The band is one of the several groups who spearheaded the 90's Philippine alternative rock explosion and known for their hit songs "Lakas Tama", "Peksman", "Kanto", "Biyaheng Impyerno" and "Bakit Ba". Founded by Noel Palomo, Wowie Flores, Miniong Cervantes, Oyie Bunao, and Wally Gaspar in 1994, the band was a prominent fixture of the Tunog Kalye era and very popular to college and high school students in the Philippines during the 90's.
Etymology
As per the band members, Siakol is a term they coin which pertains to a "free, happy and sometimes naughty state of mind". It is also alluded to be a word play of jakol, Filipino slang for masturbation. Furthermore, according to former frontman Noel Palomo in another interview, "Siakol" was already a popular term coined by the bystanders at their area in their hometown of Parañaque before the band was formed and later suggested the name to their band's management during their early days. The management initially tried to change the spelling of the name to "Shock Call" before it was reverted back to Siakol.
Background
Formed in 1994 by former best friends Manuel "Noel" Palomo and Chris Laurence "Wowie" Flores, their appearance as a guest in a “Battle of the Bands” competition together as a quintet with acquaintances Anthony "Miniong" Cervantes, Reynaldo "Wally" Gaspar and Rolando "Oyie" Bunao in their hometown of Parañaque was their first exposure. The band started writing original compositions (mostly written by Palomo) and their songs were well received by the public. They were then managed by Jason Gerodias. Peter Paul Plazon of another 90's Pinoy rock band Grin Department has been their longest serving drummer since he joined in 2012.
Their songs from their 1996 album until present still receives massive radio airplay and guestings in several fiestas around the Philippines. Known for their all-Tagalog songs, the band is branded by many as "the face of the Tunog Kalye era" (colloquial term of the Philippines' brand of OPM alternative rock which is popular among the masses in the 1990s, literally translated to "street sound" in English).
The band's brand of lyrics are primarily based on Filipino pop culture, typical Filipino love life and observational humor. They are considered to be one of the most successful OPM bands of all time. Their songs have been one of the most frequently sang in Philippine videokes up to the present.
In March 2019, a Facebook user shared a video footage of Siakol during a gig at Davao City wherein it can be seen that vocalist Noel Palomo verbally berated bassist Wowie Flores in the middle of the stage due to undisclosed reasons. When Palomo turned his back at Flores, Flores lunged the first strike at Palomo and a brief scuffle ensued. Security and crew broke up the fight and although they continued playing after the scuffle, the duration of the entire gig was prematurely cut short due to the incident.[1][2]
Palomo later released a video and addressed the issue in jest by saying that they were just "joking around" and that "the fistfight was part of the show". He also added that he and Flores had settled their differences.
Major lineup changes
Notable founding members Noel Palomo and Miniong Cervantes, who both had been in the group since its inception, left the band around 2019–2020 due to an apparent internal rift with other members, citing Palomo's silent intention on going solo and his diminishing vocal abilities allegedly as the primary reason. Palomo is currently performing under the group "Noel Palomo & The Repakol" while Cervantes plays sessions and collaborates with other artists, including Palomo's Repakol. Their positions were later filled in by new members. New frontman Warren Antig Aurin was a finalist of GMA-7's Pinoy Idol in 2008 and also a member of the band Roots of Nature who was Philippines' representative at the Global Battle of the Bands. Marquel Martin on the other hand is also a member of another 90s Pinoy rock band The Youth.
Band name dispute (2020–present)
Since 2020, Palomo, and later Cervantes, who are now both members of Repakol, have been alternatively using the name "Siakol" again aside from the name "Repakol", despite their previous statements that they were no longer part of the band since early 2020.[3][4] On his defense, Palomo claimed that it was he who suggested the name "Siakol" in the first place, thus he has the right to use the name elsewhere. Sole remaining original member Wowie Flores has issued a statement that the band will be seeking legal advice regarding the matter.
