We Dance to Survive
"Filipinos from young to old go wild on budots"
Tiew tiew – pap pap – dol dol! is the unique sound of dance music from the Philippine port city of Davao. On the streets, in eateries, and in parks, the infectious rhythm of 140 beats per minute resonates, with counterintuitive bass, high-pitched whistles, and nervous city sounds. This includes a slow dance, in flip-flops and shorts, with movements that are both cool and provocative. Thanks to YouTube, the stimulating techno music from the slums of Davao, called budots, is spreading to the nightclubs of Southeast Asia and, more recently, to Europe.
On the outskirts of Davao, Jason Lordan parks his pastel blue van with oversized speakers for a fiesta (neighborhood party). The man, who installs sound and lighting systems in cars and tricycles as a hobby, swings open his rear doors and, with the push of a button, transforms a dark street into a nightclub with 130 decibels of techno music and pulsating lights. Much to the delight of the residents, who gather swaying their hips for an evening of budots techno: teenage girls in tight tops, fathers bare-chested, grandmothers holding hands with toddlers.
On the outskirts of Davao, Jason Lordan parks his pastel blue van with oversized speakers for a fiesta (neighborhood party). The man, who installs sound and lighting systems in cars and tricycles as a hobby, swings open his rear doors and, with the push of a button, transforms a dark street into a nightclub with 130 decibels of techno music and pulsating lights. Much to the delight of the residents, who gather swaying their hips for an evening of budots techno: teenage girls in tight tops, fathers bare-chested, grandmothers holding hands with toddlers.
The sounds of the slums of the Philippine port city of Davao are reflected in the popular techno music style budot. "Fingers to my lips? That's like sniffing glue. Fingers to my temple? A pistol shot."
