Interview with Eskapo

 

ESKAPO

By: Corix Baluca

Eskapo means "escape", a Filipino hardcore/punk hailing straight from Vallejo California, Despite being based in the US, their hearts remain true to their Pinoy roots, as reflected in their lyrics written mostly in our native language, y’all pinoi should be proud of, only few of them in the states that exist who are into punk, hardcore and even metal, these guys speak Tagalog louder than you! So yah betta check yah ass muthaphukkkaz!


NO BULLSHIT:- What’s up? How’s the Eskapo camp doin’ in Vallejo Cali.? Kamusta kayo lahat jan mga pare!
LOI FAJARDO [guitar/backing vocals]- OK lang kami lalo na at natapos na rin yung cd namin na pinagpaguran namin for many years. At sa wakas na ayos naman ang mga feedback na binibigay sa amin nang mga kaibigan namin at mga sumusuporta sa amin.
RUPERT [lead vocals] -Ayos lang dito sa Vallejo, maraming Pinoy pero walang pangks !
MAX FAJARDO [drums] ok lang naman buhay pa rin pare
LUKE WINDERS [bass/backing vocals] -Very good. playing lots of shows. hopefully seeing new places and selling all these boxes of CD’s.
BRUCE WEBB [guitar/backing vocals] -Eh, I don't live in Vallejo anymore. But it's going alright I guess.
ENGLAND HIDALGO [artwork/backing vocals] -.Doing good.

NB:- How long you’ve been stayin’ in the states? Do you have any plan to visit here? What provinces here in the Philippines you originally from?
LOI FAJARDO:-. Ako 10 yrs. Siyempre may balak akong bumalik sa pinas at makasama ang family at mga friends ko sa Solano, Nueva Vizcaya. Malapit sa Bayombong, konti lang ang populasyon pero masaya pa rin.
RUPERT: -I've lived here since 1993, Yes Eskapo or myself would love to visit home again to tour and see our families. My father was from Tondo his province Bataan, my mom from Los Banos but I was born in Quezon City, Proj 7.
MAX FAJARDO: -I been here 13 years now n I wanna go back to the P.I some day n play over at the motherland.
LUKE WINDERS:- I was born here. I've never really been out, but I'd like to. We've been talking about going to the Phillipines for a long time, hopefully it will happen soon. I'd love to see a real manila sunrise
BRUCE WEBB: -I've been in this country for most of my life. I'm originally from Yokosuka, Japan. I guess we'd like to tour up in the Phillipines, but I guess we'll see in time....
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -I've been here since '97, syempre gustong-gusto kong umuwi, my parents are from ilocos.

NB: -May I know what are you guys currently doin’ in the states besides your band? What’s the reason of immigrating in the states? Why you Eskapo the Philippines?
LOI FAJARDO: -Working as a material specialist sa isang companya sa South city. And currently and almost weekly updating eskapo website (www.eskapo.com) as much and the best that I can. Family nag-move dito sa tate so there’s no other choice but come and migrate here with them.
RUPERT: -I work as a youth mentor who teaches poetry workshops to kids all over the country and bay area , perform spoken word at various colleges and part time at a copy store. I immigrated here dahil na kick-out ako sa AMA Computer College na eskuwelahan nag patapon dahil nahuliin ako ng balisong at batak
MAX FAJARDO: - I'm working with my dad doing karpentero. but baka magkaroon ulit ako nang work sa benicia...The immigration its kinda not good since the 911
LUKE WINDERS: - Working and drinking.
BRUCE WEBB: -I came to this country, because....uhh...you know, I don't know. That's between my mother and father I guess.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -.Visual artist ako and I work at a record store, I left the country because of poverty.

NB: -Max says that he’s connected with gangsta rap music in high school days like; 2pac and NWA, are also connected into gang bangin’ like the pinoi Satanas gangsta or any other pinoi gang in your high school high?
LOI FAJARDO: - Max Gangsta rap music?!?
RUPERT: -I was involved with a frat in the P.I called Akrho, and over here I made the mistake of joining a gang called MTP (Matatapang Tunay na Pinoy). All of that was a mistake and I do not advocate youth gangs at all
MAX FAJARDO: -Yeah I love 2pac n yeah I been in the gang in the P.I. I forgot what u call it but here I never been in a gang just my friends
LUKE WINDERS: - I'm not a fan of gangs in general, but a lot of artists labeled 'gangsta' have a lot of good shit to say. I believe good music and intelligence can coexist.
BRUCE WEBB: -I used to be into Gangster Rap till I was about 15 or so...after that, it just kinda faded. I was tired of seeing all of these upper-middle class kiddies trying to be a 'gangster' Plus, rappers started selling out and rapping about incoherrent bs. It's like, I don't want to hear about how big your nuts might be and how much money you make. ENGLAND HIDALGO: -No.

NB: -How big is pinoi punkx and hardcore in Vallejo? How bout pinoi zine scene there? Can you gave us short scene report in your town of our own pinoi active resistance?
LOI FAJARDO: Pinoi punx at pinoi zine sa Vallejo suwerte na lang kung may makikita ka. No help from pinoi Vallejo scene ever since we started. So far ang active lang na scene dito ay sa San Francisco at Berkeley hindi pinoi scene pero unity punk scene na hopefully maging mas malaki. Plus as always the well known posers that we see everyday.
RUPERT: -Lahat ng Pilipino sa Vallejo ay nakikinig ng shitty pop ,walang pinoi punx ditto na di namin kilala at karamihan sa kanila puti,mexicano o itim .Kung meron man "punks "dito ang hilig nila ay yung sell-out ,commercialized tae pero maraming mga aktibista at punk-types sa San Francisco ,Oakland at Berkeley lalo na sa Bindlestiff (home of Pinoi punk sa US)
MAX FAJARDO: -Not good were like the only band left ever since we started here but it use to be good there were like 7-8 bands here before in V
LUKE WINDERS: -Theres a lot of people supporting pinoi punk around the bay area. unfortunately in Vallejo, with a large pinoi population, we're about all thats going. except Wangbu.
BRUCE WEBB: -Pinoy punk scene? Eh... not sure about this one. I think there aren't that many though. Most of them are into rap metal garbage or god knows what else Pinoy zines? Doubt it
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Meron pa bang iba bukod sa eskapo?

NB: -What I like Eskapo is you really pinoi, man! in lyrics about Philippine history and current events, revolutionary and brotherhood, and it is spoken in tagalog, pinoy na pinoy pare! Who’s idea is this of writing songs in tagalog? Where, when, and how Eskapo formed?
LOI FAJARDO: - All the founding members of eskapo like Mike Uy, Gil Espanto, Rupert, Max and me. Ang decision na maging proud pinoi sa aming lyrics. ’97 garage band na walang drums at acoustic na gitara at dreams of making a band someday. 5 shows a year til we started getting active hangang sa makilala namin ang Signal 3, Kadena, Von Amon, Jesse Gonzales and the small community of Rupert lead vocals Pinoisepop.
RUPERT: - The idea of writing songs in Tagalog was concieved by the founders , Loi, Rupert, Mike, Uy and Max .We were inspired by Yano, Wuds and P.I Violators but playing to nearly all white crowds who don't care what language you sing in can discourage you but then we played Pinoisepop (asian but mostly Pinoi fest at Bindlestiff) and found a larger community to support our Tagalog speaking asses. We formed originally in 96 and played little to no shows then 3 years ago with newly added guitarist Bruce, we started playing regularly. We have always been a Vallejo band, Eskapo stands for unity of all people !
MAX FAJARDO: - It was our idea n I think we form like 97. But back then kantahan lang kung naglalasingan u know...n we form in Vallejo
LUKE WINDERS: - I joined in 98, but they'd already been playing for a while. We've evolved a hell of a lot since then
BRUCE WEBB: -Uhhh, ummm..well...uhh....I think Rupert answered this question? All I know is that I joined up sometime in the summer of 2000, when Eskapo had a resurgence.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -according to them Eskapo was formed in 96 or 97 , Rupert writes the lyrics and the rest writes the music.

NB: -Could you tell us about the “Slam poetry group” [Suicide Kings}?
LOI FAJARDO: - Pepi?
RUPERT: -I am in the Suicide Kings, we are a slam/spoken word group with a mix of hip-hop, poetry-storytelling and punk rock theatrics .We write from that which is ugly and make it beautiful and entertaining through loud and often times abrasive, satyrical, comedic and political art. It is me a heavily tattooed Jew and a crazy Scottish redhead .
MAX FAJARDO: - Its cool there really good n I'm happy for them
LUKE WINDERS:- All AI know is, whereas most slam poets are overdramatic and annoying, Rupert keeps it real and holds your attention. A very talented man
BRUCE WEB:- That's all Rupert's deal. These guys are great though. Some of the best writing/spoken word I've seen.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Di ko pa narinig sila, si Rupert lang, ako ang magiging suicide king kapag naging presidente si Jinggoy!

NB: -Your songs really poetical hustla, who mostly wrote of the songs?
LOI FAJARDO: - In the cd, some of them are old songs and I write some of the music and Rupert mostly write the lyrics. Then after that we all make it as the Eskapo brand type of musika.
RUPERT: -I write the lyrics, they write the music, England sings and handles visual art.
MAX FAJARDO: - We all wrote it … but its most Loi n Bruce
LUKE WINDERS:- The talented Mr. Rupert
BRUCE WEBB:- That would be our lyrically capable Rupert
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Eskapo

NB:- About the song Drunkards Ball, man, I love it! This is the song everytime I’m drunk! What’s your favorite beer and alcohol? Do you know the Philippine brandy called “emperaning”? man, that’s my favorite everytime we drink and drunk with ma homeboy here in my ghetto hood.
LOI FAJARDO: - Salamat tol, siguro alam nyo na mahilig uminom ang eskapo. Sa ngayon hindi namin alam ang emperaning sana pag may kilala ka na pupunta dito puwede kaming tulungan. At magdala na rin nang red horse at ginebra.
Corix of NB: -pag uwi nyo nalang ng pinas inumin natin si Emperaning mga tol!
RUPERT: -Hindi ko alam yung emperaning, pero kakainom lang namin ng Hinebra .
MAX FAJARDO:- I like to drink stronger drink like E&J.. Nope I never heard that drink before
LUKE WINDERS: - My favorite beer is Pabst Blue Ribbon (good and cheap). Favorite alcohol is rhum, matey. I havent had Emperaning but I did get faded off some Tanduay once.
BRUCE WEBB: -Remember kids, always drink responsibly! hahaha. For beer, my favorite would be Sapporo. I'm not picky on the beer though. Lots of good stuff out there. For the hard stuff, I'll drink most mixed drinks. Won't touch Absinthe again though.....
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -I use to drink emperaning back in UST during lunch then go back to our theology class, garantisadong amoy chico!

NB: -Could you mention us those pinoi hardcore punkx in the states that kicks damn asses?
LOI FAJARDO: - Flattbush = political hardcore Signal 3 = pinoi oi band Kadena = pinoi political band Charmin = pop punk
RUPERT: -Flattbush www.flattbush.com socialist grind in Tagalog from LA Charmin www.charmin.com pop punk in Tagalog from SF Dogs of Ire www.dogsofire.com political HC band from LA area Kadena www.kadena_ny.com politically active street punk from New York in Tagalog
MAX FAJARDO: - Yeah fo sho.
LUKE WINDERS: - Yeah all those bands, and I’m sure there’s more
BRUCE WEBB: -Hardcore? I dunno. There is a Grindcore-ish band called Flatbush that's in Los Angeles. They're pretty great. Check them out if you get a chance.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Flattbush, Signal 3, Dogs of ire.

NB: -What can you say about these guys: Fernando Poe Jr., Eddie Villanueva, Gloria Macapagal Aroyo, Ping Lacson, Raul Roco
LOI FAJARDO: - Good luck sana makapili tayo ng tamang presidente na magbibigay puri ulit sa ating bayang Pilipinas.
RUPERT: -Lahat sila walang silbi, mga salot ng lipunan ,walang tapat sa kanila !!!
MAX FAJARDO:- I like FPJ …of coure si idol
LUKE WINDERS:- Dont know. I’m an ignorant fuck fuck Bush, though. I'd say whoever doesn’t like him.
BRUCE WEBB:- Hmmm, they sound like there's something that I should know about them. OH, wait, are these like Presidential candidates or party leaders? If I'm not mistaken, Aroyo is the current president of the Phillipines.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: - Nakalimutan mo si Eddie Gil.
Corix of NB: - Uy! Sorry po Eddie Gil

NB: -What can you say about this coming Philippine election? If you were here in the Philippines, will you vote?
LOI FAJARDO: - Yes I will vote, dahil walang magbabago kung walang nagboboto.
RUPERT: -Yung eleksiyon parang ABS-CBN drama ,ang gulo at puro sinungaling ang mga kandidato ,walang solusyon ! Kung nandiyan ako boboto ako .
MAX FAJARDO: - I like to vote for FPJ pero sana hindi siya kurakot kaparis nang iba
LUKE WINDERS:- Fuck bush
BRUCE WEBB: -I don't know enough on this subject. All I know is that the people in P.I should vote for someone who won't stand for US occupation
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -No.

NB: - What are the most common political problems that you see here in the Philippines? Would you like the U.S will rule the Philippines so that we Filipinos could experience life of the Americans?
LOI FAJARDO:- Corruption and poverty. No, maybe help yes. Dahil pangit umasa sa iba.
RUPERT: - Tax evasion,corruption in the State and amongst the people,a huge debt to the IMF world bank and WTO ,US involvement ,a civil unrest and war Lahat na ito ay di mawawala kung sasakopin tayo ng US .Magiging fascist govt na mag-didikta sa atin kung ano ang pamahalan. Life does not get better when the world becomes westernized or Americanized , it only plants seeds for extremination and genocide becoz old, rich, white geezers have been fucking America in the ass for years and if given the chance they would do it tenfold to other countries especially underdevelpoed ones.
MAX FAJARDO:- I guess kurakot nang gov. n maraming mahirap .. n NO I dont want the U.S to rule P.I
LUKE WINDERS:- Hell no, fuck imperialism.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Gusto nyo bang maging kano?

NB:- Alright, is there any of the band who are into veganism? Is there any of you guys involve in any animal rights action?
LOI FAJARDO: - Noooooooooooooo
RUPERT: -Hindi ako mapili sa pagkain.
MAX FAJARDO: - No i dont think so
LUKE WINDERS: - I think a lot of peoples attitudes towards animals are wrong, but I do eat them. I would prefer not to but I'm lazy and a hypocrit.
BRUCE WEBB: -I think Luke used to be a Vegan back in the day. Guess we all enjoy meat too much or something. I don't mind trying out vegan food though. A lot of it is good stuff.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -.not me.

NB: -How about sexism, do you think fucking bitches causes no respect to women?
LOI FAJARDO: - Respect………We respect all people in particular. We are all equal and should have the same treatment like we treat our elders, mother, sister and brother
RUPERT: -Women are not bitches ,the ones that are portrayed to be are exploited and manilpulated by the media
MAX FAJARDO:- Yeah there a lot of bitches n there a lot of good woman too
LUKE WINDERS:- I try to treat womyn with respect always.
BRUCE WEBB: -Sexism sucks, 'nuff said. ENGLAND HIDALGO:-no comment

NB: -Do you think impregnating somebody is an act of sexist too? what can you say about those Filipinos who uses Fil Am women just to impregnate them to get their citizenship?
LOI FAJARDO: - No, sometimes love is the reason they’re doing it and for those pinoy get a wife and love her.
RUPERT: -Bihira lang yun ,karamihan ang babae ang biktima ng ganito kay sa ganoon wala akong opiniyon
MAX FAJARDO: - I think that fuck up they dont need to be doing that kaya nawawala ang respeto nang maraming lalake sa pinay
LUKE WINDERS: - Thats a tough question, I guess it could be. Using anybody is wrong.
BRUCE WEBB: -Well, it depends on the situation. If it were a family situation, I mean, as in trying to get another family member(spouse) over here, then that makes sense.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -magaling manggamit ng kapwa

NB: -Alright, shitty things this time, what is your favorite soap opera?
LOI FAJARDO: - 00000000
RUPERT: -WALA AKONG TELEBISYO PURO CHONGKI LANG !!!!!
MAX FAJARDO: - None
LUKE WINDERS: - Eskapo
BRUCE WEBB: -Eh, you didn't have to bust out with 'shitty things' time you know...........
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Marimar

NB: -britney or cristina?
LOI FAJARDO: -None
RUPERT: -Neither I hate pop music and all it represents
MAX FAJARDO: -Cristina
LUKE WINDERS: - Cristina
BRUCE WEBB: -You gotta be shitting me man! What the hell?
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Christina

NB: -eminem or jah rule? LOI FAJARDO: -None
RUPERT: -Eminem cuz that white boy is crazy
MAX FAJARDO: - Eminem
LUKE WINDERS: - Idont care. Eminem is a pretty talented wordsmith though
BRUCE WEBB: -Couldn't you ask us something like, who are our influences?
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Wala

NB: -fred durst or ice T?
LOI FAJARDO: -None
RUPERT: -Ice T or Tupac
MAX FAJARDO: - Ice T
LUKE WINDERS: - Ice T by severe default
BRUCE WEBB: -Fred Durst is a penis-licker, and his band can go take their music, and rub it in the cracks of their asses. I've liked Ice-T's acting. I've also listened to his music when I was a kid. So, Ice-T.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Ice-T siguro(body count)

NB: -Fernando poe or Gloria arroyo?
LOI FAJARDO: - Grew up watching Mr. Poe
RUPERT: -Bitayin sila ,tad-tadrin ang mga walang kuwenta !!!!!
MAX FAJARDO: - FPJ
LUKE WINDERS: - Fuck Bush
BRUCE WEBB: -Like I said earlier, I don't know who Fernando would be. I do know that Arroyo has allowed the US troops to occupy the Phillipines. That's a no-no.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Eddie Gil (bayad din sigurado ang utang ko sa mga kano)

NB: -marijuana or shabu?
LOI FAJARDO: - Marijuana
RUPERT: -MARY JANE IS MY MAIN THANG
MAX FAJARDO: -Marijuana
LUKE WINDERS: - Marijuana ganja herb
BRUCE WEBB: -Shabu? What? *puzzled look*
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -Kahit ano

NB: -beer or alcohol?
LOI FAJARDO: -. Both
RUPERT: -BEER
MAX FAJARDO: - Alcohol
LUKE WINDERS: - Depends on the mood and how fast I want to get fucked up
BRUCE WEBB: -Why not both?
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -.Pareho samahan mo na rin ng kahit anong panundot.

NB:-So much for that, tell the readers about your album Kalayaan..
LOI FAJARDO:- . There are 15 songs in it. Mostly tagalog, some old, some new, but always fucking rule. Listen to it and if you are a true Pinoy, you’ll be proud of it.
RUPERT: -Kalayaan is our 15 song full length ,it is primarily sung in Tagalog and is a blistering 36 mins long .It is sold at stores and distros in the Bay Area and hopefully soon in the Philippines .If you come to our shows we sell it for 6 bux with free button and sticker .
MAX FAJARDO:- I hope they like it n I hope they, but it...we work hard on it n we waited so long for that album
LUKE WINDERS:- Hope you like it, it represents lots of hard work.
BRUCE WEBB: -Well, I'll tell you that it took us quite some time to put it out. I'm VERY happy that we pulled together and put this great album together. This represents years of work for some of us.
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -15 hardcore songs in tagalog and english, I did most of the artwork on the album

NB: -Well, traditional thing of an interview is an ending part like telenovelas, and of course shout outs is the traditional thing of ending an interview, so, it’s your time to give ‘em some buncha killa shout out and props to everyone. But before that, salamat mga pare at pinaunlakan nyo interview ko, hope to see you all soon here in the fucking P.I., Mabuhay kayo at Kalayaan sa ating lahat!
LOI FAJARDO: - Salamat…Thank you…Gracias…Bands=La Plebe, Signal #3, Kadena ,Flattbush ,Charmin ,Los Dryheavers , Dogs of Ire ,Invisible Enemies ,Matanza Mundial ,U.S.of Shit ,V-town Have Nots ,Exit Wounds (Vallejo), The SkyFlakes, Desmadre En Crisis, John The baker and Malnourished Nothings , Static Thought , Happy Accident (r.i.p.), Hunbot ,Outraged, Clarendon Hills ,The Symptoms ,Secret Janet ,Pact ,Commonwealth ,Suicide Kings ,From Monuments to Masses, Our Turn ,Utter Bastard ,Lost In America ,Botskurd(r.i.p.), Pica Cosa (r.i.p.) ,Fuck The Future Self (r.i.p.) ,Death By Excess, No People , Brazil UFO, Don Cikuta , Imperio Asesino , La Ultrasonicas, Los Flojos No Visten ,

S:U aka (Sputter Undercover), Los Di Funtos, The Velvet Ash, and you for supporting Eskapo .People=Mike Uy, Gil Espanto, Jesse Gonzales,Anna Sophie Loewenberg, Christine M. ,Von Amon from Davao, Mike Park, Gary Labao, Bay Area Slam Community, Rob, Tedi and Rob Ivey 4, Mike Lawson .Miguel Reyes, Eric Fructroso, Geno Brigado & Watsonville Noise, Travis Static, Speed and Wangbu, Dino Ignacio, Ben Sturm, Chris Rebel, Rachel Swan, Lilledeshan Bose, Little Joan, Bulacan Records, Mike Price of PUSOD, Mel Veracruz, David Huang, Illeana, Chucho, Rebecca Steussy, Rene Mcquiddy, Proletariat Bronze, Mario Penate, Txutxo Perez, Aaron Clement, Norman Pabros, Agustin Caballero, Jay Unidos from UGZ, SEan Farnham from KALX, Tourettes without Regrets ,Greg Brainoil, Boom of Kimo's, Agustin ,Herman, Bindlestiff Staff ,40th St. Warehouse, THe Shop, THe Yakhouse (r.i.p.), El Balazo Gallery, G.I. Jim from Mission Records and their whole crew, Delci Winders, Dino Ortiz ,Shiloh Winders ,Jason Mickela, Laura Morris, Danny Ried ,Alfred Lagda ,Phillip Whitney ,Ian Bryant ,Bob Bradley ,Jamie Yu ,Mike Whitt ,JUSTIN SOLOMON, Shawn Llamas, Arnol Zevallos, Steve/ Stephen Y. ,Joe G. and Gene:) Max thanx all the ladies that come to the show. BAYAN PHILIPPINES. ALL OUR FAMILIESAND FRIENDS WE FORGOT....................
RUPERT: -Mabuhay sa mga pangks at aktibista sa Pilipinas ,ipagpatuloy natin ang pakikibaka .Mabuhay ang mga kakakosa namin La Plebe fr San Francisco ,FLattbush,Kadena ,Charmin ,Exit Wounds ,Static Thought,Flojos No Visten ,My nobya Anna Sophie ,at salamat sa No Bullshit zine para sa interview ,we'll send ya a cd with pins and stickers soon.
MAX FAJARDO: - I would like to thanks all the people who been supporting us till today THANK U lahat.. one color.. peace out
BRUCE WEBB:- If you're going to buck tradition, then you should get rid off the 'shitty-time' questions. Haha
ENGLAND HIDALGO: -salamat sa NO BULLSHIT ZINE


For Eskapo info and other subject matter:
e-mail: eskapo@hotmail.com / www.eskapo.com
Pictures borrowed from their websites.

ESKAPO [KALAYAAN] CD IS ALREADY OUT! Check them out at the address above!