“We only get to appreciate light in darkness. The light that guides, that never gives up, never fails, and the light that will lead us to the right place.” -The Juans about their new record.

"Liwanag" is the first full length release for 2022 of the hit group The Juans that brought us the top charted songs "Hindi Tayo Pwede," "Hatid," and "Istorya" to name a few. 

The band namely Carl Guevarra, Japs Mendoza, Chael Adriano, Joshua Coronel and RJ Cruz put much effort and time in preparing for the roll out of this massive 15-track compilation of all original tunes of varying themes about life, love and relations.

And for the first time, The Juans have more than two members contributing songs. Whereas before, lead singers Carl Guevarra and Japs Mendoza have taken the bulk of songwriting, this time, bassist Chael Adriano and guitarist RJ Adriano are contributing significantly to the songwriting. And the resulting sound is noticeably adventurous. While most songs retain a pop sheen, The Juans are pushing outside of their sonic comfort zones. Danceable tracks like “Pangalan” sit comfortably side by side with anthemic numbers like “Liwanag” and electropop flavored tunes like “Pinakakahintay.”

The Juans are consciously innovating their sound. And the tracks “Salamin” and “Love You” certainly are strikingly different from their past releases. Come to think of it, trying out new approaches to songs have been a hallmark of the band. And they couldn’t be more different than in the faux-rap and trap beat inflected original song “Kahon,” the dance pop flavored “Still Standing,” and “Teka Muna.”

Then there’s the poignant and yearning piano ballad called “Kuya.” A song that seem to embody the underlying themes of hope and inspiration of all previous songs. As The Juans themselves said: “Lahat tayo kailangan ng liwanag; Liwanag na gumagagabay, Liwanag na nagbibigay buhay; Ang liwanag na nagpapalinaw sa mga bagay na hindi natin maintidihan at Liwanag na tutunaw sa mga kasinungalingan niyayakap natin sa kadiliman.”

Previously released fan-fave singles “Anghel”, “Dulo” and “Sabik” are also included complete this career landmark album.   

The Juans also shared that supporters of their group together with SB19 should watch out for their collaboration in the future because they are still on the process of planning and creating the perfect song and more about this massive collab. 

The group narrated that it wasn't easy creating the whole album from scratch especially in time of the pandemic but this made their group even more closer and tougher because they know that they have a long way to go and at the same time, they managed to be more resourceful, collaborative with each other, creative and experimental. It was also evident that most of their fan base are from the youth and it is a big challenge for them to be the perfect role model for each of their supporters but as much as possible they want to be the source of their hope and inspiration through their songs and they want to be as natural as possible, not hiding anything from the closet and focusing their passion on their craft and love of music. 

On the eve of the album release, The Juans and Viva Records have elaborately prepared a series of activities to the lead up when the songs will finally be available for listening on the streaming platforms.

After the Press Conference at Botejyu Fishermall Branch, the group went straight to an exclusive interview at The Wishbus followed by their 'Advance Listening Party' and Theatrical premiere of the lyric videos of all the songs included on the album of which a red carpet preceded featuring The Juans, movie actors and their fellow hit music acts. 

All lyric videos are available on The Juans’ YouTube channel. You can also listen to the tracks on Spotify.