Sunday, November 30, 2008

~Rationalizing~

Their concert begins in 45 minutes. I can run down to Pragati Maidan right now. I have enough cash to last a few hours including transportation. I have the Passes aaaaaaaaaaand theres no one at home. But I won't go. I have no clue why.

My only consolation right now is a few old tapes, and my Social Science textobooks, and a cup of very bad coffee.

--Jethro Tull with Anoushka Shankar--- i hate the system--

My dad took out V.I.P Passes for their concert tomorrow. AND THEN TOLD ME HE HAD THEM ALL ALONG BUT DIDN'T MENTION THEM BECAUSE OF MY EXAMS STARTING THE DAY AFTER, because it would apparently "distract me". I cannot study any longer. He should've told me about them after 2 weeks or something. Needless to say I'm fuming.

Being at Hamshadhwani tomorrow will be more useful than studying very interesting things about crop patterns,The Rural economy, or what chappals Gandhi wore 80 years back. Two reasons-
1.) Its a blend of different musical cultures. Something like this i could have never imagined.
2.) Because its two B-I-G artistes performing, there will be Very good sound engineeers, And a very good mixing console. And i like being behind the mixing desks watching engineers' adjust the faders, tune the EQ, etc .etc .etc. They are the reasons artistes sound magical, and not just amazing. AND I GET TIPS FROM THEM.

And now i will be giving my papers while thinking of what it would have been like.
I wish the folks who expect to see good grades on my card a whole lot of luck.
They seriously need it.

Thursday, November 27, 2008

!~Priority~!

I just got my hands on Niladri Kumar's album. Its simply amazing.My friends say i'm obsessed. I say they are the ones ignorant. No review for now.


Now playing: Priority(whole album) by Niladri Kumar

Saturday, November 22, 2008

~Gods of Metal~


I'm just plain weird.( haha like you didn't know =P )
Especially when it comes to genres of music.
Last night i was all totally lost in Indian Ocean's "Kandisa"( A band that my friends didn't no existed until the track "Bandeh" came about), Heck, I even added Rahul Ram on facebook(he hasn't accepted the request as of now >:( )

And today I got up with Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" playing very loudly in my head(weird, cause i haven't heard that song since.........uhm well..... last week)
And now--------------- IRON MAIDEN. There is just something about them that is hellishly heaven like. I heard my first Maiden song at the age of 10... i think. This was the year 2002. The song was "The wicker man" . And I've been listening to them since.

I just wish i tried to play their songs at that time......even if it was on a run down , low end acoustic guitar.And now 4 years after the 'initiation' into Electric Guitars, power chords and licks incorporating a lot of "wah-wah" and beer :D , i still can't play their solos :'(
well..their complete solos to be specific.

And you know what happens to me when i listen to to much of Iron Maiden??? I get into the "I haven't seen them live" sulk mode. *sigh*
I can't forgive myself for not running to Bangalore 2 years back for their "A matter of life and death" tour. I missed their gig in Mumbai a year later.And now thanks to the education system again, I will miss them playing their final gig for their "Somewhere Back In Time" tour again. (ITS ALWAYS THE FUCKING SYSTEM I TELL YOU!!!!!!!!) Education in this land is counter-productive...something that I'd love to tell you about.

Contrary to popular belief, I AM the sort of fan who would start crying at their concert. And I'm actually proud to admit it :S

There is something magical about them. its their compositions, and their tone that is so.........unique. You know from the clangy galloping bass lines , that its Steve Harris playing with his ROTO SOUND flat wound strings. You know from the energy of the vocals that its Bruce. And don't get me started on Smith 's and Ger's Guitars and Nicko's Drums :)

Now all i need is a decent amount of cash, and a plan to sneak out to Bangalore a month before my .........shh......."BOARD EXAMS". however , my friends worry that I'll kill myself for missing them live ---Unlike the others who kill themselves for not getting above 90.And you know the scary part? I feel my friends concern is justified :

Now playing : My downloaded Iron Maiden collection. Except the Album - "A matter of life and death", which i bought two days after it hit the stores and prize as much as my Issues of The Rolling Stone magazine (which i put back into their plastic seals after I've read a part of them).

Thursday, November 13, 2008

The A to the Zitar of Contemporary.


The "Zitar" is not the electric Sitar. "Don't call it an electric sitar; you'll disrespect what is a 300 year old science perfected by guys who figured out the supreme art of playing" says it's creator Niladri Kumar,who loves his pair of union jack socks and has also designed the "T-shirt Kurta" which according to him is "More comfortable to play in than silk, and fits in beautifully" .

Now, My knowledge of Indian classical music is limited to playing the tabla, live concerts where most people are dozing off and playing around with The Taanpura and Sitar downstairs. I have tried a number of alternative tunings on the guitar, which played the right way often churns out something amazing, provided my distortion levels and the reverb are set right not to mention the "High Med and Low and FDD"..... (you get the point)

The Zitar looks like a toy version of the woman's Sitar(Yes they come in different sizes). Its loaded with a Seymour Duncan Double humbucking Electric Guitar pickup, Run through a Boss GT6 or a Line6 Pod XT live Digital guitar effects processor. The tones generated are unique,abstract, strange and beautiful. The 5 stringed instrument has a steel Gauge 3 string for the first, and unwound Brass string for the second, a second steel Gauge 3 for the third, a gauge 1 on the fourth and fifth strings all which (i assume) are tuned to the natural scale and its played in the usual sitar position. Perfect Fusion."Z is the last letter of the alphabet, right? Well, A Sitar can't get any smaller or any louder than this" and I Believe him.

His latest album Priority is something for which my fingers have a terrible itch to get hold on. A video for the track "Priority" is being aired on Vh1 and hopefully elsewhere as well. He seems to be playing the Zitar like a fusion artist would shred on the guitar. But what makes him different is unlike the others, he has finally come up with something that's normally alien (from a 16 year old's point of view) to Indian classical strings, something that's.........cool.

And he is the one who got me to start fiddling around with a real Sitar(much to my family's dismay, who would rather have me doing trigonometry among other exciting things)

Definitely someone to watch out for.



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Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Hello again!

Hellooooo again!
I haven't posted in like ages...........and thats an understatement.
Blame it on my inability to figure out that the blog and the account registered both have the same password, or the beer. :D :D :D

Now playing : Going Wrong(extended mix) - Armin Van Buuren!