Shedding the Shred at the Colt 45's Shred to Slam 2011

Sometime during the '80's, a movie was made about the soul's quest for truth; about good conquering evil, and the triumph of the human spirit.  In Crossroads, Ralph Macchio (The Karate Kid 1, 2 & 3) played a young guitar prodigy struggling between the pursuit of excellence and "serving two masters at the same time": the blues and classical music.  A "duel" was set in a climactic scene with Steve Vai (Frank Zappa Band, Whitesnake) as the devil's advocate.  It featured highly technical guitar shredding accompanied by soulful orchestrations any true-blue musician would love - once  realized that pretense is in the show and not on the skill.

(L-R) Arvian Bialoglovski of Colt 45, Neil Gregorio of Warner Music, Francis Reyes of NU107, Colt 45 Shred to Slam Champion Patrick Cruz, Wally Gonzales of Juan de la Cruz, Colt 45 Shred First Runner-up Jan Clyde Polintan, Manuel Legarda of Wolfgang, Colt 45 Shred 2nd Runner-up Emman Saumillan, and Joseph Consul, Brand Manager of Colt 45.

Mirroring this concept of drama and anticipation was a challenge to guitar virtuosos all over the Philippines. Colt 45, with its thrust towards promoting "real music for real men",  held a series of competitions across the archipelago by gathering the best electric guitar players in the country, to compete in the finals of  the first ever guitar shredding contest.

Five brave rock souls faced-off at the Capone's Bar, Makati Avenue on April 16, 2011 for the Colt 45's Shred to Slam Grand Finals. Judges were of the premium bunch -  with Wally Gonzales of Juan de la Cruz Band, Francis Reyes of NU107, Manuel Legarda of Wolfgang, Neil Gregorio, A&R of Warner Music Philippines and Joey Dizon of Pulp Magazine - that it was a glorious battle of skill, precision and character.

"This kind of event has not been done before.  Colt 45's Shred to Slam is a sure way of encouraging musicians to pick up their instruments, persevere, be real, and make themselves be heard. That's what rock music and heavy metal is all about," said Colt 45 Brand Manager Joseph Consul.

Coinciding with Colt 45's Shred to Slam finals was the launch of Colt 45's Lords of the Loud CD.  Performances from six bands that contributed to the album -including  Arcadia, Switch, Skychurch, Piledriver, Valley of Chrome, and Alex in Wonderland - were as hard-hitting and powerful as the action-packed guitar shredding showdown.

In the end, Patrick Cruz, from Novaliches, not only walked away with P20,000.00 and then given honor at the Pulp Summer Slam 2011.  He also took home a lifetime's worth of bragging rights at being placed in Pulp Magazine's archives as the first grand winner of this pioneer event. Inspired by the greatest electric guitar players of all time,  his showmanship and technique could not be mistaken as being that of a 22year old.  Claiming the second spot was Jan Clyde Polintan from Cainta, Rizal, who made Greater Manila proud with his tasteful progressions. And, third place was awarded to North Luzon representative, Emman Saumillan of Olonggapo City, proving at 35 that the electric guitar and rock music are as timeless as any musician's quest for the ultimate reality.

Many thanks to Glenn Jaucian of FunkyKarma for the blogger invites and photos!