Flying Ipis all set to rock Dubai

Filipino all-girl, garage punk quartet Flying Ipis will rock Dubai on May 20 (Friday) at The Music Room. Flying Ipis, whose members hail from Manila, Philippines, is composed of Deng Garcia on vocals/guitars, Ymi Castel on guitars, Tanya Singh on bass and Gaki Azurin on drums.

The band’s cheeky name (“ipis” means cockroach in English) has given them and their music cult status. Originally formed in the corridors of an all-girl, Catholic high school, the band paid their dues in their hometown, releasing an EP in 2009 and their first full-length album, Give Ipis a Chance, in 2013.

“We were just a bunch of friends in high school who wanted to rock out and had fun doing it,” said drummer Gaki Azurin in an email interview with tabloid! ahead of their show. “Then Deng and I continued as some moved on. We met Ymi online, and met Tanya at the gigs, all very random really,”

So what’s with the name Flying Ipis? “[During] some band practice session while we were thinking of a name, a flying roach flew by and had us all up on our feet. It was a common fear and we were just joking about it that time until our first gig, and the name just stuck,” she added.

“It’s also what we all had in common,” Garcia added.

When asked what Dubai fans can expect from the concert, Azurin said: “Cardio workout!”

She added: “It will be my first time in Dubai and I can’t wait to play for you all. So we’ll see you there and give you a rocking good time.

“We are super thankful for the opportunity and the invitation from Breakthrough [the event organiser]. It was their invitation that started this and hopefully [there will be] more to come.”

Garcia said fans can expect a lot of fun and “energy, energy, energy” from the show. “We hope we all have a grand fun time. Can’t wait to see Dubai.”

She adds: “[We are] so thankful to Breakthrough for finding us and wanting to bring us to Dubai. We just finished playing in SXSW [Austin, Texas], LA, and San Francisco... so yeah, it can be our own version of a mini world tour.”

The girls also talked about their experience at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival. “Super awesome,” Azurin said. “Travelling is fun, but travelling to perform is an even better experience. Being able to take your music around makes me happy beyond words.”

Garcia said touring is a source of inspiration. “Meeting totally new people and playing in front of foreign audiences and then hearing positive feedback from them... these are the things that keep you positive,” she says.

As an all-girl garage punk band, Azurin and Garcia said audiences have welcomed their brand of music. “The reception is great. People like the music, they like the songs, they come to the gigs, the cheer, they sing along, they mosh, they head bang, they dance.”

Coming from an all-girl Catholic school did not get in the way of their musical aspirations, although their preferred genre was different from what most were listening to.

“It wasn’t very common in school then. In fact in high school, most listen to pop and boy bands. I guess we just did what we felt like doing then,” Azurin said.

The girls admit though that not everybody can appreciate their music. “Well, you can’t please everybody,” said Azurin. “Maybe [some] judged and discriminated us because they thought we were too noisy?”

Garcia added: “Maybe we were discriminated not because of our brand of music, but more because of our name. Not everybody can appreciate a flying cockroach as a band name, you know. Not everyone gets the irony. So in the beginning, a few managers had a bit of a problem with our name because it wasn’t so easy to ‘sell’. But hey, we are here, and I guess we are proving them wrong with gigs like this one in Dubai.”

Aside from shows in the Philippines and abroad, Flying Ipis is also busy with a YouTube show called Ipisodes, where they feature random things about the band and answer questions from fans.

They are busy gearing up for their second album, The Roach Motel, to be released later this year.

Not being in the mainstream rock scene, how hard is it for the band to release an album?

“Not very difficult, if you really want it to happen,” says Azurin. ”It’s more difficult though to get people to listen to your stuff. All those nights of gigs and just trying to play for everyone wherever they haven’t heard you.”

Garcia adds: “I guess the only real challenge is the funding. But then, you just have to be resourceful and capitalise on your strengths.”

________

Quickfire with Deng Garcia and Gaki Azurin

Among the four who is the:

Best singer

Azurin: Me.

Garcia: Oh Gaki, for sure.

Punkiest

Azurin: Ymi.

Garcia: Ymi.

Best dressed

Azurin: Me.

Garcia: Sooo me.

Takes the most time to prepare for a show

Azurin: Tanya or me.

Garcia: Definitely Tanya.

Health conscious

Azurin: Me.

Garcia: I’m health conscious too, really.

Moody

Azurin: Me.

Garcia: I’m moody too. I’m a gemini.

Free spirited

Azurin: Deng.

Garcia: Ymi on her third drink.

Bratty

Azurin: Deng.

Garcia: I’m a brat only when I know I’m flat out right.

___

Don’t miss it!

Where: The Music Room, Majestic Hotel

When: Friday, May 20. Show starts at 8pm.

Price: Dh100, only 21+.