| The Pin Ups (band) | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Manila, Philippines |
| Genres | New Wave Indie Rock Indie Pop Punk Rock Post Punk Alternative Rock |
| Years active | 1995 - present |
| Labels | Know-It-All Records, Sutton Music Group |
| Associated acts | Keltscross Tame the Tikbalang Mass Carnage Goo End of Man Ethnic Faces Girl In Park Crimson Daze Ciudad Sugarfree Eraserheads Sandwich Squid 9 Manibela |
| Website | www.myspace.com/thepinupgirlsmusic |
| Members | |
| Current Members: Mondo Castro Ryan Nachura Mitch Singson Raffy Bonifacio Tanya Singh Jennifer Tan (On Hiatus) Former Members: Pamela Aquino Noel Garcia (deceased) Ramses Dela Torre John Carpio Jaja Manuel Robby Mananquil |
|
The Pin-Ups, formerly The Pin-Up Girls, is an independent band formed in 1995 by Mondo Castro along with Keltscross members Pamela Aquino and Jennifer Tan.”[1]
Dubbed the “first Philippine-based band to sign with a U.S. Label,”.[2] The Pin-Ups are also included in a U.K. -based compilation album.,”[3]
Contents |
Starting out as a garage band in 1995, the band recruited guitarist Ramses Dela Torre (Mass Carnage) and drummer John Carpio (Tame the Tikbalang, Goo, and End of Man) and started jamming at an abandoned hotel. The then unnamed band went through names that never stuck, including Ebenezzer Blue Cow, Blue Juice, Mushroom, and Bubblegum Crisis.[4]
Guitarist Ryan Nachura and musician Noel Garcia (Ethnic Faces, Eraserheads and Color It Red sessionist) eventually joined the band, replacing Dela Torre and Carpio. They were without a permanent name until Tan wore a Bettie Page T-shirt to a rehearsal at then-Eraserheads drummer Raimund Marasigan's house. Marasigan suggested they name themselves after Page, one of the most famous pin-up girls from the ‘50s.[5][6]
After a few rounds of Mayric’s garage sales to raise money, The Pin-Ups wrapped up recording their debut album “Hello Pain” under their own label, Broken Records. Executively produced by ABS-CBN News Anchor Liezl Castro and actor Diether Ocampo (he loaned Castro money for CD manufacturing), produced by Marasigan and engineered by Shinji Tanaka at Sound Creation studios.[7]
The album includes Witching Hour that hit number one on NU107's Midnight Countdown for seven weeks, Broken, A Cold & Better Place, and Ride Rocket Wild.[8]
The album’s artwork was created by Filipino graphic artist Leinil Francis Yu.[9]
The music video for “Down”, directed by Quark Henares, won “Rock Video of the Year” at the 2002 NU 107 Rock Awards.[10]
Michael Sutton, a writer for the All-Music Guide, discovered them by accident on a random NU-107 air check mailed from the Philippines by music fan Denis Batungbacal. Sutton signed The Pin-Ups to Tacoma, Washington’s Know-It-All Records in 2002, making them the first Philippine-based band to be signed to a U.S. label.[11]
Aquino left for the U.S. and was replaced by Jaja Manuel (Girl In Park, who eventually signed with Know-It-All Records and released and album internationally) and Garcia was eventually replaced by Mitch Singson (Ciudad, ex-Sugarfree) as the Pin-Up Girls released their 6-track U.S. debut, "Taste Test," in 2003. "Caress", written and produced by Castro, hit the top ten on NU-107 number one on Flashback Alternatives in New Jersey.</ref>[12]
Also in 2002, The Pin-Up's Drummer Noel Garcia died from an accident.
In 2004, Taste Test was reissued with several bonus tracks as Taste Test: Expanded Menu, receiving reviews in the U.K.[13][14] It was during this time that Manuel left the band and was not replaced.
In 2005, Sutton took The Pin-Ups with him on his own label, Sutton Records (later renamed Sutton Music Group), which released a Philippine-version of Taste Test in the form of “Take On The Weakened Sky.[15]
In 2006, the band fronted for Fra Lippo Lippi at the Araneta Coliseum[16] as "All Seats Are Taken” was released in the Philippines by Sony-BMG. The 16-track album features guitarists Kakoi Legaspi (ex-Rivermaya, Peryodiko), Kenneth Ilagan (ex-Violent Playground, Mulatto, The Dawn), and the late Francis Magalona.[17] The songs were co-produced, mixed, and mastered by Angee Rozul.
Comic book writer and artist Arnold Arre was commissioned by the band to do the album artwork.
In June 2008, PULP Magazine featured The Pin-Ups on the cover.[add a citation and something from the PULP article content about why they are on the cover]
Chris Williams of Manchester, England’s Baby Boom Records contacted Castro through The Pin-Ups’ Myspace page. Williams requested for the band’s track “Jackson Pollock 9” for inclusion in the label “Baby Boom Sampler No.4.”.[18] The CD was launched at the SXSW Festival in Texas, U.S.A. and is still available in Manchester and through the Baby Boom Records website.[19]
The Pin-Ups were included in the list of 7 winners of MTV EMERGE and set to sign with Apl D AP's Jeepney Music. There are no updates as to whether this will push through.[20]
Current members
Former members
| Videos | Directors |
|---|---|
| “A Cold & Better Place” | Erwin Romulo |
| “Down” | Quark Henares |
| “Love X Ten” | Edsel Abesames |
| “Ingay” | Ike Avellana |
| “The Five Minute Hallway” Flip and Hand versions | Alvin Tecson |
| “All Seats Are Taken” | Mondo Castro |