THE BLEU Rascals: Unexpected turn of events
Not too long ago, Paul Marney Leobrera felt bad, nearly hopeless about his cleft palate—a condition that made him a constant target of ridicule among his schoolmates. But now he feels on top of the world as the leader of a hot, young blues band, the Bleu Rascals, which will represent the Philippines in the 28th International Blues Challenge (IBC) opening tomorrow in Memphis, Tennessee.
Just to enjoy
The 18-year-old guitarist, also a singer/songwriter, said his band won’t focus on competing. “We will go there to enjoy ourselves and share our music,” Leobrera told the Inquirer after warming up the full-house crowd during the launch of the Philippine Blues Society (PBS) at The Roadhouse Manila Bay, a new blues-rock club behind SM Mall of Asia.
JUN LOPITO jams at the launch of the Philippine Blues Society.
PBS—whose officers and board members include lawyer and radio DJ Allan Magturo, guitar god Wally Gonzalez and blues harp player Tom Colvin —chose the Bleu Rascals as the first Filipino band to join IBC for its youth and exceptional talent.
“I didn’t expect this to happen,” said Leobrera, whose band mates include bassist Spencer Rymonte and drummer Darwin Quinto.
Three goals
In joining the annual blues festival in Memphis, which reportedly attracts over 200 bands from the US, Europe and Asia, PBS hopes to accomplish three objectives: Put the Philippines on the world blues map; inspire the next generation of Filipino musicians; and give hope to physically challenged youth.
Colvin was beaming during the Bleu Rascals performance at The Roadhouse, telling the Inquirer that the band was to open IBC’s first event, the FedEx International Showcase, which will have 14 bands competing. Venue is the New Daisy Theater on Beale Street.
CHICKOY Pura of The Jerks
The Bleu Rascals will perform in competition against 20 other bands on February 3. The trio is also set to jam with the Will Tucker Blues Band on February 4 at B.B. King’s Blues Club, also on Beale Street. Workshops and more jam sessions are on the schedule.
All night long
At the PBS launch, the Bleu Rascals mingled with its elders— Gonzalez, Joey “Pepe” Smith, Jun Lopito, The Jerks and other bands who went on to play the blues all night long.
(Starting February 5, The Roadhouse will have a “Bantay Bata Blues Night” every first Sunday of the month. All proceeds from 8 p.m. till closing time will be donated to the ABS-CBN Bantay Bata Foundation.)