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Tuesday, December 27, 2005
A Filipina Kagay-anon star on the rise
By Susan Maandig Rickard
SHE has been described as exotic and enigmatic. Fans have written that they have shown up on times when the band she is an opening act, dreading the thought of agonizing through another not so interesting opening act, but when her band came onstage and the audience saw her, opinions and feelings changed drastically.
By the time the opening band finished their set, the audience felt they just had a religious experience.
She is a rising star of the musical world. She is Mariqueen "Queenie" Maandig, daughter of Jun and Lucy Arrabaca Maandig of Cagayan de Oro City.
She is the other lead singer for the band West Indian Girl. She was recently featured in a news release in the San Diego Union Tribune.
The press release stated that although fellow lead singer Mariqueen Maandig did not join the band until November 2004--after the debut record was released--on stage, her sultry voice and looks complement Rob James as he warbles whimsical lyrics.
West Indian Girl, a band formed in 2002 in Los Angeles is rapidly gaining a wide fan base. Propelled by the writing of musically talented Francis Ten and Rob James (fellow lead singer) who first met in Detroit, the band explores themes of transcendental and romanticism in its music.
"Bliss, joy and revelation" is how Rob describes his band. Francis categorizes the band as a positive one that jams.
The band's self-titled debut album was given four stars by EOM (evolution of music) review. Their sound has been described as the happy offspring of a gentle Jane's Addiction and the Chemical Brothers, with touches of the Sundays, the Verve and new-school Whale.
Band members also include drummer Mark Lewis and keyboardist Chris Carter. The musical talents of the members of this band can be checked out in the musical video release of the song "What Are You Afraid Of" as featured on MTV.
The band 's sound is spreading--performances have been successful in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Detroit, Anaheim, Ventura, Solana Beach, Portland, Vancouver, Minneapolis, Toronto, Philadelphia, Boston, Austin, Dallas, Sacramento, Eugene, Hollywood, Laguna Beach, Costa Mesa, etc.
San Diego's performances at the Casbah has been amazing for the group. The band considers America's finest city as their second official home away from home.
Their shows have always sold out--interviews by Midore in Channel 94.9 and the press they were getting made San Diego fans hooked to the magical sound of the band.
Let it be noted that a lot of today's major artists (performers including Nirvana, the Smashing Pumpkins, No Doubt, Alanis Morrisette, Blink 182, Jewel and the White Stripes were on Casbah's stage before they started filling stadiums) got their start playing the Casbah. So can Queenie and the West Indian Girl not be far behind?
(December 27, 2005 issue)
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