Dispatches by Adrian Conoza

In the adulting years, I realized, the Christmas and yearend season can get stressful and draining with the blended rush of remaining work, multiple parties, and numerous bouts of shopping and other errands (It's even hard to sneak in writing this piece). Nonetheless, what still gets me excited at this time is the chance to revisit the songs I discovered and enjoyed throughout the year, especially through Spotify Wrapped. More than the songs, I also like to reflect on the moments and thoughts soundtracked by these songs. This led me to a resolve to come up with a playlist of the songs that marked the year, which I call "My Tracks of the Year."  From my inaugural 60 or so tracks playlist last year, I've picked 100 this time. Many of these songs are new releases this year and new discoveries, yet highlights from this year also come from tracks I once heard in the past years but now have deeper meanings to me as they chronicle my musings in the past months.  It's dif...

Last year, before we welcomed the present year, I recalled 2023 in ten songs (and some more), which I labelled "My Tracks of the Year," after a well-known BBC Radio 2 fixture in weekday mornings. And now that we have gone fairly midway through 2024, I want to share this time the songs I've enjoyed in the past months, most of which have been soundtracking all that I've been through: the small wins, the crushing setbacks, the weight of work being alleviated by music, the roller-coaster of feelings being diagnosed by lyrics. I call this my "Mid-Year Melodies." On the Spotify / YouTube playlist there are 40 songs, but for this blog I'll highlight ten songs, with some special mentions.  Let's get right into it. 1. The Lovers - Alexander O' Neal (1987) After appreciating RnB/soul artist Alexander O'Neal with his classic "Criticize" during Christmas season, in January I've loved his album Hearsay , with its cool narrative of a party w...

There is a segment on a radio show airing on mid-mornings on BBC Radio 2 in the United Kingdom, where for an entire week (Monday to Friday) a celebrity guest or a well-known personality shares his or her favorite songs, most of which have defined one's life and career. Hence, the title " Tracks of My Years ." I find it a very interesting concept for radio, since songs tell much of one's journey through life. And even in just a span of a year, there's much to tell about someone in songs. With that, I have thought to put a twist to the aforementioned concept and share with you those tracks that mark moments, circumstances, and sentiments throughout the soon passing year. I got many of them from my Spotify Wrapped playlist , but I also selected some within the wide range of what I discovered this year. I'm delighted to share with you "My Tracks of the Year" for 2023. (Scroll past the following Spotify playlist as we go through each track.) 1. Through T...

Picture from: K-PLAZA.com Momoland's original line-up returns with fifth mini-album It seems that Kpop is having its own "March Madness" as the industry's artists are amusing fans anew with fresh material. The month witnessed the debut of Big Hit Entertainment's newest boy group, TXT. IZ*ONE, meanwhile, had their rendition of "Rise" by EDM producer Jonas Blue released last March 7. Last March 14 four-piece Mamamoo returned with "gogobebe", while Red Velvet's youngest member, Yeri, launched her first solo "Dear Diary". Other groups like KARD and Blackpink have announced their comebacks set later within this month. And as we reach the latter half of the month, MLD Entertainment's girl group Momoland joins these artists in going back to the spotlight. Returning sans Daisy, Taeha After gaining much attention from their singles "Bboom Bboom" and "Baam", Momoland excites Merries (the fanbase) w...

Whenever I see girls and boys Selling lanterns on the street I remember the child in the manger as he sleeps The Philippines is very much known as a country that anticipates the Christmas season as early as September, the first of the "Ber Months" (the last four months of the calendar). This anticipation is very much seen on social media, especially when you see memes of singer-songwriter Jose Mari Chan (JMC) sitting beside his piano on a backdrop adorned with a Christmas tree. Surrounding the picture are words that goes: "Kontrolado ko lahat ng speakers sa mall". One would definitely react with "Haha" because he/she must have heard sometime in his/her life Jose Mari's Christmas songs playing on the malls, markets, or on radio as early as September.  From Google Images Since his timeless songs like "Christmas in Our Hearts" and "A Perfect Christmas" are in the Christmas playlist of public areas, JMC is now ...

As I have just shared in my recent blog posts here, I am an avid listener of Korean pop music. I'm even a fan of at least 3 groups. But that does not mean that Kpop is the only music I have my ears on. Before Korea's music came to my ears, it was even the sounds from another neighbor which I discovered and listened to. I have been finding a breather from the Kpop music that's been on loop in my playlist. And so I want to share with you music from Japan I have listened to these past years and weeks. Japanese music shows much talent as progressive as their building of appliances, electronics, and other good products.

💻  FEED Blackpink :  BLACKPINK’s Jisoo Scolds BLINKs In The Cutest Way Possible (Koreaboo) BLINKs adore Jisoo’s kind and generous nature. Jisoo is known to go out of her way to take care of her fans and make time for them, even with her busy schedule. Busyness :  Why Jam-Packed Schedules Can Be Dangerous by Kevin DeYoung (Crossway) The antidote to over-busyness isn’t sloth and indifference, but rather rest, rhythm, death to pride, acceptance of our own finitude, and trust in God’s providence. It isn’t work itself that’s bad busyness, but working hard at the wrong things: trying to please or control others, trying to do things we haven’t been called to do.

You might have noticed Nancy first on their MV for Bboom, being at the center. But do you also see (L-R): Yeonwoo, Taeha, Jane, Daisy, JooE, Ahin, Hyebin, and Nayun? Source: Soompi.com This is the second of a two-part blog. Click here for the first part . More than Nancy Their other music is not only the thing worth looking into, but also the other members of Momoland. I'm writing this not because my biases are Yeonwoo and Nayun (and Jane too). Not also because I don't find Nancy beautiful or talented (because she's both). But because Momoland, like any other group, is a collaborative effort. Unlike other groups though, names might be hard to recall for groups with more than five members, unless you're a Once (Twice fan) or an Army (BTS fan). But in my case, the names shown in Bboom's MV has been a good help. It took less effort to recall. Might as well further argue that Bboom's have been a good intro to the group (although their first album should...

I remember last year our block had a retreat together with another block for three days in Calaruega in Batangas, a retreat place very much known to Thomasians. On our second night, we had this talents night. Urged by some of my classmates, two of them, known to be officers of the Korean cultural organization in UST, performed a routine. They danced to the song, "Oh Nana" by K.A.R.D. I got into the song that I later asked another classmate for the title and artist. I searched for the song back at home the following day. The song got me for a long time, and I had the remaining months of my first semester playing it on a regular basis. I stated it in the title. Now I write it again here: I'm into Kpop, and here's my story of how I got to be one.

"Sing the praises of the LORD, enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations what he has done."—Psalm 9:11(NIV) "Wherever and whenever we meet in the name of Christ, we should consider him as present in the midst of us."—Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary(Matt. 18:15-20) In a Wednesday evening the night sky encircled Araneta Coliseum. Crowds lined-up and gathered inside the dome, and soon they filled it. While I and my fellow people from the church settled on our seats in an upper box—enough to see the stage where all that happened that night would take place—people continued to group in the boxes above and the floor below. That scene seemingly appear, as our youth pastor noted, that many Filipinos now are aflame towards God, that many Filipinos are gaining an interest in Jesus Christ. For that night was a night of moving and empowering praise to God. That night, the famous contemporary Christian music band Hillsong United came to Manila to perform their first o...