Updated: June 4, 2021, 8:15 PM
Winnipeg, Manitoba
12/21: Rock and Roll in Covid Time
Levy Abad
I was amazed seeing 1221 Band being interviewed by Winnipeg mainstream media early April 2021. My head right away went back to the years of Pinoy Rock and Roll in Winnipeg in 1972 up to the present. Alas, a breakthrough on the scene, a contract signed! For those of you who are wondering, 1221 Band is a rock and roll group of the Pop Punk strain coming out of the 90,000 strong Filipino community of Winnipeg,Manitoba.
According to Alfie Vera Mella, an author, poet and columnist for Filipino Journal in Winnipeg and well versed on rock bands, 1221 is a youthful band of brothers whose members are composed of Roman Maceda on rhythm and lead vocals, Rico Maceda on bass guitar and Roque on drums.
I drafted questions for the young rockers to answer and feature for Phiippine Canadian News.Com Here are the things they shared.
Who taught you how to play the instruments?
We started playing music because of our dad. He taught us pretty much everything from learning to play the drums, guitars to singing.
Who are your influences?
Our influences are Green Day, Blink 182, The Police, The Kinks, The Ramones and the Foo Fighters.
Did your mom and dad influence you guys to be Rock n Roll artists?
From the start our parents never stopped supporting our music and they also encouraged us to love and share our talents in music and art.
Do you have an album of original songs?
We released an EP back in 2019 called “Hello Yellow.” It contained five original songs. We recently got signed to Blacksheep Records Manila (co-label to Viva Records) in the Philippines and we’ll be releasing a single this spring.
How many times have you performed at the Manitoba Filipino Street Festival?
We’ve been performing at the MFSF since 2012 until 2019.
Gigs in the Philippines and Winnipeg?
We’ve toured the Philippines back in 2020, 2017 and 2018. We played at well known venues in Manila like The 70’s Bistro and Saguijo Bar. We also performed on GMA 7 and Net 25 and had shows with Alamid, Mayonaise and the Youth. In Winnipeg, we had our show last May 16th at Park Theatre, livestreaming show by Red Tie Production and Ego Picks called “Support the Scene.”
1221 Band recently released their single last month titled “Bakit Mo ako Iniwan?” under Viva Records/Blacksheep Records. The single is available on Spotify and other digital music stores.
What local musicians say about 1221 Band
Julius Cesar Eugenio, one of the active musicians, songwriters in Winnipeg commented: “I have been rooting for them (1221) since I first saw them perform at the MFSF in 2013. In the succeeding years of their rock and roll journey, I witnessed them grow until their first breakthrough in the overall Canadian music scene. They represent the energy of the Filipino Canadian youth and their songs reflect the sentiments of the new breed of young Pinoy rockers.
Alfie Vera Mela: “Since the start, the style of their original music is Pop Punk. The great factor for them is their being siblings and that is why it’s easy for them to forge a strong bond, they have supportive parents and they are seriously focused on the band.” Curious as to what he meant by Pop Punk? Alfie explained that Pop Punk is short, fast tempo, distortion oriented, minimalistic song structures, lyricism about love, relationship and a bit social.
In my book “Rhythms and Resistance, a narrative of Filipino musicians and activists of Winnipeg from 1972 to 1994,” I have chronicled Filipino bands of Winnipeg and how they played a huge role in maintaining sanity in the midst of homesickness and providing inspiration for the Filipinos of Winnipeg in the early years. For sure, some of the bands thought of a breakthrough or being signed up for a contract to be a rock and roll band but it seems that their role is to pave the way for the youth to shine like the 1221 Band. Rock on!
The 12/21 has received accolades on the Canadian music scene, including winning the Jim Beam National Talent Search in 2019.
They were the first Filipino rock band to be featured on the cover of the University of Winnipeg’s The Uniter music issue in 2018.
The band also opened for Filipino music icon Arnel Pineda when the Journey lead singer was on a solo tour in Winnipeg in 2017.