The chaotic energy of Manila’s streets found its musical counterpart in Aly and Moe Cabral’s award-winning score for Some Nights I Feel Like Walking, the latest queer road movie from director Petersen Vargas. The sold-out Philippine premiere at the Gateway 2 Cineplex 18 at Cubao, Quezon City last June 26 proved the score’s power, with audiences responding viscerally to the sound design. One particularly effective sequence uses abrupt silence when violence erupts, making the eventual return of budots rhythms feel like Manila stubbornly persisting through trauma.
Vargas’ film follows five street hustlers through one transformative night, demanding a score that mirrors Manila’s unpredictable rhythm. The Cabrals delivered precisely that, weaving between the frenetic pulse of budots and the unsettling textures of harsh noise.
“It wasn’t super easy,” Cabral tells Rolling Stone Philippines. “It wasn’t smooth because making the perfect score for the scenes in the film is always a challenge… But this one, Petersen and I [tried] certain things to catch the feeling of the scene. Sometimes we’ll go totally opposite [directions]. That’s why, actually, the opening scene was the most challenging. Until the end, I came up with a noise track to cultivate the feeling of being in Manila, where it’s frustrating [and] dangerous. But there’s also a beauty behind it.”
Their creative process was intensely collaborative. Moe, though absent during the Philippine premiere due to work commitments, worked closely with Aly to craft a sonic landscape that shifted as radically as the film’s tone. One moment featured radio static frequencies buzzing beneath a montage, the next had Regine Velasquez’s “Dadalhin” floating through scenes like a half-remembered dream. This willingness to embrace contradiction became their artistic practice for the film.
Budots in the Film
The siblings’ deep understanding of Manila’s sonic identity shines through their deliberate use of local budots producers DJ Danz and DJ Van Pao. Trans Pinay rapper Pette Shabu’s budots-infused hip-hop track “BINGO!” has also made it into the film.
“From the start, we wanted budots in the film,” Aly explains. “That’s why some of the budots producers’ tracks are there. So Shabu’s track “BINGO!” just made sense because it’s budots, and it’s also local. At the same time, it was a queer oasis scene where trans women were present. So Shabu’s track was perfect for that.”
These choices ground the film’s more surreal moments in the tangible reality of Manila nightlife.
For Aly, who previously scored Vargas’ 2 Cool 2 Be Forgotten, How to Die Young in Manila and Lisyun ng Geograpiya, this collaboration pushed her creative limits. This tension produces their most compelling work, like when industrial noise underscores a tender moment between characters.
The sibling composers took home the Best Score Award at the 2024 Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in the north European state of Estonia, marking a career milestone for the duo known for their innovative approach to Filipino soundscapes. The international recognition came as a shock. “The producer texted me two days before the ceremony,” Aly recalls with a laugh. “They asked if we could fly to Europe. I said, ‘I need a visa!’” Instead, the siblings sent an acceptance video, cementing their status as rising stars in film composition.
If Some Nights I Feel Like Walking is any indication, with its bold experimentation, and emotional depth, their next challenge is to follow up on this career-defining work
