Single Review: ‘Saint or Sinner’ by Hale

“Saint or Sinner” is the follow-up single from Hale’s comeback album entitled “Time and Space.” After being gone for nearly five years from the local scene, their time away has given the members of Hale a renewed sense of creative direction which has brought out the inner drive of the members of Hale thus, making them an effective and cohesive unit once more.

Frankly, I have to say that the return of Hale became a long awaited one… as the band scene has significantly weakened in the last couple of years with a number of the premier bands in the country amicably and sadly deciding to call it quits.

Not to mention the musical landscape above that Hale had once occupied and which has changed in ways unexpected would be omitting important changes in the local scene as of late.

However, with the comeback of one of those premier bands such as Hale, there exists that unmistakable musical presence which they possess. In a broader scope of things, Hale’s return has effectively brought back more mainstream awareness to their scene and I have to say that this is a positive step forward in reclaiming some of their movement’s lost glory ! After all, Hale is recognized as one of the “Figure Heads” that were instrumental in igniting the second “Pinoy Rock Boom” which started in the early mid-2000’s. That is why it is significant to have these guys performing and releasing records once again.

Judging by the commercial success of the album sales of “Time and Space” from which this single was taken, I can say that Hale still has a lot of “gas left in their tank” as their fans affectionately dubbed “Halers” are still there in droves to support them, and it looks like the charm and appeal of this band has not wavered during the years they were inactive. Only great bands can pull this off. Undoubtedly, Hale enjoys this distinction.

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What is the overall meaning of “Saint or Sinner”?

After getting to listen to the track a few times in a row, I can say that the interpretation to the lyrics can be a subjective one. For one, frontman Champ Lui Pio is firstly referring to the “crap” –for a lack of a better word– that his band Hale had been through ever since they made a “huge splash” with their major label debut around a decade ago. When referring to the band’s history, c’mon, I think any music aficionado would not totally forget everything bad that happened also in those years to Hale.

It is because the massive commercial success and across-the- board recognition that Hale received then was not without opposition from naysayers. In fact, even other major bands at the time became so obviously jealous of the overwhelming popularity the band had back in the mid-2000’s that these detractors had gone as far as expressing their resentment towards Hale in interviews, in numerous publications, and in the earliest forms of social media.

To make things much worse for Hale, they got tagged with some ridiculous and dumb labelling because of their good looks, the moniker meant largely to discredit their capabilities as musicians of note.

While that “dark cloud” that hovered over the band for the most part of Hale’s first run has practically moved away, Champ Lui Pio does a remarkable job now–with taste and more importantly, restraint–in addressing those past challenging periods, especially in the first verse of “Saint or Sinner” which is about his band’s early run.

That is how mature Champ is as a songwriter because he could very well have gone into the gritty details as anyone else who was around and fully aware of his band’s early beginnings. He opted to make it instead a universal message for everyone to learn a thing or two from his own personal experiences.

That you will always experience trials whether natural or man-made, opposition to what you do in life without judgment and cynicism, “Saint or Sinner” has profound lyrics that are a perfect example of a person who has gone through the rigors and “road bumps” in his professional life, yet has come out not weakened or spiritually broken but instead with more wisdom, inner strength, and clarity of thought.

It seems Champ has long accepted that there will always be people who will not like you or root for you. When I think of it, I believe that is something he clearly had realized since “Day One” when he broke into the music industry but the only difference now is that he is able to address his feelings about them.

I suppose a lot of people can relate to that. The opinions of others should not matter as long as you know your heart is in the right place and for me, I think that’s what ultimately matters in anything we do. Indeed, Champ Lui Pio has found that inner peace he needs to move forward with his band’s music in whichever creative direction he takes it.

Perhaps, his naysayers should also already !

A sinner, he surely is not.

Thumbs Up !