After a spate of successes that brought them into fame, 6cyclemind has clearly emerged as one of the busiest bands in the country. From radio hits (“Biglaan,” “Pa Ba,” “Sige,” “Sandalan,” “I,” “Trip,” “Umaasa”) to well-received albums (“Permission to Shine” and “Panorama” which is certified), from successful gigs to product endorsements, the band easily caught the attention of fans and earned the respect of their peers and critics.

Despite of these, the band does not rest their laurels musically. With their latest record aptly titled “Home,” members Ney Dimaculangan (vocals), Rye Sarmiento (rhythm guitars), Chuck Isidro (lead guitars), Bob Canamo (bass) and Tutti Caringal (drums) goes back to the sound that they grew up with. This time, they dish out remakes of songs from different genres and eras – interpretations of which varies from the very laid-back acoustic, to bossa-nova.

“We wanted to take on songs which were not written by us, add our own character, thus making them, in a way, ours. It’s a different approach and we found it enriching. It’s a totally new experience for the band,” Chuck said

These are songs that became part of their lives and some are personal favorites through the years. These include “Prinsesa” originally by the 90’s band Teeth, “In Between Days” by The Cure, Two Minds Crack’s “Upside Down”, “Across The Universe” by the Beatles, and the title track “Home” by Michael Bublè.

“We grew up with them and these are also the songs we listen to after a gig in the car on our way home—just light,” Bob said.

“Likewise, these are the ones you would usually hear at home particularly in your parents’ record collection and we liked it,” Ney said.

“Home” is not the usual 6cyclemind sound. The album as a whole has a very “unplugged” and relaxed feel. It is the 6cyclemind as you’ve never heard before.

“It’s fun and therapeutic to change things a bit from time to time; by exploring uncharted territories, we keep things interesting,” Chuck said. “After playing live gigs which are quite energetic, we had a chance to go into the studio and “decompress” and record this album.”

“But it doesn’t mean, we are completely changing our music,” Rye added.

As on how this album came about, a lot can be attributed to their sophomore outing “Panorama”—their most successful to date. The band was at its busiest juggling the promotions, shows and at the same time recording tracks for the next album. But they were able to pull it off.

“Despite the busy schedules, recording the album was a breeze. Sleeping was the only problem. The only challenge for us is if we could do justice to the songs we covered,” Ney said.

This time, the band collaborated with former Barbie’s Cradle drummer Wendell Garcia who co-produced the album and jazz artist Isha who did the keyboards for the very special track “Be My Number Two.”

As described by manager and sixth member Darwin Hernandez (thus the 6 in 6cyclemind), “It's not just music .. it's our HOME.”

“Home” is now out in CDs nationwide under Sony BMG Music Entertainment. For more information on 6cyclemind, log on to www.sonybmg.com.ph.