History:
Early years:
Formed in 1996, the band had been comprised of Jazz Nicolas, Jugs Jugueta, Kelvin Yu (on lead guitar) and Hadrian "Haji" Cruz (on bass). The quartet performed at various school-based events and competitions with a handful of original songs and Beatles covers. Unfortunately, communication and scheduling issues forced Cruz to leave the group. This predicament forced Yu to take up the bass guitar vacancy, effectively making the band a trio.
The group continued as a trio until the middle of 1997, when a common friend in the Ateneo Musicians' Pool recruited Chino Singson to play guitar with the group at a school event. Singson eventually went on to become a permanent member, which solidified the group's current lineup.
In 1998 the band put together Revenge of the Unsigned, their first official CD. They did this with the help of their manager Earnest Mangulabnan-Zabala, Eraserheads, Ely Buendia, Buddy Zabala and Romel "Sancho" Sanchez (Loquy, Cynthia Alexander). The band intended for Revenge to be their independently-released debut album in the event that no major record label would sign them.
As luck would have it, then-A&R manager at Viva/Neo Records Mike Dizon (Teeth, Sandwich (band)) got hold of Revenge. He helped push for Viva executives to sign the band and eventually release Little Monsters Under Your Bed.
Little Monsters, the band's first major-label album, was released in 2001 and contained songs from Revenge plus new compositions by Nicolas and Jugueta. The song "Antipara" was probably the most well-known song on the album. The release of the album was somewhat ill-timed as its glossy pop-rock sound was an aberration in the Korn-influenced OPM Rock landscape of the late 1990s to early 2000s.
Breakthrough Success:
In 2005, the itchyworms released Noontime Show, which gave them modest national success and industry recognition. Buddy Zabala and Raimund Marasigan, by this time both former Eraserheads, co-produced the album with the group.
Most notably, the album went on to become Album of the Year at the 2006 NU Rock Awards, with Nicolas winning Drummer of the Year and the group winning Producer of the Year jointly with Marasigan and Zabala.
"Commercial" Endeavors:
The popularity and radio-friendliness of the band's songs have gained the attention of several well-known commercial brands in the Philippines. The song "Akin Ka Na Lang" has been used by both KFC and Close-Up in separate television advertisements. In 2008, Pringles used "Salapi" for a nationwide campaign/songwriting contest. In addition Enervon, Close-Up and San Miguel Beer have also commissioned the band to write original songs for their advertising campaigns.
The band also wrote and performed "Kabataang Pinoy", the theme song for the first season of ABS-CBN's Pinoy Big Brother: Teen Edition. This is arguably the band's most widely-publicized song because of the series' popularity and media exposure. They also made a song for Motorola Philippines' Hello Moto campaign.
Influences:
Although the individual members of the band draw on distinct influences, their common affection for The Beatles and The Eraserheads heavily defines the quartet's musical ethos.
The Band:
- Jazz Nicolas - drums, lead vocals
- Jugs Jugueta - guitars, lead vocals
- Chino Singson - guitars, backing vocals
- Kelvin Yu - bass, backing vocals
Itchyworms' Funny Music Videos:
- Antipara
- Beer
- Penge Naman Ako Nyan
Full-length Albums:
- Little Monsters Under Your Bed (Viva/Neo Records, 2001)
- And The Worm Jumped Over The Moon (Independently released, 2003)
- Noontime Show (Universal Records, 2005)
- Repackaged Noontime Show (with Commercial Break bonus AVCD, Universal
- ecords, 2006)
- Self-Titled (Sony BMG Philippines, 2008)
Compilations:
- Songs from NU107 In The Raw (Sony Music, 1998)
- Pulp Freakshow (Viva/Neo Records, 2001)
- Gimik Nation (Viva/Neo Records, 2002)
- Kami nAPO Muna (Universal Records, 2006)
- Close-Up Season of Smiles Christmas CD (Universal Records, 2006)
- Astig...The Biggest Band Hits (Universal Records, 2006)
- AYUZ! Pinoy Alternative's Power Cuts (Viva/Neo Records, 2006)
- SUPER - The Biggest Opm Hits Of The Year (Universal Records, 2007)
- Kami nAPO Muna Ulit (Universal Records, 2007)
- Musika Sa Bahay Ni Kuya: The Best Of Pinoy Big Brother Hits (Star Records, 2008)
