Music to our ears

Last Nov. 29, three wannabe DJs were given the chance to prove their worth to party-goers at the Philips BeDJ MixMaster Finals at Wherelse?.

The prize? A trip to Capetown, South Africa, where they get to compete with other international wannabe-DJs.

The catch? You have to compose a two-minute track on the new Philips BeDJ 530 mobile phone, which features a sound mixer with a nine-track recorder.

From spotting out 30 wannabe disc jockeys around the metro and narrowing it down to three, judges Elen Torres of Philips Consumer Electronics, Big Fish event organizer Domini Primero and Ministry of Sound DJ Mauro Picotto (who flew in just for this event) picked out Ian Magbanua for his soulful ambient track, which stood out from the pack that all sounded like polyphonic ringtones.

While the other contestants have probably worked the turntables, Ian probably doesn't even know how to turn its power switch on.

"I compose music on my computer, but I can't spin turntables," he says, laughing. "If you give me two turntables now, I wouldn't know what to do with them. I make music that I think sounds good, and that's about it."

He's also part of Electronica Manila, a local organization that houses electronica artists. Don't think your usual street party, though. These guys take their music seriously, and you wouldn't find them hosting parties. They've played this year's Fete de la Musique, and enjoyed their very own venue at the festival.

2bU! managed to squeeze a few minutes with the triumphant "phone DJ" to talk about his roots, his music and the kind of crowd that perks him up.

What's the title of the piece that won?

There's no title. I just based it on the original track that I used which was on the phone. If I remember right, it was called, "Flying CC." So I just named it "Ian CC." I didn't think they'd be asking for titles.

How do you find the phone?

It's an interesting tool. I guess it's targeted toward music lovers and those aspiring to play with tracks, so they can just take out the parts of the song and remake the song the way they want to.

What do you plan to do in Africa?

I'm going to party like hell. It's making me a bit nervous...

You think this will open doors for Electronica Manila?

I think it will. Most of us in Electronica Manila are software tweakers, we're software people-which is basically what the phone has to offer: software to play with.

If you could remix any song for any OPM artist...

I'd pick Cynthia Alexander. She's already done that, she remixed her own songs. I've done a remix for Cambio.

Ever thought of collaborating with Squid 9?

Yes! We've been talking about it, me and Raimund [Marasigan].

Do you see yourselves doing Smart parties now?

No, no, no. I've been hanging out a lot with the indie people, and I like that scene. Especially Twisted Halo. I like that scene, I like that crowd.

How about Fete?

Yeah! Hopefully next year, we'll be bringing in a lot of the newer electronica artists. Because a lot of them are just in hiding. So we're just completing the crew.