Maniolas

MANILA, Philippines – Wolfgang (photo) is headed for US and Canada this July and August for a series of shows. It’s been more than a decade since the iconic band embarked on a North American tour, having pounded the Middle East and Asian circuit these past few years. Wolfgang is composed of vocalist Basti Artadi, guitarist Manuel Legarda, bassist Mon Legaspi and drummer Francis “The Beast” Aquino. The band has won numerous accolades from NU107 Rock Awards, Awit Awards and the biggest indie awards group, the Malaysia-based AsiaVoize. The North American schedule billed as Rock Summer 2013 kicks off on July 19 at Broadway Studios, San Francisco, California. (For tickets, call [408] 655-9102.) The band heads to L.A. on July 20 at the Beyond the Stars Palace (with tel. no. [323] 201-1029.) It hits the East Coast on July 27 at the Laboom Lounge, Woodside, New York ([551] 998-6020.) Chicago’s Hard Rock Café is the place to be on Aug. 23, at 63 W. Ontario Street. ([224] 545-0304.) In Canada, Wolfgang will be at Toronto’s Phoenix Concert Theater on July 26 ([647] 505-7644); Winnipeg on Aug. 3 at the Garrick Center ([204] 962-2903); and Alberta on Aug. 4 at the River Cree Resort & Casino ([780] 707-0824). Also featured on the tour are Kamikazee and Kitchie Nadal. Spearheading the productions is a consortium composed of Nosaj Entertainment, Diamond Productions and Alyas Galo Productions. Entertainment ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 For complete schedule of Wolfgang’s Philippine and international shows, check out Wolfgang Philippines on Facebook.

Associated Press 1:12 pm | Monday, July 15th, 2013 BANGKOK — Asian stock markets posted modest gains Monday, registering relief that a slowdown in China’s economic growth wasn’t as sharp as feared. The world’s second-largest economy grew 7.5 percent from a year earlier in the second quarter, slowing from the previous quarter’s 7.7 percent, as weak trade and a clampdown on lending took their toll. It was the second consecutive quarter of slowing growth but still strong enough to suggest China will meet Beijing’s 7.5 percent growth target for this year. A clampdown on overly fast growth in lending had contributed to jitters that China’s growth might fall below 7 percent. That would hurt companies around the world that have become increasingly reliant on breakneck Chinese growth to boost earnings. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.4 percent at 21,369.00 and Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3 percent to 4,985.90. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.3 percent 1,875.70. Japan’s financial markets were closed for a public holiday. Elsewhere, benchmarks in Singapore, Thailand and New Zealand rose while Indonesia and India fell. The gains in Asia came after Wall Street eked out new highs. After spending most of Friday flat or down, U.S. stocks rallied at the last minute and closed slightly higher, just enough to post record highs for the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor’s 500. The gains were tiny. And the record doesn’t mean much for investors, who hardly have any more money now than they did Read More …

The rock band will hold its ‘lucky’ 13th anniversary concert on July 19, 8 p.m., at the Music Museum MANILA, Philippines – How in the world that bandmates so close to each other break up with much animosity?  That puzzle had been dealt with quite accordingly by members of mainstream rock band Sponge Cola who have stayed together in the music business for 13 long years. It meant that the band members’ friendship, if compared with a recipe, had just enough flavor for them to crave for it every once in a while.  “We are friends in an exact way. But we’re not close enough to share underwear,” quipped frontman Yael Yuzon in a chat with the press to promote the band’s upcoming “lucky” 13th anniversary concert.  The group appeared upbeat about its first major concert billed Maximum Capacity, scheduled on July 19, 8 p.m. at the Music Museum in San Juan.  Amusingly, the four-piece band somehow miscalculated the length of its run in the local gig scene, which partly explained why it’s not the more conventional 10th- or 15th-year commemoration. The members may had been too busy keeping their friendship intact and in such a way effective to them.  Yael, who made it through in the company of bassist Gosh Dilay and guitarist Armo Armovit, and then much later, drummer Ted Mark Cruz, reiterated, “We’re friends in just the right way.”  Entertainment ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 That also sounded synonymous to saying it is both professional and brotherly with neither served raw or overcooked.  True enough, some bands with members treating themselves as brothers when in fact they’re not eventually turned into Read More …

MANILA, Philippines – The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) opposes the proposed People’s Mineral Resources Act arguing that the proposed bill would render the country’s national mining law useless. In a statement yesterday, the COMP said the proposed People’s Mineral Resources Act set to be filed in the incoming Congress is “designed to kill the responsible mining industry in the Philippines” even though there is no need to repeal the existing Mining Act of 1995. Citing a paper written by COMP vice president for Legal and Policy Ronald Recidoro, the mining group said the Mining Act or Republic Act 7942 “is a world-class piece of legislation that already balances the interests not only of the mining industry and the State, but also fully considers the rights of host communities, indigenous peoples, and the environment.” Recidoro said the 1995 Mining Act is able to address the concerns of the bill’s proponents. He noted that the Mining Act and its implementing rules and regulations provide an environmental protection plan that more than adequately addresses the perceived environmental concerns. He also said the proposals of the so-called alternative mining bill, run contrary to the principle of state ownership of all natural resources in the Constitution. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 This as the “collective private ownership” by indigenous cultural communities of all mineral resources found within their claimed ancestral lands proposed by the bill would place substantial portions of the Philippines outside the scope of the Philippine Read More …

By Monserrat C. GomezPhilippine Daily Inquirer 12:19 am | Sunday, July 7th, 2013 Margarita was 30 years old when she came into our household. I had just delivered my first child and was in need of a nanny.  She was the cousin of a friend’s maid and had previously worked in a hospital nursery in Cebu, assisting senior nurses caring for newborns.  She was just 4’8” tall. She was typically promdi (from the province) and spoke no English and very little Tagalog. Margarita came from Misamis Occidental. So, our first challenge was communication. Hard as it was to talk to each other—me in my hybrid English and Tagalog or Taglish, she in her heavily accented Visayan-Tagalog—we somehow managed and famously got along. She was great with the baby and a happy soul, always singing and laughing, and talking to herself, as she went about her chores. Soon after my second daughter was born, Margarita was adamantly against our getting another nanny to look after the new baby, insisting that she was fully capable of taking care of both the new arrival and our other three-year-old. My daughters grew to love her because she was fun and playful, and so protective of them.  As they learned to talk, she became Yaya to them. When the kids were six and three, we were presented with an opportunity to move to the United States.  Great as the offer was, I told my husband that we would only go on the condition that we Read More …