Al Dimalanta
| Al Dimalanta | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Alfred Martin Alcantara Dimalanta |
| Also known as | Al, Alfred |
| Born |
3 September 1969 Manila, Philippines |
| Genres | Punk rock, Hardcore punk |
| Occupation(s) | musician, QA manager, columnist, writer, professor, marketing communicator, visual artist, freelance PR consultant, |
| Instruments | electric guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals, bass, drums, piano |
| Years active | 1985-present |
| Labels | Twisted Red Cross, Throw Music |
| Associated acts | Dead Ends, Throw (band), Lefthook Agenda |
Alfred Martin Alcantara Dimalanta (born on September 3, 1969) is a noted musician, writer, public relations practitioner, photographer, visual artist, and professor from the Philippines. He is best known as the leader, co-founder and chief songwriter of the legendary Philippine punk band Dead Ends (1985-1996) and the leader and chief songwriter of punk-hardcore band Throw (band) [2000–2017], considered one of the most important bands in the contemporary Philippine punk scene.
Al Dimalanta is well known for his musical career which has spanned several decades. His foray into punk rock, hardcore and even acoustic rock music has left an indelible mark in the Philippine underground music scene.
Al and half-brother Jay Dimalanta formed Dead Ends in 1985 with drummer Rouen Pascual. The band came out with four independently produced underground punk albums from 1985-1995 as well as a fifth special edition greatest hits album in 2003. Dead Ends had several line-up changes but Al (on vocals and guitar) and Jay (on bass) remained as the band’s core.
Dead Ends’ albums, in chronological order, are Complaints (1986), Second Coming (1987), Damned Nation (1988), Mamatay sa Ingay (1995) and the greatest hits special edition album entitled Chosen (2003) which was released in honor of Jay Dimalanta.
When Dead Ends disbanded following Jay's death in 1996, Al went into a four-year musical hiatus and focused on his marketing communications work and his stint at the academe in the University of Santo Tomas.
During those four years, Al tried putting up a band with Lourd de Veyra, who was a member of Dead Ends in the 1990s (only for the band’s fourth album, Mamatay sa Ingay). The band was tentatively named Throw, although the band was rather short-lived on account of Al’s and Lourd’s respective jobs at the time and never even played beyond a few rehearsal sessions.
In 2000, Al Dimalanta reformed Throw as the band's vocalist and chief songwriter, with Dennis Maniego on bass, Ojie Arcega on drums and Bimboi San Pedro on guitar. This was to be the official start of Al's new hardcore punk band. Throw (band) went on to record its first independently produced album one year later (2001), a self-titled hardcore release (THROW) that marked the official return of Dimalanta to the local punk scene.
Sometime in 2006, Ojie Arcega and Bimboi San Pedro left for Singapore to work in architectural firms. That left Al and Dennis without a drummer and guitar player. For a time, the late Luis Guiang of Put3Ska fame played the drums for Throw while the band looked for permanent replacements. With Al handling both the vocal and guitar chores, Throw then played as a power trio for a few gigs.
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