BIO

THE BIRTH

Having come from a basement band that never made it out of the basement, Adel Antonio and Rio Gache created Love,dAriA in October 1998. Upon learning of a new festival catering to a local Filipino American crowd, Adel and Rio began making phonecalls to put together a band in time to send a demo. Hiko Notsomuri and Theresa dela Cruz completed the original lineup in late October. With Adel on vocals and guitar, Rio on bass, Hiko on drums and Theresa on guitar, the band practiced three times before their debut performance at the first ever piNOISEpop festival at Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco. The band learned five of Adel's original songs that he and Rio practiced with their previous band. Their 20 minute set was enough to give the band a taste of what was to come..
The festival was such an experience that Love,dAriA decided to be a "real" band and join the San Francisco club circuit. By late January 1999, Hiko decided the band was not for him and agreed to play out his final shows in February. A demo had been recorded in Rio's living room and passed out to friends within the months of January and February. Hiko's last show with the band was at a coffeehouse in San Francisco, whereLove,dAriA's future drummer first saw them play.


THE BEAT MISTRESS JOINS


Bernadette "Bern" Cordova had just bought her own drum set around the time Love,dAriA formed. She did not know of the band nor did the band know of her until a mutual friend hooked them up. Kenni Camota, saxaphonist for the band Ethereality, had posted on a local message board about piNOISEpop where they also played. None of the Love,dAriA members met Kenni at the festival, though they met the other members. Rio, a frequent visitor to the board, read Kenni's post and quickly sent him email and soon established a friendship between his band and hers. At the same time, Bern, also a frequent visitor to the board, had read his post and emailed him as well, asking what piNOISEpop was about. Kenni also became friends with Bern, who turned out to be an aspiring drummer. By the time Love,dAriA needed a new drummer, the band became a bit desperate as they did not know where to look. Rio emailed friends asking if they knew a drummer, but the only person that ever got back to her was Kenni. He described Bern as blues/pop-rock oriented, and according to his drummer friend Anthony Improgo, she was "exceptional." Rio got in touch.


"Rio was weird and distant, had her eyes on the ground the whole time," Bern recalls of her first impression of Rio. "I didn't think I'd get along with her."


After a few exchange of emails, both Rio and Bern met for the first time at their school, San Francisco State University in early February 1999. After meeting Bern, Adel and Theresa were anxious to know about Bern and asked Rio what she was like.


"I don't know, I didn't really talk to her much," she told them. Rio gave Bern a demo, who listened to it and watched the band play for the very first time at Hiko's last show with Love,dAriA.


By late February, the band moved all of their equipment from Rio's living room to Bern's house for their first rehearsal. It was never an issue to try Bern out, it was just assumed she would be the new drummer. Convenience became a friend to the band because Bern, Theresa, Rio and Adel all lived within blocks of each other.


THE CLUB CIRCUIT AND FIRST RECORDS


Adel took on the role of booking manager, and quickly scored shows all over San Francisco in the next few months. Their first show with Bern was three weeks into the new lineup at the late Club Cocodrie in San Francisco. Many days of dedicated practices after school and on the weekends deemed worthy as Bern learned eight original songs in time for the show. To this day, the band laughs just hearing how they played. "My cymbals barely moved," Bern jokes.



In April, Love,dAriA recorded a new CD. With the help of Bern's producer brother, Larry, and Rio's friend, Eldo Chan, the band took their equipment to Lennon Rehearsal Studio and recorded four songs for their first EP in one take.
The self-titled EP made its way to the hands of many booking agents as well as 200+ people who came to the shows within a year. Everything was independently produced and distributed without any label help. Friends frompiNOISEpop helped to distribute the CD at their mother venue, Bindlestiff Studio. The EP has been unavailable since May 2000, but made a short appearance as a special "DAM CD" on MP3.com.


The summer of 1999 kept the band busy. Their friends from the Paper Planes (now members of Rubymar) had been practicing at Downtown Rehearsal studios in San Francisco, but a hiatus for them almost cost them their space. Instead, they let Love,dAriA occupy the space and pay the rent for the summer while Paper Planesregrouped. With a real space for band practices, Love,dAriA developed to play harder and louder which they demonstrated at their summer shows. They nicknamed their room "The Hanger," in tribute to the Paper PLANES.


Also in the summer of 1999, the band released two live EP's, both recorded from the second piNOISEpop festival in May. The EP's were shortlived and also independently distributed to friends and at the shows.


A NEW HOME AND FINISHING OUT THE FIRST YEAR


In September, Love,dAriA moved into their new rehearsal space as Rubymar came to existence. The new space was close to home (literally up the hill from where the four lived) and owned by a trusted friend by day as a print shop. Nicknamed "The Shop," they customized their little room with posters and pictures. They continued to play loud and hard, and the advantage of practicing Friday nights was always welcomed. "The Shop" is smartly located in a business area, and by playing at night, no homes were disturbed and surrounding businesses were closed for the day.


It was also in September when the band made their first TV appearance for a local cable show. They were interviewed and played five songs taped live for immediate broadcasting in the city of San Francisco the same evening.


In the months to follow, the band continued to play all kinds of shows. Most noted shows included San Francisco State University's SPAM Variety Show, piNOISEpop III and their first headlining "concert" at the first everBindlestiff Sessions. There was no stopping at this point, and they were already making plans to record for a full-length. In November, they asked piNOISEpop producer Jesse Gonzales to manage them. He took on the offer and helped bring Love,dAriA to new heights. They finished 1999 satisfied with the shows, and the experience was embraced by the band. Their first radio appearance also closed out the year, as they were interviewed by guest host Allan Manalo of 1450 KEST-AM.


NEW YEAR


The year 2000 started off busy, with another TV appearance and club shows within the first two weeks. Local channel 32 interviewed the band for "Fil-Am Report," a show that reports weekly of Filipino-American lifestyle. Between mid-January and February 2000, the band took a break from booking shows in order to start recording their full-length CD.


Working again with producer Larry, the band chose to take time recording the CD. The drums were recorded in a secluded area at Bindlestiff Studio, where Bern was surrounded by clothes and pads to get the best recording sound. The rest of the band spent the next four months recording at the Cordova house. Larry took on the executive producer role, giving the band freedom to mix down their own songs. Most of the recording equipment was owned by Larry, and the CD was recorded out of hard labor with self-taught knowledge. The band learned a few sound-engineering techniques in Larry's studio. Up to this point, recording was always hard and absolutely DIY, but the band gained valuable recording experience.


MORE SHOWS


Even while recording for the full-length, the band continued to book shows by March. One of the shows was a showcase at San Jose's Cactus Club by Synchronicity Productions. It was at this show where they met future brother band Hybrid Soul, who then carried the name Nuisance. They were metal, and Love,dAriA was pop, but they got along better than expected. Around the same time, a compilation of songs by Filipino-American bands was released under PMI Records. Love,dAriA contributed two tracks and was sponsored by Alvin Apuan ofSynchronicity Productions.


Before releasing the full-length, Love,dAriA released a single. "So Far," the song that won the crowd over at their debut show, was chosen as the main single. Accompanied by an acoustic track and a piano version of the song as well as a B-side powerpop track, the single was furnished to its best and released at Bern's grad bash at Bottom of the Hill in late May 2000.


Only a few copies were pressed given the short time they had between the finalizing and the release date of the CD. The full-length was due for a release in a few weeks but it was still being pressed till literally the day before it was released!


Due to musical differences, the band split from guitarist Theresa in late May. The full-length CD was to be released two weeks after her departure. Even with emotions surrounding the band by the loss, the band refused to weaken. They opened up for the Philippine's Eraserheads as a trio, and made an unannounced early release of their full-length CD, TheSelfTitledDebutAlbum which sold quickly. The full-length was officially released at the fourth bi-annual piNOISEpop festival a week later.


CHANGES


About two weeks after splitting with Theresa, manager Jesse had to take care of business and was no longer able to work with Love,dAriA. Again on their own, and without a fourth member, they went through a major change in the summer of 2000. Playing at friends' parties and major showcases as a trio, the band continued to re-build themselves. In August, they played at the infamous San Mateo County Fair, where they formally met guitarist Pete Mijares, who was gigging with local artists at the same festival. Pete had seen the band long ago, and bought a CD then. Upon learning that they were looking for a guitar player, he asked to try out.


A week later, Synchronicity Productions put together a second showcase at the Cactus Club. Pete came to the show and voluntarily became sound technician. Hybrid Soul, then known as Nuisance, had known Pete through mutual friends. "He helped us get started," Hybrid Soul's guitarist, Edgar Garduque says.


At the tryout, Pete impressed the band who later in the evening confirmed him in. Keeping it a surprise for their friends till Pete's debut show with the band, Love,dAriA practiced hard. Unfortunately, the friends they wanted to surprise had a show of their own on the same night Pete debuted with the band. Nuisance was across the bay when Love,dAriA revealed their new guitar player to a young crowd at The Orange Spot in Fremont. Another compilation had been released at this time by Orange Peal Records. The CD was a collection of live music from a summer festival thrown by Orange Peal Records and Zero Magazine at The Orange Spot's parking lot.


It was time for a new CD. By November 2000, Love,dAriA's sound had leaped from friendly pop to heavy pop. With more influences by and exposure to heavy metal, Love,dAriA geared from their brand of family-friendly alternative pop to a more punky-metal trip, still ever tagged with their signature pop songwriting. Pete has had a background in recording, and his access to a studio savored the band's new sound. Recording became easier, and quality was a lot more noticeable. 6th UNKNOWN, their last studio record, was released in January 2001.


The EP, like all their other records, was self-released. Even this record could not catch up with the band's evolving sound. More work on their music shaped harder and heavier songs, some of which were never recorded in a studio. The year 2000 was closed off with yet another successful wave of shows. The momentum had been going strong till the end of the year.


SLOWING DOWN


As 2001 rolled in, priorities shifted for the better and the band found themselves not as busy like in the previous two years. While steadying their new found sound, the band halted on booking shows regularly. A show in San Diego was a highlight in the year, as the band drove with Hybrid Soul to southern California. A month later, an opening slot for another Philippine-based band, Wolfgang (Sony Philippines recording artists), became one of their most memorable shows ever. By the time summer began, it became harder to focus on the band as personal lives and other desires needed more attention.


With creative differences on the verge, Pete decided to leave the band in early July to pursue his other projects. Adel stated to the remaining members that he wouldn't be able to focus on the band at all. Bern and Rio accepted his decision and all three agreed to put the band to a stop. The final Love,dAriA shows were important showcases, and the band was honored to have been a part of them to help close this chapter in their lives.