OPM band The Juans are turning to a new chapter in their career as they celebrate their 10th year with Tawid, their anniversary album.
During the media conference, vocalist and keyboardist Carl Guevarra shared how challenging it was for the group to finalize the track list.
“The song selection process for this album is probably the most challenging part because we are all songwriters. I remember there was this point in time na ang dami naming songs talaga na parang isang dingding naka-sticky notes lahat ng mga songs. Probably around 20s-30s or more. The challenge doon is how do we come up with the final line,” Carl answered PUSH ABS-CBN.
He added that they eventually chose the songs that best reflected their current state and their journey as a band.
“During the process, habang nirerecord na namin, there are songs who are standing put talaga na parang lumulutang,” Carl added.
“The selection process also shows our maturity as band members and as artists kasi definitely, they were songs that did not make the cut. May mga songs na hindi nakasama sa final list but it was more like really committing on the messaging, sa storytelling.”
Carl emphasized that the group wanted to write songs based on their present realities.
“Gusto namin sumulat from a place where we actually are now, kung nasaan kami at this point in our lives, sa edad namin, sa emotional state namin, sa pinagdadaanan namin sa buhay. Gusto namin magsulat from there and kumbaga ayon yung mga songs na lumutang,” he remarked.
The album Tawid features 10 tracks that explore themes of love, self-reflection, happiness, and moving forward: “Gusto Kita,” “Ano Ba Talaga Tayo?” “Ano Ba Talaga Tayo? (featuring Janine Berdin),” “Ako Na Lang,” “Ngiti,” “Missed Call (featuring Rhodessa),” “Naiwan,” “Tanda,” “Magaan,” and “‘Di Na Masakit.”
These songs were first performed live during the Tawid Live album showcase on August 29 at the SM North Edsa Sky Dome. According to Carl, the concert’s story flow naturally developed after finalizing the album’s tracklist.
“The story of the whole show happened when the songs were actually finalized. Nauna muna yung selection of songs and how do we make sense out of it,” he said.
He added, “The hugot songs will only make sense if we come from point of sincere, honest topic so the lover part will always be an integral key to our messaging kasi di ka naman masasaktan kung hindi ka nagmahal ng tunay. Therefore, essential siya sa storytelling namin. It's part of the formula, our storytelling.”
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Composed of Carl, vocalist and lead guitarist Japs Mendoza, vocalist and bassist Chael Adriano, and vocalist and acoustic guitarist RJ Cruz, The Juans are known for hits such as “Atin Ang Mundo,” “Hindi Tayo Pwede,” “Dulo,” and “Anghel.”
With Tawid, the band sees this project as both a milestone and a transition into a new season of their career.
“This whole Tawid Live is not just for the people we are playing for but also for us. Noong unang araw ng rehearsal namin, it’s actually what we talk about na itong uang rehearsal ay unang step natin sa pagtawid natin to our next season,” Carl said.
“This whole process of writing the album, talking about where we are now in in our lives, preparing for the show, this is literally our 'tawid' moment because literally God will take us to a different level,” he continued.
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Tawid will be available on streaming platforms starting September 12. On the same day, The Juans will kick off their Tawid Album Tour at Glorietta 4, Makati, with more stops around the Philippines in the coming months.