Lumang Gitara (old guitar)

 

I haven’t blogged in a while, and that’s strange because I love blogging. It’s such a great way to express your thoughts creatively, almost like playing with words. It also helps exercise your writing skills, whether you’re drafting your next book as an inspiration to one day turn it into the big picture. Even as a short movie for YouTube, and Artificial Intelligence can do that. That’s something I’m planning to do later, complete with my own soundtrack and everything.

I’m still a two-finger slow typer (no time for speed-typing classes), but that hasn’t stopped me. Especially as an introvert, blogging feels natural. Sure, I gather information from the outside world, but I filter most of it as I breathe it in, keeping what resonates and letting go of what doesn’t. It doesn’t matter if something is “bad,” as long as it’s not destructive to the planet or the universe. What I breathe out is what I liked, and that output changes in consistency depending on my focus.

Right now, my focus is Artificial Intelligence music. I still play around with traditional mashups like Splice, but Suno is evolving and I believe I’m evolving too, especially in the way I shape my prompts and choose styles.

Have you heard about this? There’s even a new word now: otrovert. The term was coined by American psychiatrist Dr. Rami Kaminski to describe a personality type that doesn’t fit neatly into the usual introvert or extrovert categories. I kind of like this because, although I am an introverted person, almost like a monk, a monk would probably cast me out of the temple but I feel more comfortable one-on-one. At the same time, I know a lot of people beyond just their names. The truth is, I am not good with names, even my own relatives, and there are plenty of them. For example, with the Casil name (my last name), there are many in Hawaii, especially of course in Luzon, Philippines, derived from Ilocos Norte. And not only do I not remember their first names, I often do not recognize their faces or they just do not look familiar at all. Even if they grab you by the shoulder and say, “It’s me, man!” and it’s not Alzheimer’s.

As for bigger crowds, I’m not against them at all. Besides, I’m also an artist, and artists are supposed to “inspire” the crowd. Some do it in ways that are shockingly disturbing, but to keep the list short, I’ll just say there are many styles of inspiration out there.

So what am I blogging about today? It’s about my first Kundiman Soul album, titled Lumang Gitara, which means “old guitar” in Tagalog (Philippines).

Available on Spotify

My letter to Apsi Magazine based in the Philippines through SubmitHub.

Dear Apsi Magazine,

I am Vincent Laganas Casil also known as Vincent Projects. I am an Indie Music Producer from San Jose, California but I was born in the Philippines, Ilocos Norte. I still speak Filipino mostly Ilocano and Tagalog with a broken accent but that’s who I am.

This album Lumang Gitara means old guitar. It is about memory, heritage, and Filipino music that never die. I believe this is the first Kundiman / OPM / Tagalog Soul that is made with Artificial Intelligence. I did not use AI to replace music, I use it to create something new, something mixed with my own sound and the old tradition of my culture.

Kundiman is deep, it is love, it is soul. I wanted to show how it can evolve. OPM and Tagalog Soul also can live in the modern time, not just in the past. AI is my tool but the emotion is still mine, from my roots in Ilocos, from the Philippines, from my family, from my story.

Lumang Gitara is my way to say thank you to the old music and also to bring it forward to the new generation.

I started making music since 2005, I did synthwave, dance, R&B, world music and more. Now with Lumang Gitara I go back to my roots. This album is my love letter to the Philippines and also my message to the world that Filipino music can be classic and futuristic at the same time.

Sincerely,

Vincent Laganas Casil (Vincent Projects)

The Article

Vincent Projects “Lumang Gitara” Introduces Kundiman with AI

Album Review, Local, New Music | By Ervin Besana

let me ask a question that has been bugging my mind lately. Can I or anyone who calls themselves, “purist” really accept AI in music? Let Vincent Projects’ newest album, “Lumang Gitara,” make a case for that.

Vincent Projects is an indie music producer from San Jose, California, but was born in the Philippines. This album is his take on Kundiman/Soul, that is made with AI. I’m not sure how much AI was put into this album, but we can always keep an open mind to it. Join me as I discuss “Lumang Gitara” in detail.

The first song of the album, titled “Lihin ng Bituin”, started with this melancholic guitar lick that gave off an early 2010s acoustic feel. The melodical progression of the track resembled somewhat a song that Jay-R Siaboc would be singing because of its strong and swayful vocal texture alongside the chorus hook.

“Habang May Buhay,” which is the second track of this album, has a strong Yeng Constantino influence in it because of the vocal and melodical progression. The song talks about resilience in the face of adversity. It’s evident in phrases like / Sa ilalim ng ulan, ako’y naglalakad / May bitbit na pangarap, di magwawakas / Habang may buhay, may pag-ibig / Habang may liwanag, may daang tatahakin / just to name a few. 

I specifically like the melodic guitar riff in the intro for “Paghinga ng Mundo”, it perfectly captures that OPM sound. That “beating around the bush” type of guitar riff is what made it OPM. This track is about finding peace in the middle of life’s chaos. Phrases like / Sandali ng kapayapaan, Dito ko natagpuan / Kahit saan magtungo, Ikaw ang tahanan ko / captured the main theme of the track perfectly. 

By the fourth track, “Huni ng Alaala,” I can already sense that most of the tracks in this album have the same song structure progression and the same melodical chorus hook formula. It’s an emerging pattern that created an identity and character in how Vincent Projects produces his songs.

The fifth track of this album, titled “Sa Guhit ng Aking Palad”, took a different turn and talked about being patriotic about one’s country regardless of life’s challenges. Phrases like / Sa guhit ng aking palad, Nakasulat ang bukas / Kahit saan dalhin ng hangin, Babalik pa rin sa ’yo, Inang Bayan ko / perfectly set the mood for this melancholic but hopeful love for one’s country.

I specifically like the chorus hook on the sixth track of the album titled “Laro ng Araw at Ulan.” It has this teleserye soundtrack feel to it. The hook is catchy. If I were to produce this album, I would make this song the carrier single.

“Sandali ng Kapayapaan” tells us that in the midst of chaos, you have to rest and remember that you have someone or something that you can call home. Phrases like / Sandali ng kapayapaan, Dito ko natagpuan / Kahit saan magtungo, Ikaw ang tahanan ko / captured that exact feeling.

My Response:

Salamat, Pare Ervin. I love the article and the way you personally captured the feeling of each track in your summaries. Yes, a soul is still a soul, and the good part about this technology is that it can be considered an excellent way to make a sketch, an idea similar to writing musical notes and lyrics, except you actually get to hear it.

Human artists can always make a cover of the final piece. Instead of just a voice and instruments coming from the computer, it can also come from a real person with a different voice, perhaps even a better one, along with a real acoustic guitar or any other instruments (all depending on you as the artist). That’s what fascinates me about my discovery with AI: it sounds so good that it can trick both listeners and artists into depending on it alone.

But it’s definitely okay to replicate it with a human voice and real instruments, since it’s “only” a good melodic note from a human artist and lyric ready to be sung. Thanks again, Ervin. Now I’ve got to show the article to my stuck-up relatives and weird friends, lol and foes I didn’t even know I had included.

Main Website

VINCENTCASIL.COM