SOS: She's Only Sixteen Returns with "Please Lang"

Filipino indie rock quintet SOS delves into the impact of lost connections and romantic fallouts on “Please Lang,” their new single under Careless Music.

An emotional anthem that reflects on the weight of unresolved fights and the silent, often unacknowledged trauma it inflicts, “Please Lang” serves as the third offering off their upcoming five-track EP, It Was A Moment—to be released sometime in early 2024.

According to vocalist Roberto Seña, the guitar-driven song delivers confessional songwriting that is evident in most of their music.

“It’s a sad song that focuses on what happened rather than what could have been. It’s also just good fun, really—being able to laugh or have a sense of humor while experiencing inevitable heartbreak. Eventually, the song takes a darker turn as the song settles; things come to an end, and we just have to accept it.”

Over the course of two days, Seña wrote most of the lyrics during one of their jam sessions at Bavarian Records Studio in La Union, while guitarist Andrew Panopio helped with the second half of the song. The song was produced and arranged by the members of the band, resulting in a punchy but subdued release with ‘80s pop and ’90s alt rock influences worn proudly on its sleeves.

Drummer King Puentespina shares, “I think we were slated to finish arranging another song that day, and during our lunch break, I opened a new project file wanting to jam something out. I remember laying in the chords, progression, and drums and it started morphing. I asked Andrew to go for the groove; Ram was on the keys, and everyone in the room could feel it. It just slowly brought itself together. Seña and Anjo came into the studio after one of their lunch breaks or meetings or something, and they all got excited. I remember stepping out for a meeting and dinner. I came back, and they had all the words down. It was insanely fun.”

“Please Lang” is the second single that features new member Ram Alonzo performing keyboard duties while also being prominently involved in the studio, aiding in the mixing and mastering of the material. He recalls being swept away by the fragility of the track, and how its tale of love and loss deeply resonated with him on a personal level.

“Working on this song felt particularly personal for me,” Ram admits. “While we were writing it, I was going through a similar experience to what the song is all about, which made listening to it kind of difficult. Masakit siya (It’s painful).”

About SOS

SOS (pronounced like “sauce”) is an alternative band from Manila, Philippines. Formerly known as She’s Only Sixteen, members Roberto Seña (vocals, guitar, synths), Andrew Panopio (guitar), Anjo Silvoza (bass), Ram Alonzo (keys, synths), and King Puentespina (drums, synths) derive their influences from genre- and era-spanning styles: juxtaposing occasionally anthemic, often inescapable rhythms with lyrical themes that explore realist jadedness in almost real-time weariness, as well as human complexities with lush, buoyant production styles.