Clicks, Mugs And Rock 'n' Roll

This Day in Music, October 17

2008-10-17T18:35:00.000+05:30

October 17, 1972

Chuck Berry's "My Ding-a-Ling" reaches Number One on Billboard's Pop Charts. It remains his only Number One song.

Btw, some interesting bit of trivia that I came across on Wikipedia. This live version - which is the one that topped the charts - was recorded during at the Lanchester Arts Festival in Coventry, England on February 3, 1972. Apparently, after Chuck Berry did this song, the audience refused to leave the ballroom where it was happening - they absolutely wanted an encore. What this meant was that the next concert scheduled there for the same evening, started some two hours late. And the band playing at this next concert? One called Pink Floyd.

Motherjane - Fields of Sound

2008-10-15T22:47:00.000+05:30

Now, this is what we call truly Indian rock! Ladies and gentlemen, presenting Motherjane, one of the best Indian bands around. They have just released their second album, Maktub. This, here, is a track from that. One of my favourite tracks on the album.

Joe Satriani - Professor Satchafunkilus and the Musterion of Rock

2008-10-15T19:44:00.004+05:30

Joe Satriani

Professor Satchafunkilus and the Musterion of Rock

*** and a half

Sony BMG

In 1987, Joe Satriani’s sophomore effort, Surfing With The Alien broke into the Billboard Top 40, a place no instrumental album had gone so boldly before. Now, over twenty years later - and after having made instrumental guitar albums a lot less niche in the meanwhile – Satch has released his 12^th studio album. Professor Satchfunkilus and the Musterion of Rock might be quite a mouthful when it comes to the name, but it’s an album that’s quite accessible to most fans of this genre of music. And that’s where the ‘problem’ might lie – many of the tracks on Professor Satchfunkilus… might sound like stuff you have heard on his earlier albums; which is not necessarily a bad thing. Just that one has come to expect the unexpected from Satch.

So "Musterion," and "Overdriver" - both out and out rockers and brilliant ones at that - sound like tracks that could have found place on 1989’s Flying in a Blue Dream or 1992’s The Extremist. "I Just Wanna Rock" is the quintessential stadium rocker, designed for the crowd to chant along with. But hey Joe, you already used that device in the rather unimaginatively-titled "Crowd Chant" from 2006’s Super Colossal.

But give this CD a few spins and you will discover some absolute beauties on the album that will justify your putting hard-earned cash on the table. "Professor Satchafunkilus" that kicks off with a fluttering saxophone part by Satriani’s son ZZ, has a nice and funky groove to it. "Diddle-Y-A-Doo-Dat" is a quirky number that instantly reminds you of Satch’s once-student and now-friend, Steve Vai. Then there is the regulation ballad, "Come On Baby," a paean of love for his wife Rubina. Despite the cheesy name, this is one helluva melody. As is "Out of the Sunrise" with its soaring guitarlines. The best one of the lot, though, would have to be "Andalusia." It starts off with an acoustic six-string and hand claps. But as you go on to discover soon enough, the deceptive acoustic passage is tantalisingly short – just after the timer hits 2 minutes, Satch slips into a barrage of electric notes on his Ibanez. "Andalusia" – one of the two tracks dedicated to Turkish saz player, Asik Veysel – is unique in that it’s not very often that Satriani picks up an acoustic guitar. In fact, I don’t remember the last time he did that on an album.

So what’s the verdict on the album? There should be no question about whether you really need to pick it up. You should. But lower your expectations just that wee bit. For just this once, hopefully.

Skinny Alley - Songs From The Moony Boom

2008-10-15T19:34:00.000+05:30

Skinny Alley

Songs From the Moony Boom

*** and a half

Counter Culture Records

Four years after the debut album, Escape the Roar, Kolkata-based Skinny Alley have released this second offering. At first listen, Songs From the Moony Boom might not have the kind of instant connect the first album did – perhaps because of the breathlessly frantic rhythm section in most of the songs. But give it a fair listen, and rest assured it will grow on you. The band’s collective jazz and funk influences show through clearly in this album – be it the extended jam in “Swunk,” or the chiming rhythm guitar in “Go Figure.” The latter has gentle funk morphing into dirty riffing and back, effortlessly. On “Shape Your Life,” Amyt Dutta shows us why he is on our list of best Indian guitarists.

This Day In Music, October 14

2008-10-14T22:13:00.000+05:30

October 14, 1957
"Wake Up Little Susie" by the Everly Brothers tops the charts and stays on for 4 weeks.

TAAQ - This Is It

2008-09-25T18:02:00.000+05:30

Thermal and a Quarter

This is It

****

TAAQ Music

Thermal and a Quarter have, in 11-plus years, built up a formidable reputation of being a fantastic live band. So it’s slightly unnerving when the title track – and the first song – on This is It, hints at goodbyes to live shows (“Look into those front row eyes/Make your little goodbyes”). But that doesn’t stop the entire album from sounding all nice and happy, TAAQ-style. The intricately-layered sound, while not radically different from their past albums - especially 2004’s Plan B – captures the energy of their live shows very well. The troika of Bruce Lee Mani, Rzhude David and Rajeev Rajagopal keeps the proceedings very tight. Highlights of the album are the groovy “Holy Jose” (the bouncy bassline will have you moving in no time); “How Can I Get Your Groove” (with a superb lead constructed of notes rolling off the fretboard) and “This is It”. Don’t let the monstrous roach on the front stop you from reaching out for this great album.

Michael Jackson - Thriller 25th Anniversary Edition

2008-09-25T17:54:00.002+05:30

Michael Jackson

Thriller 25^th Anniversary Edition

Original disc: *****

Bonus tracks: * and half

Sony BMG

A long long time ago, a pop singer named Michael Jackson brought out a music album called Thriller. Little would he have imagined that it would turn out to be the landmark disc that it became. Hundreds of thousands of young kids and not-so-young adults all over the world would put on their white socks, turn up their trouser cuffs and try out the ‘moonwalk’ from his Motown performance of “Billie Jean.” (Yes, you did, too. Admit it.) The dance moves from the “Thriller” video would go on to ripped off and then ripped to pieces by everyone from Mithun (in a B-grade movie, the name of which escapes recall, thankfully) to Madhuri (in her 2007 comeback, Aaja Nachle). The album would waltz off with a record-breaking seven Grammy Awards in 1984. (Jackson himself got eight trophies that night, including one for the E.T. Storybook).

This 25^th anniversary edition of Thriller underlines why it went on to become the best-selling album of all time. And it shows why it should not be messed with: the package includes newer versions of five tracks, as interpreted by some current artists. The original “Beat It,” - despite its slightly cheesy synthesised drumlines and assorted ‘uunhs’ and ‘trrrrrs’ – had pocketed a Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Performance in 1984. The Van Halen solo helped, perhaps. Unfortunately, in the 2008 version, singer Fergie in her earnest attempt to get some of that original street-gang aggression ends up sounding, well, constipated. “The Girl is Mine 2008” knocks out Paul McCartney and brings in Will.i.am instead. While the original was slightly laidback, Will.i.am turns up the r.p.m. and adds some funky beats and drum loops, basically make it a bit more danceable. But his experiment with “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)” falls flat. Jackson had laid down an extremely groovy rhythm, one that was guaranteed to make you move. Will.i.am on the other hand morphs it into something eminently forgettable, bearing little resemblance to the original other than the occasional vocal snatches. Akon is one of the current crop who actually does something good with his mandate, on “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ 2008.” He does this by starting off the song as a nice, piano ballad that revs up into full ‘will-have-you-moving’ mode with that original bassline thumping down below. And he hasn’t forgotten the ‘mama-se, mama-sa’ loop. (Trivia time: Jackson was sued by African musician Manu Dibango for flicking that very loop from his 1972 single “Soul Makossa.” They settled out of court later.) This leaves us with “Billie Jean 2008,” rapper Kanye West’s attempt to recreate the original magic. Boo! Go south, West! All those drums and ‘unh-hunhs’ seem unnecessary and pointless – what exactly is he trying here?

So why should you buy this album? More than a few reasons. One, there is the imaginative Thriller, in all its original glory. Clichéd and hagiographic as this next sentence might appear, this is seriously one album that is timeless. This is ‘classic pop,’ ‘classic disco,’ ‘classic call-it-what-you-may.’ From the foot-tapping, hand-clapping groove of “Baby Be Mine” and “P.Y.T.” to the lilting vocals on “Human Nature” and “The Lady in My Life,” each of the original nine tracks is a splendid treat. In fact, seven of these nine would go on to feature in the Top 10 of Billboard’s Hot 100.

Reason two is the accompanying DVD. The stripped down live video for “Billie Jean,” – a Motown anniversary performance – while it looks lip-synced to, has Jackson at his dancing best. He requires no more than a single spotlight – no flashing lights, no pyrotechnics, nothing – to deliver a scintillating performance. And the DVD’s got the videos for “Billie Jean,” “Beat It” and “Thriller”. Yes, the same ones you used to wait for endlessly when music television had just arrived in the country.

Is it worth your money? Yes, actually. You get the videos and for completionists who wish to round off their Jackson collection, there is also “For All Time,” a ballad that was left over from the Thriller sessions, but was rather wisely left out from the album. Thankfully, the new versions which you are advised to avoid are all bunched up together at the end of the first disc. So the moment Vincent Price’s maniacal laughter track ends, just go back to the very beginning.

Avial - Avial

2008-09-25T17:45:00.001+05:30

Avial

Avial

****

Phat Phish

Music transcends language, they say. And concrete evidence for this aphorism lies in Avial’s self-titled debut. For those not in the know, Avial is a five-piece band from Kerala that takes Malayalam folk songs and literary pieces and puts it to music. They first burst onto the scene in 2006 with a video for “Nada Nada” (the first song on this album) that quickly got circulated extensively online thanks to YouTube – at last count, the super-slick video had 56,000+ views. It didn’t seem to matter that singer Anand Raj Benjamin Paul was rendering his raw vocals in chaste Malayalam. What really mattered was the sheer energy of “Nada Nada,” delivered very ably by Rex Vijayan (ex-Motherjane) on guitars, Mithun Puthanveetil on drums, Tony John on turntables and synth and Naresh Kamath (ex-Bombay Black, Kailasa) on bass.

And it is this very energy that pervades the entire album. Despite the ‘alternative rock’ tag the band chooses for its music, this is good ol’ rock – complete with searing vocals and crunchy guitars. Hear, for instance, the guitars in “Njan Aara”: gentle arpeggios alternated with wickedly heavy distortion. Or the stadium rock chants in the chorus of “Aranda”. Of the eight tracks on this album, you would be hard-pressed to come up with a single weak one. Avial is very easily one of the best rock albums to come out from an Indian band lately.

Zero's farewell gig

2008-09-01T18:38:00.000+05:30

So, Zero, one of the most popular Bombay bands ever, disbanded last weekend. Their headlining appearance Independence Rock XXIII was their farewell gig. They will be missed.

Megadeth at Rock in India

2008-07-28T12:46:00.000+05:30

Machine Head at Rock in India

2008-07-28T12:01:00.000+05:30

Junkyard Groove at Rock in India

2008-07-28T11:58:00.000+05:30

Prestorika at Rock in India

2008-07-28T11:35:00.000+05:30

2x2

2008-07-28T11:21:00.000+05:30

Scorpions, Humanity Tour, Mumbai, Dec 14, 2007

2007-12-15T16:01:00.000+05:30

Teddy Boy Kill

2007-12-05T12:09:00.000+05:30

Parikrama

2007-06-28T19:12:00.000+05:30

Parikrama, at their 'Download Set' gig at Delhi. This was on the eve of their departure to England, where there were scheduled to play at the Download Festival.

2007-04-13T14:01:00.000+05:30

A few pictures from TAAQ's gig at St Stephen's College, New Delhi on February 12. Incidentally, this was Nate's last gig with the band before he flew back to London.

Also, an interesting addition to their setlist was a cover of Floyd's Shine On...

The band has been kind enough to put up some of my pictures from this gig on their website. Here.

And some pictures from an earlier gig, here.

Danke!!

Hugh Syme

2007-04-13T13:52:00.000+05:30

I just discovered who the designer of some of my favourite album covers has been. Hugh Syme is the name. Click here to see his work.

Came by...

2007-04-05T14:51:00.000+05:30

...to say hi to this blog of mine. I have very unfairly been ignoring the poor thing lately. Not that things have not been happening on the music front. Lots have been. Most notable has been the Iron Maiden concert. (It was kickass.) I also discovered while browsing through my archives that I do have a stash of Thermal And A Quarter pics, and some Lou Majaw ones as well.

The excuse for not posting here? Sheer laziness. And the fact that it is a bit of a pain getting layouts to look just the way I want, especially when text AND photos are involved.

But hey, I have been updating my other blogs, here and here.

Legal highs...

2007-02-21T17:15:00.000+05:30

With plagiarism seemingly being the flavour of the week or month or year or whatever, I think I should make it amply clear that this next post of mine has definitely been inspired :D It's a list, the idea of doing which came to my mind when I was reading this blog here. As you will notice, a lot of those 'to-do' things are concerts. And I thought, 'Hey, why not make a list of all the concerts I've been to?' Or at least the really big ones. So here it is ladies and gentlemen, (drrrrrrum rolls) a list of the concerts that I have really got high on, with absolutely no help from any sort of 'substances' ;)

Some of them, as you will see, have personnel listings and set lists, some don't. As much as I hate it myself, this is all that I could dig up from my records. Though I do know for a fact that I have the Joe Satriani set list somewhere. I guess that will have to come as an update sometime in the future.

Btw, Skeeedamnbee, I still envy you for the list of concerts YOU have attended. ;)

Roger Waters / In The Flesh Tour / April 13, 2002 / Bangalore
Roger Waters (vocals, bass, guitars)
Andy Fairweather Low (guitars, vocal)
Snowy White (guitars)
Chester Kamen (guitars, vocals)
Harry Waters (keyboards)
Andy Wallace (keyboards)
Graham Broad (drums)
Norbert Stachel (saxophone)
Katie Kissoon (vocals)
PP Arnold (vocals)
Linda Lewis (vocals)

Setlist
01. In The Flesh
02. The Happiest Days Of Our Lives
03. Another Brick In The Wall Part II
04. Mother
05. Get Your Filthy Hand Off My Desert
06. Southampton Dock
07. Pigs On The Wing Part I
08. Dogs
09. Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts I-V
10. Welcome To The Machine
11. Wish You Were Here
12. Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts VI-VII
13. Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun
14. Breathe
15. Time
16. Money
17. 5:06 AM (Every Stranger's Eyes)
18. Perfect Sense Part I
19. Perfect Sense Part II
20. The Bravery Of Being Out Of Range
21. It's A Miracle
22. Amused To Death
23. Brain Damage
24. Eclipse
--Encore--
25. Comfortably Numb
26. Flickering Flame

Deep Purple / May 3, 2002 / Bombay
Ian Gillan (vocals)
Ian Paice (drums)
Roger Glover (bass)
Steve Morse (guitars)
Don Airey (keyboards)

Setlist
01. Woman From Tokyo
02. Ted The Mechanic
03. Mary Long
04. Lazy
05. The Aviator
06. No One Came
07. Well Dressed Guitar
08. Fools
09. Perfect Strangers
10. When A Blind Man Cries
11. Smoke On The Water
12. Hush
13. Black Night
14. Highway Star

Indian Ocean / December 1, 2002 / Baroda
Rahul Ram (bass, vocals)
Susmit Sen (acoustic guitar)
Asheem Chakravarty (tabla, percussions, vocals)
Amit Kilam (drums)

The Rolling Stones / Forty Licks Tour / April 7, 2003 / Mumbai
Mick Jagger (vocals)
Keith Richards (guitars, vocals)
Ron Wood (guitars, vocals)
Charlie Watts (drums)

Setlist
01. Brown Sugar
02. It's Only Rock 'n' Roll
03. Start Me Up
04. Don't Stop
05. All Down the Line
06. Angie
07. You Can't Always Get What You Want
08. Monkey Man
09. Miss You
10. Tumbling Dice
11. Slipping Away
12. Happy
13. Sympathy For The Devil
14. Midnight Rambler
15. Gimme Shelter
16. You Got Me Rocking
17. Honky Tonk Women
18. Street Fighting Man
19. Satisfaction
--Encore--
20. Jumping Jack Flash

Jethro Tull / January 31, 2004 / Mumbai
Ian Anderson (flute, vocals)
Martin Barre (guitars)
Andrew Giddings (keyboards)
Jonathan Noyce (bass)
Doane Perry (drums)

Setlist
01. Living In The Past
02. Nothing Is Easy
03. Bombay Valentine (In The Times of India)
04. Thick As A Brick
05. Bourée
06. Songs From The Wood/Too Old To Rock ‘N’ Roll.../Heavy Horses
07. Budapest
08. Aqualung
09. Locomotive Breath
10. Cheerio

Indian Ocean / January 18, 2005 / Mumbai
Rahul Ram (bass, vocals)
Susmit Sen (acoustic guitar)
Asheem Chakravarty (tabla, percussions, vocals)
Amit Kilam (drums)

Mark Knopfler / Shangri-La Tour / March 5, 2005 / Mumbai
Mark Knopfler (guitars, vocals)
Guy Fletcher (keyboards)
Richard Bennett (guitars)
Chad Cromwell (drums)
Matt Rollings (piano, B-3 organ)
Glenn Worf (bass, double bass)

Setlist
01. Why Aye Man
02. Walk of Life
03. What It Is
04. Sailing To Philadelphia
05. The Trawlerman's Song
06. Romeo & Juliet
07. Sultans Of Swing
08. Done With Bonaparte
09. Song For Sonny Liston
10. Donegan's Gone
11. Baloney Again
12. Speedway At Nazareth
13. Boom, Like That
14. Telegraph Road
15. Brothers In Arms
16. Money For Nothing
17. So Far Away
18. Going Home

Joe Satriani/ Is There Love In Space? Tour / May 13, 2005 / Mumbai
Joe Satriani (guitars, vocals)
Jeff Campitelli (drums)
Matt Bissonette (bass)
Galen Henson (guitars)

Setlist
01. Up In The Sky
02. House Full Of Bullets
03. Cool #9
04. Satch Boogie
05. Time
06. Lords Of Karma
07. Surfing With The Alien
08. Always
09. Ice 9
10. Summer Song
11. Starry Night
12. Moroccan Sunset
13. Bamboo
14. Strange
15. Searching
16. Train Of Angels
17. Psycho Monkey
18. Is There Love In Space?
19. War
20. Flying In A Blue Dream
--Encore--
21. Going Down
22. Hands In The Air
23. Friends

Jean-Luc Ponty / Dubai International Jazz Festival / March 10, 2006 / Dubai
Jean-Luc Ponty (violins)
William Lecomte (keyboards)
Guy Akwa Nsangué (bass)
Thierry Arpino (drums)
Moustapha Cissé (percussion)

Roger Hodgson / Dubai International Jazz Festival / March 10, 2006 / Dubai

Bryan Adams / Room Service Tour / March 14, 2005 / Dubai
Bryan Adams (vocals, guitars)
Keith Scott (vocals, guitars)
?? (bass)
Mickey Curry (drums)

Testament / Dubai Desert Rock Festival / March 16, 2006 / Dubai
Chuck Billy (vocals)
Alex Skolnick (guitars)
Eric Peterson (guitars)
Greg Christian (bass)
John Tempesta (drums)

Reel Big Fish / Dubai Desert Rock Festival / March 16, 2006 / Dubai
Aaron Barrett (vocals, guitars)
Dan Regan (trombone)
John Christianson (trumpet)
Matt Wong (bass)
Ryland Steen (drums)

3 Doors Down / Dubai Desert Rock Festival / March 16, 2006 / Dubai
Brad Arnold (vocals)
Matt Roberts (guitars)
Todd Harrell (bass)
Chris Henderson (guitars)
Greg Upchurch (drums)

Megadeth / Dubai Desert Rock Festival / March 16, 2006 / Dubai
Dave Mustaine (vocals, guitars)
Glen Drover (guitars)
James LoMenzo (bass)
Shawn Drover (drums)

Setlist
01. Blackmail The Universe
02. Skin O’ My Teeth
03. The Scorpion
04. Wake Up Dead
05. In My Darkest Hour
06. Die Dead Enough
07. She-Wolf
08. Reckoning Day
09. A Tout Le Monde
10. Angry Again
11. Trust
12. Hangar 18
13. Sweating Bullets
14. Tornado Of Souls
15. Kick The Chair
16. Symphony Of Destruction
17. Peace Sells
--Encore--
18. Holy Wars

Robbie Williams / Intensive Care Tour / April 21, 2006 / Dubai

Setlist
01. Radio
02. Rock DJ
03. Tripping
04. Monsoon
05. Sin Sin Sin
06. Trouble
07. Millennium
08. Back For Good
09. Advertising Space
10. Kids
11. Ghosts
12. Come Undone
13. Pure
14. Feel
--Encore--
15. Let Me Entertain You
16. Strong
17. Hello Sir (actually a poem he recited)
18. Angels

Status Quo / SQ40 Tour / May 17, 2006 / Dubai
Rick Parfitt (guitars, vocals)
Francis Rossi (guitars, vocals)
Andrew Bown (keyboards, guitars, vocals, harmonica)
John Rhino Edwards (bass, vocals, guitar)
Matt Letley (drums)

Setlist
01. Rock 'n' Roll
02. Something About You Baby I Like
03. 4500 Times
04. ???
05. ???
06. All Stand Up (Never Say Never)
07. The Oriental
08. Creepin' Up On You
09. Most Of The Time
10. Gerdundula
11. Down Down
12. Whatever You Want
13. Rockin' All Over The World
--Encore--
21. Junior's Wailing
22. Rock 'n' Roll Music
23. Johnny B Goode

Indian Ocean / November 18, 2006 / New Delhi
Rahul Ram (bass, vocals)
Susmit Sen (acoustic guitar)
Asheem Chakravarty (tabla, percussions, vocals)
Amit Kilam (drums)

Buddy Guy/ One Tree Music Festival / February 1, 2007 / New Delhi

Setlist
01. Going Down (??)
02. I Just Wanna Make Love To You
03. I've Got Dreams To Remember
04. Hoochie Coochie Man
05. Love Her With A Feeling
06. Nobody Understands Me But My Guitar
07. Rock Me Baby
08. Five Long Years
09. Going Down To Louisiana
10. Close To You
11. Boom Boom Boom
12. Strange Brew
13. Someone Else Is Steppin' In (Slippin' Out, Slippin' In)
14. Drowning On Dry Land
15. Damn Right, I've Got The Blues
16. (You Give Me) Fever
17. Got My Mojo Working
18. Feels Like Rain
19. Voodoo Chile

The obligatory year-end post

2007-01-22T19:18:00.000+05:30

I can never use the word 'obligatory' without the phrase 'obligatory Hendrix perm' popping into my head. Hmm... And btw, this was a list I typed out and even saved a draft for, before the New Year's came in. But then, yes, you guessed right, procrastination kicked in. And the fact that I am not good with formatting posts with pictures, didn't help either.

This post was triggered off by a mail on an online music forum that I'm part of. One that asked us members, so unfairly, to list out ten favourite albums of 2006 and, horror of horrors, ten favourite songs!!

I wouldn't want to even risk offending the music gods up above - so I will skip the favourite songs part. But hey, the fav albums are not too difficult. Well okay, it's kind of difficult, but not too much. Also, please don't send me anthrax-filled envelopes or explode-in-your-face emails (technology sure has advanced, you know), for not including your favourites. For instance, I believe Bob Dylan's Modern Times and the Who's Endless Wire are two fine albums. But unfortunately since I haven't heard them yet, I have to skip them.

I don't know if it's just me, or if 2006 really has been a fantastic year as far as music goes. What especially made it great for old fogeys like me was that there were a whole lot of 'old' bands coming out with kickass albums.

So anyway, without any further ado, here goes (drum rolls):

My ten favourite albums from year 2006!! (Mind you, these are in no particular order. I couldn't possibly subject my teensy-weensy collection of grey matter to that much stress.)

Iron Maiden - A Matter Of Life And Death
This has very rapidly grown to be one of my favourite Maiden albums of all time, I kid you not. I 'know' this album definitely more than I do Brave New World or Dance Of Death, and probably more than some classic albums like Powerslave. On first listen, there is the umistakable Maiden sound. Yet, there are very distinct prog elements peppering up this album. And I am not just talking about the length of the songs - most of them hover in the 9-10 minute range.

Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris - All The Roadrunning
Confession: I have never really heard enough of Emmylou Harris to call myself a fan of hers. So this album was, in a way, an introduction to Harris, for me. And what an introduction! Mark Knopfler, on the other hand, I've been a great fan of, for more than a few years. This album gets together two fantabulous voices, beautiful harmonies, nice guitaring.

Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam
The 8th studio album from the Seattle boys. It took me a while to get used to Binaural. And Riot Act? Let’s just say that I’m still trying to figure it out. Which is part of the reason why this eponymous album came across as fantastic! Somehow, soundwise, this seemed to hark back to their superduper debut, Ten. So what if that horrendous blue-and-yellow cover with a completely screwed-up font sucks.

Joe Satriani – Super Colossal
You know, there are some artists, albums by whom you can pick up blindly. And rarely would you be disappointed. Joe Satriani is one such guy, for me. There hasn’t been a single Satch album I’ve been disappointed with. My absolute favourite off this record would have to be Ten Words, something he apparently wrote on the night of 9/11. And then there is Crowd Chant, a readymade stadium rocker – listen to it, you will know what I mean.

Tom Petty – Highway Companion
Yet another confession: I haven’t heard too many Tom Petty albums. There is the Greatest Hits compilation and there is Wildflowers. That’s all. Yet, I just picked Highway Companion up on a whim. And whoa, it blew me away. Completely. Yes, the sound is essential Tom Petty – so some might feel nothing’s changed. But what does it for me are his lyrics and arrangements. Brillianto.

David Gilmour – On An Island
What do I say? As a guitarist friend of mine had once mentioned about Gilmour and his music, ‘You can get Gilmour’s guitar notes right, but you just can’t get his feel.’ And that is truly no exaggeration. Gilmour was one of the earliest reasons I fell in love with guitar-based rock, and this album just reinforces that.

G3 – Live In Tokyo
Some more guitarists :D This time, it’s Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and John Petrucci. I am kinda torn between this one and the first G3 album with Eric Johnson. The second one was good, but nowhere near the best, in my opinion. (Perhaps because of Malmsteen’s presence?) So Petrucci makes sure it’s is a killer this time around. How I wish I could see these three guys jam together... sigh… Till then, I guess I’ll just have to be content with spinning this CD.

JJ Cale and Eric Clapton – The Road To Escondido
No points for guessing that this is another guitar-based album. And as with the other collab album on this list, I haven’t heard too much by one of the artists – in this case, JJ Cale. I mean, yes, there is Cocaine and Tulsa Time and other stuff off his Greatest Hits compilation. But that’s about it. This is probably the last of my purchases on this list, so still taking it in, and it’s sure growing on me. (Also, as an aside, maybe I should do a post on collab albums.)

Audioslave – Revelations
I do know that a lot of people might disagree, but I think this is the best Audioslave album, better than the first one. I have, in the recent past, also rediscovered Chris Cornell and his godawesome vocals. He’s easily one of the best rock vocalists around, IMHO. And there is Tom Morello and his singing/squeaking/wailing guitar. Revelations has a lot more funk, a lot more spunk, when compared to their earlier albums.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium
Two CDs with 14 songs apiece. Whatever were they thinking? Just how did they ever imagine they could pull off a stunt like that? Come on, quality is bound to drop with quantity and all that jazz, right? Wrong. RHCP did pull it off. Even after repeated listenings, I haven't been able to find a single weak song on either CD. Heck, I have two copies of the album - they sound funktastic on both! (Okie, lame one, I am sorry :P)

Thermal And A Quarter

2006-12-08T16:02:00.000+05:30

November 25, 2006. The Yamaha Roxx concert at the Garden Of Five Senses. First three bands on were Radius, Level 9 and Them Clones, in that order. And then came the band that I had come to see - Thermal And A Quarter. If I had to pick two bands from the Indian scene today, one would be TAAQ and the other Zero.

Anyway, this was my second time seeing them in concert. The first time I heard them, main vocal duties were being handled by David, who wasn't there this time. So the main vocalist was Bruce Lee Mani. Needless to say, fantastic vocals, and mindblowingly fantastic guitaring.

Rzhude did main vocals on one song I hadn't heard before - Holy Jose. It's apparently from their first album. Great fun song. Another song they did from the first album was Humpty Dumpty. Unfortunately, their first album is not quite available anymore. According to Bruce, the recording quality is bad. But hey, it doesn't matter, does it? I think those songs deserve to go out to people, as also we fans deserve to hear them :D

If any of the TAAQ guys are reading this, We Want The First Album!! We Want The First Album!! Humaari maange poori karo!! :P

Set list
Wishing For Magic
Respectable
Drunk
Sanity In Gravity
Roxanne
Origami
Words And Pictures
Holy Jose
Look At Me
Bend The World
Humpty Dumpty
Hoedown

Why is Bruce Lee Mani screaming? Must be the cold. It was darn cold that night.

Ditto with Rajeev on drums.

Those are not flames in the background. Much to the band's disappointment?

Rzhude on bass and Bruce on guitars, in one particularly soulful moment.

Tony Das on guitars.

Isn't she a beauty? That's a Parker Fly!

Btw, I shared a few of these photographs with the band and they liked it enough to put it up on their website and their blog.

Them Clones

2006-12-04T19:00:00.000+05:30

November 25, 2006. Went for this concert at the Garden of Five Senses, here in New Delhi. This was my first time here - and I thought it was a fantastic open air concert venue. The actual amphitheatre itself might be slightly smallish, but doesn't matter. There were four bands playing - Radius, Level 9, Them Clones and Thermal And A Quarter.

A late day at work meant I could come in only towards the end of Level 9's set. So it wouldn't be fair on my part to comment on them. Them Clones, I am seeing in concert for the second or maybe the third time. And they have come across as a very tight outfit. Individually too, they seem to be really good musicians. I especially liked Prithwish's vocals. A really good voice he has. Compositions - while all the originals they played sounded very nice and all, none of them really managed to dig their way into my brain and refuse to leave, if you know what I mean.

More Indian Ocean

2006-11-30T20:35:00.000+05:30

Yes, I know I promised, well kinda promised, that I would be putting up pictures from the Indian Ocean concert up here sooner. But thanks to circumstances beyond my control (read: laziness), it didn't happen. Well, as they say, better late than never. And if it's any consolation, I did upload it on my Flickr page. (Ah, a neat way of plugging my Flickr page, don't you think? Though what purpose it will serve, I do not know.)

So anyway, without any further ado, may I present Indian Oceannnnnnnnn!!

Indian Ocean

2006-11-21T21:37:00.000+05:30

I went for this fantabulous Indian Ocean concert a few days back, here in Delhi. This was my third time seeing them live. And they seem to rock better and better each time. I will be posting some random pictures from the concert over the next few days. And by the time I am done with that, hopefully I will have some more pictures of India's other "most-rockingest-band", Thermal And A Quarter!!

Orange Street again

2006-11-02T15:47:00.000+05:30

And this is Anirban Chakraborty, founding member and vocalist of Orange Street. Great singer, good performer.

Now, THIS is Gautam Cheema

2006-11-02T15:45:00.000+05:30

A flurry of fingers

2006-10-16T15:19:00.000+05:30

Gautam Cheema, ex-Orange Street and now with Nightmare On Elm Street. Or rather, his fingers.

Skinny Alley

2006-10-11T13:51:00.000+05:30

Amit Datta of Skinny Alley. One of the finest Indian guitarists. One of the best Indian bands.

More Advaita

2006-07-04T22:46:00.000+05:30

Advaita 01

2006-06-24T17:21:00.000+05:30

A picture from a recent concert I attended. The guitarist is Abhishek Mathur of Advaita, a Delhi-based band.

Prestorika

2006-06-04T14:42:00.000+05:30

I came by these pictures today while going through my archives. This is from the Bombay leg of this year's Great Indian Rock festival. The guys in the pictures make up a Delhi band called Prestorika. Unfortunately I couldn't stay through their entire set, but from whatever little bit I heard, they sure are a good band.

I like it, I like it, I like it..

2006-05-19T14:16:00.000+05:30

I saw Status Quo in concert a couple of days back. Now I must come clean about this - I have never been a Status Quo fan. And that is not because I did not like their music, but because I had never really listened to too much of their stuff. In fact, Rockin' All Over The World is the only song I remember having heard. And at the concert, it happened to be the only song, the chorus to which I could sing along to. Only the chorus which goes something like - I like it, I like it, I like it. And oh yes, the last Rock 'N' Roll Music / Johnny B Goode medley too :D But then those are not Status Quo songs.

Anyway, after having heard them, I officially declare that I am in love with their music. I didn't realise I had been missing sooo much in life.

Rick Parfitt (guitars, vocals)

Francis Rossi (guitars, vocals)

Andrew Bown (keyboards, vocals, guitar, harmonica)

John 'Rhino' Edwards (bass, vocals, guitar)

Matt Letley (drums)

Ooh, baby baby, it's a wild world..

2006-05-17T14:26:00.000+05:30

The person you see in the photograph above is the legendary singer-songwriter, Cat Stevens. Except he doesn't call himself that anymore. Apparently, he converted to Islam and rechristened himself Yusuf Islam after a near-death experience a long long time ago. Anyway, he was at a music store here a few days back for a CD signing session. I didn't get to talk to him - would have loved to. But got loads of photographs. And an autograph? Well, to be honest, I really didn't feel like asking for a Yusuf Islam autograph. And that's what he signs as these days.

The night I saw Pearl Jam in concert

2006-05-03T22:19:00.000+05:30

Wednesday, May 3, 2006. I find myself at a Pearl Jam concert!! Yup, you read me right. And as it so happened, I was not in the audience. I was standing in the wings, my camera in hand, and my eyes full of disbelief. I mean, this is Pearl Jam we are talking about!!

I clearly remember the band kicking into the first song. But I am standing there totally stunned. Too stunned to start putting down the song names on my cellphone, the way I usually do at concerts. Too stunned to even click photographs. (So if you don't see photographs from that gig here, you know why.)

And then I wake up! :P Yes, this was a dream, this was ONLY a dream :(

Maybe it was the trauma of a tragic personal loss earlier in the day. Maybe it was all the buzz about their new album. Whatever the reasons for such a bizarre dream might be, it still remains a dream. And that has given me an idea for a future post - my "dream concerts".

To try and make up for all the torture I subjected you to in the past few minutes, here's a fantastic Rolling Stone interview with Eddie Vedder.

Album recommendations.. The Little Willies.. Corinne Bailey Rae

2006-03-28T20:52:00.000+05:30

I have discovered two new albums over the last two days. And both of them happen to be among those rare albums that you fall in love with instantly, at first listen.

The Little Willies' self-titled album is a tip o' the hat to old-time American music - honky tonk, bar band, country, call it what you may. So you have honey-dripped vocals, bouncing basslines, slinky guitarwork, brush drums, swinging beats and all that jazz. I guarantee you that you will not regret buying this. Seriously, you would have to have some weird notion of music to hate this.

And oh, I forgot to mention the band.. The lead vocalist just happens to be Norah Jones.. And the other Willies are her regular backing band :)

You can listen to some samples here..
http://www.emimusic.ca/thelittlewillies

Corinne Bailey Rae’s brand of old-time R&B has evoked comparisons with singers like Billie Holiday. And the first few notes of the first song reminded me of another singer I like, Nelly Furtado.

But to be fair enough to this 27-year-old British songstress, I think we should keep all comparisons aside. Not only is she a brilliant singer, she is a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist too. Most of the tracks are slow or mid-tempo. So it's the perfect music when you want to chill. Yet, it will have you tapping your foot gently. One complaint though - the programmed drums in some of the tracks could have been avoided.

You can read more about her and listen to some samples here..
http://www.corinnebaileyrae.net

Bryan Adams concert review...

2006-03-27T21:17:00.000+05:30

A review of a recent (March 14, 2006) Bryan Adams concert, I did for for my newspaper.

Even as Bryan Adams getting into the opening notes of Everything I Do, I Do It For You, Mark Higman was calling up his girlfriend in England to tell her that he was missing her. And to have her listen to the song, being sung by Adams himself. “This has been a special song for us, it’s been ‘our’ song. So I wanted her to listen to this”, said Higman. And Higman certainly was not the only one making calls to their loved ones and holding the phones up for them to listen to Bryan Adams, at his concert at the Dubai Aviation Club, last evening.

The crowd numbering about 6000, was an amalgamation of the young and old, men and women. And considering Adams has been delivering hits for close to 25 years, it was hardly surprising that one saw a lot of fans in their thirties singing along to those very hits.

Adams made sure too, that he gave them all just what they wanted, and then some more. The set list was predictable, spanning all his hits – Cuts Like A Knife, Run To You, Everything I Do…, Summer Of ’69, Heaven et al – with the crowd giving a whole-hearted accompaniment on all of them. Except during the few songs from his latest album, that is.

Admittedly, there was nothing very spectacular about the concert. But then Bryan Adams has never been known for his showmanship. Most of his stage banter seemed contrived and rehearsed. And as a little bit of research shows, his stage routines were in fact not too different from his other concerts – from calling up an audience member to sing with him on Baby, When You’re Gone, to introducing his ‘mean, nasty guitar’, to jumping up on the barricade and clicking photographs. But when you have the advantage of almost every song on your set list being a hit, you can afford to give the showmanship part a miss. What truly matters is that his fans finally filed out of the stadium, happy in having been on this ride that took them back to “the best days of their lives”.

More glimpses from the rock fest..

2006-03-21T18:10:00.000+05:30

Dave Mustaine...

2006-03-21T14:41:00.000+05:30

Okay, why dedicate a separate post and so many photographs to this one guy, do I hear you ask? Well, because he deserves it. Here's a guy who almost singlehandedly brought Megadeth to the very top. Even if you are a Metallica lover and Megadeth hater, you will have to admit that the latter was huge. And you will have to admit that they (which is actually Mustaine) kept at producing their kind of music without 'selling out'. I mean, I was looking at and more importantly listening to albums by Megadeth and Metallica. After a point in time, Metallica went off on another trip altogether. Now, one might argue that as a band, it's their prerogative to write and perform the kind of songs they like. Fair enough. But they definitely lost a fan in me. (And I know I am not the only one.) Whereas with Megadeth, even if their newest stuff might not be as good as the older Countdown To Extinction or Rust In Peace or Youthanasia, I would still prefer to listen to The World Needs A Hero and The System Has Failed instead of Metallica's Reload or St. Anger. And since this is a purely subjective matter and more importantly, since this happens to be my personal blog, arguments might not be taken to very kindly. But you could try ;) Jokes aside, this is always open to discussion :)

Also, I had the opportunity to speak to Mustaine, during the press conference and right after it, one-on-one. And trust me, he definitely does not come across as the jerk that he is projected to be. I know that I cannot let 10 minutes of conversation decide that. But then I would prefer to trust my first-hand experience now rather than what people 'think'. Again, entirely my opinion and open to debate :) What I do know is that post the concert, I am a bigger fan of Mustaine than I was earlier.

Megaaaaaaaaaaadeth!!!!

2006-03-20T20:59:00.000+05:30

Yes. The very same Megadeth of Symphony Of Destruction fame. Well, okay, not exactly. The line-up has changed. Only Dave Mustaine remains from the original lineup and the classic lineup. But this concert made me realise just how central he is to this monster band called Megadeth. Headlining act at the Dubai Desert Rock Festival, they played for about one and a half hours and at no point did you feel let down. Tight performances from everyone, including the bassist who was incidentally playing his first Megadeth concert. And the show they put on was unlike any other concert I have ever been to.

Dave Mustaine. Head honcho. Lead vocalist and guitarist. Plays what looks like some technically complex stuff AND sings at the same time. But must mention that there was one song (I forget which one) during which he was losing his voice. He could not reach the higher octave. That was perhaps the only 'flaw' in this mindblowingly brilliant gig.

James LoMenzo. Bassist and newest member of the group. But his playing certainly didn't betray that.

Shawn Drover. Drummer.

Glen Drover. Lead guitarist.

The set list:
1. Blackmail The Universe
2. Skin O' My Teeth
3. The Scorpion
4. Wake Up Dead
5. In My Darkest Hour
6. Die Dead Enough
7. She-Wolf
8. Reckoning Day
9. A Tout Le Monde
10. Angry Again
11. Trust
12. Hangar 18
13. Sweating Bullets
14. Tornado Of Souls
15. Kick The Chair
16. Symphony Of Destruction
17. Peace Sells
--- Encore ---
18. Holy Wars

Alex Skolnick...

2006-03-20T19:26:00.000+05:30

And some more pictures of Alex Skolnick. If you have not heard him, you should. And not just the stuff with Testament, but his solo projects too. They are, as I have mentioned earlier, a far cry from thrash metal. The Alex Skolnick Trio (I have two of their albums by the way), are an acoustic jazz group you must listen to. And oh, Alex Skolnick once learnt the guitar from that other mad axeman, Joe Satriani! :)

Testament...

2006-03-18T18:59:00.001+05:30

Testament was the first big band to play at Dubai Desert Rock Festival 2006. Though personally, I would have preferred them to be the penultimate band in the line-up. And this was their original line-up, except for the drummer. For the benefit of those who have not heard Testament, they are a heavy, very heavy band, that plays a particular sub genre of metal, called thrash. And boy, do they really thrash it out! Despite their brilliant musicianship, unfortunately they never made it to the top spot in the thrash metal sweepstakes. But, as many would say, Testament were perhaps the closest contenders to Metallica's throne.

Alex Skolnick. Guitarist. One mean guitarist. Left Testament to join Savatage. Went on to pursue less heavier forms of music, in jazz fusion. Now back with Testament.

Greg Christian. Bassist.

Chuck Billy. Vocalist. Scary looking bugger.

Eric Peterson. Guitarist.

3 Doors Down...

2006-03-18T18:25:00.000+05:30

3 Doors Down in action. To be honest, I have never really listened to too much of this band. In fact, the only track I recognised was Kryptonite, probably their biggest hit. (Ya, so I listen to only hits. Sue me.) But I quite enjoyed their set. Some very tight performances and the vocalist Brad Arnold has a great voice. I met up with these guys during the press conference the day before and they came across as a nice bunch of people too.

Reel Big Fish

2006-03-18T17:58:00.000+05:30

This is one of the bands from Desert Rock - Reel Big Fish. They call their music ska-punk or something. Now don't ask me to define it, because I would not be able to. The best I can say is that it involves a lot of horns and trombones and it's very funky. Another more famous ska band was No Doubt. Get it? Reel Big Fish is funny, whacky, quirky and all of that too. Their act included a lot of Frank Zappa-esque stage banter and a really funky cover of A-Ha's Take On Me.

Sans drama..

2006-03-18T14:48:00.001+05:30

This is Megadeth for you.. In less dramatic circumstances. (You will know what I mean, when I post the concert pictures.) These were taken at the press conference a day before the concert. What concert you ask? The Dubai Desert Rock Festival. Featuring 4 biggie bands :) For more about that, look out for my next few posts ;)

Dave Mustaine. Ex-Metallica member. (Psst, he hates them now.) Megadeth founder. Lead vocalist. Guitarist. Only remaining from the original line-up.

Mustaine again, with a half-smile breaking on his lips. Yes, he does smile. Sometimes.

Shawn Drover. Drummer. Sometimes backing vocalist.

James LoMenzo. Bassist. Alumnus of Black Label Society, David Lee Roth, Slash’s Snakepit, Pride & Glory, Ozzy Osbourne, Ace Frehley, White Lion. This, incidentally was his first concert with Megadeth.

Glen Drover. Lead guitars. Brother to Shawn. Alumnus of King Diamond.

Eyes ablaze... II

2006-03-18T14:22:00.000+05:30

Be afraid, Lars.. Be very afraid..

Eyes ablaze...

2006-03-18T12:56:00.000+05:30

Tremble you weaklings, cower in fear
I am your ruler, land, sea and air
Immense in my girth, erect, I stand tall
I am a nuclear murderer, I am Polaris

Rust In Peace - Megadeth
(Lyrics: Dave Mustaine)

This picture of Dave Mustaine, I took at a press conference recently. No, he doesn't have flaming eyes. But yes, the red eye effect is particularly pronounced in this picture, I dunno why. Something to do with the colour of his eyes, perhaps?

I am a bum.. a lucky bum!!

2006-03-18T12:35:00.000+05:30

A dear friend of mine tells me that I am a lucky bum. And I have to agree. Another pal asks me if I have a good job. I have to reply in the affirmative. I mean, if it weren't for this job, I wouldn't have been able to meet some of the fantastic musicians (and some non-musicians too) I have met over the past few weeks. I wouldn't have had the chance to click at least some of the photographs you see here.

Late January, I tagged along with my colleague from the sports desk to a golf tournament with six of the top players in attendance - Tiger Woods, Mark O’Meara, Retief Goosen, Ernie Els, Thomas Bjorn and Darren Clarke.

Early February, I had the opportunity to interview and photograph Ustad Zakir Hussain. And that reminds me, I have to upload those pictures here. I will do that, soon enough.

About 10 days ago, I saw Jean-Luc Ponty and Roger Hodgson in concert. You have seen the pictures already. Then, about 4 days back, I was covering the Bryan Adams concert. Unfortunately, I couldn't take any pictures :(

And then 2 days ago, it was the Dubai Desert Rock Festival - featuring Reel Big Fish, 3 Doors Down, Testament and hold your breath, Megadeth!! :D Went trigger crazy again - must have clicked some 700 odd pictures. These again, I will post as soon as I have sifted through and chosen what I think are the best.

Roger Hodgson

2006-03-13T21:45:00.000+05:30

As promised, I am back.. This time with pictures of Roger Hodgson, from the same Jazz Fest. Roger Hodgson, for those who might not know, was the main singer-songwriter for the 70s-80s band called Supertramp. Remember Breakfast In America and The Logical Song and Give A Little Bit? Yup, that's them :)

I have really loved some of their stuff.. Most of their stuff I have listened to. So it was quite a nice feeling to be hearing those very songs from the man who wrote them!

As mentioned elsewhere, Hodgson was virtually a one-man show. The first song for the evening was Give A Little Bit and him walking out from the wings with a nice, jangly guitar :) Then there were times that he would walk to the keyboards and sing and play along to the programmed stuff. So all drums and rhythm would be programmed.

He is about 55, but boy oh boy, what a voice still! He was taking all the high parts effortlessly.

A friend who saw some of these pictures was asking me how I managed such close shots. Well, it helps having that 12x zoom camera I mentioned earlier ;) Also the fact that unlike a metal concert, there were no headbangers moshing (metal lingo for acting like a bunch of deranged people, pushing each other around), certainly helped.

And I have run of out things to say. So you won't find words between photographs now.. :P

Except here maybe.. What I like in this photo below is the black parts all around him. It's not something I have photoshopped and achieved. In fact, yes, I have not processed any of the photographs in this series, no colour corrections, no cropping. Not that I am averse to that.

And this is Roger Hodgson on the grand piano.

In these following pictures, I liked the way we see a 'second' larger Hodgson on the screen behind.

A couple of close-ups of his face. Closely cropped faces, even closer than the ones below, particularly fascinate me.

This is a truly random shot. And by that virtue, it should have been in my other blog. But since it is a random shot related to music, I guess it will stay here :)

What I like about this photograph, even though the face is not well-lit, is the solid black patch on the left and those lit windows on the right :)

This next one is not meant to be a great shot or anything. Just something I clicked right before leaving and as I realised later, one of the few 'full stage' shots I took.

And fatigue sets in..

2006-03-13T01:00:00.000+05:30

Yup, I can no longer post anything today. My fingers are sore, no kidding. But do come by soon for another set of pictures from the Jazz Fest. I do not promise they will be worth your while but you could give it a shot :)

Anybody knows the guy in the pictures?

2006-03-13T00:40:00.000+05:30

You must really excuse my memory, but I forget the name of this saxophonist/clarinetist. (Btw, did you know that a person who plays the clarinet is called a clarinetist? I had for the longest time been under the impression that the word was 'clarinist'. Don't ask me why.) Anyway, this person here was accompanying Roger Hodgson, WHEN Hodgson had any accompaniment that is.

Aaaarrrrghhhh!!!

2006-03-13T00:35:00.000+05:30

:( I could tear out my hair. This is so frustrating. Posting pictures and text and then trying to get the alignment look good. And having an undiagnosed obsessive compulsive disorder certainly does not help matters. I must have hit the edit button on the last post at least 15 times before deciding to let it be. Grr.. And then people wonder why I don't post more often :P

Guy Nsangué Akwa

2006-03-12T23:41:00.000+05:30

At the Jazz Fest, Jean-Luc Ponty was, not surprisingly, accompanied by an extremely talented bunch of musicians. But due to my lack of talent in photography, I could not manage to get half-decent pictures of the rest of the band. Except Guy Nsangué Akwa, that is.

This bassist, sorry, incredible bassist, also happens to be co-writer on one of my favourite tracks of the evening - Mouna Bowa. And Ponty made sure that Akwa got his share of time to do all the regulation slapping and popping.

And oh.. by the way..

2006-03-12T23:26:00.000+05:30

If you notice, there is a stark difference in clarity in the Jean-Luc Ponty pictures when compared to my earlier posts (Remo, Indian Ocean). And that is because now I am the proud owner of a Canon Powershot S2IS digicam :D 5 megapixels and 12x optical zoom!! :D

Jean-Luc Ponty

2006-03-12T22:39:00.000+05:30

Over the weekend (well, Friday IS the weekend where I am), I had the opportunity to see two greats at the Dubai International Jazz Festival. The first was Jean-Luc Ponty, one of the best jazz musicians to ever prop a violin underneath his chin. His biography informs me that he is about 64 years old, but believe you me, he certainly doesn't look anything close to that. Ponty's got to be proof of what they say about music being good for you :)

I went trigger-crazy that evening and as I discovered the next day while transferring the pictures to my computer, I had managed to click close to 640, give or take 5.

And right now I am having trouble choosing from all those :( So please excuse me while I spam my own blog with a whole lotta pictures (if there is anything like spamming your own blog).

Remo Fernandes..

2005-12-31T23:41:00.000+05:30

Remo Fernandes, one of India's original rockers! These pictures are from a concert in his home state of Goa.. And boy o boy, does he still rock!!

Of abandoned blogs and incompetent bloggers..

2005-12-28T00:37:00.000+05:30

Normally, I would not consider myself technologically/technically challenged. In fact, at the risk of sounding rather immodest, I think I am better off than the average population. But when it comes to blogs and blogging, it seems to be a different story altogether. I kid you not, but it has taken me an hour at the very least to upload just these Indian Ocean pictures! And I am certain one doesn't need to commission a study to arrive at the conclusion that it's miserably slow. And I still haven't managed to figure out how to get the text in the correct place. So please to bear with me till I do, IF I do.

On a tangent, I used to have a blog once upon a long time ago. I had, if I recall correctly, exactly three posts on it before lethargy struck. And it doesn't help matters that I was not (probably still am not) comfortable 'baring my soul' online for everyone to see. So goodbye bloggie it was.

Until now that is. And let me put up the disclaimers rightaway and upfront. These blogs (yes, I have very ambitiously put up two of them) are intended to carry only the photographs I click. So do not expect to see me writing too much :) And if I manage to stumble upon a really good (read 'easy to maintain' and 'free') photoblog, then even these might cease to exist. End of disclaimer. And end of rambling.

Indian Ocean in concert... continued

2005-12-21T11:30:00.000+05:30

Indian Ocean in concert...

2005-12-09T17:35:00.000+05:30

Indian Ocean is one India's premier home-grown bands. Their music, well, you must excuse my laziness, but the easiest way to describe their music would be "fusion". But it is not quite anything like what I personally have heard so far. I have had the good fortune of seeing them live in concert on atleast a couple of occasions. And boy o boy, do they rock!!

For somebody who has not yet been introduced to their music, the one album to pick up would be Kandisa. This is an interesting blend of sounds and sensibilities from across India. And probably beyond too, for the title track is sung in Aramaic, the language believed to have been spoken by Jesus Christ.

For more stuff on this fantastic band, visit www.indianoceanmusic.com.