Milo Heraldo strings together an auditory galaxy in his debut EP Katawang Langit. Released in December of 2017, the 20-year old singer-songwriter’s self-produced release features an earnest four-piece compilation, exploring the spaces between sayang, sana and muntik na. The album is peppered with familiar narratives, from sweet-nothings, to the familiar pangs of love, longing, and loneliness. It’s particularly the real and the raw that comprises Katawang Langit.
The EP comes to life with “Sansinukob,” the first of four tracks that brings us into Heraldo’s ‘universe’ of celestial bodies. Punchy and energetic, Sansinukob sets the tone for the rest of the album, rife with tropes of the cosmic. The imagery is stark, the first few lines drawing us into the all-consuming space left by the absence of a loved one, familiar Fender riffs cutting to a pre-chorus with a charged urgency. (“Bakit ‘di na lang na maging tayo? / Ang mga liham na hindi naaabot sa’yo”) begs the pre-chorus, hitting us with the kind of longing we’ve all experienced, and whose throes inevitably echo throughout the rest of the EP.
Slowing it down with Talanyo, Heraldo’s second track takes a turn for the acoustic, consistent with the EP’s overall thematic. Translating to constellations, the track is anything but dazzlingly brilliant. Instead, what Heraldo offers in Talanyo areis no frills-vocals laden over acoustic guitar. The result? Uundeniably honest ‘OPM,’ reminiscient of the sensibilities of Rico Blanco and Eraserheads. As Heraldo explores a more intimate atmosphere in the acoustic take of Talanyo, the slowness of the track dangerously borders sluggish — a lackluster embodiment of the movement from resignation to resolve in rising above the fears, challenges and immediacies of romance in the name of young love. Played live, Talanyo becomes a refreshing breather of emotion coupled with the backbone of the drums in the band setting.
The album genuinely picks-up momentum in the latter half, with jazzier influences shining through in Malintala. As if to parallel the upturn of the EP, the track is playful in exploring the restlessness of staying in a lover’s good graces: (“Di na alam pa’no babalik / Sa tamis ng iyong lambing.”). Malintala is charismatic in its attempt to convince—to ask for consideration. (“’Di mo ba alam na ikaw lang naman talaga?”) reads the last line of the chorus. It’s indubititably caught up in the familiar movement of the “push” and “pull,” the gut-wrenching pursuit of love and its sweet serendipities that we chase almost in intoxicated delirium. These make manifest as Malintala is able to hold its own, in tasteful iterations of the trumpet ringing out to cut and complement resonant vocals, all steered by and held together by the beat of the drums.
Bulalakaw brings the album to a close, and aptly so. The fourth track is a lighthearted take on stolen moments, wishful thinking, and transience to boot. In three-and-a-half minutes, Heraldo paints a picture of beauty, grounding the image in the anticipatory wait (“Para kang bulalakaw / At hinihintay ko ang iyong pagdating”). The vision is enrapturing, (“Binihag na naman ang puso / Nawawala ako sa tono / Sa tuwing kumakanta sa tabi mo”) seizing one almost as if in a trance with its catchy beat, vocals all too inviting of sing-a-longs, and lyrics to latch onto.
Katawang Langit does well to explore the real and the raw neatly and succintly. The 20-year-old singer-songwriter’s freshman release proves to be testament to the coming together of various influences. It chooses not to subscribe to a single genre, but to includehas distinctly ‘OPM’ undertones in its short repertoire. Taking the form of the celestial bodies, the EP ultimately serves as an ode to the beautiful, articulated in a cosmic retelling of the quintessential boy-meets-girl fairytale.