The Skeleton Years: Between Lunacy & You

It was a little more than a year ago when I had the privilege of watching them on their first gig and I was immediately hooked with the fascinating blend that somehow combines the post-punk sensibilities of Joy Division and the melodic melancholia punk rock of Alkaline Trio.

Thankfully a few months later they decided to release their debut EP Between Lunacy and You in an event, which also launched the music video of their song in an event which I sadly missed because I spent most of my time last year living on a suitcase traveling because of my work.

It wasn’t until November that I was finally able to secure a copy of the CD when my band Death To Puberty again had the chance to be in the same line up with The Skeleton Years, at IDB.


Upon opening I was floored by the quality of the packaging , design and liner notes that also included the lyrics, and acknowledgement to which Death To Puberty was included by the band in the list of artists that they are thanking ( a gesture for which I am thankful to the band as well).

Musically I enjoyed all the tracks, and the record itself is presently my skateboarding soundtrack. Songs that personally standout are Through, Dead Night and Fade particularly because of their catchy hooks and the brilliantly written lyrics of Darwin, not to mention the genre bending guitar exchange courtesy of Ebong and Sharen.

This record stands as one of the shining moments that restored my faith in the creativity and musical potential of the underground punk scene in the Philippines.

May the light shine

This was not at all a perfect year for many of us. The world and its troubles had gotten the best of us and brought us pain, anxiety, disappointment and the seeming helplessness that comes once we are apprehended in the apparent darkness of our circumstances.

This feeling is not unique to our time.

This was also the prevalent disposition of many throughout history, including that of first century Judea, which lost its independence to the Romans in the 1st century BCE, by becoming first a tributary kingdom, then a province, of the Roman Empire.

It was during this time under the shadow of Empire that a young couple found themselves at a cosmic crossroads in history unsure about the entire essence of their predicament, ushered in a child unto a world that is wrought in uncertainty.

In the obscure town of Bethlehem a child gasps for air breathing for the first time and opening its eyes to the world that would eventually lead him to fulfill his destiny to be its long awaited Savior.

In the darkness of the manger rays of light pierced the gloom with the promise of new life that is everlasting and is still making all things new even today.

May the light of Christmas shine ever more brightly as we remember Christ’s birth.