Delightful December...

The December of 2009 couldn't have got better at least in the last decade of my life...and what a way to wrap up the decade...in style and in surprising success! To me, this was obviously wasn't easy...time has been a good father and has tested me in ways Id never imagine. It only makes sense that good things finish last and last forever. So here is a short description of how delightful (in many ways) my December was...

A 2 year wait came to a climatic close as the news of my poems inclusion in an anthology was finally being considered for print and publish. This would be the first news in my 12 year writing career that such a dream is coming true. Though the release has been pushed to the next decade, this is a news that any poet can feel elated about. In a world where publishers have shunned me away stating "Poetry Doesn't Sell", Prakriti Foundation has broken that myth for me and have brought this long cherished dream alive. Four of my works will feature in an anthology that will feature some of the most amazing poets from all over the country (those who participated in the 2007-2008 Poetry with Prakriti Festival). This to me will remain in my books, one of the best moments in my life as poet and as a person. Lesson - Persistence Pays!

What followed suit was an out of the world announcement. The US Consulate in collaboration with the Prakriti Foundation decided to give th art of poetry a bigger and probably the biggest stage in the form of the Poetry Slam Festival ( a version of the Brave New Voices). What amazed me even further that when I received an Invite not only to participate in the festival but as one of the featured poet for the event. This shot me through the roof as this was something I wasn't expecting in my life at all and to be a part of Poetry's biggest celebration and performance, was quite an honor. More so ever, the entire event garnered a lot of press coverage and shockingly, there was a life size snap of yours truly with some amazing words written about the event and about the performances. It was my first time on-stage in 10 years as a performing poet...much has changed since then and this time I did well...I could feel it and it has come a long way.

December also got a lot more musical for me personally as I decided to take my year long strumming on my Acoustic to the next level. I finally decided to buy my Electric Bass Guitar...what a defining moment in my life yet again...and an expensive one...but a worthy investment. Any musical investment must be encouraged and is always one of the wisest things to do. The 4 string bass was a beauty the moment I saw her (though i had been researching quite a bit on what to buy but this caught my fascination)...an Ibanez GSR200 Black model. Honestly, in my pursuit to music in life this will stand out as the biggest decisions and one of the best moments that has given me a bit of confidence more than anything else. Its a matter of time now...

What amazed me even more at that time was that my parents officially began their alliance search for my marriage. I found it very funny for a start as they (for a change) spoke of my future as a married man and all of that jazz. It was interesting as I kind of felt good about losing my single-ship and stepping into a more settled form of lifestyle. Online registrations, horoscope exchanges, matching criterion, temple visits, consultations aplenty! Name it and the whole family was into it all. Friends and cousins doing their bit by their usual teasing and kidding and what not! For a change, it was quite a pleasant change from the mundane and routine life that began to set in. Things happen for a good reason Id reckon...guess it was the sign of things to come. It was now only a matter of choice...rather destiny! Love the suspense bit...

A moral victory came through in December in the form of my confirmation in my current organization. This was a critical moment in my life at that stage because this was like a slap in the face of one of my cousin brothers who thought this lad would do nothing without his help! Well cousin...can you feel the heat now! (I had to censor this). I feel so good when I say that and I wouldnt mind saying that publicly because thats how much insult and disgrace he had brought upon me. Guess the best way to reply was by pure action and this confirmation was like a shot in the arm! Toiled hard relentlessly and tested by fire and brimstone...and finally my first victory against all odds.

Chennai had been through a rough dry spell and there was a major lull in the environment. The heat got to all of us and it rained fire in the month of December! But soon it was all gone as Chennai witnessed a relentlessly long-due storm that hit us for almost a fortnight. The sun was nowhere to be seen and it was quite a sight and a time for all of us. The dark skies engulfed like a blanket over the sun and the water ravaged the city like an onslaught. To me it was music to the ears and a portrait to the eyes. Every man-made thing was put to the test of mother nature's fury and we were all at her mercy. Power cuts, cracked roads, overflowing bridges, destroyed fields, closed institutions, umbrella sales...name it and you had it in Chennai...that too in the winter of 2009 December!

What capped the month off finally was quite sportive for both me and the country! Well, honestly Ive improved on my fitness regime in order to compete on a larger field of the game of cricket. Indeed it did take a good shape and I got myself into a good team with a few friends and we also got into a league tournament which saw us take a 3-0 lead in the group play-offs. But what got me really on a high was the fact that India, for the very first time in its history, became the No. 1 Test Playing nation in the world. All first times happen for the first and last times....because after that one has already been a part of that moment and its a matter of history repeating itself. This landmark moment was history itself and I personally was witness to it (amongst billions). To me, test cricket is the toughest form of the game and to be the best nation in the world takes some courage, character and charisma. Under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni now, we seem to have all this and many more to that list...in fact I wouldnt be surprised if there might be case studies written about him and the team in many a B-School. Such has been the impact of his leadership style at such a young age and hats off to him and all the players that made it possible. Jai Ho!

As one can see it by now, lot of things to celebrate about in this month...personally, professionally, publicly and nationally! 2009 indeed was a rocking year with a few of my favorite metal bands that kickstarted a rocking year and a delightful december to close it all. Hopefully this new year and the new decade brings about all the best things in life...A very happy new year to all the readers and thanks for being such wonderful followers...cheers!



(The image is that of the Winged Victory Princes' Gates at the CNE Grounds in Toronto. For a more interesting reading on the original headless Nike statue at the Louvre, do check out this link -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winged_Victory_of_Samothrace)

Journey Back and Forth!

Music is a widely spoken and written about subject for centuries and in almost everyone's likes and favourites (without the shadow of a doubt) the presence of music in their profiles would always be a given. But I am penning this to delve into such a phenomena in this article...rather, I would like to take a personal perspective (cliched I know, though some of them must have written on this too) and take you on an interesting journey on how I discovered music...

Funny how it all starts for all of us isnt it...we are always curious to know more from the time we are born arent we? From this infant stage, the initial curiosity moves up to inspiration and tells us to explore further and deeper and build our tastes for music. All of us look up to our parents or our siblings to see what they like and see if it matches our likes and dislikes...and this habit mostly begins when we are barely able to speak a complete sentence.

Born in Delhi, my journey began when I was in Kuwait for the first 8 years of my life and my dad would allow me to listen to the local radio which surprisingly had english songs played for the working ex-pat population at that time. By the grace of that, I tumbled upon my first rendezvous with english music...(I would not get into the genre for now). This was during the late 80s when the likes of Bon Jovi, Guns n Roses and other artists were dominating radio air-time and so did my dad who was a big fan of certain select artists (which I will name a little later). My dad was a big fan of quality music systems and was very specific about quality of the speakers...this was what got me into music first actually. My fascination with electronics and the lightings n displays was what caught my attention besides the regular cartoons on TV. It was quite a beginning...

My home has always been a treasure chest with a lot of musical goodies around (not about instruments)...the access to music was plenty...at least as a listener. The radio programs were good and the quality of music at home was also quite diverse! I would find everything between Pink Floyd to Dire Straits and from Black Sabbath to AC/DC...and guess where I would find them? All of the tapes in my father's old worn out air bag high up in the loft. That was one of the biggest discoveries of my life and I would always cherish that moment when I pulled that dust wrapped air bag forecully from the loft (all by myself) and dropping a few bags in the process and almost falling off the little bench I had placed to reach me to the top.

But what amuses me the most is that at times mom and dad would say listen to this, listen to that or say dont listen to loud music or dont listen to angry or aggressive music...but eventually it was all that my dad heard when he was in his yesteryears! So why not me...I thought! And thats where the whole episode of the rebel in me was born where I would listen to what all my dad had collected over the years...it actually dint have extreme music but the diversity was quite impressive! Allman Brothers, Elvis Presly, Jimi Hendrix, UFO, Ravi Shankar, L Subramaniam, Dire Straits, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, AC/DC, World Fusion, Beethoven, Bach, Disco, Bee Gees, The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac, Jazz artists and country music too. (Phew!)

The next task was obviously take each tape and run the entire album on my cassette player till my dad would sit beside me and help me sort out the best from the worst and give me a little history lesson about the artists and his younger days listening to them all. One of the few moments with him where we would have a hilarious conversation...where my mom would stay out for a change! It was then that I realized that there was so much music before I was born and I knew what I was liking...he even told me that he had seen the Woodstock Festival in a movie theatre in Madras when it was released in the 70s. That must have been such an era to be in...hippies and gypsies as a lifestyle and all that rebellious establishments with a lot of freedom in the air...protest this, protest that and what not! My mom was a big fan of old hindi music and the entire family (in her end) were a set of singers who could take stage and perform some classics from any era...no comments on my dad's side (chuckle). Thats when I decided to take a trip back to a time when I was not even born and when my kind of music was taking form...yes I am talking about 'my' discovery of Music.

This meant that I had to go back to say 20 years from when I was born and back to another 20 years after I was born...Im taking about a 40 year span (plus another 10 years in the new era of music today). This was an intimidating task and surely wasnt a short term task at all...but I figured out...if it took a lifetime, it would be worth each minute spent backwards and forwards. Well, to be honest, we werent the well off families...we were at the lower to mid middle class of the strata (if I had to use my judgment from today's learnings)...and this was by no means the right position where I could explore the music I wanted...it was expensive and it was tough to find...yes, I am talking about a pre-liberalization era of India where we were just being welcomed in the arms of the rest of the world...I would surely like to thank late Prime Minister Narasimha Rao (also known as the Chanakya) who brought in this phenomenon (please note - only for changing the country from a Socialist to a Market Driven economy)...enough of the politics now!

Wherever I had been in India post 1991, I had been surrounded by Bollywood music and this almost killed my hopes of exploring music (I like) in a place where it was hard to find music I liked. Thats when one day when on a trip with my friends I realized in a ride to one of Delhi's underground markets that there was a thriving business of english music audio and people who dealt with it dint know a word of English except for the numbers...thats when I realized, it was in the wrong hands completely...and it was these people who probably were suppressing the in-flow of english music and pushing the supply and demand of Bollywood music...sad but true! Until such time, the radio was my best music friend and on that day, I spent my first 125 rupees and bought a collection of Def Leppard's album titled 'Vault'. The next few spendings were on artists like Bryan Adams and Metallica (for a start). Such was the joy I couldnt have describe to anyone...it was a revelation and a wake up call to my conquest of searching my kind of music.

Till then I had been plagued with so many genres of music that it pained me that I couldnt find what I wanted. Even the radio stations were playing the best music at the worst time...late noon (when I would be in school) and late night (when I would be in bed). But in Delhi, I was away from my parents and lived with my grandparents...this helped me discover my taste for nocturnal interests and honestly I enjoyed every minute of it. Great music and what a fabulous RJ to top it all...5 - 6 stations playing 8 - 9 hours of amazing music - from orchestral scores to heavy metal and fusion instrumentals and what not! Thats when my departure from pop and anthems began...I was stepping into my world after a prolonged period of misguided trials and turbulent tribulations.

The absence (rather the beginning) of the Internet was also another challenge...it was the beginning of an era and it was damn expensive and rare to find too (Not many embraced this in the start but it soon caught up). Music artists had jus begun putting their websites with their profiles, discography with lyrics and images / pictures...and thats when I realized...that I was in an ocean! Let me explain...shelves on shops often do not display the entire catalogue of an artist...they place what sells the most and what is the fad and fashoin! Now that was when I realized I was in the music business trap...had to break free and escape! Thats when I began my real discovery...this time it was of any artist I chose, I would go to their history, understand their circumstances, their background, motivations, explore right from their first albums till the latest songs and doing all of this being in Chennai was the toughest of all things to do. It was during these times cashflow at home was a bit of a botheration...whatever savings I had gathered...was put in my discovery journey.

At one point of time, I suddenly got into this flurry habit of mercilessly purchasing Audio Cassettes off the shelf and growing my liking to records that were released few decades back (this too wasnt complete till I got every album in the catalogue!). It was an expensive affair and I would literally put an accounts statement to assess my pocket money collection and my spendings...obviously one side weighed heavier...but trust me, to be broke and still listen to your favourite songs is a feeling I cant describe...such pure bliss. Over a period of time, with regular surfing on the net, I discovered so many old and new bands that I almost lost count. What I also discovered was that they had been playing for the last 25 - 30 years! How could I miss it all...I thought to myself...thus began my passion for reading...e-reading at least! Whenever time and place permitted, I would dive deep into a band's history and read their entire story, reviews, run through a sample of their songs and get a feel of what it was to be in a band. What caught up was the child-like but amazing habit of air-guitaring, air-drumming and of course...head-banging.

At this point of time, my parents knew that this boy had reached the line and had crossed it quite some time back...and they had to let go. After many attempts on rules and regulations, plenty broken and bruised...they had to give up...another small triumph in a mammoth struggle. But what followed soon was my brother! At say 7 years younger...he was already seeing me as his teacher rather professor in inducting him into the ocean...and to be honest...I successfully did and shamelessly let me admit...he is now a rockstar...way ahead than my dreams and ambitions.

There have been times when my detailed budgeting experiences were seen as petty...that was when I got my first computer...it was infact a laptop...what followed suit was a flurry of exchanges and trades of music...the quantum and quality was unbelievable and in the shortest span of time in a 20 year journey...came true! So to speak, I seem to had covered the last 40 - 50 years of music that I missed and that I am living with...in the last 20 years of life. I so much look forward to whats in store...and I am glad to say that I havent missed the best yet! To be honest, the discovery is still on and to uncover lesser known bands and appreciate their music is in itself a tribute to the past that has helped shape the music of today. With the advent of MP3 and the growing power of the internet, the world now seems to be coming into one's fist. Such has been the ability to reach out to bands that do not even have a clue of their following in India (For e.g.).

Despite all the financial troubles and the ignorant surroundings and crowds, I had the pleasure of even attending the concerts of some legendary bands over the last few years on my own savings (even taking my brother along to one of them)...such was the feeling of being able to see what I dreamt of and accomplishing what I was struggling for my life. I think this is just the end of the beginning. Of all remaining efforts, one day I promise to go to the Music Festivals in Europe...and that might just be the foreseeable end to my journey...hopefully, that is not my final destination.

Music today at least to me is like any source of energy...like its the sun to the earth. And when I look back at the quantum and quality of energy I have derived so liberally, I owe my life to it. Music today is such a powerful means to convey so many things and bands of today have become more influential.

One day when my kids ask me about my music tastes and preferences to shape their own...I would tell them this story for sure (obviously that might put them to sleep) but would also encourage them to dig into the past to see what shaped the music of today...but guess what...I just did their homework.

The end of the beginning...

The 2009 IIT Saarang - Opeth Concert Review (my review was featured in the website http://www.headbangers.in/)

It was on the 25th of January 2009 when Chennai witnessed one of the biggest metal bands in the world descend upon IIT Chennai in its annual fest titled Saarang. Firstly, a big kudos to the organizers who delivered what they had promised – Opeth.

The entire buzz about this Swedish metal band was so electrifying that the Open Air Theatre (OAT) was like a volcano about to erupt…and it did. The setting sun made way to the darkness that engulfed the OAT and aptly setting the stage for a night with the country’s most promising bands to display their skills. The crowd slowly filled in as time passed and soon it was jam packed keeping up with the age old tradition of the IIT Saarang.

At precisely 6.45pm, amidst the opening fireworks that pounded the sky like it was war, Mumbai based opening Demonic Metal act Demonic Resurrection waltzed in and literally sounded so tight that they would have snapped any moment. Beginning their metal journey in the year 2000 the band (with regular line-up changes) has since then released 3 albums and has garnered rave reviews throughout the metal world.

The brutal riffing and growls compounded with precision based double bass drumming ensured that all heads at the IIT Saarang were swirling in the right direction. With limited time in their hands, the band promised to pound as many songs as possible and they dutifully did so without further ado beginning with a monstrous epic number entitled Spirits of the Mystic Mountains to their last and most well known number, Frozen Portrait. Mid way, Apocalyptic Dawn saw the band at its best and kept the crowd asking for more but with 4 ear splitting songs, the time constraint in mind saw them bow out in their well achieved metallic–glory of opening for Opeth.

The obvious felt pleasure of giving a chance for an Indian act opening for this global metal act was well received and the band members were gladly vocal and open about it. A massive roar from the crowd to acknowledge and support what had just been mentioned by the band in its statement.

In no time did the next astounding band set their equipment on stage and readied themselves to stun people and literally hold their feet to the ground with one of the most spellbound performance of the evening. Enter the arena, Cochin based Mother Jane and the OAT was still dazed after Demonic Resurrection’s opening assault. A bit of tell-a-tale had passed in the air of how long these talented musicians have been around in the Indian Metal or rock scene. In no time they delivered the goods and stood up to their cult following throughout the country since their inception way back in 1996.

In the opening moment of silence came in a voice singing the opening lines ‘Thaka Thakita Thaka Thakita’ of Chasing the Sun, from their latest and critically acclaimed album Maktub and then entered the band members with their faces painted (in connection with their latest album Maktub signifying that we are human and we have a spirit) and then it was all the way looking forward to what was one of the best performances of the evening. The band proved its versatility and brilliance with its carnatic laced-lead solos and off beat rhythm sections and structured drumming, flamboyant and flawless vocals and rhythm sections that fell in place like it was their own playground. The crowd were silent on their toes most of the time through Mother Jane’s songs and a little dumbstruck but the ovation at the end of each song and after the entire performance ensured that it wasn’t a different feeling and that most of them were actually in a trance including me.

Belting some of their well known tracks like Mindstreet (a different version) & Maya to numbers from their latest album, the highly acclaimed Maktub like, Broken, Before one Million comes one, Blood in the apple (a dedication to Bush and Osama by the singer) and closing with Karmic Steps, the band sensationally made it a night to remember under the star lit sky and the fireworks that later decorated the skies after each performance.

At 8pm, the opening acts were done with their respective assaults and had left behind an immortal performance by all means. After the initial battle was won, the war cry of another name began filling the air and engulfed the amphitheatre like it was a gladiator’s call for the final onslaught. The final act’s name was called for, chants were sung, which is like a prequel to any major performance…‘Opeth, Opeth, Opeth, Opeth….’ And at about 8.30pm, the ‘Grammy Nominated’ Swedish metal act had descended upon the stage and delivered the most memorable and the heaviest concert that each Indian was waiting for with abated breath.

The decibel level in the crowd erupted and shot through the open skies as band leader, singer and chief song writer Mikael Åkerfeldt walked in amidst the eerie smoke effects and red lit stage and strummed his first notes and then to be joined by his other members, Martin Mendez on bass guitar, Per Wiberg on the keyboards, Martin "Axe" Axenrot on the drums & percussion and Fredrik Åkesson on the rhythm and lead guitars.

Coming off their global tour supporting their critically acclaimed latest album, Watershed, Opeth belted some of the album’s epic numbers with merciless precision and fury which rang in the theme of ‘Death’ throughout of the songs as subtly mentioned by Mikael. With utmost calm and meaning just business, the band busily kept pounding some insane heavy metal riffs with some phenomenal interludes which had the melody and clean vocals and was complemented well by the radical drumming that swirled the crowd from one end of sanity to the other end of meaning. After letting the crowd know that they were mightily pleased to be there, their promise to play a long set-list like never before did bring in a huge roar from the jam packed audience who were longing for this assault.

Despite requests to the people in the back row to not to push the ones in the front, the hapless security got the help of Mikael himself to bring a little sanity to the mayhem they had brought upon for a start. After the initial dose to their kind of music, the crowd certainly got every ‘rupee’ worth every moment of Opeth as they swam through the ocean of metal and presented their best material from their 19 year old career spanning 9 albums and many accolades globally. Some in the crowd were inducted in their kind of music and others who did not have a clue were left stranded and wanting to know more. For those who knew the band and its music, it was nothing short of metal brilliance personified and it certainly laid to rest all the myths and shattered all disbeliefs that metal was dead…its alive and kicking for sure.

Some of the best numbers that the Opeth came through in their epic performance including 2 encores were Heir Apparent, The Grand Conjuration, Godhead's Lament, The Lotus Eater, Wreath, Bleak, Hope Leaves, Deliverance, Night and the Silent Water, Demon of The Fall, Baying of The Hounds and The Drapery Falls. With each song spanning an epic 7 – 8 minutes on an average the band showcased their metal influences and writing skills with the interludes as magical and eerie as possible with mosterous rhythm riffing, skilled lead guitaring and booming bass backed well with pounding drum rolls, thundering bass beats and a less prominent but a power packed keyboard performance. In the entire performance, each member had his moment of glory and left the entire crowd asking for more till the encore quenched all their metal thirst for the times to come.

Many issues like the usual sound and mixing problems did arise but all of that was certainly dismissed as the performance by all the bands progressed to lift people from all technicalities and just their hands showing the devil horned sign and their scream to get the show going as ‘Energy’ was the mantra of the evening and it was simply phenomenal.

At about 11pm, a final bow by Opeth and the metal express halted and the feast had ceased and silence prevailed soon with another round of fireworks signalling a victorious end to the concert and a big farewell to the 2009 IIT Saarang that made all of this possible. Many fans went back dazed and still in disbelief that they had witnessed one of the world’s biggest metal acts in ‘Chennai’ which some regard as a conservative city when compared to Bangalore.

With Iron Maiden coming to Bangalore yet again in February 2009 for their wrap up of the ‘Somewhere back in Time’ tour, this year surely seems to have gotten onto a rocking start and promises a lot for our country to be toured by world class acts and also a chance for our Indian bands to set foot on stage and rub shoulders with some of metal’s legends. May this be the end of the beginning…