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Banda ni Kleggy is the Chicken Joy of Pinoy disco pop

Banda ni Kleggy began as a musical side project that brought together 6CycleMind guitarist Rye Sarmiento and bassist Bob Cañamo, Callalily’s Lem Belaro on
synth, MYMP bassist Berns Cuevas, seasoned pro Otep Concepcion on drums and road manager-turned-vocalist Kleggy Abaya.

Two years ago, the band may smell of the makings of a supergroup even if the members actually came together under unusual circumstances.

Rye and Darwin Hernandez of the artist management group Soupstar Entertainment were then involved in the BBS (or Big Band Syndicate) project which composed
songs for other artists.


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Inspired by Justin Bieber

“Darwin and I were then thinking of writing a happy song. That time, I got bitten hard by Justin Beiber’s ‘Oh, baby oh’ song and we eventually composed
‘Bawal sa Gamot’ which I thought had a similar infectious hook,” Rye recalls.

“We put together a band to record the song in the studio and when we began looking for a singer, we accidentally discovered Kleggy, a close friend of
Callalily frontman Kean Cipriano.”

Rye’s songwriting partner Darwin was skeptical at first. “When I saw Kleggy, my first impression was that he was just a naughty happy-go-lucky guy. Then I
found out he could actually sing. After some time, I realized he was also fun to be around. I knew then the band would go places.”


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The happy-sad ‘Discolamon’

The band’s first gig was at a bar in Antipolo City. Kleggy remembers they were a bundle of nerves when they hit the stage but since their debut
performance, the band has worked out and lived up to a working philosophy that they continue to observe up to this day.

He explains, “Every gig, we make sure we are happy among ourselves before we even think about making the audience happy. That way, our happy disposition
will infect the others. In the end, everybody’s happy.”

“Discolamon”, the carrier single off the band’s debut album entitled “Only in the Philippines,” dispenses happy disco music. Underneath the merry tune
however, it tells a different story: that of a dance floor king who, when his partner queen stopped going to the disco, spends his nights eating
voraciously while waiting for the return of his beloved lady.


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TVJ + VST & Co.

On record, the catchy song spins like a summit between Tito, Vic and Joey (sans the put downs) and VST & Co. (without the Bee Gees meow). Its video
starring Kim Chu, Ryan Bang and Jong Hilario zoomed to the top spot of a music channel’s daily Top 10 countdown.

Live, the band performs it to get everyone racing to the dancefloor. “Discolamon” has also come to mean a dance challenge.

The tune’s happy-sad yin and yang shows up all over the album especially on such curiosities as “Umay,” where a lover openly tells how he has grown tired
of a loved one’s presence, and “Bawal Sa Gamot” in which the side-effects of drug addiction is a ban on taking all other pharmaceuticals.


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Music to leave you grinning

The band started as a faceless, nameless group which only came together when there were show obligations to fulfill. It was a fluid situation then and
anybody who free could join the band. The usual inquiry, “Who’s available for Kleggy’s band” led inevitably to formally calling the new group, Ang Banda ni
Kleggy.

In contrast to the band’s haphazard beginnings, Kleggy already had a vision and tag for the kind of sound he and his band mates would pursue.

“I like to describe our chosen genre as jolly pop. Like, if you buy Chicken Joy, you’d be all smiles at the idea of a nice meal! It’s the same with our
music and the new alum. They’ll leave you grinning from ear to ear.”

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The best lineup

Since the start, there have been several personnel changes due chiefly to the irregularity of live performances and differences in musical direction.

Veteran drummer Otep, the latest addition after the completion of the debut album, says he had no preconceived notions since he joined the happy bunch of
musicians. “I really have no expectations. I just do my best to make everyone around me happy. Let the others judge us on that basis.”

Kleggy has the final say. “This is the best composition of the band for me. Wala nang baklasan! Whatever happens, even without an audience, we’d
do any show if only because we’re very happy to play with one another. It’s the main thing that keeps us together.”