GOO: In Goo We Trust

Around the start of 2014 I started skateboarding again.

What made it worthwhile for me aside from the immediate benefit of getting physical release from work related stress and the work out that comes along with that activity, is that skating provided me again to listen to music from the context of albums which has been mostly downplayed by our fascination with mp3s and playlists.

One constant staple in my skating soundtrack is Goo’s long-awaited album, in Goo We Trust, which I got from their album launch last December 22, 2013 at Chrome Box, in Marikina City.

The record comes as a classic example of what a proper punk rock record sounds like, thanks to the recording and production prowess of Ian Cuevas, who has finely and respectfully captured the singular intensity of passion and sound that flows from the instrumentation of the individual band members in the recording.



Aside from the excellent audio quality it also strikes a nostalgic chord as the album also contains Itchy Bitch and Thing From The Past which are couple of songs that I remember hearing back in 1997 in the Alphanumeric Sampler 507 compilation to which the two abovementioned songs are included in.

, Personal favorites in the record are Never About Me, Time Of Day, Thing Of The Past and Worthwhile which harkens familiar situations and emotions that come along in the perpetual struggle to live life in view of people and the things and moments we hold dear.

Beyond the individual songs the record also inspires me to continue in making the conscious effort to convince my friends in my previous band PayItForward to make time to sit and put our songs into a record even though we’ve gone past the point of actively playing and writing music as a unit. (As of this writing we’ve already done recording two songs who knows, maybe before the year ends PayItForward can come up with a posthumous release?)


Overall the album rates as one of my favorite local releases not only because it sounds good, brings back good memories of my youth and has songs that I can so damn relate to but also because the punk rock vibe of the music pumps up my adrenaline whenever I hop on my skateboard. Recently I’ve also started running laps around the University of the Philippines (UP), Diliman Campus and In Goo We Trusts entire length fits nicely for a complete round of Ups entire academic oval so I guess its safe to say that a step to a healthier punk rock lifestyle starts with hauling your lazy ass to buy the record and start skating/running or whatever and experience that Goo is good for your health.