Filipina hitmaker Janine Berdin is back with her latest single, ALAS DOS NA!!!, out now on all music streaming platforms. Written and composed by the singer herself, the song is an alternative rock track that sings a story of regret, where no matter how hard one tries to progress from said relationship when they’re alone with their thoughts at 2 AM, they always get consumed by grief.
A Mature Take on Young Heartbreak
As someone who has been in the entertainment industry since she was a child, first as an actress and then as a singer, Janine is no stranger to putting her feelings into her creative pursuits. “I wrote ALAS DOS NA!!! when I was just 15, after going through a teenage relationship and then a breakup. It comes from a very naive, I’d say even an immature state of mind,” Janine admits. “But the song is honest. It’s written crudely, very emotional and raw, and most of all, honest.”
The rawness of her feelings translates seamlessly into the song, which also marks her first release since joining UMG Philippines under Island Records Philippines. “The musical elements we used almost feel reckless and rash, symbolizing the confusing emotion of leaving someone and then wanting them back,” she explains.
Backed by musicians TJ Castillon, Kirk Basilio, and Luke Casanova, ALAS DOS NA!!! sees Janine and her band delivering a fresh rock sound that smartly employs the electric guitar and heart thumping drums that’s guaranteed to make listeners to unleash their inner rockstar. As always, Janine proves why she is a vocalist unparalleled, inserting vocal runs within the song that perfectly encapsulate the song’s frustrated perspective.
“I’d say I’m the freest I’ve ever been with ALAS DOS NA!!!,” Janine reveals. “Working with my amazing bandmates TJ, Kirk, and Luke helped me translate the emotions I needed to deliver. They’re very talented musicians, and they’re also smart emotionally. They made me so comfortable to do my own thing.”
Aside from allowing her to fully express her emotions through music, Janine also credits her bandmates as instrumental in the process of creating the ALAS DOS NA!!!
“Our process in the band is simple. It’s really just me going, ‘Hey, I wrote this and I want to work on it, these are the lyrics and melody. Please help me find a chord that hurts your hearts when you listen to it,’” Janine relays.
“With this song, after his first listen, TJ came up with a crazy guitar riff, and Luke’s bass sounded so good with it. We made the demo of the song in our newly-built home studio, where Kirk went crazy with the drums and really brought out the teenage rage,” she details. “We just tried every single idea that we contributed, because we believe that when it comes to music production, it’s better to just add a ton and then tone it down until it feels right. This song was mixed by Emil Dela Rosa, who also worked on SITWASYONSHIP, and our collaboration was just chef’s kiss!”
Using Regrets as Writing Fuel
While ALAS DOS NA!!! is a song from Janine’s songwriting archives, it also marks a new milestone in her music journey. “I’ve just been welcomed into the Island Records Philippines family, and they let me focus on my craft, which is a dream. Aside from writing the song, I also did the vocal production for the harmonies. I’m very proud of my recent releases and everything I’ll release in the near future because I know I give my entire heart and soul to everything I do. All I want is to make music that makes people feel. I owe it to them.”
With making people feel things with her music as her goal, Janine’s creative process starts with processing her own feelings first. For ALAS DOS NA!!!, it’s channeling her feelings from her first heartbreak. “Nanghihinayang pa ako nun na nakipaghiwalay ako kasi iniisip ko noon, love of my life ko siya, as in end game kasi wala na akong mami-meet na papantay sa kanya,” she says in jest.
She starts the song with an admission of her mistake in leaving the relationship and how she left her lover behind despite their promise to stay together. “Alas dos na ng umaga, ikaw pa rin ang hanap ng puso, o giliw ko, ba’t ba kita iniwan,” she screams by the song’s chorus, venting her frustration at herself for not seeing through her commitment.
Along with regret, time is another recurring element throughout the song. Throughout her verses, the songwriter retells her days spent mourning the relationship and longing for another chance, leading to her late nights hoping her lost love will come home.
The song builds into a cathartic crescendo, with Janine putting all her emotions into screaming the last lines, “Ikaw at ikaw pa rin, baby umuwi ka na, please? Bumalik ka na, umuwi ka na, alas dos na!!!”
But like everyone who gets their heart broken at a young age, moves on, and matures, the Janine of now has a different perspective from the Janine that wrote the song. “I was young, naive, and in love. It’s been 7 years since I wrote this song, and I’m now in a state of mind where I can’t even believe I dated that guy. Poor teenage me,” she quips.
From the whole song, Janine shares that her favorite line comes from its bridge: “Ikaw pa rin, kahit sinong pa’ng mami-meet, ikaw lang, ikaw pa rin. Baby, umuwi ka na, please?”
Her fondness for this line is evident in its appearance in the song’s cover art, as she expounds: “For me, it really embodies the feeling of being so frustrated and having all these emotions of ‘I want you back so bad,’ and then realizing that you’re being a little too crazy with your feelings, tapos babawiin mo with lambing. I love it.”
The track’s accompanying lyric video, out now on all video streaming platforms, also mimics its frenetic message and energy. It takes a fly-on-the-wall (or rather, ceiling) point of view, where Janine is working on her desk but can’t seem to focus on what she’s doing as she lets out her feelings. She leans back and right up at the camera as she performs the song, emulating late-night ruminations of regret. It’s as if she can’t control her feelings as she tries to get them across to the viewer, with the video showing her getting more agitated until the end.
Moving on and Making More Music
On May 10, 2024, a launch event took place at The Odd Seoul in Quezon city, marking a memorable moment for Janine as she performed her future anthem live for the first time, along with a string of her hits, other unreleased tracks, a cover of The Only Exception, and a duet with Adie (Mahika). Needless to say, Janine is quite the magical performer, taking the audience in a heart-thumping trip from start to finish. Here, the music video (directed by Jonathan Tal Placido), one of absurd, entertaining, and emotional storytelling, was shown, exciting the audience even more of what’s to come from Janine and her band.
The event was also a realization of the world built for ALAS DOS NA!!!, where the visuals of the visualizer and music video came to life in the video game-esque space with thoughtful, engaging elements spruced throughout—including a corner where guests enjoyed a game of Tekken and beer pong.
As a consistent hitmaker throughout her musical career, Janine has perfected the art of crafting songs that resonate with her audience. To the listeners who can relate to ALAS DOS NA!!!, she has an empathetic message: “Okay lang ‘yan, i-feel mo lang ‘yan. ‘Di ka na babalikan niyan,” she laughs. Kidding aside, she continues, “Okay lang, kasi sabi nga ni juan karlos, tatlong bilyong tao dito sa mundo. You have all the time, all the people to meet, and all the love to give. Just rage it out for now, and you’ll meet someone else in a day, in a year, in a decade, whenever. That’s what makes life cool, because you’ll always have love to give and receive.”
For everyone else that’s eagerly awaiting her next move, her message is much simpler and exciting: “You can expect more music and really good visuals. Just me being myself, making awesome music with my amazing band!”