Young Forever: Avril Lavigne Pre-Concert Party

View from above during the Avril Lavigne Pre-Concert Party at Eastwood Citywalk

I'll be 30 in a couple of years and I think I've struggled with the idea of growing up and growing old but recently an old friend has taught me you can grow up but never really grow old. 

I definitely won't be true to myself if I don't recognize Avril Lavigne as one of my musical influences-because she was. 

Like many, I was an angsty teenager once and Avril Lavigne's music was a part of that. Specifically her first two albums, Let Go and Under My Skin. 

So there was that Little Black Star in me and so I was really looking forward to the Avril Lavigne Pre-Concert Party (better go ahead and say it, we didn't go to the concert-due to lack of funds and financial responsibilities, we would have gone if we had complimentary tickets though. I still want to be able to cover concerts regularly, maybe in the future we can cross that one off our bucket list) so going back to the pre-concert party-the energy is always so great and positive when we go to events like these so I knew that this was going to be a super fun party.  

Some of the great prizes that were given away during the event - Proactiv- Green Tea Moisturizer, Gift Certificates from Tokyo Bubble Tea (a personal favorite) and a P1,000 off certificate from Ice Watch! (Guess who will be shopping for an Ice Watch soon? ^_^) In case you guys didn't know Avril is an endorser of Ice Watch :) You can check out their stalls in SM Megamall, SM North Edsa, Trinoma and the Marquee Mall. 

Check out Avril Lavigne in the photo below from her video 'Here's to Never Growing Up' sporting some really cute Ice Watch <3

Avril Lavigne DVDs and CDs were sold at the event. 

Some of the winners during the Pre-Concert Party - Yup! That is a concert ticket you see right there - Odyssey just gives away the coolest prizes! ^_^

A lot of the pre-concert attendees were also dressed in Avril Lavigne inspired outfits - prizes were given out to the best dressed. :) It's always nice to see young fans, some even friends (a big family really) get together to celebrate the love that they share for the same music and inspiration. 

I even saw a mom taking photo of her excited daughter by a standee of Avril Lavigne! That is one cool and super fun mom right there!   

Katy Perry PRISM Album Launch

After covering the Rihanna pre-concert party at the Palladium Paul and I were excited when we got another great event from Odyssey which is the Katy Perry PRISM album launch! 

You might think that Paul would not be too excited to go to a bar but he is excited especially with the opportunities to take photos and to experiment under new lighting conditions especially the unique lighting conditions in a bar right?   

I just love going to Odyssey's events because of the freebies, the prizes, the games and the fact that they aim to push the envelope with every event that they have. For this album launch you would get CoverGirl goodies (a Lash Blast Mascara, a Clean Liquid Make up and a discount coupon) at the purchase of every album not only that but you also get a chance to win LG G2 cellphones! Talk about pushing the envelope right? 

My Katy Perry PRISM album shot by Paul. :) 

I wasn't originally planning to get an album but will all those freebies it's a steal right? Even Paul had no qualms of me getting a Katy Perry album (he's not a big fan of Pop) he was sold at the idea of getting a chance to win an LG G2 Cellphone, (although I didn't win :P) 

Another reason why I wanted to get the album was that it was the Deluxe Edition and MCA didn't have a local version produced so this is as you can say the international version as well. :) 

CoverGirl Lash Blast Mascara, Clean Liquid Make up and a chance to win an LG G2 Cellphone at every purchase of a Katy Perry Prism album!

There was even a CoverGirl booth where you can get a free make over :) In case you guys didn't know Katy Perry is also a CoverGirl! :) 

Panic! At The Disco X All Time Low: Album Launch

EPIC GROUP PHOTO! Album buy out attendees with their purchased albums. 

So Paul and I have already been to a number of album launches from Odyssey. So what makes the most recent one extra special? Well its because it is a DOUBLE ALBUM LAUNCH!

You can check out the original event announcement here.  

Last Saturday was P!ATD X ATL Album launch (Panic! At The Disco and All Time Low) for their albums Too Weird To Live, Too Rare To Die and Don't Panic respectively. 

Jazz of Zylke with the boys of Yuko gave acoustic renditions of Panic! At The Disco and All Time Low songs.  

The event was not just like any ordinary album launch since it was also the first official event of Sparks Productions of which I am a part of. 

Instead of just showing up at the event we sort of had a hand in organizing it which made it more exciting! :) 

CHARADES! Guess that Panic! At The Disco song! 

We also worked with the Street Teams for both Panic! At The Disco and All Time Low and it was one crazy fun event. 

From the impressive fan acoustic performances to the wild (intense and dangerous) games and of course the epic group photo in the end it was an event will high points all the way. 

Yurbuds. Earphones that Never Fall Out - Paul can atest to that. 

Special thanks also to Yurbuds earphones who was present during the event. There was the 'Shake Yurbuds challenge' where contestants were asked to (without the use of their hands) remove earphones from Yurbuds. The first one to remove them would get to bring home a pair of Yurbuds earphones. 

I'm one of those people who is always wearing a pair of earphones or headphones so I can be picky and particular with the sound and quality of the earphones/headphones that I wear. So I was really excited about Yurbuds especially since they set themselves aside from other earphones by stating that the earphones don't fall off, hence the challenge and I should say that it was a challenge indeed, Paul had a chance to remove the earphones but they were so snug in his ears he wasn't able to :( despite his moshing and jumping moves. :( 'I believe in the product' Paul says. Hoping to get a chance to do a product review :3 in the meantime you can check out their Facebook page here. 

Event Announcement: Panic! At The Disco X All Time Low Album Launch

I am thrilled and excited to say that Sparks Productions which I am a part of will be having its first event in line with Odyssey and that would be (drum roll please) not just one but TWO album launches - Specifically Panic! At The Disco and All Time Low's ~ Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die respectively.

You can like Sparks Facebook page here for more news and updates on upcoming great events! 

The event will be at the Odyssey branch in Gateway at 2PM 

Okay - so going back to the album launch(es) well Paul and I have been covering album launches for Odyssey for some time now and we can tell you that Odyssey album launches are F-U-N! There will be fan performances (there are 7 bands line up to perform - each band will cover P!ATD and ATL songs, you can check out the bands performing below:) 

Zylke 

Split Second 

Starecase 

Yuko 

Stay Tonight 

Red Paradox

Along Van Buren 

Aside from the band performances there are also games and amazing prizes in store for attendees! So if you are a Panic! At The Disco fan or an All Time Low fan you really should be present in this album launch the fun is guaranteed two-fold! Don't forget that's October 12, Odyssey Gateway at 2PM. 

You can also click here to check out Panic! At The Disco's Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die album stream. 

Make sure to like Odyssey's facebook page here for more exciting music news and events! :)  

Looking forward to seeing you guys there! A good number of attendance can determine whether we have Panic! At The Disco Night or All Time Low Night - wink wink ;) 

Please don't stop the music: Rihanna: Pre Concert Party

I can almost hear the very loud and audible gasps: What Paul and Ica covered a party - party?!?! - I know you guys are used to us covering and being in bar gigs where the closest chance to the bar or band playing a Rihanna song is like - never. Which is also why we wanted to cover the event, because its something we don't usually do and we both wanted to get out of our comfort zones and cover an event like this and Paul was excited to get to play photographer in a night club setting. 

So there we were off to Palladium in Makati with Kevin Pableo of Manila Concert Scene, we just came from a meeting for Neon Fest - (more on that soon) to attend Rihanna's Pre-Concert party. 

It was indeed an event like no other, with a jam packed bar filled with beautiful creatures - I kid you not everyone looked so glam and fabulous  The ladies in their dresses and high heels ready to party and the men looking like brothers of Ian Somerhalder were dancing to the music, a lot of which was from the lady of the hour - Rihanna of course. 

Aside from the music, the party was also over flowing with drinks from The Bar and sparkler tipped bottles made its way from table to table.  

Playboy Playmates 

 It was indeed a night to celebrate one of the well known artists of our generation, love her or hate her Rihanna has greatly contributed to today's pop culture in music and fashion.  

Her upcoming second concert in Manila this coming Thursday was also another reason for the party to keep on going and there were also amazing prizes that were given away - gift packages from the bar, to winners of a drinking game (of course) and people who were dressed up like Rihanna were also asked to up on stage and the crowd favorite won a prize also. :)

Rihanna standees were also given away to lucky winners who purchased her album during the event. Two pairs of Rihanna concert tickets were also given away and a P50,000 silver necklace from Silverworks - Shine bright like a diamond eh? 

Limited edition hard bound Playboy magazines were also given away- great prizes indeed! 

30 Seconds to Mars Album Buyout

The Echelon family with their Cds and their prizes 

This was our third time to cover an album buy out from Odyssey (the first one was for Paramore and the second one was for Fallout Boy) and you know what they say - the third time is the charm. 

This most recent album buy out was for Thirty Seconds to Mars' Love Lust Faith + Dreams album. 

Like always - fan support was awesome! We got to see Echelon Philippines have a lot of fun with the games, the band performances and the great prizes from the sponsors! :) 

Game winners with their prizes :) 

Some of the games included a lot of singing and when you are a true fangirl/fanboy or for this case a true Echelon there was no need to convince anyone to go up to the front to sing - people just went on their own accord - no need to force them. Th and tere was even a wacky dance off with Thirty Seconds to Mars' 'Up in the air'. 

Diachroma

Aside from covering Thirty Seconds to Mars songs, local bands: Diachroma, Yuko and Progeny also performed impressive original songs. 

Event Announcement: Thirty Seconds to Mars: Love Lust Faith + Dreams Album Buyout

Mars is indeed coming. After their last album This is War in 2009, Thirty Seconds to Mars has come back with a new album, Love Lust Faith + Dreams. 

The first single 'Up in the air' (you can check out the video below) was actually the first ever commercial copy of music that was sent and played in space. A CD copy of the song was sent to both NASA and SpaceX and was on board the Dragon spacecraft on SpaceX CRS. 

While a lot of people are definitely excited for the new album, 30 Seconds To Mars' street team in the Philippines Echelon Philippines tops the list. You can check out their Facebook page here and follow them on twitter: @EchelonPH

Just to make sure that the album gets its due reception, Odyssey will be having an album buyout for Love Lust Faith + Dreams on June 15, 2013 at around 3PM and if experience has taught me anything it's that Odyssey's album buy outs are crazy fun! I should know - I've been to two! Check out my posts for Paramore's album buyout and Fallout Boy's album buyout. 

You get to meet with fellow Mars junkies, there are games, prizes and fan performances! So make sure to clear your calendars coz Mars is definitely coming! 

You can also follow Odyssey on twitter for more updates:@odysseylive 

Pcheng Photography will try our best to drop by ;) 

Fallout Boy: Saving Rock & Roll Album Launch; Record Store Day

Proud Young Bloods showing the free poster that came with the album purchase.

It was another fun and amazing album launch at Odyssey Megamall and this time it was for Fall Out Boy's new album -Save Rock and Roll. After a four year hiatus Fall Out Boy is back with their latest album and the fans are just loving it. 

Fall Out Boy has always been one of my favorite bands, I have always loved their (God) long tongue-in-cheek titles, infectious melodies and their no apologies and no holds bard lyrics. They were a huge part of my college life, with memories of making out to my then boyfriend now husband to 'Dance, Dance' and even using the song title 'Sophomore Slump or Come Back of the Year' as the title of my editor's piece for our school's literary compilation. 

With their hiatus I was left without any new songs from musical geniuses and like other fans was left to live on their old music but now that they are back with a new album they will undoubtedly not only 'Save Rock and Roll' but fans who have been waiting patiently to hear new music from them. 

Members of Fall Out Boy Philippines selling T-shirts at the event. 

The album launch last April 27, 2013 also coincided with Record Store Day which is a global effort from record stores to thank fans by having great sales and in store performances. For this particular album launch, fans got a free poster and a baller for every purchase of Fall Out Boy's album. (See promotional posters below). 

Paramore Album Buyout!

Free arm band (baller) per album purchase. 
I'd like to thank my hand models Netly and Chai <3 

There was a time when walking into a record store to pick up an album seemed impractical. First there was the problem with piracy- being able to grab a copy of a CD at a cheaper price seemed to be more appealing, so many stalls of pirated CDs/DVDs came sprouting at every corner. Then a new kind of pirate came along and that is the digital pirate - downloads soon became too easily available over the internet. Imagine not even having to leave the house to get a copy of a new song or a new album. 

The music industry though damaged through piracy was able to bounce back through digital downloads and iTunes, now fans can download the songs and albums that they want (legally). While the future of the industry seemed pretty set on these digital downloads - nothing beats walking into your favorite record store to grab a copy of your favorite band's new album 



- Hayley Williams of Paramore said as much, though I can't remember her exact words and I was surprised because I actually experienced first hand what she meant by that. 

Last April 13, 2013, Saturday- Odyssey had an Album Launch/Album buyout for Paramore's new and can I say much awaited self titled album. There were promises of live performances and lovely (oh so lovely!) prizes (Yeah! I'm still looking at you Marshall headphones!) You can check out their official promotional poster here. 

Rurouni Kenshin DVD launch

So I have been blogging a lot about the Rurouni Kenshin live action movie- to an extent that it is almost a documentary. I blogged about the challenges to get the movie in local Philippine Cinemas, my thoughts about the movie after watching it. So I think that it is just apt that I also blog about the next chapter in the Rurouni Kenshin live action story which is of course the DVD release! 

I was in contact with Odyssey which would be releasing the DVD of the movie. 

So the date was set for March 23, 2013 at the Gateway branch of Odyssey from 4:00PM-6:00PM. 

When we got there, there was already a booth set up by Amuse Philippines which is a group of Filipino Amuse Inc. fans. You might be wondering what Amuse Inc. is and what were they doing in the Rurouni Kenshin DVD release? Well Amuse Inc. is actually a group of artists and actors in Japan and Sato Takeru is part of the group. Amuse Philippines organized the DVD buyout to show their support for Sato Takeru who of course plays Kenshin Himura in the movie. 

Every fan's dream. Photos of Takeru Sato were displayed in the booth. No drooling please! :P 

Aside from Amuse Inc PH, Sato Takeru Philippines was also present to show their love for their idol. It's interesting to note that these groups were here because they were fans of Sato Takeru, while for me it was the other way around- I am a fan of the anime series- growing up watching it on AXN and even on Studio 23 and that was why I was at the DVD launch.