Raging in Manila

A LITTLE more than three months ago, Love Me Butch was contemplating returning to the studio to work on material for its third album. Like so many of the best laid plans, it looks like the new album schedule has to be bumped to a later date since there is still demand and keen interest abroad for the group’s This is The New Pop album, released last year. 

“There might be five new tracks kicking about in the jam sessions, but we’ll have to get back to them later. The new CD is still our priority but as an independent act, we can’t close the doors on markets eager to release our music. We recently received some notice in the Philippines and a distribution deal and promo tour has materialised,” said guitarist Wing Meng about the band’s upcoming shows in Manila, starting tomorrow.  

It all started with connections through Myspace and the delivery of Love Me Butch albums to key rock tastemakers in Manila. Unsurprisingly, there was overwhelming response with rock radio stations and music TV support for the band’s singles, Hollywood Holiday and Barricade, in the Philippines.  

Love Me Butch (from left): Winder, Wing Meng, Syarul and Kevin Kong are out to break into the Manila rock scene.

One Armed Productions, the group’s self-managed label, worked the long-distance connections and as reported, the Philippines is set to release Love Me Butch’s sophomore album, This Is the New Pop this week through Universal Philippines.  

At present, the album is also widely available in Japan, Singapore and Thailand, signalling the resourcefulness of the band in getting Love Me Butch’s music exposed to a broader audience in Asia.  

According to Wing Meng, the band will be touring the Philippines until Nov 8, with a series of live shows and TV/radio appearances to support the album release. The tour will also feature performances by top Manila bands such as Urbandub, Faspitch, Chicosci and Valley of Chrome. 

On the local front, Love Me Butch ends the year on a high with a slot at the Rock The World festival in Kuala Lumpur on Dec 16. For club dates, the band will also appear with Japanese rock outfit FC Five in Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur on Nov 25-26, respectively.  

“It looks likely that we will debut new tracks at Rock The World because our fans here have waited long and some fresh material is never a bad thing,” he added. The rest of the band includes vocalist Syarul, bassist Kevin Kong and drummer Winder.  

Browse www.myspace.com/lovemebutch for Manila tour updates. 

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