Wednesday, September 24, 2008 Indiecredible House By Luis A. Quibranza III
THERE is a house right in the corner of E. Benedicto and Jakosalem streets.
With a red logo over its black gate, separating the silent roads from the amazing construction of art happening right inside.
A faint sound of rock and roll coming from one of the three rehearsal rooms, inviting a hundred local musicians and a few interested visitors to check the place out.
Welcome to The House of Indies (HOI).
Once a useless and uninhabited building, it is now a multi-room professional recording/rehearsal and video editing studio. The studio is open for business 24/7.
This is where local bands these days hang out and get their music done. Of course, HOI is just one of many quality recording studios here in Cebu. But what sets them apart? Maybe the guys behind the business have a golden heart.
“HOI is here to support small bands with big potential here in Cebu. That’s why we have this promo right now as we drove the price from P650 down to P200,” says Vicente “Inting” Mabanto, the house accountant.
Millions worth of technology and equipment, made available to the general public for a mere fraction of the price. Just how did this dream house become a reality?
It started a while back when Johann Buntoyan and Joshua Bascones met each other in New Jersey, USA. Both shared a common passion for music and it didn’t take long before they formed a band and jammed regularly at Johann’s basement studio.
It was at this time when the two talked about a possible project of putting up a studio. The project found its way in Cebu. Joshua said that the original plan was to set up the business in Manila.
“But since we’re all from Cebu and the potential for good music here is very rich — but is lacking in support — we decided to bring it here instead,” Joshua adds.
Construction for the studio started June 2007.
“We had four carpenters at the start, but eventually we had to let them go because it was very expensive [paying them] and we decided to finish the construction ourselves,” Inting recalls.
And five months later, operations began; to be exact, in October.
“We’re almost in the one-year mark and we struggle like any other businesses. For one, paying the electric bills here is a big challenge for us,” says sound engineer Clint Michael Lintag.
“Equipment maintenance is also a challenge. Though, come to think of it, it’s a challenge not just for us but for all the studios out there,” adds Clint.
Besides the audio aspect of the business, the studio as well accepts video coverage and editing services handled by Henry Cabanatan.
The studio has big plans to be finalized in their second year: Like hosting a battle of the bands event and where the winner gets a recording deal with HOI. They also dream of becoming a recording label someday. Today, they handle three artists under them namely, Christian rock artist Klynt, metal rockers Streets of May and acoustic-influenced Crossing Fingers.
The unwritten rule followed by the house and its housemates?
“We say no to discrimination and we’re very open to all genres. We even have clients coming here to record their school projects,” assures Inting.
Indie indeed. The house is open: Come one, come all.
