Manila sound's laid-back and unpretentious musical style gave way to the intricate, multi-layered, and sometimes symphonic arrangements of OPM (Original Pilipino Music) that dominated popular, radio-friendly Philippine music starting in the late 1970s until the 1990s. Moreover, musical tastes had changed, moving away from soft rock into newer musical forms, particularly adult contemporary, and to a lesser extent punk rock and new wave, and radio airplay reflected these changes. But perhaps more importantly, by the early 1980s disco had waned in popularity, mirroring disco's serious backlash and decline that occurred earlier in the United States. Unfortunately, in the genre's later years, formula-addled lyrical bias toward camp humor and parody eventually caused Manila sound to devolve into an explicitly theatrical, if not juvenile, subgenre, as exemplified by Hagibis (a mimicry of the Village People) and The Boyfriends, until it diminished in the late 1970s under a wave of dance-oriented hits from American films such as Saturday Night Fever, Grease and Footloose.

Manila sound's unprecedented and meteoric appeal provided viability to a Philippine recording industry that until then had relied on cover versions and imitation of foreign hits to entice consumers. Alternately described as 'the marshmallow sound', Manila sound generated a string of calculated radio hits by artists such as Cinderella, VST & Co., Apolinario Mabini Hiking Society, Florante, Rico J. In its later period, Manila sound was dominated by the disco mania that swept the Philippines, led by groups such as VST & Company, The Boyfriends and Hagibis, among others. Manila sound is characterized by catchy melodic phrases. The name 'Manila sound' may have been derived from Hotdog's hit single 'Manila', which has come to epitomize this genre.

The Manila sound was popularized by the pop rock band Hotdog with their many hit singles, including 'Ikaw ang Miss Universe ng Buhay Ko' (You Are the Miss Universe of My Life), 'Panaginip' (Dream), 'Langit Na Naman' (Heaven Once Again), 'O, Lumapit Ka' (Oh, Come Closer), 'Bitin Sa Iyo' (Left Hanging Over You), and 'Dying to Tell You', among others. It is often considered the 'bright side' of the Philippine martial law era and has influenced most of the modern genres in the country by being the forerunner to OPM. The genre flourished and peaked in the mid- to late-1970s. Manila sound is a musical genre in the Philippines that began in the mid-1970s in Manila.

(Redirected from Manila Sound) Manila sound

Vst & co members