Are We Really Living In An Inverted World

Are we really living in an inverted world? Noel Sales Barcelona June 19, 2009 MANILA, the Philippines - Musikang Bayan´s new album, with Danilo "Danny" Fabella´s "Baliktad na ang Mundo," offers a refreshing insight of what is happening to the Filipino society as a whole. They have creatively analyzed things happening in his society. The intro of the album´s carrier single, Baliktad, starts with the lines about erratic weather pattern and aggressive development: Mataas na bundok ngayo'y patag/ Disyerto na'ng masukal na gubat/ Tag-lamig ay tag-init Tag-ulan ay tag-araw And the chorus rings: Ano ba ito ang gulo-gulo ang gulo-gulo Ano ba ito ang gulo-gulo ang gulo-gulo Ano ba ito ang gulo-gulo ang gulo-gulo Baliktad na ang mundo Song about injustice Fabella exposed the bias and errors of the justice system in the country through the following lines: Mga kriminal ang Malaya/Ang nakakulong walang sala/Ang tama ay mali/Ang masama'y mabuti. Undeniably, the current justice system has a lot of loopholes. Issues of graft and corruption and biased judgments hound the "august" halls of the lower courts up to the Supreme Court, even the quasi-judicial bodies. Justices are being bribed just to give favorable judgment to the rich and the powerful. The song is also an observance of MB about "liars" considered as carriers of gospel truths while the corrupt are considered trustworthy: Ang sinungaling ang pinaniniwalaan Magnanakaw ang pinagtitiwalaan Sa lipunang ito Sila'y pinararangalan. The terrorism of the State is not spared by the song and the way that the government is treating the "executioners" of the innocent civilians suspected to be members of clandestine organization like the Communist party: May mamang bugbog sarado Hawak ng pulis sa braso Siyaw humihiyaw Humihingi ng saklolo Mamatay-tao'y pinupuri Mga biktima'y sinisisi

Ang naagrabyado Sinasampahan ng kaso One cannot deny the fact that alleged human rights violators, that is, the high-ranking officials of the police and the military, are rewarded with juicy position in the government like cabinet membership and ambassadorship, after they retire.

All against the "Queen" Baliktad na ang Mundo is really, anti-Arroyo. No doubt about that. However, the criticism is carried out in a creative manner: Matuwid ang nasa impyerno Baluktot ay nasa Palasyo Anghel nang tumakbo Halimaw nang maupo At minsa'y nagsimba ang demonyo Lumuhod, pumikit, parang santo Matapos magdasal Nagmano kay Obispo About electoral fraud and other brouhahas Whether or not it is 2010 elections, Baliktad na ang Mundo did really hit the realities of the national and local elections: Ang mandaraya ang parehas At ang dagdag ay bawas Panalo ang talo Ang peke'y ginawang totoo Taksil ang ginagawang huwaran Bayani ang pinarurusahan Ang ayaw ng tao Ay nagiging pangulo No, Virginia, Philippine economy´s not developing On the last part of the song, Fabella sings: Ekonomiya ay sumusulong Ang mamamaya'y nagugutom

Ang krisis ay sagana ang glorya'y pagdurusa Is this for real? Consider the following statistics: Unemployment rate among adults, 34.2% which translates to 14 million, based on the Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey; the highest in the past 16 years. Self-rated poverty remains high, 47% based on the latest SWS survey in April 2009. In 2008, 75% of the Filipino populace consider themselves as losers or suffering the worse economic conditions despite the fiscal changes implemented by the government 2.9 million families are suffering from severe hunger Last note Most of the songs inside the album are already old, like the Rosas ng Digma, Payatas, Pahayagan, The Peace We Want, etc. Hearing the songs, especially those who has background in activism, one can say, Baliktad na ang Mundo, has the power to awaken that nationalist spirit within you. With a good mixture of music and lyrics, the Baliktad na ang Mundo album, is a good to be added of your music collection, especially if you are looking for a real alternative and progressive music. Noel Sales Barcelona He is the former migrant and international news editor of the Philippines' only progressive newspaper, Pinoy Weekly, which has circulation in Manila, Hong Kong, and Japan, until the printed edition folds up in June 2008. A graduate of e-Governance through the Distance Learning Course of the Asian Development Bank Institute in 2008, he studied at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Manila, with a degree of Bachelor of Arts (A.B.) major in Filipino language, minor in Mass Communications. A journalist for eight (8) years, he has written and published numerous articles on a variety of topics, from arts to politics. A professional lecturer, he lectured in different universities and secondary schools in MetroManila and the nearby provinces of Southern Tagalog region. His topics include poetry and poetics, criticism, basic and advanced journalism. A short story writer and poet in the Filipino language, he received numerous awards and citations because of his writing. He is a member of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, National People's Media and Press Center of the Philippines, Inc., Kilometer 64 Poetry Collective, and the Artists' Response to the Call for Social Change and Transformation or Artists' ARREST.