FILIPINO rock band 6Cyclemind has partnered with Sony Music Philippines to create a cover project featuring the fans’ rendition of songs from the band’s discography.

“Throughout our career, we have been touring different parts of the country. We are lucky to witness how our audience, even from far-flung areas, sing our songs with us. This is indeed a very magical feeling. Online, we can also view our fans cover our songs. This makes us feel that, somehow, through our music, we have touched their lives. This is the reason why we have decided to do this project,” Fortunato “Tutti” Caringal, the band’s vocalist, said in a statement.

The project, titled Sige I-Cover Mo Lang, saw the band asking its fans to submit their covers without setting specific criteria. Submissions came in the form of phone recordings or changing the song’s arrangement. The band chose three songs to include in the album.

“We gave them the freedom to interpret the song of their choice. While screening the entries, we followed our gut feel and looked for the cover that will move us,” Herbert Hernandez, 6Cyclemind’s lead guitarist, said in the statement.

The band received “many entries that [they] really liked” which opens the possibility for them to have a second batch, Mr. Hernandez said.

The five-piece pop rock act started playing in Manila in 2001 and has so far released six studio albums, the most recent one in 2012 titled Good By Sunday. Some of the band’s biggest hits include “Biglaan” (2003), “Sandalan” (2005), and “Prinsesa” (2007).

Of the submissions, 16-year-old cover singer Bianca’s stripped-down version of “Biglaan,” was “one that stood out the most,” according to the release and earning a spot in the project.

“Whenever I want to cover songs, I usually just search for the chords and let myself feel the music. I was pretty melancholic during these times so my general approach was to make the song softer and downcast which is what I usually do to songs I usually sing,” Bianca said in the release.

The project “was such a great platform to thank the band’s fans and also give opportunities to artists [like her],” she added.

Her version of 6Cyclemind’s “Biglaan” can now be streamed on Spotify and Apple Music. — ZBC

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