Girls Go Rockin’.  Last March 4, I was at SaGuijo in Makati for the latest installment of Kate Torralba’s series of gigs showcasing female-fronted acts. (Girls Go Rockin’: Contemporary Siren Sounds and Style, as the poster says). This was one lineup I could not miss: first up was Waya, the daughter of Celeste Legaspi and an irresistible musical force in her own right; also performing were Beng Calma-Alcazaren of Drip, backed up by Micaela Benedicto of Outerhope on keyboards (with apparent last-minute addition Junjie Lerma on guitar); the infectiously energetic Nyko Maca; Domino a.k.a. Lally Buendia; and the amazing Kate Torralba herself, with Malek Lopez and DJ neon8. (For the fashion-watchers among you, the girls were “decked out in KT Kate Torralba,” with “maquillage by Marj Aznar and Lilian Yeung, coiffure by Ruel Papa and co.” Yes, I don’t know what maquillage is, either.)

I managed to miss Waya’s set, for which I am still kicking myself, but I caught Kate and her musical cohorts as they unveiled another song from her much-anticipated debut album: it was an alluring yet slightly unsettling number, with a chorus about someone watching videos of somebody else (Malek explained later that it was about Hayden Kho, though I’m not sure if he was serious). Beng and Micaela were wonderful, as expected, and Junjie’s guitar added much to the mix. Beng got to show off her singing range in a way that she doesn’t often get the opportunity to when playing with Drip, especially on covers like the soaring “Constant Craving.” She also showed off her ‘90s roots, as evidenced by an intense version of Radiohead’s “Creep.”

Though I have long been an admirer of Domino thanks to her excellent but somewhat overlooked debut album Fair Tales, I had never seen her perform live before. She was all I expected and more—powerful without being too showy, emotional without being sloppy; the only problem with her set was that it was far too short. Her rendition of “Because the Night” (accompanied by Kate on keyboards) was something to behold, though. The night was capped by Nyko Maca—enjoyable as always, playful and assured, plucking influences everywhere from Brazil to the Bronx. (She did a funky version of “Eye of the Tiger,” even.) All in all, a gig I was very glad to have attended.

ISABEL AND OTHERS. Speaking of siren sounds, I managed to catch a set by The Late Isabel on March 10, during the second leg of The Sleepyheads’ launch series for their commendable second album, Malnutrition of Love. Lead singer Wawi Navarroza is as hypnotic to watch as ever; she isn’t the best singer on the scene but she has such a finely honed sense of theatricality—whether she’s swooping her syllables or stalking around onstage or just leaning on the mic stand—that one can hardly imagine a better frontperson for their musical mix of the merry and macabre. The two new songs they played from their upcoming EP made me very curious to hear more.

SUMMER IN THE CITY WHERE THE AIR IS STILL. That first line of the Aztec Camera song “Somewhere in My Heart” has been on my mind for a couple of reasons. One, it is the status of one of my friends on Facebook, in tribute no doubt to the oppressive heat that has been baking all our brains recently. Two, the song happens to be the designated ‘theme song’ of my first girlfriend and I (yes, we were that young, and we were that corny), and as I hurtle towards matrimony, I sometimes glance back at my dating history—musical associations and all—and wonder about how I got here. I think most foolish high school romantics imagine that they’ll marry their first girlfriend—I know I did—and most foolish high school romantics are proven wrong, one way or another.

Listening to the song again, now, I am struck by the image of a vision of love “wearing boxing gloves/ and singing hearts and flowers.” The song does this throughout: balancing an irrepressible wide-eyed optimism with intimations of the inherent difficulties involved in affection. As someone once wrote, “grief is the bill due for love,” and while this sweet smile-laced blast of nostalgia is largely untouched by grief, it does remind us that “Our hearts have been torn/ Since the day we were born/ Just like anyone.” There may be no quick and easy answers when it comes to love; we’re all learning and we’re all going to hurt ourselves and others. But all these tribulations must be worth it. At least that’s what the songs say.

Send comments and questions to Luis at thekingofnothingtodo@yahoo.com.