Volume One
1. This Is Where Your Taxes Go! (EVAT Version)
2. Hell Hath No Fury (Like A Taxpayer Scorned)
3. Tax It (Buwis It)
4. Taxman (IRS Mix)
1. This Is Where Your Taxes Go! (Salary Deduction Edit)
2. Hell Hath No Fury (Like A Taxpayer Scorned) (System Loss Mix)
3. Tax It (Surcharge Mix)
4. Taxman (BIR Mix)
Max: words & lead vocals on 2, 5, and spoken word on 1, 3
Bong: words & lead vocals on 1, 4. guitar-synth, samples, synth/ drum programming.
Words and music on track 4 by George Harrison/ The Beatles
Produced by The Dissidents
Arranged, mixed, and mastered by The Roadside Bums for StickySweetSounds.
Max Cordero appears courtesy of Hardwater
Bong Tan appears courtesy of FoodShelterAndClothing
Cover photography by Pablo Reyes
NO Artificial Intelligence technology was used during the making of this record.
P & C SSS Records 2026
NOTES:
This Is Where Your Taxes Go!
This actually was the second song written for this project. But we reckon it’s better suited as a lead-off track, it being an up-tempo noisefest. Clearly inspired by some of my favorite 90’s electronic, and rock genres (Big Beat, Jungle, Industrial, Grebo, and some oldskool 70’s punk rock, and 80’s hardcore). By the way, for the young ones reading this, the title was lifted from signages’ posted on various government infrastructure projects, which were a common sight back in the day. This was the track that made me asked Max to contribute his first of two, signature spoken word bits, which harkens back to our time when I produced his Promised Land EP as Hardwater. This indeed, was a full circle moment in our musical partnership. (Bong)
Hell Hath No Fury Like A Taxpayer Scorned
Bong sent me the first instrumental mix and I was pleasantly surprised that it’s a ballad. I listened to the music a few times and I thought of writing new words for this one. Our previous releases had lyrics that were written from 3 – 5 year back tbh.
And so I wrote. About our move back to Manila after living in Bacolod for 20 years and the feelings of both familiarity and strangeness. Of past wrongs and glories.
And the floods and the ghost projects. It’s inescapable. The silent fear when one hears the sound of a heavy downpour. We used to live in more carefree times. Not anymore.
In my mind, people should be angrier about this whole mess. But we’re not. So the song is a fantasy of sorts, some form of wishful thinking that people will wake up (again) one day and overthrow the government.
Because in reality, the psychopaths in power are married to their greed and happily so.
If I may offer a solution: a dying to our own greed. A kind of seppuku if you may, multiplied by a thousand. And maybe, just maybe, the ripples of this selfless act will reach the heart and ears of the one who can bestow mercy upon us all. (Max)
This is the song that initially sparked the idea to turn this into a concept of sorts. This was intended to be another one-off single, but I decided to turn it into a mini protest, with a coupla’ tracks running a united idea. The music was inspired by 90’s US alt-rock slow jams, but infused with UK trip hop, and Peter Gabriel circa Us (his 90’s album) polyrhythms. The musical running theme to this project (besides the goddamn Taxes) is the prominent use of guitars, peppered throughout the whole EP. Yes, less synthesizers, more guitars, but still using synthesizers, and samples, to produce said guitar sounds. I reckon, we continue the path we took on our previous single, I.M.E., which was also a guitar-oriented affair.
Fun fact: Max and I never recorded “together” at the same time. Yes, The Dissidents were never in the same room since our debut project. We just email our parts COVID era style. I just put everything together like Dr. Frankenstein. Ah, that’s why I have a love-hate relationship with technology. I’m thankful that we can do something like this despite the distance, but I also know that we could do more shit if we we’re actually in the same space. First world problems! (Bong)
Tax It (Buwis It)
i just thought it’s cool to mix bits of The Who, with late 70’s new wave)
Bong
Taxman
C’mon now, you can’t have a taxes project without Taxman! Casual fans don’t even know that George wrote it. We’re rectifying that now! There’s even Indian instrumentation, and raw 60’s guitar leads to complete the homage.
Bong
Max Acknowledgements
“I would like to thank Joed, Banqs, Pipo, Mark, Jonks, Joven, Dyps, Dennis, Archie, Allen, JD, Clauds, and the rest of the SCOBOMs and FFB, Fr. Gil, m4riw4r4, Jeremiah, Rocky, Harold, Temujin, Joe Jam Xcape, Mon Lamigo, Roy & Jendy, Butchoy, Che & Chynna, AKLAS, Jedd, Jase, Oppressor and the BCHC crew, Purple Phase, Kenneth, Morris, Erin, Emalie, Rachel, and the PLACE Design Team Goonies, Jojo, Filben, Lublub (RIP!), Beng, Russ, Tanya, Jayson and the rest of MECO Batch ’99, CCF, Nanay, Tatay, Cordero and Aquio fam, Goldeast the UnNeutered, my loves and inspiration: Josephine, Kiej, Qanil, and God Almighty.”
Bong
Huge thanks to Paul Reyes for lending us his excellent photos, FoodShelterAndClothing, all my music heroes. And i’d like to dedicate this work to my doggo Panda whom i lost recently. Run free baby girl.
