STREAM TRACK HERE
September 25, 2025 — Debuting on Spotify’s Fresh Finds Philippines, “Kahapon” re-arms HERE & NOW with reflective and almost-emotive lyricism, a soaringly melodic chorus, and their trademark modern hard rock/metal sonic sensibilities. The band is pushing forward into newer musical heights and maturity with an all-new single and music video.
The song, without a doubt, is fueled by the band’s collective creativity in exploring sounds and styles outside of their default genre and is testament to its members’ never-ending quest for musical evolution. The band – comprised of vocalist Paco Santos, guitarists Patrick Poblador, Allen Guarnes, Lance Camposano, bassist Gab Palanca and drummer Franco Aguila – is definitely firing on all cylinders recently and is making it obvious that their journey is steadily covering a lot of musical ground and territory.
“It reflects a story for each and every person, not just the band,” shares guitarist Poblador, who in turn, acted as the overall producer and arranger of the track. “Writing in Tagalog is actually a new thing for us, and we were also aiming to come up with a song that was aimed to target a wider audience, so we did have to sort of re-structure the song and tone it down – especially since our background was rooted in hard rock and metal. We did have our arguments, but hey – it’s all part of the process.”
When asked about the single’s musical inspiration, bassist Palanca reveals that “Kahapon” is actually tied into a “universe” and/or narrative which began from the band’s previous single “Himala.”
“It’s definitely a synthesis of the music we grew up with – local bands and international bands like Saosin who eventually leaned into lighter, more melodically soaring hardcore,” he shares, and adds, “In our last single, the character found a miracle – but memories from his past still return and he’s trying to move away from them in ‘Kahapon.’ It’s never easy to let go, so we wanted every word in the song to build toward the core message of saying goodbye, and by the time you reach the final chorus, you’ll definitely hear a sort of resolution; like the last scene of a film.”
Kahapon was released on all digital streaming platforms on September 19th, and an official music video from KNYA Collective – will premiere on October 3 across all major video streaming sites.
“At this point, there’s nothing concrete as far as new major targets,” shares Santos, when asked about the next steps of HERE & NOW. “After the break we took last year in 2024, we all sat down face to face and collectively decided to keep moving forward – we just want to keep releasing music consistently, hopefully release a full-length album by 2026 and keep playing live shows – gain experience and enjoy every part of the process. If there’s success in it, then I’d be a happy man. But really, I just want to play with the band, who’ve become more than that now – they’re my brothers.”
With “Kahapon,” HERE & NOW proudly marks another milestone in their continuing journey of musical growth and evolution.