The Battle of the Bands has become as much a staple of Puerto Princesa’s Chinese New Year celebration as the dragon dances and lanterns that illuminate Valencia Street each year at this time. This year marked the fourth consecutive staging of this musical centerpiece, and what unfolded was an amazing testament to the depth of youthful talent thriving in the city’s music scene.
Twenty bands initially stepped forward to compete. By finals night, 10 finalists remained to slug it out on stage. Most of them are school-based bands, all devoted to rock. Sitting on the judging panel alongside fellow musicians Verds Tagapulot, Haidee Salas, Benedict Basaya, and Ivy Go, I joked that if I spotted a jazz or blues band in the lineup, I’d hit the America’s Got Talent buzzer immediately to send them straight through to victory.
That quip aside, what these young rockers demonstrated left me genuinely amazed. The guitarists were fantastic. They shredded with a proficiency I didn’t have when I was their age, and honestly, still can’t. Speed and precision flowed from their fingers, their pentatonic runs blazing across the fretboard with the kind of flash that makes audiences roar.
It’s a different world from my conservatory days, when I was breaking my balls over quartal harmony and running fifths that even my dorm mates found strange. My musical sensibility still leans toward harmony over velocity, toward spaces between notes rather than how many you can pack into a measure. But virtuosity comes in many forms, and watching these young musicians command their instruments with such confidence reminded me that technical mastery deserves respect, whatever the genre.
Some say jazz is dead. The fact that I’ve recently paused on doing gigs might seem like evidence for the prosecution—though truthfully, I’ve just gotten swamped with journalism work. But the generational divide is real. These kids have audiences—devoted peers who pack venues to watch them perform. My gigs? The audience is usually busy with other things.
Yet that’s precisely the beauty of what competitions like this reveal. It’s a living, breathing local music culture where young artists don’t just play—they connect, they inspire, they build community. Rock may not be my mother tongue musically, but it’s clearly speaking fluently to this generation.
When the scores were tallied, Jokis claimed the grand championship with an impressive 91.60%, followed by Wakabs at 89.80% as first runner-up, and Arya rounding out the top three at 89.40%. The margins were tight, a reflection of how closely matched the finalists were in talent and execution.
Gratitude goes to William Tan Enterprises for its continued support—four years running now—and to our city government for backing this platform where young musicians can test their mettle and showcase their craft.
