Arts & Culture

Experiencing Avant Garde Sounds with Meltdown 3.0

Music as an art form is created or composed by various reasons; it may be for aesthetic pleasure or expression. Different kinds of genre have emerged through the years and surely enough, here in Cebu, music has evolved into something more. Noise/Experimental Music has made a kick around the music scene with Meltdown 3.0.

Sound has always been a part of human interaction. We produce sound whenever we want to express something but how does something as simple as sound become music? Music as an art form is created or composed by various reasons; it may be for aesthetic pleasure or expression. Different kinds of genre have emerged through the years and surely enough, here in Cebu, music has evolved into something more. Noise/Experimental Music has made a kick around the music scene with Meltdown 3.0.

“Meltdown is a collaborative platform and series of concerts conceptualized by Cebu-based MELT Records showcasing the most prolific sound practitioners who dabble in noise, experimental and sound art,” says Pj Ong, Co-Founder of MELT Records & Creative Director.

Together with these genres, they also add visual aesthetic videos projected behind the artists to complement the sound they produce. Melt Records, an independent record label based in Cebu, also aims to produce and release music from both up-and coming and more established independent artists from Cebu. They created this event to determine and explore unlimited possibilities of multi-genre music.

Paolo Gàiba Riva

“[It’s] A good balance between good indie music and more progressive forms to further art,” adds Dexter Sy, Co-Founder of MELT Records.

We can’t deny that mainstream music in Cebu has made progress this year, so Pj thought that there was a need to create an outlet for Art and Rebellion.

“Manila has been doing this since the 80’s, and we believe it’s time to bring it to Cebu on a bigger scale.” He says. He adds that although experimental music has been around in Cebu since the 90’s, it has never been formally recognized or documented. It was when he participated in a dialogue with Souther Asian Artist through the WSK Music Festival in Manila last year that he realized there was a need to establish an avenue for the avant-garde, exploratory sound scene here in Cebu.

“Because of its interdisciplinary nature, the discipline of sound art has definitely earned it’s reputation as an artform.” This specific genre has been applied in other fields too.

Existing in a hybrid form, it can be combined with other elements too, such as visual art and performance art. And as how MELT really wants to push the boundaries of the music scene, Meltdown 3.0 and the combination of artforms challenges Cebu’s music audience in terms of their audiovisual and live event experience. Dexter also notes that “As diverse as our local music is, there’s still a “comfort zone”, hoping that these kind of events opens up Cebu to other new forms of music and art.

Kazehito Seki

In terms of opening up Cebu for more exciting form of music, MELT also paved way for local artists that for most people, didn’t know that they created these kinds of sound. They were linkage that MELT already had. Some of the local artist that played where Future Teenager, Budoy, Chris Murillo, John Caing & Sam PipeBomb. They also had artist from Manila from their partnership with WSK and Noisebath PH—Joee & I, Lush Death, Sigalot.PJx and Small Town Press.

“Each artist brings something new to the table. Art is very personal and highly-subjective, and this unique sense of individuality is reflected in each of their sets,” says Pj.

Les Belles Noiseuses

Even if the scene has its ups and downs compare to bigger cities, Cebu’s music scene still progresses and continue to innovate; sub communities offer something for everyone, supporting music venues and artists too.

“There’s a lot to be improved on with regards to how we generate interest and income for our independent artist, but at the moment, things have been decently sustainable and people are enjoying themselves, which is an essential factor to keep the music scene alive.” Dexter states.

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Arts & Culture

Chaos and Clarity: Zen Aesthetic in Oj Hofer’s Art

by Jing Ramos |

Oj Hofer, our fashion contributing editor, is a Fine Arts graduate from the University of the Philippines. Though he began painting at the age of eight, his artistic journey took a transformative turn in 2013. While volunteering as a costume designer for Siddhartha: The Musical, he encountered Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s One-Stroke Calligraphy, sparking a deep devotion to Japanese sumi-e painting and kanji calligraphy. Over the years, he refined his craft, using his art to share the Dharma through exhibitions while supporting the Hsing Yun Educational Foundation. In 2022, his spiritual path deepened at Nan Tien University, where he embraced Zen and Humanistic Buddhism, shaping his artistic philosophy.

“Plum Blossoms in Moonlight.” Serigraphy on abaca.

In his recent works, Hofer merges traditional calligraphy with serigraphy, drawing inspiration from his friend Charles Lahti—an internationally recognized New York-based painter and printmaker. Lahti, known for his collaborations with post-war American artists like Robert Rauschenberg, Donald Judd, Andy Warhol, and LeRoy Neiman, introduced Hofer to silkscreen techniques. Through a workshop Lahti conducted in Cebu—arranged by their mutual friend Greg Urra—Hofer integrated silkscreen into his Zen artworks, particularly those on abaca.

“The Circle of Harmony” Serigraphy and Calligraphy on abaca.

Hofer’s cross-disciplinary approach challenges conventional Zen aesthetics. His layered paintings on abaca may seem far from tranquil at first glance, but closer contemplation reveals a meditative core. His serigraph of an Enso circle, for example, initially appears chaotic, filled with Tang Dynasty poetry and overlapping, repetitive forms. Yet, by focusing on a single calligraphic element, the viewer experiences a moment of clarity—a glimpse of awakening within the visual complexity.

“Monkey Mind” Serigraphy and Calligraphy on abaca.

Even more engaging is his diptych Monkey Mind. At odds with the traditional Zen emphasis on negative space, this piece is deliberately busy, reflecting the restless nature of the mind. A distracted viewer may struggle to find a focal point, but one attuned to emptiness and presence will perceive clarity amidst the seeming disarray.

Ink and intention—creating calligraphy in support of one of my advocacies.

By fusing Zen philosophy with the discipline of serigraphy, Hofer invites his audience to look beyond surface impressions and discover stillness within movement, balance within complexity. His art does not merely depict Zen—it embodies the paradoxes at its core, offering a path to mindfulness through the act of seeing and the experience of doing.

Arts & Culture

What is Sappia? The Rice Myth Goddess of Bohol Who Helped Feed the People During a Great Famine

by Emma Gomez

The story began when the people of Bohol started to experience hunger and famine. All the livestocks were inedible and the fields were dried out leaving only weeds planted on the ground. The people prayed to the goddess of mercy, Sappia, to ask for food.

Sappia, the rice myth goddess of Bohol

Sappia, from the heavens, heard the cries of the people. She saw the dense population of weeds and offered to help them. Sappia thought of nourishing the weeds to be edible and healthy for the people of Bohol. Straightaway, she sprinkled the weed with milk from her bossom. She emptied each breast until blood came out. Before she left, she whispered to the weeds that they may be nourished and be able to feed the people.

When harvest season came, the people of Bohol quickly gathered the nourished weeds. They observed that the ones sprinkled with milk were white, while the other were red. They called the new plant rice and they replanted these in honor of Sappia, and for the people to devour.

Arts & Culture

Kimsoy’s Canvas of a Lifetime in Full Display

by Diana Gillo

There is nothing more fascinating than seeing an artist’s lifetime of work in one room. Such is the experience in Jose “Kimsoy” Yap’s third solo exhibit entitled “Kimsoy: Episodes of Mastery,” at Galerie Raphael Cebu. This serves as the truest form of homage to his enduring journey, showcasing works that span over decades.

Kimsoy with his student and muse, Zhara Rivera Mercado, at the entrance of Galerie Raphael

The exhibit speaks greatly of Kimsoy’s evolution as an artist, with his shifting mediums and remarkable variety of subjects. His creations range from heartfelt portraits of individuals he encountered along his journey to detailed landscapes inspired by the different walks of his life. The room’s layout carries the weight of his years of craft with one wall lined with pastels, another with watercolors, and another with oil painting.

As the River Flows Onward by Kimsoy Yap 2020 | Oil on canvas | 82×48 inches

The exhibit transcends beyond just the commemoration of Kimsoy’s masterful periods. It wanders more into a sense of intimacy reflecting Kimsoy’s life’s journey—from his roots as a young boy in Negros Oriental, through his pursuit of greater artistic mastery in New York, to his prominence in Cebu’s art scene. All his work freehanded, created both with his left and right hand, depicts the ways in which we all leave traces of ourselves in our work and in the world.

A Friend of Mine 1979 | watercolor on paper | 24×18 inches

In a Relaxed Mood 1977 | water color on paper | 16×19.5 inches

The opening ceremony featured Ambassador Jose Mari Cariño, alongside special guests Ivy Ang Gabas, Paolo Li, Angbetic Tan, Laurie Bouquiren of the Visayas Art Fair, and Valerie Go of Galerie Raphael Cebu. The exhibit is open until March 21, 2025.