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Max became a novelty singer by accident. Before he sang ballad songs in famous and big night spots in Cebu way back in the 60’s, he had a short stint in Visayan Electric Company then after joining a lot of singing contests, he eventually left his day job for his passion which is singing.
Photo by Dr. Jo Anne Rivera
His first recording of the song, “Lolang Kunot” under the label, Vicor Music Corporation, got him to novelty songs. He was reluctant at first since being a balladeer is his first love but when his first song became a big hit in just a week after it was released, it opened more doors for him in the music industry.
After decades of making albums of novelty songs and gaining a huge following all over the world, Max Surban earned his title as the King of Visayan Songs, with 33 albums and Gold and Platinum Awards to his name. Some of his top-selling albums are “Magparetoki,” “Gihidlaw na Intawon Ako,” Dobol Trobol” (with Yoyoy Villame), “Nabali ang Krismas Tri,” and a muslim song entitled, “Baleleng” which means “sweetheart.” Not only he won the hearts of the Cebuanos but Max Surban also earned a lot of respect from his peers especially the Cebuano artists and bands, Missing Filemon is one of them, who looked up to him as the icon of the Bisaya music industry.
Photo by Beyee
Missing Filemon is a Cebuano/BisRock band composed of Insoy Niñal (vocals and guitar), Eimer Tabasa (drums), Clarence Mongado (bass) and Jag Gonzales (guitarist) which started in 2002, recording rock songs in Cebuano which debut in 2003 as their self-titled album which later called as the “Suroy-Suroy” album. It was not a smooth ride for them to penetrate in Cebu rock music scene since not everyone accepted their kind of genre being that it was dominated with English-writing bands and artists.
Photo by Dr. Jo Anne Rivera
A year after, some of their songs invaded the radio airwaves then people started noticing their bold move in their music. That was the start of how they gained their place in the music scene doing gigs and radio guestings. After the success of their debut album, Missing Filemon came up with another release entitled, “Sine-Sine” which came out in 2005 with people singing to a couple of hits like “Prinsipal,” and “Inglesera.” They broke grounds even more and reached as far as Visayas and Mindanao.
After three years of release, Missing Filemon received their first national award with their song, “Sine-Sine” as Best Movie Theme Song in 2008 FAMAS Awards. Then two more albums followed, “Kawanangan” in 2011 and “Dekada” in 2013 which is a compilation of some of their hit songs from the previous three albums, to celebrate their ten years in Cebu’s rock scene.
April 11, 2015 was a momentous event for both Max Surban and Missing Filemon. At the Ayala Terraces Cebu, they entertained all the Cebuanos and some foreigners with their first ever collaboration dubbed as, “I Love My Titser Max Surban – Missing Filemon,” which served as a tribute to one another’s contribution to Bisaya music. The album has eleven tracks with the two artists reviving and interpreting each other’s songs.
Minutes before the show, iSTORYA.net had a chance to talk to the artists about their collaboration, their humble beginnings as musicians and their message to all Cebuanos.
Watch out for Part 2..."The Interview with Max Surban and Missing Filemon"
Beyee
iSTORYA League of Writers
*Beyee is an Educator • Foodie • Microblogger • Writer • Photo Enthusiast • Half-Marathoner • Adventurer • Musicphile • Hopeless Romantic
Photos and Videos by Dr. Jo Anne Rivera
*Jo Anne is a dentist by day, a food junkie, and an adventurer.
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