Auds Avenido, TJ Brilliantes, Allen Cudal and Alex Dinoso were schoolmates and Nino Avenido was Auds' cousin. The name Greyhoundz was borrowed from auds father's band.They formed just to join a local battle of the bands contest which was cancelled, so they opted to audition for a night to play at the now defunct Club Dredd. They got the gig and played regularly at productions and regular nights at Club Dredd and other places then that were hotspots for "bahala na" gigs, like Yosh Café, Rockmore's Place and underground gigs or parties that were held in basketball courts, backyards or wherever and was just put together and organized by just a bunch of kids. This was during the era of "the showbands". Bands like Greyhoundz during that time couldn't play at clubs where SideA or SouthBorder and the likes play. So any offer for a gig that came along, the band grabbed. It eventually paid off and the cult following grew and gigs just kept coming. Sometime during all that, the band was having problems with their vocalist (Alex Dinoso) or vice versa or whatever and the next thing we knew Reg was taking over the vocal duties. Reg Rubio was a drinking buddy of ours from our "Dredd days". He already had a band, "Chadish Magoy". As the story goes, Reg told me "Chadish Magoy "is a fictional character he imagined or something. We often had gigs that our bands would play at. Reg would often hang out with us so we were not as buddy-buddy to his other band mates as we were to him. We were the last batch of regular bands at Club Dredd before they closed. Club Dredd almost became like a second home to us, we would go there even if we didn't have a gig, just to watch, drink and hangout. We would see each other so much that it was even pointless to say goodbye. I mean we were tight. Greyhoundz, Slapshock, Zoom and Cheese were a force to be reckoned with and everyone who knew us knew that. So when they decided to replace their vocalist it was only logical that they would ask Reg to take over. I think his band was already breaking up anyway. Reg admits he struggled but we all knew he would come through fine. We kept on playing gigs here and there, the kids just seem to get it, and eventually the gigs were getting tighter and tigher. We felt like we were in some sort of movement and we were up to prove something. ..>Greyhoundz were the first to break through and raise our flag high when they played at the NU107 Independece Day Concert at Club Dredd. I was not there personally but from accounts told, this was what happened : They were up to play up on stage and they couldn..'t even get to the stage because the place was packed and people wont even budge to give them room to get to the stage. They eventually got to the stage and while setting up, they were heckled like hell. To further explain the scenariothis was a time when everyone had either long long hair, skinheads, tight glam rock pants, mohawks, doc martnes, I mean pure evil punk rock and roll! Moreover, up on stage were these kids with loose jeans, cargo elephant pants, sneakers, weird braided hairstyles, long chains, and a little bald guy as their vocalist. At this point, I was at home listening to the radio, as it was being broadcast live. They played a killer set. To make the long story short, after they played, it was not that hard to leave the stage as it was to get there. The crowd parted as they packed up and walked away. After that gig, everybody suddenly knew who they were. ..nThey produced a demo with Noel de Brackinghe and went on NU107..'s In The Raw. The song "Pigface" got airplay and got the attention of record labels. They signed to Sony Music Philippines and released their debut album "7 Corners Of Your Game", a collection of original songs ranging from guttural screaming songs mixed with funky hip-hop grooves, detuned guitars, aggressive bass lines, stabbing riffs and crisp drum rhythms, that spewed out the singles "Pigface" and "..nMr.P.I.G." which both hit the charts. The album even featured guest artists such as Karl Roy (lead singer of POT then and the lead singer for Kapatid now) and Chill. You should remember that this was the post Eraserheads and LA105 days. When the album broke out it was unlike anything ever released or heard here in the Philippines. The songs are even often mistaken for foreign acts by people who are not at all familiar with the band. When they launched their album somewhere in Makati in the now defunct Mars, there were more people outside that couldn..'t get in as compared to the already packed place. And I also remember we held a gig at Music Museum and all hell broke loose. We did not expect that much people would come to the gig. The line up was Greyhoundz, Slapshock, Zoom, Cheese and the now disbanded Glitch. I think Music Museum can only hold 724 plus people at a time and I distinctly remember that it was a lot more than 800 people inside that night not to mention the other hundreds of people outside who could..'nt get in because Music Museum was over its crowd capacity. It was for us the confirmation that it was now in a completely new level. "7 corners" was highly praised and the band was nominated at the ..'99 NU107 Rock Awards in all categories except for the "Best Video" category. However, they went home empty handed that year. They went on unfazed and toured the album successfully throughout the entire country. The following kept growing but some critics still said that it was just a fad and that it wont last, even giving it a name mockingly as "The kupaw movement" (In reference to the first single off their album "Pigface"). They did break through all right. However, they broke through a path of muck. Inspite of all the adversities, the album went platinum. Enjoying the success of their album, endorsing for LEE jeans and playing regularly, the band was riding it, as one should. Collaborating with artists such as Regine Velasquez, playing for fashion shows, the band grabbed more attention as they showed how versatile and creative they could get. ..n",1] ); //-->..>Greyhoundz were the first to break through and raise our flag high when they played at the NU107 Independece Day Concert at Club Dredd. I was not there personally but from accounts told, this was what happened : They were up to play up on stage and they couldn't even get to the stage because the place was packed and people wont even budge to give them room to get to the stage. They eventually got to the stage and while setting up, they were heckled like hell. To further explain the scenariothis was a time when everyone had either long long hair, skinheads, tight glam rock pants, mohawks, doc martnes, I mean pure evil punk rock and roll! Moreover, up on stage were these kids with loose jeans, cargo elephant pants, sneakers, weird braided hairstyles, long chains, and a little bald guy as their vocalist. At this point, I was at home listening to the radio, as it was being broadcast live. They played a killer set. To make the long story short, after they played, it was not that hard to leave the stage as it was to get there. The crowd parted as they packed up and walked away. After that gig, everybody suddenly knew who they were. They produced a demo with Noel de Brackinghe and went on NU107's In The Raw. The song "Pigface" got airplay and got the attention of record labels. They signed to Sony Music Philippines and released their debut album "7 Corners Of Your Game", a collection of original songs ranging from guttural screaming songs mixed with funky hip-hop grooves, detuned guitars, aggressive bass lines, stabbing riffs and crisp drum rhythms, that spewed out the singles "Pigface" and " Mr.P.I.G." which both hit the charts. The album even featured guest artists such as Karl Roy (lead singer of POT then and the lead singer for Kapatid now) and Chill. You should remember that this was the post Eraserheads and LA105 days. When the album broke out it was unlike anything ever released or heard here in the Philippines. The songs are even often mistaken for foreign acts by people who are not at all familiar with the band. When they launched their album somewhere in Makati in the now defunct Mars, there were more people outside that couldn't get in as compared to the already packed place. And I also remember we held a gig at Music Museum and all hell broke loose. We did not expect that much people would come to the gig. The line up was Greyhoundz, Slapshock, Zoom, Cheese and the now disbanded Glitch. I think Music Museum can only hold 724 plus people at a time and I distinctly remember that it was a lot more than 800 people inside that night not to mention the other hundreds of people outside who could'nt get in because Music Museum was over its crowd capacity. It was for us the confirmation that it was now in a completely new level. "7 corners" was highly praised and the band was nominated at the '99 NU107 Rock Awards in all categories except for the "Best Video" category. However, they went home empty handed that year. They went on unfazed and toured the album successfully throughout the entire country. The following kept growing but some critics still said that it was just a fad and that it wont last, even giving it a name mockingly as "The kupaw movement" (In reference to the first single off their album "Pigface"). They did break through all right. However, they broke through a path of muck. Inspite of all the adversities, the album went platinum. Enjoying the success of their album, endorsing for LEE jeans and playing regularly, the band was riding it, as one should. Collaborating with artists such as Regine Velasquez, playing for fashion shows, the band grabbed more attention as they showed how versatile and creative they could get. ..>In between all of it, they still kept coming up with new guitar lines, bass lines or melodies and whenever there was any free time for them to jam; they would try to put it all together into a whole song. I was personally with Reg when the whole writing process for the self-titled second album was still in progress up until recording. To sum it all up this is the whole environment and feel of the time: Reg..'s parents migrated to the states and he opted to stay to take care of the house. Nino..'s car was jacked with almost all of their instruments inside the car. Auds might as well have been on the moon, he was looking after their family farm and his schedule back then was tight. Nino was graduating from college and his schedule was even tighter. TJ was studying too, I think. Allen on the other hand, was just rocking out too much that he kept getting into trouble. Trouble the band really did not need at the time. I am sure that there were more complications that were happening that I was not aware of but that..'s how it was. ..nAs epic as what they went through making the album so as it sounded when it was done. They grew musically, personally and became a finely tuned unit ready to take on anything, again. Their self-titled sophomore effort..'s first single was "Pull" and displayed how serious the band was about proving all the critics wrong that said it was all just noise. No song could be any more aggressive as this song and as deserving a first single and a loud statement: "that were back and you better!!!" - was what this song was to me when they released it. "Even", the second single off the album, went on to be part of the Spiderman Asian release OST. "Hole", also was part of the Philippine release of the Japanese horror flick "The Ring". Featuring the song along with clips from the movie and was shown all over the music video channels. "Your Puppet and Clown", for me is the most epic song in the entire album and I can only describe it as "I wished I have thought of that". From the guitar parts, the structure of the song, the chorus: "lift me up then let go." everything is where it should be and everything sounds as where they should be. They made a video of the song directed by Rico Gutierez which featured local Filipino artist. Its basic premise is "nationalism" and what we went through as an oppressed race. The video had cameos of local artists, director Erik Matti, artist Kiko Escora and actress Rosanna Rocess to name a few. Jason Isip, directed the video for "Karmic" a duet between Ian Tayao of Queso and Reg. They filmed at Dangwa Flower Market and somewhere in Alabang. The premise was there..'s this mysterious box and loves revenge. The lead female of the short film was Mylene Dizon and was supported by the band members themselves. The last single off the album was "Bonfires and Sandcastles" and was a direct result of when all of us went to Puerto Galera and stayed for a week and that..'s why the chorus is "Why are you not here? Where you at? Where you been? I kissed the sun, held the moon in my hand". That was one whole week we, as a group will never forget and would always come back to in our minds and smile. Then came The 2001 NU107 Rock Awards, they performed and were nominated again in all categories. Nino Avenido took home "The Bassist of the Year" award. They did all these while touring. During the album tour, I ocassionally filled in for Nino because he couldn..'t do it due to conflicts of schedules. I witnessed some of it. From what I have sampled, it was crazy! The crowd would go up to the stage and go crazy while we were still playing. And as I know for a fact that this often happens with Greyhoundz..' gigs in provinces or even here in the metro. They carry with them this infectious electricity when you watch them live where you can..'t do anything about it but go crazy yourself. ..n",1] ); //-->..>In between all of it, they still kept coming up with new guitar lines, bass lines or melodies and whenever there was any free time for them to jam; they would try to put it all together into a whole song. I was personally with Reg when the whole writing process for the self-titled second album was still in progress up until recording. To sum it all up this is the whole environment and feel of the time: Reg's parents migrated to the states and he opted to stay to take care of the house. Nino's car was jacked with almost all of their instruments inside the car. Auds might as well have been on the moon, he was looking after their family farm and his schedule back then was tight. Nino was graduating from college and his schedule was even tighter. TJ was studying too, I think. Allen on the other hand, was just rocking out too much that he kept getting into trouble. Trouble the band really did not need at the time. I am sure that there were more complications that were happening that I was not aware of but that's how it was. As epic as what they went through making the album so as it sounded when it was done. They grew musically, personally and became a finely tuned unit ready to take on anything, again. Their self-titled sophomore effort's first single was "Pull" and displayed how serious the band was about proving all the critics wrong that said it was all just noise. No song could be any more aggressive as this song and as deserving a first single and a loud statement: "that were back and you better!!!" - was what this song was to me when they released it. "Even", the second single off the album, went on to be part of the Spiderman Asian release OST. "Hole", also was part of the Philippine release of the Japanese horror flick "The Ring". Featuring the song along with clips from the movie and was shown all over the music video channels. "Your Puppet and Clown", for me is the most epic song in the entire album and I can only describe it as "I wished I have thought of that". From the guitar parts, the structure of the song, the chorus: "lift me up then let go." everything is where it should be and everything sounds as where they should be. They made a video of the song directed by Rico Gutierez which featured local Filipino artist. Its basic premise is "nationalism" and what we went through as an oppressed race. The video had cameos of local artists, director Erik Matti, artist Kiko Escora and actress Rosanna Rocess to name a few. Jason Isip, directed the video for "Karmic" a duet between Ian Tayao of Queso and Reg. They filmed at Dangwa Flower Market and somewhere in Alabang. The premise was there's this mysterious box and loves revenge. The lead female of the short film was Mylene Dizon and was supported by the band members themselves. The last single off the album was "Bonfires and Sandcastles" and was a direct result of when all of us went to Puerto Galera and stayed for a week and that's why the chorus is "Why are you not here? Where you at? Where you been? I kissed the sun, held the moon in my hand". That was one whole week we, as a group will never forget and would always come back to in our minds and smile. Then came The 2001 NU107 Rock Awards, they performed and were nominated again in all categories. Nino Avenido took home "The Bassist of the Year" award. They did all these while touring. During the album tour, I ocassionally filled in for Nino because he couldn't do it due to conflicts of schedules. I witnessed some of it. From what I have sampled, it was crazy! The crowd would go up to the stage and go crazy while we were still playing. And as I know for a fact that this often happens with Greyhoundz' gigs in provinces or even here in the metro. They carry with them this infectious electricity when you watch them live where you can't do anything about it but go crazy yourself. ..>2004 Pulp SummerSlam, was the last time we saw Allen alive. The death of Allen Cudal, greyhoundz guitarist, due to a car accident on May 6th, 2004, was a big blow both to the band and to the whole group. He was a much-loved character, a free spirit and someone you can really rely on to pick you up when you..'re down. Our light got dimmer the day we lost him. Time passed and deliberations went underway as to who would replace Allen or should they even replace him. But he is irreplaceable. The band carried on and played live bringing along Allen..'s guitar and still setting it up as a tribute to a great friend and brother. Before he passed away, they were already in the middle of writing songs for another album. This time around, it was weird but intense. Nobody knew what would happen, rumors even spread of a break up. Again, the band proved everyone wrong. As adversity is an artist..'s best friend, this was a true test and by finishing the album and releasing it, the band again stands tall and stronger than ever before. ..n"Apoy" was released 2005, a year after Allen..'s death. This time around though, they were no longer among Sony Music Philippine..'s roster of artists. Everything was made possible with the help of friends. From recording, producing, album layout, videos, everything was done gratis. The album launch held at Pasiklab sa Commonwealth packed a 6000 strong following coming from as far as Mindoro and Mindanao to witness their favorite band play 20 songs. Converse even got into the picture and made Houndz endorsers of their apparel. ..nThere could be none more poetic of an album title after what they went through. Everything you would expect from a Greyhoundz album is still there but the way they delivered each song is different, respectively. This album just jumps out and pulls your ears to listen. The carrier single with the same title as the album bears the lines "...bat ka ba nagpapasunog sa sariling mong apoy?!..." this echoes messages of strength, holding on, holding your ground and keeping the faith. A statement on how the band has grown. Directed by Ej Salcedo of CORE 24, the video was shot at Tj..'s house, his mom even played a part in it as the daughters concerned mother in the film. Sir Archie Adamos, one of the country..'s top character actors and the one responsible for the hit tv commercial "kapal gooms" played the part of the father who just cannot understand his daughters failing grades and keeps bugging her about it. It then leads her to rebel even more but he eventually discovers what her true passion is : painting and I think it all ends well. The band shots used in the video were shot in Tj..'s basement. Their second single "Koro", a Greyhoundz collaboration with Gloc9, Francism, is truly a landmark piece, a call for unity as the lines in the chorus go "bridge the gap, spread the love, light the torch, raise the flag. The video was shot at some school at night and was directed by Ogi Sugatan of BRASSKNUCKLES PRODUCTION. 8 Toleran of Queso also appeared as a guest guitar player on the track. The effect of this song and its video on the whole music scene cannot even be put into words. It just crashed barriers and as the line goes in the song, it bridged gaps that needed bridging. The gap between genres, the whole point of the song is that "it..'s all music and it..'s JUST music". Its only preference or choice and we are all free to have our own. It even led them to performing finale with Gloc9 live at the Hip Hop Awards ..'06 at Club Halo, ending the night with a bang. The video for "Koro" was nominated in the 1st ever Myx Music Awards 06 (MMA..'s) for "Best Collaboration" . "Doble Kara", takes a look at social politics honestly, on how people really act and why they act the way they act. However, the way I see it, it is simply a description of a character you should not trust. The video was made by 8 toleran taking various live shots from different Houndz shows and after seeing it makes you want to go to a gig yourself. "Pseudo Dramatic", has recently been shot a video for. From what I gathered, its about some sort of twisted love in an insane asylum. The Video was directed by Paolo Bernaldo, bass player for Moonstar88. A tribute song to Allen entitled "Soldier" is a tearjerker. The entire band sings in this track and even harmonizes. Ultimately, "Apoy" leaves a positive message and it is by far my most favorite release by the Houndz and their most critically acclaimed effort yet. It will definitely leave a mark. ..n",1] ); //-->..>2004 Pulp SummerSlam, was the last time we saw Allen alive. The death of Allen Cudal, greyhoundz guitarist, due to a car accident on May 6th, 2004, was a big blow both to the band and to the whole group. He was a much-loved character, a free spirit and someone you can really rely on to pick you up when you're down. Our light got dimmer the day we lost him. Time passed and deliberations went underway as to who would replace Allen or should they even replace him. But he is irreplaceable. The band carried on and played live bringing along Allen's guitar and still setting it up as a tribute to a great friend and brother. Before he passed away, they were already in the middle of writing songs for another album. This time around, it was weird but intense. Nobody knew what would happen, rumors even spread of a break up. Again, the band proved everyone wrong. As adversity is an artist's best friend, this was a true test and by finishing the album and releasing it, the band again stands tall and stronger than ever before. "Apoy" was released 2005, a year after Allen's death. This time around though, they were no longer among Sony Music Philippine's roster of artists. Everything was made possible with the help of friends. From recording, producing, album layout, videos, everything was done gratis. The album launch held at Pasiklab sa Commonwealth packed a 6000 strong following coming from as far as Mindoro and Mindanao to witness their favorite band play 20 songs. Converse even got into the picture and made Houndz endorsers of their apparel. There could be none more poetic of an album title after what they went through. Everything you would expect from a Greyhoundz album is still there but the way they delivered each song is different, respectively. This album just jumps out and pulls your ears to listen. The carrier single with the same title as the album bears the lines "...bat ka ba nagpapasunog sa sariling mong apoy?!..." this echoes messages of strength, holding on, holding your ground and keeping the faith. A statement on how the band has grown. Directed by Ej Salcedo of CORE 24, the video was shot at Tj's house, his mom even played a part in it as the daughters concerned mother in the film. Sir Archie Adamos, one of the country's top character actors and the one responsible for the hit tv commercial "kapal gooms" played the part of the father who just cannot understand his daughters failing grades and keeps bugging her about it. It then leads her to rebel even more but he eventually discovers what her true passion is : painting and I think it all ends well. The band shots used in the video were shot in Tj's basement. Their second single "Koro", a Greyhoundz collaboration with Gloc9, Francism, is truly a landmark piece, a call for unity as the lines in the chorus go "bridge the gap, spread the love, light the torch, raise the flag. The video was shot at some school at night and was directed by Ogi Sugatan of BRASSKNUCKLES PRODUCTION. 8 Toleran of Queso also appeared as a guest guitar player on the track. The effect of this song and its video on the whole music scene cannot even be put into words. It just crashed barriers and as the line goes in the song, it bridged gaps that needed bridging. The gap between genres, the whole point of the song is that "it's all music and it's JUST music". Its only preference or choice and we are all free to have our own. It even led them to performing finale with Gloc9 live at the Hip Hop Awards '06 at Club Halo, ending the night with a bang. The video for "Koro" was nominated in the 1st ever Myx Music Awards 06 (MMA's) for "Best Collaboration" . "Doble Kara", takes a look at social politics honestly, on how people really act and why they act the way they act. However, the way I see it, it is simply a description of a character you should not trust. The video was made by 8 toleran taking various live shots from different Houndz shows and after seeing it makes you want to go to a gig yourself. "Pseudo Dramatic", has recently been shot a video for. From what I gathered, its about some sort of twisted love in an insane asylum. The Video was directed by Paolo Bernaldo, bass player for Moonstar88. A tribute song to Allen entitled "Soldier" is a tearjerker. The entire band sings in this track and even harmonizes. Ultimately, "Apoy" leaves a positive message and it is by far my most favorite release by the Houndz and their most critically acclaimed effort yet. It will definitely leave a mark. ..>The last time I saw them perform was this year..'s SummerSlam ..'06, where throngs of people were commanded by Reg Rubio to jump around during their set. Hell, if you can make thousands of people jump, what..'s a bridge to gap? Currently, the band is still touring the album and is planning to write new materials for the next album. Again, these are what only I know has happened and me having an idea of what might happen next.
