The anthemic pop-rock album includes focus track “So Close,” featuring award-winning pop singer Morissette
Filipino alt-rock outfit Sponge Cola has
officially dropped their ninth studio album, Hometown, Part 2 via Sony
Music Entertainment.
Embracing the anthemic immediacy of their 2022
outing with newfound warmth and restraint, the four-piece band’s latest album
proves to be a vital example of how music can be a therapeutic outlet for
expression and healing. The new collection of songs also sees the band
exploring themes of triumph over adversity, resilience, and unfulfilled
relationships. It also serves as a continuation of the band’s full-length
album, Hometown—released in December 2022.
As lead guitarist Armo Armovit describes it, Hometown, Part 2 is all about finding connection in uncertain times. “We explored new ways of expressing familiar feelings with renewed perspectives incorporating different production elements, arrangement choices, and improved approaches to performance.”
The title also speaks for itself, serving as a continuation
of one’s story, much like coming home to rest after a long journey and staying
an extra weekend to reset. The record’s songwriting, on the other hand, was
inspired by the members’ collective and individual fascination with K-drama and
documentaries, as well as first-hand experiences with real-life events.
Drawing a lot of inspiration from pop and
electronic elements, the 19-track album is produced by constant collaborator
Joey Santos of Love One Another Studios, who has worked with some of the
biggest and most underrated Philippine acts, including Ang Bandang Shirley, syd
hartha, Coeli, and more.
Armo explains, “Joey Santos did a great job
crafting the treatment for songs and dressing them in colors and styles that
best express the message. The process was very organic and natural.”
Hometown, Part 2 is
accompanied by the release of its focus track, “So Close,” which features pop
singer Morissette. The song was specifically penned by Yael Yuzon, and tackles
the story of two people who have built a deep connection over time, but whose
relationship never really progressed into something that could last a lifetime.
“It's a song that took me 20 years to write,”
shares vocalist and guitarist Yael Yuzon. “Inspired by Dead Stars by Paz
Marquez Benitez and The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, So
Close talks about the possibility of a mirage in our poetic memory, a ‘what
if’ that may have been nothing more than a light radiating from a dead star. We
might just be romanticizing things.”
Other songs in the album include previous
releases “Labis-labis,” a soaring tune that puts a uniquely captivating
but relatable spin on the ‘love song’ format; “Hometown,” a grungy pop
track with electronic textures and a catchy chorus; and “Siguro nga,” a
pop-rock ballad based on a character study of a popular K-drama character.
Track list:
1. Hometown
2.
Alamat (MLBB 5th Anniversary Theme)
3. Kung Ako ang Pumiling Tapusin Ito
4. Lumipas Ang Tag-araw
5. Laman Ng Panaginip
6. Labis-Labis
7. Siguro Nga
8. JAIRAH
9. Kung May Oras Ka
10. Signal #4
11. So Close (feat. Morissette)
12. Champions
13. In the End
14. Labis-Labis - Acoustic
15. Kung Ako ang Pumiling Tapusin
Ito (Remix) (feat. Matthaios and Clien of ALLMO$T)
16. Kung Ako ang Pumiling Tapusin
Ito - Acoustic
17. Siguro Nga – Acoustic (feat. Kai
Honasan)
18. Siguro Nga (TMAC's lo-fi Mix)
19. Laman ng Panaginip – Acoustic
Sponge Cola’s Hometown, Part 2 is out
now on all digital music platforms worldwide via Sony Music Entertainment.
The pop-rock outfit will be officially performing the songs off their new record with an on-ground album launch in Eastwood City Central Plaza on August 12 from 6 pm onwards. Admission is free!
About Sony Music Entertainment
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