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\n\tWhen SB19 chased a more international pop breakthrough with the English-language disco single \u201cWYAT (Where You At),\u201d the results were well-intentioned but ultimately inconclusive \u2014 the song never quite fit into any of their EPs and sits notably absent from Wakas At Simula<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\tInstead, \u201cShooting for the Stars\u201d feels like the lessons learned from \u201cWYAT\u201d applied to new material. A second collaboration with August Rigo, the cut reaches for a similarly buoyant energy, but this time it sounds unmistakably like SB19. The guys move effortlessly through a chorus that shifts from big-time belts to airy falsetto with the lyrics carrying the kind of hard-won attitude the group has earned the right to sing: \u201cFeeling like I can fly and I\u2019m calling out to my spirit\/ I saw the light in the distance, I found that one in a million\/ I held on to my sanity \u2018cos I really thought I might lose\/ Got to hold of my destiny when I realized I could choose it.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\n\tIf \u201cWYAT\u201d felt like an experiment to reach mass appeal, \u201cShooting for the Stars\u201d sounds like Rigo taking the sentiment and leaning more closely into who SB19 already are for a fully formed song.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
\nMusic \u201cMana (Wakas At Simula)\u201d<\/h2>\n
\n\tOriginally a B-side on 2021\u2019s Pagsibol<\/em>, the new version of \u201cMana\u201d keeps its intriguing sense of restlessness but still sounds as if it\u2019s searching for its final, full form. Still, the bones are strong enough \u2014 particularly as the chorus keeps building before the unexpectedly glitchy, electro-pop breakdown \u2014 for it to stand strong on this album.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n\nMusic \u201cWhat? (Wakas At Simula)\u201d<\/h2>\n
\n\tThe marching, anthemic energy that made the original a standout on 2021\u2019s Pagsibol<\/em> is fully intact, and the extended outro gives it a newfound sense of ceremony and rite. Re-recorded with obvious purpose, it remains one of their most powerful statements \u2014 and bigger now in every sense.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n