Razorback Releases Last Song Recorded with Drummer Brian Velasco

Fans of hard rocking Pinoy band Razorback might want to check out its latest song which was released on Tuesday, May 7. It’s special for two reasons: folk rock icon Dong Aboy features on vocals and it’s the last song the band recorded with drummer Brian Velasco, who died in January this year. 

Titled “Palasyo,” the song was co-written by band members Tirso Ripoll, Manuel Legarda, Louie Talan and Velasco, along with Abay.

The song starts off as a mellow folk rock ditty, with Abay’s soft, recognizable vocals gliding over gentle electric guitars. But one minute in, Velasco’s drums pierce through the placid veneer and signal a stronger, more urgent pace. About halfway through, we get the trademark Razorback sound: loud, fast and insistent. That unmistakable hard rock sound—almost jarring, undoubtedly revitalizing—is what hard rock dreams are made of.

In a Facebook post, Ripoll said Palasyo is also one of two tracks the band wrote with Velasco.

Along with brother band Wolfgang, Razorback practically redefined hard rock for a generation of Filipino music fans. The band parted ways with longtime vocalist Kevin Roy in June last year and have had a rotating slate of singers pitch in during live gigs, including female vocalists like Nicole Asensio and Kat Agarrado.

In a previous interview with Esquire, Ripoll said the band had been working on new material. “We’ve been delinquent with that for a while now, and it’s time,” he said.

That time is now.

Listen to the song on Spotify.