Ghorebund

I have just finished experiencing one of the most soul stirring musical experiences of my 23 year old lifetime. It all started three days ago when my father asked me to listen to one of his former production before we went in to record some Rajasthani folk artistes for our ongoing Folk Fusion project for EMI Virgin. I was listening to a track called 'Ghore bund' on one of the four volumes of the Rajasthani series. Just the sheer raw beauty of the composition and the feeling of being near my country's soul brought tears to my eyes. I was emotionally supercharged and listening to the recording. We then went in to meet the artistes at a hotel in older Delhi. It was an old hotel where all these Rajasthani musicians from the Langa and Manganiar communities were staying. Some had come to perform in Delhi, others were stopping over enroute to some other country abroad. These two communities are famous for producing the best musicians. They were all super happy to see my father as he has worked with them before. After this 4 of them came with us to play on the recording. One of these, the oldest was (Ustad) Haakim Khan. He plays this instrument which many have heard im sure on documentaries on India or Rajasthan. Very few though have actually seen it and the sheer briliance of its live sound. The Khamaycha is a really shabby looking piece as you might see in the pics, but the music it produces is worth a lifetime if i may say so. We had a sitting to decide which tunes go on the CD, and Haakim saheb pulled out some true old timers which surely warmed all our hearts. We finished many really deep tunes which we were speechless to comment upon and I was left in utter dumbfoundness and shock as some of the best music in my life was entering my system. At the end of the second day when both the lead instruments of the Langas and Manganiars(Saarangi and Khamaycha respectively) were finished, it was decided that there shall be two duets featuring both the instruments together. Amongst all this, very casually, the song was decided to be Ghorbund. I missed the proclamation of this decision and had also forgotten what Ghorbund sounded like. When i entered the control room, both the players started playing Ghorbund with the outstanding accompaniment of Mushtaq Khan Manganiar on the Dholak. I was completely frozen when the Saarangi player sang a few strains from the composition. It felt like my head had been turned upside down and was on a call from a parallel existense, a call from the creator it self. I jerked myself out of this state to try and further enjoy the composition. The next few minutes was sheer bliss. Ghorbund is love, faith, tradition, pride, joy and so much more. All of us could only nod our heads in approval. Nothing else. God bless all the folk music and musicians of our country and hope that there is justice done to them in every form. Too bad the world has to hear them on CD/Tape and not live. And i hope we can finish this album soon and show the world what India is about.

Someday

Someday. This word actually is quite parallel to 'sorry' if you ask me. Putting things down to be done at some point in time. Is good until you actually dont give em a serious shot. Ever. I say this because time is not staying back. Today i saw an ad which said spare a thought an get an elder insured. It wont be soon before we are 'elders' and the time to do things is over. I was just imagining just sitting on a rocking chair with friends you loved and sharing memories. It will be all the same except the reactions. There will be no more high fives, no clinking of the glasses, no deafening laughters. Just content sighs. I would cherish every moment of life just like i think i will. Im happy about how i have tackled the 'someday' equation till now. Call it luck, or good timing, i have actually gone out and tried my hand at things which i kept in mind to be done. Not all of course. But at this point in my life all i want to do is to see people happy. There are a million things to do. But the thought that there are these million things to be done brings happiness to me. On the other hand all i see here is people getting angry about how they are not getting to do things which are there to be done. I would love to strike a balance between both. It is such a joy to see people finding joys out of the little things in life. How a baby can open up the heart of the sternest and roughest man on the earth. It is quite a sight. All you can do is-sigh. Hope for more such moments to strike down like lightning and transform all these angry unhappy people in this beautiful world. A recent chat i had with an uncle really made me realise the importance of nature and our co existense with the same. He talked about how he has acheived anything he set his thought on by vibrating with nature and soaking the communication. Crazy. Sounds like something which all of us have experienced but never really paid attention to because it probably wont bring us an material gain. Till now i havent been able to find such moments to observe nature and try to interact, but i sure do hope later in my life my head is mature enough to get into this concept and embrace it. I wonder if there will be any hopes or desires or dreams then. Such a beautiful state of mind i cannot imagine. Only experience.

Home Again

Well,
Five years living on my own. Now im back. Living with folks. Yes, it is taking time to settle down. But the fact that its difficult is good. IS one of the reasons why i left my comfort zone back there. So yeah one step at a time.

Its great to see how everyones moved on. I thought half my day will be spent in stiching up the great divide. But it is'nt bad. Its recovering. Anyway its the mind which is in a divide. Imagine god looking down at all of our heads with our mind in divides. bzzzzzz! A week back someone put it in a term- 'contradiction ' thats what we are. I think that word is quite underrated.

Its weird how 'I' have changed over these years. How i need beer when its hot. To be alone when under pressure. Play my guitar for a living. Its weird but its all good if you ask me. Except on connotation with which i refer to my future.

Thats the only thing im weary about. Im lucky to be bothered about it if you ask me. It freaks the living daylights out of me sometime. Feels good after the feeling exits. Cuz that fear kinda settles down and remains with me. Its becomes a part of me. Subconscious is what they would call it. Pah these complicated words are like chord names. Who gives a damn.

It was sad to leave some things behind. My little red bike was the worst. Six years and it was my only means to everything. To get to the things i love. Beer, My beautiful girl, Music, and what not. To use it till the last moment was my tribute. HA! I know credit goes to the oh so comfortable house that we stayed in and the millions of absolutely crazy things that have taken place there. Houses are like that. Silent observers. I have tried to observe my walls and other things many times. Just cant beat em at it.

As of now life goes on as it is.

Avial

I had written this long back when i was still under the high of watching this band perform. Here it is:
NADA NADA
Well, all those musician and self proclaimed institutionalised gods of the Indian independent scene can do just that-take a hike. I really do not know what it was yesterday. I have seen so many bands play on stage, and very few have been able to blow my head of with their sound. Avial was not one of those few bands. It was far ahead of those bands. I have heard their demos on myspace etc but kinda had that Indian musician intution that this was not gonna be as good. That all our hopes would be slashed and put down. That the band would suck. I think i saw four songs by Avial that day and, despite the vocalist having left the band and the turntablist filling in, a drummer who we were hearing for the first time as the drums on the recording are all programmed; these guys were just effortlessly amazing. Someone told me that they have bee ONLY working on this project since the last 5-6 years. I think thats nothing if you can produce work like this at the end of the day. Now, back in Bangalore, the cd plays atleast twice a day in my home and every time i listen to it in a kinda of a dilemma between pride and awe just because of the fact that its an Indian production.
Congrats and thanks guys.
dont stop.

Blues For The Common Man

This is the last song is wrote for the band. We played it once. The first and the last time. 

' Its an early wake up

  Twelve in the noon

  I look around i gotta heat my brew I've had

  Enough of this kinda life

  I've gotta start something new.

  Yeah i'm the wasted kind

  Well thats the common view '

' No time for lovin'  There's no

  Room for 2

  My time ain't comin'

  Any time soon I got

  JUST what i want

  And she knows its true

  Im the wasted kind, 

  Thats the common view '

Everyone takes turns to solo. And then head to double time in blues kinda like the SRV tunes.

 ' Take it slow.

   Take it slow.

   Comeon Take it slow.

   TAKE IT SLOW!!!!!

  Just one phone call 

  It takes thats all

  To take me back into the wretched 

  NEED....i dont like speed

  Take it slow

  Yes im the wasted kind.

  Thats the common view '

Thank you guys. For playing my stuff.

The End

FUCK! I cant believe its been more than 6 months since i wrote. I have been writing though here and there.....few songs, memories and thoughts. Anyway, now i have the time. Just read my last post and its been just too long. Worked on 6 WSR jingles after that plus the usual AV stuff plus also finalised on many other projects. Sent in my music applications as well. Which was quite a load off. Now i need to work on my next audition. Damn.....where's my guitar. Well, Its been quite disappointing lately with the band not being around to jam. Its a jam band after all. So we got this big gig last weekend and i realised that should be it. For me especially it was a very easy and a very difficult decision. The band had a potentially unmatched sound. You might take me for a childish enthusiast but thats what it was. Because of this sound, i was forced to write for this format and hence i wrote some god songs....all of which we played for this last gig. Almost all. Writing those songs and finally sitting down to play jam them wit the band was an awesome feeling. But i think only i felt it. Everyone seemed into it. But maybe i was a fool. Maybe they did not see it coming. MAYBE! JUSt maybe. I was too cool. HAHA. Anyhow i took it upon myself to call it off and i think its right. I cant live in this fake realty of a perfect band which is not there. Good times. Fabulous times. Crazy times. But its times like these we learn to live again. Hey, isn't that a line from a Dave Grohl song? Sheesh how original. Where s my guitar god? Cuz i see a reunion coming.