BACK in the late ‘80s, with the likes of the Eraserheads yet to enter mainstream consciousness, a handful of acts were competing against each other, eager to make their mark in the underground music scene.
Shining brightest among the lot was hard-rocking outfit Mere Mercy.
Apart from having a solid backbone in bassist Ricky ‘Pricks’ Rosales and drummer Alex ‘Democracy’ Patron, the band also boasts of a formidable frontline in guitarist Neil Gregorio and charismatic vocalist Marco Herrera.
We recall the throng of screaming girls (and boys) that troop to their gigs egging them on as they play energetic versions of Sisters Of Mercy’s “Walk Away” and The Cult’s “Love Removal Machine.”
Despite the promise, the band would never make it big, with Herrera eventually migrating to the US.
Not that the remaining members didn’t try to forge on.
Picking up from where Herrera left off is John Neil Brown, who went on to record several songs for the group Unfortunately, for some reason or another, they weren’t able to finish it.
Today, Gregorio, Patron, Rosales jam sporadically, owing to them having already established separate careers.
We caught up with Rosales recently, and we learned he is still into music, playing with several bands.
“Ihave a metal band called Katoliko and The Cult tribute band, Industrial Noise. Ialso do sessions with other bands like Deepsleep, Balatek, and Charles Daza and The Revenants,” he says.
According to him, the chance of a Mere Mercy reunion is slim considering Herrera is still in the US.
“We would love that to happen, but since Marco can no longer play with us, we just can’t push through with the band anymore,” he says
“We realized he is the face of Mere Mercy and replacing him with a new singer just won’t work. Marco became so iconic back in the days that until now, our audiences are still asking about him,” he adds.
Asked how he started with music, Rosales says his roots was punk, pointing to bassist Sid Vicious as his biggest inspiration as a kid.
“Sid made me believe that you don’t have to be that good as long as you can express yourself, you are good to go,” Rosales relates.
Until today, Rosales admits to eschewing any form of practice.
“I’m like a high school student cramming before exams (laughs). I only practice hours before a gig,” he says.
Rosales is also into filmmaking as part of Halikon Films.
He is also an avid cook, with friends attesting to the quality and taste of his meals.
His unsolicited advice for aspiring bass players?
“Never stop learning. Don’t be discouraged by whatever critics say. Just keep playing and prove them wrong,” he maintains. (WAKU SAUNAR)
