from him - to his dismay

Lunar said Roy had written nine of 12 songs they planned to release in an album at the time of his passing.
 
Remembering Karl Roy
Wolfgang manager Lizza Guerrero Nakpil calls Roy “one of the greatest rock vocalists of all.” She lamented the “waste of a great talent.”
 
Theater actor Jamie Wilson, who gigged in the occasional rock band remembers Roy as a rogue, rebel and renegade. “He had the courage to do his own thing, and he always took it to the max. He stands head and shoulders over us on that. He was never afraid to be himself.”
 
Bing Austria of Flippin’ Soul Stompers and late of Put3Ska remembers the first time he saw Roy at the old rock & roll dive Mayric’s in 1989 or 1990.  “Naka leather pants akala ko kung sinong punk,” recalls Austria. “Then umakyat siya sa stage at kumanta with Advent Call. Siya pala yun bagong vocals nila.”

Austria also said that unknown to many, Roy was shortlisted as a vocalist for Put3Ska, before Myra “Skarlet” Ruaro and Arnold Morales came on board.  The band’s biggest mainstream hit was “Manila Girl.”

Jett Pangan told Yahoo! Phiippines OMG!  in a phone interview, “He rode with me in the car.  And I discovered that he may look wild and carefree but he was full of insights when you talk to him in private.”

MCA Music Strategic Label Manager and former NU 107 station manager Chris Hermosisima describes Karl as “one of the most `colorful’ artists we had back then.”

Karl may have been a rock star, notes Hermosisima. “But he was so approachable and easy to work with. I remember one time when he we had a show at Hard Rock  (Café)   where he sang standards. Before he went on stage, Karl asked, 'Dude, what will I wear?' The others wore coats. He was in a sando.”

Polyeast A&R Director Chito Ilagan marvels at Karl’s talent as he recalls: “His version of `Yugyugan Na!’  in the late `90s was one of our major  hits back then (the song was revived by P.O.T., where Karl was lead vocalist).  Iba ang pagka-rock niya. It had a lot of jazz infusion.  I also remember Karl’s groaning vocals, which you can compare to Michael Bolton.”

Miggy Matute, editor-in-chief of atthewomb.com relates his close encounter with Karl on the way to the  filming GMA News TV’s “Remix Report.”

Miggy wrote in atthewomb.com how Karl opened up to him about “moving into his drummers house in BF with his Pitbull, how his band and new line up were getting busy, and how he felt about being in the shape that he was in…”

The light conversation made Miggy feel comfortable with Karl as they sat in the van on the way to the shoot.
 
Roy’s advice to local bands: ‘Walang sukuan!’
Roy who was part of the first Yahoo! Rocks concert which gathered close to 40 Pinoy acts was also among the judges who picked the "aspiring acts" that took part in the concert.

In an earlier interview with Yahoo! Philippines OMG!, Roy said he has seen a lot of local bands emerge, and often the advice he gives is, "Push!"

"Ang secret dun ay walang sukuan [The secret is don't give up]," he said, referring to local acts wanting to make it.

And giving up is not part of Roy's vocabulary. He remained true to his calling despite going through near-death experiences after his multiple strokes, not to mention his battle with drugs and alcohol. He broke the "rules" in Pinoy rock music. He did everything possible or at least anything that was in his control. He dived into funk when he fronted P.O.T., which to this day, resonated the funk rock movement of the 90s. He also explored other genres, not willing to be encased into one style of music.

Also in the interview with Yahoo! Philippines OMG!, Roy lamented the lack of support to Pinoy acts, as more foreign bands are coming in droves to the country.

"So who's going to follow us?" Roy said, as he stressed that big Pinoy bands should also start supporting emerging artists.

Fans are now sending their condolences through Roy's Facebook wall, while others tweet about his passing. As of this writing, "Karl Roy" is a trending topic on Twitter. --With reports from Ces Rodriguez and Maridol Ranoa Bismark