Howls of the Wolfmann

Independent recording artist Wolfmann stalks the nicotine-stained walls of hole-in-the-walls and posh-yuppie-haunts. Inundating the ears of the numbed, the ocho-ocho crowd. Taking them on, on his own. Here's a lowdown on the man and his music:

First, give us a lowdown on how you came to be where you are now.

I paid a lot of people! I'm corrupt! Ahahaha! Seriously, the Wolfmann outfit was an offshoot of me wanting to do a solo rock act, pretty much like Dunkan Sheik, but since my ugly voice couldn't give me the deals I wanted, I decided to go instrumental.  I first started working with software like mixman, groovemaker, and acid, with house and trance as my initial genre.  Soon, my rock roots took over. I became very influenced by The Crystal Method, BT's Old style, the Prodigy, and the Chemical Brothers.  I invested on hardware (grooveboxes and synths) in preparation for my live act.

I started playing live in November 2002.  The next year was a good year for me because I was able to play in both dance and rock venues.  My first live electronica act in a rock venue was at Mayric's, which paved the way to other rock gigs (thanks to some guy named Mondo Castro).  The release of my first single "Fish N Chips" on NU107 and my remix of Cambio's "DV" gave me some following.  Prominent figures in the industry also helped me in promoting my work, people like Raimund Marasigan, Twisted Halo's Vin Dancel, Francis Reyes, Electronica Manila, and again, some guy named Mondo Castro.

I guess the secret to my success is being lucky enough to get a monthly gig from promoters and airplay from NU107, which again was kind enough to release my second and carrier single (off my album Diner) "Piniritong Dalagang Bukid" featuring Ebe Dancel of Sugarfree which has stayed in the Midnight Countdown for over two months now.

Why did mom and dad give you this name?

My real name is Wilfrid Hernandez.  My first name was a derivative of my dad's name (Wilfrido).  People back in college called me "Wilf" but there was this one friend who insisted on calling me "Wolf" because it was easier to say.  I added the word "man," making it "Wolfman," because an Internet service provider required seven letters for the e-mail account I was applying for.  Then, finally, this obsessive compulsive friend of mine, insisted that I add an "N" at the end to make it look German and at the same time give it balance.  Hence, the name "Wolfmann."

What are you all about?

I'm all about love, hate, aggression, oppression, disillusionment, abuse, confusion, optimism.... multiple personality disorder.  Buy my album Diner, read the lyrics, and you'll know pretty much what I'm about.  Organized chaos, dude!

What genre could the general populace box you and your music in? Cowpunk-disco?

Electronica.  But if you want to be specific, it's breakbeat, funky breaks, big beat, and NU Skool Breaks.  Kinda like the music of the Crystal Method and Prodigy.

Some idiots would say that artists of your kind (sounds racist, ey?) aren't "real musicians," that all you guys do is cut and paste. Do you agree with this conclusion?

I completely disagree. I am not a cut-and-paste type of electronica artist.  I feel that using someone else's drum loop, sample, etc. would make me less proficient.  I belong to a group called Electronica Manila, where the main objective of the group is to prove to people that we do our own stuff. We write our own songs. We compose our own music.  It's the live element that makes it look like we just pressed the "play" button, but behind it all, like most composers, we went through a painstaking stage of programming each and every element of our music, from the kick drum to the keyboards and synthesizers to the sound effects.

Would your craft be considered as conventional songwriting?

Yes, at some point.  I'm a songwriter and a trained musician.  How I write my lyrics and arrange my songs are no different from how rock/pop artist write theirs.  But sometimes, I start writing a song with a drum program I've created. I guess that's one thing that you can consider as unconventional.

How much have you spent on your equipment? Kindly explain their use in layman's terms.

Around P400,000.  This includes my computer-based home studio, groovebox/samplers (where the drums, vocal samples, and effects come from), keyboards and synthesizers (where all the bass lines and melody lines come from), a live mixer (so I can plug all the gear into the mixer and therefore simplifying the whole plug and play process) the carrying case, keyboard stand, cables, monitor speakers, and other contingencies.

Are your glasses essential to your alter ego? You know, the unassuming everyday man who's really a rabid beast underneath it all?

I guess I'm the Clark Kent who's dumb enough to keep his glasses on when he turns into Superman. Haha! I won't be able to play properly if i don't have my glasses on, because there are so many knobs I have to tweak and I probably wouldn't recognize them, if I didn't have the glasses on.

How is it working with yourself so far? Do you argue a lot with yourself?

It's like dealing with Mr. Hyde sometimes. Having no bandmates leaves you with nobody to blame but yourself. This becomes very frustrating when I screw up in the middle of my live set.  But so far, my alter-ego's been very good to me.

How many albums have you made? Was the process arduous? Did you steal a lot of samples from obscure albums?

I've done two.  Compared to my first, the second album Diner required more time, comtemplation, and patience because I have a lot of collaborators in it.  It took more than a year to finish.  No, I did not steal any samples from obscure albums. I use preset sounds from my modules and then make them complicated.  I don't want to wake up one morning with a subpoena at my doorstep.  I start my songs from scratch, and that's how I intend to do it in the future.

What are your plans for the future? Any new music from the Wolfmann's lab?

I want to be able to play at the Wembley Stadium, but since that is a bit far-fetched from now, I'm gonna do more tracks and plan out my third album that I intend to release next year.  I want to do more collaborations with other artists, pretty much like the concept of Diner, but with a twist and a lot of experimentation.  I just want to reinvent myself while keeping my signature sound every time I release an album.

Would you do a gig on those intellectual noontime shows? Please?

The question is, will they ever book me?  My music may be too profound for their taste.  I'd like to participate in one of their games, though... haha!