No dead end for Imago

MANILA, Philippines–Disbandment is something fans of local band Imago won’t have to worry about. This was evident during the group’s 5th album launch, “Kapit”, last June 25.

Held at the 70s Bistro along Anonas Boulevard in Cubao, the album launch served as the band’s one-night platform through which they communicated a statement that tells “Imago is a living document.” “End” is not in its nature but “growth” is.

A strong testament to this was a discussion that the band members themselves attended during the event.

Before the music feast  kicked off that night, Imago–now composed of Mervin Panganiban (drums), Myrene Academia (bass), Tim Cacho (guitars), Zach Lucero (guitars), and Mayumi Gomez (vocals)– sat down with the press for some good 15 minutes to share its story of music writing and camaraderie.

Search for the tone

The band picks up from where it left off. Before the members got to music writing for the 5th album, auditions for the lead vocalist post which Aia de Leon vacated in April 2013 went on for a while.

Tim Cacho, one of Imago’s guitarists, narrates that the band checked four or five audition pieces online before its new found front person, Mayumi Gomez, came along.

Zach Lucero, the main man behind the 16-year-old Imago, and the group’s drummer turned guitarist, said that it was the “heavy” tone quality of Gomez’s voice that clicked the band’s light bulb switch to “on.”

“Oh, eto na iyon,” (Hey, this is it) Cacho recalls saying when the band heard Gomez’s EP which served as her ticket to the Imago circle.

Bassist Myrene Academia added, “The more that we got to work with her (Mayumi), the more we realize [talaga na] perfect [yung] fit. ‘Cause you know when you’re in a band, it’s not just like how they play and how they sing, it’s how we get along with each other.”

The journey continues

Imago 2014. Left to right: Mayumi Gomez, Myrene Academia, Zach Lucero (sitting cross-legged), Tim Cacho (standing), and Mervin Panganiban.

Imago’s return in the local music scene is not a matter of “hey, we can write music again,” says Cacho. For the guitarist, he knew perfectly well that the band can always go forward despite the obstacles it encounters along the way.

In fact, music writing went faster for the group this time around.

Academia said they didn’t start writing until they got everyone together. But once they did, six songs were produced in one month time.

When asked if the 2014 Imago can be regarded as a “version 2.0” of the band, Cacho said it’s even 4.0 for him.

‘Imago is a project that keeps morphing’

Imago during the “Kapit” Album Launch. Photo by INQUIRER.net.

For Lucero, the reason why this kaleidoscope-like setup works for the band is because they all find excitement in new things. Despite being a guitar-driven band, Imago always accepts the thrill and challenge posed by the ever-changing trend in the field it operates in.

When asked what people should expect next from Imago, Lucero said that one option for the band is to continuously release EPs in the next months.

Cacho who shares the same sentiment as Lucero explained that they would rather create short albums than produce LPs that will shelf most of the songs they worked on.

Given this malleability towards change, it becomes easy to find truth in Cacho’s words:

“Imago’s still gonna be there, we’re still gonna be writing music, we’re still gonna go forward.”

For Imago, there is indeed no dead end, just joyrides on this endless road more popularly known as music.