Anno Domini

It has always been my dream to be in a band. Way back in 1st and 2nd year in High School, I would imagine myself performing in front of a crowd and rocking the night away. I thought that dream will only be a dream forever. I never had connections and I didn’t even have a close friend who knows how to play an instrument.

It wasn’t until I came upon this little band from Cebu named Cattski when I decided to really pursue my dream. I also didn’t expect that 2 of my closest friends have the same dream. My friend Recar and I decided to have guitar lessons and my friend Drea had drum lessons.

In 3rd year high school, we were able to form the band and added 2 girls to complete the line-up. Our first goal was to join the yearly Battle of the Bands in our school. We were able to make it to the finals with the help of our drummer’s parents.

I think we came in fresh and in good timing that time since having a band wasn’t really a “trend” before, and that we were only one of the few all-girl bands out there. The parents of our drummer had a lot of connections, so we got to play at several venues like Jack’s Ridge and MTS, even for just 2 or 3 cover songs. We joined more battles of the bands like the YFC Musicfest. Among all the battles that we joined, the YFC Musicfest was the most significant because we won a lot of times and we got to represent South-Eastern Mindanao during the YFC International Leaders Conference held in Subic.

It was very overwhelming being in that band. I got a lot of benefits and advantages. I met new friends, befriended my crush, and other people I never expected I could be friends with like the Davao musicians, but amidst all these advantages come the disadvantages. A lot of other people, especially other girls who have the same dream of ours envied us. We were backstabbed a lot of times.

The band was really blooming but we didn’t know that the parents of the drummer had different plans for the band. They only used us for their daughter’s exposure. Well, it was pretty obvious because of all the drum solos they would let our drummer present in the middle of our performances, but little did we know that they were already choosing members who will stay in the band. One by one, we were kicked out for unreasonable reasons like not being able to attend practices, gigs, or not being able to represent the band for a battle because of school reasons. I was replaced by our drummer’s older sister who, at that time that we were gaining success, took voice lessons so as she could replace me.

Being kicked out of the band was unfair thinking that I was the main founder of the band, but it was also a blessing. There were a lot of times when I wanted to call it quits. Our drummer’s and bassist’s heads grew big. We were also being pressured by the drummer’s parents that our grades began to slip.

The last time I played with the band was during the YFC ILC in Subic. During that time, the drummer, bassist, and I were the only original members left; and our relationship was already bitter. We didn’t make it to the finals night. Our elimination made me happy because they got insulted (they really thought they were that good).

I lie if I say that my heart was never broken when we disbanded and for the main fact that I was kicked out just because my parents didn’t allow me to join one battle. Being in Anno Domini was a great learning experience and exposure for me. I’m happy with my new band now even though we don’t get the same acknowledgment and exposure as what my former band got; at least we play because music is our passion and we treasure every member of the band.