Lifesoundtrack

Nostalgia

2011-07-05T20:58:00.001-07:00

Went for a walk this evening. First this song played and I got all nostalgic for Dallas and partying with friends and skating on the Katy Trail:

Then this song played and I missed all my friends in Baton Rouge and the shopping trips and late night conversations:

Then I decided that all this nostalgia for past places and times was silly and decided instead to be nostalgic for the present moment:

Update

2011-06-23T14:29:00.000-07:00

Just realized I'd posted a link to a Facebook group but I haven't updated since February. #fail

What is going on with me this year is this. I've consciously decided to take a year off from music review/DJ/whatever so that I can get back to basics and concentrate on my singing. I'm taking Rabindrasangeet lessons and trying to go back and listen to music from an earlier era (you know, the one before AutoTune.)

I'm also singing with the Palouse Choral Society and a lot of my practice time goes toward that as well, plus there's a fundraiser for Sanatan Dharma Center of the Palouse on Sept. 17 and I'm working up a few pieces there. So obviously, something's gotta give.

Some things still make it through the filter though. Here's the best ones:

1 - www.aktara.com - Bengali radio that plays the best of modern folk music from West Bengal and Bangladesh. They're just getting off the ground so go support them :)

2 - Lady Gaga- Just Dance Deewaan Remix (and yes, I know I'm really, really late to this party - I heard it during the ICC World Cup.)

3 - Akon - Chammak Chalo - apparently this is from the upcoming Ra.One and it's super danceable. Akon just owns this one!!

I'll try to post this and that as it comes up but singing > snarking about music so I gotta respect that... if there's something that you think I absolutely *must* hear, leave me a comment !

My Songs of 2010

2011-02-12T12:18:00.000-08:00

Here's my list of favorite songs from the last year. I was, in general, not as impressed with music this year as I have been in the past few years. Either I'm getting jaded or it really was an off year. Even with that, there were a number of songs worth mentioning. Here are my personal favorites from the year that was.

Best singer of year: Sneha Khanwalkar - I Can't Hold It (Love Sex aur Dhokha)

Seriously, there was no singer that even came close. It's naughty and fun and she sings with so much attitude that it's irresistible. It's like "My Humps" that won a Grammy simply because it was sung by the perfect person with the perfect attitude. No other singer (she was also the music director) could have done this song justice. The song itself is an incredible bawdy song of the likes of Iris and Rose, whose repertoire contains songs such as "The Bastard King of England," "No Balls at All," and the Scottish National Anthem. Munni and Sheila are Catholic schoolgirls in comparison (the good, pious kind, that is). The only regret I have is that this song got such a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad picturization in the film.

Best songs of year: Tujhe Bhula Diya (Anjaana Anjaani) and Dil To Bachcha Hai Ji (Ishqiya)
I couldn't choose one. Dil To Bachcha Hai Ji is one of those songs that will be a classic in twenty years -- you know, the kind that's so iconic that one day there will be a film made with the same name... oh wait, that's already happened? Right.

But Tujhe Bhula Diya is also a beautifully constructed song, and at times, almost reminds me of Javeda Zindagi - my favorite song ever. I must have listened to this song 10 times in a row driving back in the early morning before the sun came up. It's a song for those dark, still times before you see the light again.

Best music director: Amit Trivedi
Do I really need to say any more than this? I'm looking forward to more of his music in years to come.

Best Soundtracks as a whole: Aisha, Anjaana Anjaani, Ishqiya
I couldn't choose one. Also, Badmaash Company and Striker had surprisingly good music.

Retro Moments:

Nana Chi Taang (Khatta Meetha)

Fakeera (Badmaash Company)

Luk Chup Jaana (Action Replayy)

I felt I'd been transported to the 80s for a little while this year. From the swingy pop of Khatta Meetha that reminded me of Jawani Janeman and not a few Dolly Parton songs, to Fakeera, which, the first time I heard it I actually thought it was an old song circa 1987 that I'd just never heard, to Luk Chup Jaana, which made me want to buy a Cadillac convertible and cruise the main drag with the top down, the decade of hair bands and yuppies was a huge influence this year.

Best Song for Listening To In The Car: Behke Behke (Aisha)
Especially at about 85 miles an hour, darting through traffic to an appointment you're already 10 minutes late for. Amit Trivedi's mishmash of styles gives this song the perfect frenetic pace.

Best Duet: Ibn-E-Batuta (Ishqiya)
Yeah, forget cheesy love songs. Mika and Sukhwinder Singh make you want to turn this one up to 11.

Songs That Get Stuck In Head: Cry Cry (Jhootha Hi Sahi) and Shor Sharaba (Tere Bin Laden)
Catchy rhythms and catchy rhymes in both of these make them into songs that you can't stop thinking about, even if you don't like them.

Best Foray Into Hipster Music: Sham (Aisha)
When I first heard this song, I pictured a guy with a neckbeard wearing a flannel strumming this song on his guitar. The only problem with this song is that you've heard it before. But it didn't get popular, which means that it must be good.

Favorite Kailash Kher Song: Teri Yaad Aayi (Do Dilon Ke Khel Mein)

This song makes me want to get drunk on whiskey and sing at the top of my lungs about the great love that I have lost. Except that I haven't lost a great love and I hate whiskey. Kailash Kher is the master of whiskey-drinking sad songs.

Song where it is most important to listen with good headphones: Gal Mitthi Mitthi Bol (Aisha)

I love Tochi Raina's style, but what makes this song go so far above and beyond typical Bhangra-pop that is so prevalent in Bollywood these days are those chimes. That one little touch turns this song from Bhangra-pop to smoky jazz club sexiness. (I recommend Sennheiser headphones, myself.)

Best Rock Song: Intezar (Teen Patti)

Totally un-self-conscious, straight ahead rock, and in Hindi at that. This is what I wanted to see more of this year.

And if I had to make a CD to listen to on a road trip from Atlanta to Los Angeles with an annoying man-child and a creepy little dog, and that CD could only contain the above songs and only ten more from the whole year, these would be the songs I would pick:
Ainvayi Ainvayi (Band Baaja Baaraat)
Chaska (Badmaash Company)
Dilkash Dildaar Duniya (Aashayein)
Kaun Hoon Main (Prince)
Hairat (Anjaana Anjaani)
Desh Mera (Peepli Live)
Lehrein (Aisha)
Mora Piya (Raajneeti)
Pee Loon (Once Upon A Time)
Salaam Aaya (Veer)

(Robert Downey, Jr. would have had a much better trip had he had an iPod.)

musical people - help me out?

2010-11-17T22:10:00.001-08:00

Ok music nerds, help me figure out why I love what I love.

These five songs, three Hindi, one English, and one Spanish, pretty much exemplify my favorite musical "sound." I can hear that they have something in common but I am not sure exactly what that something is. Can you suggest what the common thread is? What is it that I really like in a song?

Nazrein Karam

Hairat

La Ley - Dia Cero
Click here to watch - you can't embed it, boo Warner Music Mexico

Mahi

True
Neither can you embed from the official Spandau Ballet site, but listen to it here

So far all I can get out of it is baritones :) any other ideas?

Bollywood DJ: Essentials

2010-11-04T21:13:00.000-07:00

I won't give much explanation to this, except to remind you about that party you went to that one time where everyone wanted to dance, but the DJ kept picking the wrong songs.

To keep that from happening, I've compiled this list - a "cheat sheet" if you will - of the essentials for a dance party where Bollywood music will be played. I've DJ'd some and partied a lot more, and I've seen that you can get a crowd on the dance floor if you play a decent mix of songs from the following groups.

NOTES: I'm keeping an audience of mostly college-age Indians and Indian-Americans in mind here. All named songs on this list are Hindi/Punjabi. Most of this will also work for all-ages parties, but again, it's important to know your audience and listen to what they're telling you. This list is updated to Diwali 2010 - please tell me if I've left off something major.

1. The Songs That Must Be Played
Any and all of these songs will get people on the dance floor. Do not repeat songs unless you get multiple requests to do so. The drunker the crowd, the more you must oblige requests to repeat these songs.

Koi Kahe Kehta Rahe - Dil Chahta Hai
Humma Humma - Bombay
Khaike Paan Banaraswala - Don (new)
Twist - Love Aaj Kal
Munni Badnaam - Dabangg
Mauja Hi Mauja - Jab We Met
Desi Girl - Dostana
Beedi Jalaile - Omkara
Kajra Re - Bunty aur Babli
Jai Ho - Slumdog Millionaire
Pappu Can't Dance - Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na

2. Second Tier Songs
Don't play all those superhits back to back. You'll tire everyone out and keep the energy level so high that you won't be able to sustain it. Mix in some good older favorites that will keep people dancing. Some suggestions are:

Chaiyya Chaiyya - Dil Se
Sajna Ve Sajna - Chameli
Dhoom Machale - Dhoom
Dhoom Again - Dhoom 2
Fanaa - Yuva
Rang De Basanti - Rang De Basanti
Paathshala - Rang De Basanti
Dhol Baje - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (depending on the crowd, mix this in AFTER the slow part at the beginning)

3. Recent Danceable Songs
Fill out your playlist with danceable songs from last 3 years. This list is pretty much endless, what with all the remixes and stuff out there these days. Some suggestions are:
Bachna Ae Haseeno - Bachna Ae Haseeno (new version)
Paisa - De Dana Dan
Dhan Te Nan - Kaminey
Genda Phool - Delhi 6
Sajnaji Vaari Vaari - Honeymoon Travels
Jhoom Barabar Jhoom - Jhoom Barabar Jhoom
All Iz Well - 3 Idiots
Zoobi Doobi - 3 Idiots
Prem Ki Naiyya - Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani
Follow Me - Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani
Chori Bazari - Love Aaj Kal
Bhootni Ke - Singh is Kingg
Talli Hua - Singh is Kingg
Talli Ho Gayi - Ugly Aur Pagli
Gal Mithi Mithi Bol - Aisha
Humka Peeni Hai - Dabangg
Kambakkht Ishq - Kambakkht Ishq
Uff Teri Ada - Karthik Calling Karthik
Anjaana Anjaani - Anjaana Anjaani
Billo Rani - Goal
You're My Love - Partner
Soni De Nakhre - Partner
Aaj Ki Raat - Don (new)
Dance Pe Chance - Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi
Gazab - Aa Dekhen Zara
Tennu Leke - Jai Veeru

4. Bhangra/UK Bhangra
This is a place where you really need to know your audience. Do they want to hear the latest and greatest, or do they want to hear songs they already know? If you're spinning for a college crowd in US, 99% of the time you can go light on this and don't worry about anything super new unless it's already a super hit.
Suggestions:
Na Na Na Re - Daler Mehndi
Tunak Tunak Tun - Daler Mehndi
Mundiya To Bachke Rahi - Panjabi MC
Kangna - Dr. Zeus
Darshan - B21
Dil Luteya - Jazzy B
Nachange Saari Raat - Stereo Nation
Nahin Jeena - Rishi Rich
Dance With You - Jay Sean
(protip #1: mix these last two, as they're based on the same melody)

5. While we're on the subject of Jay Sean, find the latest danceable mainstream crossover hit, or whatever hip-hop song sampled Bollywood recently, and play it - preferably in the middle of a good mix. Examples of these sorts of songs over the last few years are:
Dance With You - Jay Sean (this is a few years old now but people still like it)
Down - Jay Sean
Jai Ho - Slumdog Millionaire
Addictive - Truth Hurts (also old but college kids like it)
(protip #2: Save this category for the 20s/30s crowd, unless it overlaps with the must-have songs in #1. Naughty hip-hop with a Bollywood sample won't go over well at a family party.)
(protip #3: Crappy Bollywood copies of English songs don't count.)

6. Other Stuff
A) Himesh Reshammiya. Don't ask me why. I don't want to hear it either. But for some reason, when people get into crowds, it works. Try something uptempo from the 2006-2007 Reign of Himesh. Examples: Jhalak Dikhlaja, Tera Suroor
(protip #4: Do not play too much Himesh. This is 2010.)
B) Dance remixes of extremely new, extremely popular ballads. Examples as of November 2010: Pee Loon (Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai), Tere Liye (Prince), Tu Jaane Na (Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani). REMIXES ONLY. Don't play slow songs. Any well-produced remix of any Atif Aslam song also falls into this category.

This should be enough for one party. Eventually, I am hoping to write posts on Epic Non-Hindi Songs, Bhangra for the Uninitiated, Drunk People Songs, and When Bollywood Gets Dance Music Right -- but for most parties, these categories should be all you need.

Singing at Pullman Durga Puja

2010-10-16T23:43:00.000-07:00

I sang Aguner Poroshmoni at Pullman Durga Puja on 10/10/10. Here's the video. Enjoy!

October

2010-10-03T19:55:00.000-07:00

Seven years ago this month, I heard a few songs that refused to leave my head for months afterward. Or, thanks to a friend, my car CD player.

I was learning how to DJ at that point. What's Rule #1 of DJing? Know your music well. Know what people love and what is new and fresh. Give the audience what they want to hear, and sometimes, what they need to hear. After some time listening mostly to commercial dance, I had settled into deep house/jazz house. Learned the basics, kept up with the new stuff. But after October, I stopped following Rule #1. I was too busy listening to other music -- this soundtrack my friend had given me. And Lucky Ali. And Shaan. And so on, and so forth.

I had one house gig in February 2004 that fell through -- probably to my benefit. I never played outside my bedroom. That was pretty much over. But by October of that year, I was performing. Singing again. Onstage. In a language I had only been familiar with for one year.

This October, seven years from the start, I'm still here, quietly. I keep moving to smaller and smaller towns, further away from any possibility of doing anything with my music. And yet it is always there, in the back of my mind. Yes, I want this life I live now. I hope that I can keep these good things. But I don't think I will ever truly give up singing... and I still hope that you are out there, listening.

Remix Live

2010-07-17T17:25:00.001-07:00

Rihanna's Rude Boy + Brit-Asian dholi = a remix I hope actually gets recorded some day, like Snap! did with Motivo's bootleg remix The Power of Bhangra.

they are what they are

2010-07-06T19:34:00.001-07:00

For those times in life when you just have to sit back and accept things, to say "it is what it is" and know that is the extent of your control, it is good to have those songs that are really, truly yours... and know that they are what they are.

Nazrein Karam (from Jashnn) is one of those songs for me. Nothing else resonates in quite the same way, and I wonder if anything else ever will. Both the original and the remix are completely, perfectly, me.

I keep coming back to these two... lucky for me, this is the only CD that currently plays in my quickly deteriorating car CD player... I can't listen to them nearly enough.

And the freestyle remix:

Adriana singing Aguner Poroshmoni

2010-06-27T22:10:00.000-07:00

Here is the video of me singing Aguner Poroshmoni. It is my first Bengali song.

For some reason, Rabindra sangeet has always sounded familiar to me, although I have really only been listening to it for two years. It makes me feel like I am home after a long journey. Peaceful, centering music... and slowly I am learning the words that the music already speaks.

Life Soundtrack: Javeda Zindagi

2010-05-18T20:06:00.000-07:00

This is the first song I thought of for this series, really. And yet it's taken me this long to write about it. That's because I don't know exactly what to write. This song echoes in the deepest part of me, it has a resonance that I don't even have words for.

I fell asleep to this song almost every night for six months of my life. Six months that, looking back, were the shining pinnacle of my life, despite myself. Every day was a fight. But every day was a small victory. I cannot believe that I lived with so much energy and so little fear. And every night.. some morning-nights... I slowed down. My heartbeat, brain waves, slowed to the steady beat of the tabla and I drifted off into any one of a million parallel universes, to wake up hours later ready for the next brilliant moment.

This is quite possibly my favorite song of all time.

Here are lyrics and a translation.. I found the translation online and improved it some, in a non-literal sort of way :)

tose naina laage piya saaware
nahi bas mein ab yeh jiya saaware
mohabbat to ek javeda zindagi hai

Your eyes met mine, my love
This heart has gone wild, my love
Love... is eternal life

tose naina laage mili roshni
tose man jo laaga mili zindagi
mohabbat to ek javeda zindagi hai

When your eyes met mine, I finally saw
When your soul met mine, I finally lived
Love... is eternal life

mohabbat ki hai daastaan zindagi
mohabbat na ho to kahaan zindagi
mohabbat to hai javeda zindagi hai

The story of love is life
Without love, there is no life
Love... is eternal life

shamaa ko pighalne ka armaan kyun hai
patange ko jalne ka armaan kyun hai
issi shauq ka intehaan zindagi hai

Why does the flame have a desire to burn?
Why does the moth have a desire to die in the flame?
Life... is this sort of desire for infinite love

mohabbat jise baksh de zindagani
nahin maut par khatm uski kahani

Whososever is given life through love
Gains immortality...

kaise jiya jaaye ... ishq bin?
How can life go on without love?

nahin koi insaan mohabbat se khaali
har ek ruh pyaasi, har ek dil sawaali

No one is devoid of love
Every spirit is thirsty, every heart is searching

mohabbat jahaan wahaan zindagi hai
mohabbat na ho to kahaan zindagi hai

Where there is love, there is life

Without love, where then could there be life?

I'll Never Regret Loving You

2010-04-11T21:15:00.001-07:00

I had the chance tonight to participate in some very cool Internet music collaboration.
You can read the whole story here. (There's a lot of comments; I have posted as triliana).
The short version is this:
A poster on Reddit was going through some of his grandparents' things, and came across some sheet music written by them WAY back. He brought it to the musicians of Reddit to make it come alive. Another poster named Mingl played it on piano - I grabbed the mp3 and recorded the vocals.
Hear it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Vqky2pK3Js

Life Soundtrack - What A Good Boy

2010-03-28T15:53:00.000-07:00

Barenaked Ladies - What A Good Boy

Freshman year of college, finally, I was discovering some new music. Went on a trip to New Mexico with some classmates. Met a boy from Louisiana who played the guitar, among other instruments. I was smitten. He didn't even notice me.

This was one of those songs that he played on that trip... when I came back to the dorm, I immediately went out to the record store and bought the CD. And maybe because of the boy, maybe not, I just heard it so much more clearly. Could hear every instrument, the guitar, the fiddle, the piano, all the instruments he played, and their parts making up the whole. My memories of those days are brightly colored with the tones of these different instruments all mixing together to make this beautiful, if cynical, song.

But isn't that how we respond to life - sometimes in awe of beauty, sometimes with a cynical eye?

It was easy to forget about the boy. But I still listen to each chorus a little more attentively, for those quiet parts that can go missed if you're not careful, the melodies in the background that add to the earnestness of the song, the notes that make it believable.

The wind has changed

2010-03-16T21:45:00.000-07:00

Just wrote this tonight. Was thinking about the years when I sat in between decisions, not knowing where to go, what path to follow. I wish I'd had this song then.

The wind has changed
Is it a shift of consciousness
Is it a tender sweet caress
That blows on and leaves me here
The wind has changed
Will it take me away
Or will I remain the same
Or will I get swept away
The wind has changed

And if I don't go
Am I letting life pass me by?
Or do I hear its sweetest sweet reply
"Stand strong and fight"
But if I heed its call
I don't know where it leads
Could my best days be all behind me?
Which way is right?

The wind has changed
And so have I
I call to it
Don't get no reply
It's up to me
To decide who I will be

Life Soundtrack: She Will Be Loved

2010-03-06T20:23:00.000-08:00

Maroon 5 - She Will Be Loved

2007. I felt so focused and so sure about everything. I thought I could control the whole world if only I was in the right frame of mind, but that's another song and another entry. The only thing I wasn't very sure of was myself.

But I found good friends. 3am friends, do nothing and feel at home friends, singing friends, conversation friends, be there when you need them friends. One of them was all of these things.

Some part of me, though, never quite believed that someone like that would want to hang around with someone like me. And so I hesitated, didn't say what I should have, said what I shouldn't have, thought constantly of the future when I would leave and lose these shining times, let myself drift away. And did not come back. Maybe it mattered, maybe not, but years later, I still think that I let something good pass by without realizing it.

When I went to that new city, I had no regrets. When I returned a year and a half later, I was full of them. But my first regret was that I didn't let go of all those things and be the friend that I was so lucky to have.

I will never hear this song without remembering the best of times.

It's not always rainbows and butterflies, it's compromise that moves us along
My heart is full and my door's always open, you come any time you want-

Life Soundtrack: Sin Miedo

2010-02-27T08:29:00.000-08:00

They say there are two kinds of people in the world - lyrics people and music people. I always thought I was the first kind, but as this and the previous song show, maybe I'm not. Or maybe you really can't make the distinction.

Caló - Sin Miedo

Rewind back to junior year of high school for this one. I was going through a very, uh, awkward music phase, where I pretty much listened to Celine Dion all the time. Lucky for me, those who knew me well were doing their best to get me out of this rut, but no one more so than my sister, whose life's mission, it seemed, was to learn about good music and share it with others. I have met many such people in my life, and now I am one of them.

My sister was studying Spanish, and had recently discovered the local Spanish pop station. And as was the custom in the 90s, we would tape our favorite songs off the radio. This was one of those songs, and the one I listened to most often off those tapes. I really didn't understand a lot of Spanish - just what I had picked up from Sesame Street and from my grandparents, who lived in Spain. So I understood about a dozen words from this song, and they were all in the chorus. But that was really all I needed at the time. You can get the 'feel' of the song from just that and the music - it always served as a "motivational" song for me.

How motivational? This song was on probably 90% of the mix CDs I made throughout college and afterwards - usually as track one. It was my way of saying "I am here, the party can start now."

And throughout all this time, I never bothered to look up the lyrics on the Internet or ask my sister to translate or anything.
It was what it was.

My Spanish has improved greatly over the last few years, and I started understanding bits and pieces - but when you listen to a song you don't understand for years and years, your brain can't figure out the words, even if you know the language well. (I still can't make out the lyrics to a number of Journey songs!) So when I started picking up these bits and pieces, I wanted to know what the song was really about. So I looked up the lyrics online. And when I read them and understood them for the first time, I knew what the song was about and what it meant to me.

Now, this song was not my own song of motivation, something to take into myself, it was advice. It was me being able to take my own life and experience and pass them on to those who come after me. It's me arriving at a place of wisdom after so many years of learning and passing on that wisdom - and the music - to others.

Here's the lyrics and my translation (which may not be literal or even totally accurate.. I don't have a Spanish degree :>)

En tu rincón protector
Se te ve como un rey
Luces muy bien en tu cómoda piel
Pero yo se, que te va,
que te va muy mal
la vida es una mujer
una belleza tan difícil de conquistar
para ganar su voluntad
tienes que ser un huracán

In your protective little corner
I see you as if you were a king
You're looking good, comfortable with yourself
But I know that you're not doing well at all
Life is like a woman,
A beauty that's hard to conquer
To win her consent, you have to be a hurricane

Sin Miedo, por fin atrévete
Sin Miedo, esta vez, sorpréndeme
Sin Miedo, con fe, con decisión
Sin Miedo, lánzate igual que yo

Without any fear - just dare yourself
This time, surprise me
With faith, with certainty
Throw yourself out there like I would

Tu corazón dice no
A llorar, o a reír
Es un error, un estúpido error
Abrazar nada mas, a la soledad
Sal por ahí, vuelve a sentir
La melodía de los sueños de libertad
Para perder, para ganar
Hay que jugar hasta el final

Your heart says no to crying or laughing
This is a mistake, a stupid mistake
To never hold someone again, to be alone
Get out of there, go back to feeling
The melody of the dreams of freedom
In order to lose or to win
You have to play until the end

Life Soundtrack: True

2010-02-23T20:53:00.000-08:00

I figure if I'm going to call this blog what it is, I should probably post a little about those songs that are the soundtrack to *my* life. What they are, what they mean, how they all come together to describe and explain me. Some people say they are indescribable. I'm not - but you have to hear that music to know the story.

We'll start with junior high. 1992.
Spandau Ballet - True

Sunset on a summer weekday, pinks and golds filtered through the miniblinds, the last rays of sun creating the setting. I was sitting alone in my room because that's what teenagers do. But while most were talking on the phone or thinking about what will happen tomorrow, I sat there in my nostalgia of the few years I had already experienced. I was still young enough to remember what it was like when reality wasn't filtered by experience yet, but not so young that I still looked at life through those all-seeing lenses. And I thought days of being four or five years old, knowing this song at that young age. I don't remember hearing it for the first time - this song was just always present, as far back as I can remember.

The song is calm, it's backwards-looking, it's the doorway to that world of endless possibility and unfiltered life. It's syncopated synths and deep, pure voices. It is the sound of my soul, although the words have never really moved me nearly as much as the music does.

This is an evening song...
a song for seeking peace...
a song for the calm times...
the past-oriented times...
my first taste of nostalgia.

My top 10 of 2009

2010-01-03T08:31:00.000-08:00

2010 is here, y'all. But not so far into 2010 that we're not still reminiscing on what was so awesome from 2009. Recession? Unemployment rate? Botched health care legislation? Swine flu? Not so much. But at least there were some rocking Hindi songs :)

These are my personal favorites, not necessarily the ones that rocked the dance floor or got a thumbs-up from Joginder Tuteja, Karthik of Milliblog, or other more knowledgeable music reviewers than my bad self.

So here's my top 10:

10: Kurbaan Hua, Kurbaan (singer: Vishal Dadlani; music directors: Salim-Suleiman, lyricist: Niranjan Iyengar)
9: Kabhi Kabhi, Mere Khwabon Mein Jo Aaye (singer: Anushka Manchanda; music director: Siddharth Coutto; lyricist: Renuka Kunzru)
8: Maahi, Raaz: The Mystery Continues (singer: Toshi; music directors: Sharib-Toshi; lyricist: Sayeed Quadri)
7: Pehli Baar Mohabbat, Kaminey (singer: Mohit Chauhan; music director: Vishal Bhardwaj; lyricist: Gulzar)
6: Main Kya Hoon, Love Aaj Kal (singer: KK; music director: Pritam; lyricist: Irshad Kamil)
5: Aa Jao Meri Tamanna, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (singer: KK; music director: Pritam; lyricist: Irshad Kamil)
4: Bebo, Do Knot Disturb (singers: Neeraj Shridar, Anushka Manchanda; music directors: Nadeem-Shravan; lyricist: Sameer)
3: Dil Gira Dafatan, Delhi-6 (singers: Ash King, Chinmayee; music director: A.R. Rahman; lyricist: Prasoon Joshi)
2: Iktara, Wake Up Sid (singers: Kavita Seth, Amitabh Bhattacharya; music director: Amit Trivedi; lyricist: Javed Akhtar)
1: Nazrein Karam, Jashnn (singers: KK, Shreya Ghoshal; music directors: Sharib-Toshi; lyricist: Kumaar)

Lots of great singers this year! Vishal Dadlani rocks the house, Mohit Chauhan really shines, and Toshi Sabri.. wow.. but is it Sharib, sounding somewhat like Beto Cuevas singing in Hindi, whose voice I prefer in Aish Karle from Jashnn? But my favorites for the year are hands down, Anushka Manchanda and my all-time favorite KK.

Best soundtrack? Nothing quite moved me like Jashnn, but Love Aaj Kal and Delhi-6 were all-around great, solid soundtracks.

Honorable mention goes to Himesh for not singing through his nose on most of Man Ka Radio.

What would I like to see for 2010? More experimentation, more female lead singers, and if the "I wanna have a band and make it big" genre of film continues into this new year, songs that sound like real rock songs and not sanitized Bolly-rock.

what it is like to write a song

2009-11-23T21:06:00.000-08:00

It starts with a tsunami. Some drive, some emotion, some event, something bigger than you, more overwhelming than you can take, happens .. at least in your own mind. But without that happening, there is no song. You can't say "I should write a song." there are no shoulds.

Starts soft and slow, in the same part where your conscience lives. That same still, small voice speaks up, but in rhyme. Or music. Or just a beautiful turn of phrase. And then you know it's begun. You can keep about your everyday life or go to some quiet place and let it take over.

I write in the car sometimes. I don't know how safe that really is. When I wrote the song below, I had music on that I will probably never listen to again. And I wrote my own lyrics, based on the events of twenty minutes prior. The whole world changed as the song took form. South became North and large buildings shifted to the other side of the street.

You wake up after the song is in form, at least in its first form. Then your conscious self takes over and you fix the details. The rhymes, the little tweaks to the melody, the variations.

But none of this would be possible without those semiconscious moments when you "switch off the mind and let the heart decide" ... without the ability to let go and let yourself truly immerse yourself in the present moment and the past catalyst moment both at the same time, let them wash over you and let the music come from a place you rarely access.

I wonder when I will let myself write again.

i had forgotten about this one

2009-09-01T19:04:00.000-07:00

untitled as of yet.. but lyrics are finished. this song only needs one verse, and lots of music.

Under a blue sky I walk alone
Searching for the only home I've ever known
The music's on the paper
The song waits for my voice
And as I sing I waver
I know that I have the choice
But the one thing that sets me free
Is the one thing entangling me

You want me to stay forever
Part of me wants to believe
So I sit here and sing in wonder
Till I leave....

Jashnn

2009-08-11T17:09:00.000-07:00

I am not easily moved by music these days. The beauty of Maula Mere Maula (Anwar), sorrow of Bheegi Bheegi (Gangster), fun of Pyar Karke (Pyar Ke Side Effects), hope and joy of Nachle (Aggar), glitter of Ishq Samundar (Kaante) and Pyar Aaya (Plan) - where has it all gone? Hindi songs do not make me FEEL anything anymore. They're getting as slick and emotionless as American top 40 and hipster wannabe music.

But every once in awhile, there's something worth writing about. Gangster was the last soundtrack that I had in my car, really. After that, it's just been a mix of this good song and that good song from this film and that. No one makes a really solid soundtrack anymore - at least not one that has that feel, that sound, that something about it that brings me back again and again.

Delhi 6 could have been it. It's truly a joy to listen to - but kept coming in second in my playlist to only two tracks from Ghajini on repeat. It's perfect in many ways - new, interesting, original, French rap... and yet, it did nothing for me. I liked it, but I didn't love it.

Dev.D tried. Really, it did. But that was its problem - it tried too hard, to be something for everyone. Eighteen tracks, each one in a different musical style. Call it experimental if you will - I call it messy. Some tracks stood out among the mishmash (Pardesi, Payaliya, Dhol Yaara Dhol) - but every time I looked at it when sorting through the CDs in my car, I chose something else.

And when Mithoon released his solo pop effort, I really thought I had found my CD of the year. Everyone knows how I feel about Mithoon and his songs - I shall not gush about it in yet another blog entry. Only problem is, I'd heard it all before. It was like getting last year's Valentine. What came through in Bas Ek Pal, in Javeda Zindagi, was repackaged and overproduced and somehow, whatever it was that made those songs worth listening to got distilled out and thrown away as a byproduct. I really think this album would have had a better impact if Mithoon had gone back to the source and taken advantage of the skills he used remixing Atif Aslam songs instead of packing an Indipop song full of slow to mid-tempo ballads.

And then, there was Jashnn. I heard a clip of Aaya Re and knew in one second. THIS is my album of the year - so far. It is the first soundtrack since Gangster that has had me this enthralled. These are NOT perfect A.R. Rehman compositions. The music directors are new to the industry, and they, like Mithoon when he made his debut, are pretty much kids. Sharib Sabri is 21 and Toshi is not much older, I presume. There are mistakes in mixing, uncorrected pitch problems, moments when the music directors pretty much directly channel their inspirations, and I love it despite, if not for, its blemishes. It has something about it - that je ne sais quoi, that umami of sound, that just makes it RIGHT.

The soundtrack starts out with its strongest song - Nazrein Karam, basically a solo by KK with some help from Shreya Ghoshal. The beat brings me back twenty years to 1989, turning on Energy 96.5 in Houston and listening to dance music for the first time and knowing that this music would be the soundtrack of my life from that point on. Listening to this song, I can hear traces of Depeche Mode and Enigma, and I feel the same sense of wonder I felt listening to them for the very first time. Yet it's not early 90s music - it has a thoroughly new feel, and the energy stays up well throughout its 5:32 - thank KK for this, as he gives this song his 120%. Sometimes he pushes too hard on this one, and pitch problems are evident even on a first listen, but it doesn't detract from the song at all for me.

Aaya Re - this one will be on the dance floors as the weather cools down. KK sings this song of soaring hope. And soar it does - just like the first song on the album, it's got a driving beat and an uplifting melody. It's not complicated - just constantly moving. I haven't seen the picturization of this, but the sound effects make it sound like it will be an item number or performed on stage a la Dhoom Machale or Rock On. This song makes my Treadmill Playlist.

Dard-E-Tanhai - This song is actually by Nouman Javaid, the guy singing the song. He wrote it - lyrics, music, and all. I'll be honest, I have not really been much in the mood for sad songs recently, and this song doesn't start out very strong - the piano seems awfully soulless - but when I got past the first 30 seconds and the guitar comes in, it evens out some, and then by the time they introduce the beat at 0:50, I knew this would be a must-listen as well. Everything just mixes and meshes well. At times it sounds a bit like a Mithoon song, but I'm not complaining :)

Tere Bin - This track from Sandesh Shandilya is the most 'filmi' track on the soundtrack and probably for that reason, my least favorite. Yet it is simple and elegant, with swooping strings and again, a beat that won't quit (with a little Kuch To Hua Hai feel to it). Shreya Ghoshal and Shaan do this style well, so good for Shandilya being smart enough to get them to sing it. The piano in this one has more feeling in it, but I still can't tell whether or not it is real piano or computer piano. The ending of this song, where the male/female vocals are cut one into another, is probably the weakest part of the whole soundtrack, but again, I kind of don't care. Love covers a multitude of sins.

Main Chala - I absolutely love this song, also composed by Noumain Javaid. It's ballad and rock and blues and has Hindi lyrics that work and it's melodramatic and filmi and real all at the same time. It has real instruments, including a HARMONICA. And the strings at 4:18 rock my world.

Aish Karle reminds me of a Punjabi song I heard once, a song that I know the musicians and singers LOVED singing in the studio. The joy just came through the microphone and couldn't be hidden. This one's a bit more reserved than that, but the essence remains. Toshi and Sharib give this one all they've got. Their influences are also most apparent in this song - I hear the echoes of Himesh Reshammiya and Duran Duran loud and clear, and I swear one of them sounds JUST LIKE Beto Cuevas of La Ley - it's a long shot that they would know who that is, but La Ley's music is also reminiscent of Duran Duran and Depeche Mode, so it follows. I don't mean Pritam-style influence though - I'm 99% sure this is all original stuff, but I think that as Toshi and Sharib mature as music directors, their influences will be more subtle than they currently are.

And I hope they stick around for a long time!

The Kilogram mixes are pretty sweet, and sound like I could have turned on Energy 96.5 back in the day and heard them - Nazrein Karam is freestyle souped up for the 21st century, and the Dard-E-Tanhai remix sounds like New Order with a better voice. Only complaint is that damn Coldplay "Clocks"-esque piano part. Other than that - loving the remixes.

We finish up with "Main Chala - Unplugged" - a quick little acoustic remix of ... Dard-E-Tanhai? ... Anyway, it's a nice ending to the album and makes me want to hear more of all three music directors. I just hope that they can continue making music that sounds this fresh and is full of feeling, even after they perfect the art of production.

I would say I can't wait until their next soundtrack... but I think I'll just listen to this one a few hundred more times.

the circle

2009-03-20T19:18:00.000-07:00

We all return
To where we've been
But don't you know
A new day begins again
You'll return to the snows of your youth
I'll return to my longing for truth
But we find that the place is the same
From where we came, though it's today
And the circle begins again
A circle without an end
The circle begins again
On and on without end

Don't you know
That what we hide
Is what we hold
Closest to us inside
My old dream of moving away
Came true, but in a different way
Looking back, I can see that the pain
Brought me to where I am today

And the circle begins again...

We are the same but ever new
There is a thread that pulls us through
We are the same but ever new
What is this thread that pulls us through?

And the circle begins again...

What's playing, March 09

2009-03-15T19:58:00.000-07:00

This has not been a month where I have had a lot of time to play around with new music, so this playlist may be a little stale to some. There are reasons for some of the songs (performance) and I've been listening to a lot of old music just because I can.

So here goes .. what's been in the car this month:
Dev.D soundtrack
Mere Khwabon Mein Jo Aaye soundtrack
Ghajini soundtrack
Delhi 6 soundtrack
individual songs:
Kuch Khaas - Fashion
Ye Tumhari Meri Baatein - Rock On
Manmohini Morey - Yuvvraaj

What's on the workout playlist the most:
Ae Aa O - Billu Barber
Aye Bacchu - Ghajini
Behka - Ghajini
Nachke Dikha - Rishi Rich (this is a classic for me, so stop laughing now, i love this song, it is sooo 2001.. or was it 1998?i forget, i wasn't there.)
Nakhre - Barsaat (I run to this song)
Talli Hua (Jay Dabhi Remix) - Singh is Kingg
Teri Naganee - Kaash Mere Hote

2008 in review

2009-02-22T17:22:00.000-08:00

Long overdue, here's my list of favorite songs and not-so-favorite songs for the year.
This is the only awards list compiled this year that does NOT contain any references to Slumdog Millionaire.

Song I love to hate : Billo Rani (Goal)
Song I hate to love : Hey Ya (Kidnap)
Best Guy Song : KK, Haan Tu Hai (Jannat)
Best Girl Song : Shruti Pathak, Mar Javaan (Fashion)
The WTF Award for mismatch of singer and song: classically-trained Monali, Zara Zara Touch Me (Race)
Best Song To Rock Out To: Bandya (Khuda Kay Liye)
The "I Predicted This in 2007 But Thought It Would Be Akon" award for Best Hip-Hop Crossover : Snoop Dogg, Singh is Kinng (Singh is Kinng)
Most Interesting Music : Kabhi Kabhi Aditi (Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na)
Most Egregious and Possibly Unintentional Use of a Foreign Language : Tu Hai Meri Soniye (Kismat Konnection) - ay papi!
Smartest Egregious Use Of A Foreign Language : Dil Dance Maare (Tashan)
Song That Indians Understand That Americans Never Will : Pappu Can't Dance (Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na)
Worst Subtitles -Guzarish (Ghajini) - no, I do not want to hear about your "spewing pearls of love", thanks.
Most Experimental Album That Worked : Aamir
Best Overall Album : Fashion
Best Song : Manmohini Morey (Yuvvraaj)

mg road

2008-12-06T21:35:00.000-08:00

Funny how days make memories fade
From colour to black and white then into grey
Miles, they do the same first one,
Five, ten a thousand and time and space have their way

I could call, you'd never answer
I could write, you'd never respond
So all I can do is close my eyes and think of you.. and I do
Then half a world away, you open your eyes
You'd say I was dreaming, I was, wasn't I?

I don't remember the start
I'm not afraid of the end
I just remember the road
And I remember the wind
I remember the music
And the song that you sang
And in the end this world doesn't have to change

We're gonna be the change

Was it a night like this
The full moon lighting my path as I make my way home
It was a night like this
When I looked up at the moon and I said here I am
Here I am, where will this moment take me?
Where will it take me?

I could start, I'd never finish
I could write, you'd never respond
And so all I can do is close my eyes and be here.. and I do
Then half a world away you open your eyes
You'd say I was dreaming but this is life
This is life

I don't remember the start
I'm not afraid of the end
I just remember the road
And I remember the wind
I remember the music
And the song that you sang
And in the end this world doesn't have to change

It's you and me who changed

I don't remember the start
I'm not afraid of the end
I just remember the road
And I remember the wind
I remember the music
And the song that you sang
And in the end this world doesn't have to change

What we are

2008-02-10T06:57:00.000-08:00

I know what I am
How many times that excuse
Let me justify the vortex spinning me
Let me name it as my own creation
How many days you and I
Walked this parallel path
Unknowingly doing and saying the same things
On the same days
How many minutes of pain did you endure
To make the abstract tangible, followable
And how many minutes of years did you watch
The abstract fade, disappear; leaving only a souvenir
The minutes add up and their summation
Is an unbiased reflection of what you are
So, you know what you are
And the freedom it gives
To jump in the vortex, let go, drown
With all words left unsaid except
I know what I am
But these seconds of minutes
Are not lost to us even now
And perhaps from here
On our parallel paths
We can look past the material
To discover for the first time
The world of ideas and ideals
The things that allow us to transcend
What we are
And discover who we are

I've been waiting for today

2008-02-10T06:48:00.000-08:00

This sidelong glance is now more than habit,
It is instinct. My anticipation of your smile,
Of a word from you, is such a constant state
That I cannot help but live in hope
Every moment, every hour joyful
Because I know you could be here
And you are here - as you live the moments
Of your life, perhaps near or far,
You are forever in my heart. This, indeed, is everything.
And as hours, weeks, months dissolve into moments,
Single points in time, they slow time itself
And bring me back in a very real way
To moments that, for me, are immortal.
They bring me to a riverbank, clothed in wind,
Hiding from all but you; bring me then to a day
Bright red with happiness - I understood everything
But blushed at my naiveté.
A surrender never accepted, a goodbye never spoken
And thousands of tears uncried
Today these words mean nothing more and nothing less
Than what they say, as goodbyes still remain silent
And strength is still found in the memories, moments
So I will never really know why this wind
Blows in this direction - but it does
And I tumble along with it, anchoring in time
But moving in space...and the effort of the reversal
Of the commonplace gives me courage
To last just one more day...

Halfway hoping to be found

2008-02-10T06:41:00.000-08:00

Written in January, for a previous February and March, by me.

One song reminds me
Just one moment - one thought -
Brings me back to the center
I just never thought it would be like this

Once I sat in the crisp breeze
Hiding away yet
Halfway hoping to be found
And yet today, here I stand
With no fear - the thought of being found
Never thought because today
I have sought you out instead.

What brought you down to earth?
Humanity frailty humility
Or rather, what brought me to the stars
To meet you there?
Or were the heavens and earth always one and the same?

Anyway, it doesn't matter
In such times as these
When we look at the clock with expectation
Waiting for the future to bring its reward
It only matters when you live in the moment
And both of us have put the moment aside
To chase our uncertain futures

But when I hear your song
NOW returns to me in full splendor
Waiting to see you, hoping to hear you
Hoping to finally be found and living
In the sweet moments of simply loving
That gave me days of strength and hope
That still, now, don't stop

2007 in review and my current residence

2008-01-06T23:18:00.000-08:00

I am in the process of moving halfway around the world, which means that right now I don't exactly live anywhere. As far as music goes, I live under a rock. No, i have not heard Billo Rani. But I am going to get a broadband connection about 20 seconds after I get the keys to whatever flat I finally decide upon renting in Gurgaon or Delhi or whereeverthehell I end up, so this will be remedied, and you will not be spared my verbosity.

But I can definitely comment on music from 2007, so here is my Non-Exhaustive List of the Best in Hindi Music of 2007. Again, this is just what I think and is not based on number of Red FM plays or how many times at Priyanka's wedding the drunk aunties requested a particular song. It's the opinion of one particular music snob. I do, however, welcome debate.

*note: Yes, I know Anwar was 2006-released. But it was next to impossible for me to find the music until well into 2007 so I am including it in this post.

Best Song
Maula Mere Maula (Anwar). Sayeed Quadri's lyrics spin around Boy Wonder Mithoon Sharma's accompaniment to create a song that expresses perfectly the feeling of gliding along in the joy of love. Hypnotic chanting mixes with a melodic line that you cannot help but follow in complete awareness...there is almost no chorus, no antara, the song is just simply, solidly, one.

Best Soundtrack
Life In A Metro. Pritam's "Metro Band" pulls off some really amazing stuff with this album. It's got more of a rock feel than filmi soundtrack, and the variety of songs, from the meditative In Dino to the rousing Kar Salaam, is incredible. (Too bad they're not all originals, but honestly, did we expect that?) The big guns (KK, Adnan Sami) show up the Metro Band vocalists at every turn, but we kind of expected that too. But all in all, it's tough to make a soundtrack with such diverse sounds that ties together so well, and props to Pritam for that. My mom, who raised me on Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon and Pink Floyd, even likes this album.

Best Music Director
Sometime in 2006, I heard the Zeher soundtrack and thought, "wow, this music really sucks, but this version of Woh Lamhe is pretty cool. It's hard to take a slow song and make it a dance number without cheesifying it *cough*Enrique Iglesias*cough*." A bit later, I saw Kalyug. I thought, "wow, this music really sucks, except I like what they did with Aadat." Then the soundtrack to Bas Ek Pal released, and I listened to ONLY two songs on repeat: Bas Ek Pal and Tere Bin. (Hai Ishq Yeh Kya is pretty decent except for the fact that Pritam manages to plagiarize *himself* - cf. Jal Jal Ke Dhuan from 2005's Ek Khiladi Ek Haseena.) At the end of this eventful year, Anwar came out with an average soundtrack, except for two absolutely outstanding numbers - Maula Mere Maula, and Javeda Zindagi.

Each of these songs, and no others on the album, were arranged or written by Mithoon Sharma. I liked no others - just his. Even more amazing, it is most likely that all of them were composed before his twenty-first birthday. After these first excellent forays, he gives us two more great albums in 2007 with The Train and Aggar. I can't see how anyone else could even get close to him as the best music director of the year.

Best Vocals (Female)
Sunidhi Chauhan, Sajnaji Vaari Vaari (Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd.) - I'm exhausted just listening to the energy she exudes. I didn't have a chance to see this video until months after I heard the song on the radio, but I pretty much already knew what it would look like just from the way she sang.

Best Vocals (Male)
KK, Alvida (Life In A Metro) - I wasn't ready for it the first time I heard it. KK has always been my favorite contemporary singer, but I wasn't expecting a power ballad from him. Not only did this get about 85 listens in iTunes within a month, but it also inspired me to branch out from the melodious Geeta Dutt songs I had gotten so used to singing. Bring on the Janis Joplin.

Best Lyrics (yay I can has this category now)
To Phir Aao (Awarapan). Lovers are not normal people. They are irrational, stupid, and sing about things that their therapists tell them are really not good for their mental and emotional health. This song is one of those songs sung from that particular state of mind. "To phir aao, mujhko satao...mujhko rulao..." I would, and in fact did, advise one singing this song to get over it, move on, it obviously wasn't that great to begin with. But this song is just so... believable. We've all been here.

Best Music
Jaane Kaise (Raqeeb). As much as I make fun of Pritam, he really is one of my favorites, and this song is exactly why. Soulful music and KK's emotive voice make this song musical poetry. It's also the best use of 'whitespace' in Hindi film music since Chura Liya.

Most Danceable
Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. I would have put it as 'best song' except that I didn't like it. But it packed the dancefloor, which was what it was supposed to do. It's the "I made a 1600 on my SAT" student of songs, which is to say that it does everything right and gets the accolades for it, but it's certainly not pretty enough to have a crush on.

Fusion that Didn't Suck
Bhool Bhulaiyya. I actually considered passing this on to my hip-hop dance instructor for his choreographing pleasure, but quit the class before I had the chance. (I moved across town, so cut me some slack, ok?) The rap is ALMOST not bad. But it's the best that Bollywood has ever had.

Best Anthem
Laree Chootee (Ek Chalis Ki Last Local) - despite the REALLY HORRIBLE DANCE in the video, this song was everywhere in May/June. Wildly popular, on the radio every hour, even though I don't think I know one person who actually saw the movie. It received its title of 'summer anthem' in our IT office, as the tech support geeks had it on repeat for the entire time I was there. Not only did they have it on repeat, they were singing it. All of them. Together.

Guiltiest Pleasure
The entire soundtrack of Partner.

Most Obvious Plagiarism
Mauja Hi Mauja (Jab We Met). Dear Pritam, I have been waiting for you to do something with Simarik for YEARS now. Thank you for finally relieving me of the wait. But once again, you kind of managed to outdo the original.

Best Shoutout
"Pump up the Jam" in You're My Love (Partner). Technotronic ruled my world in 1990. I can't help but sing along to this. Oy oy.

Most Unintentional Tribute
I can't imagine that Mithoon and the guys from Josh were actually trying to sound like Hall & Oates in Nachle (Aggar), but they do.

and finally,
My Favorite Song
Javeda Zindagi (Anwar). Nothing short of an epic. This song is a ray of light coming down into a sacred place in your darkest hour and the mountaintop experience of the most ecstatic moment in your life and the bittersweet memories of that past moment all in eight minutes and twenty-three seconds.

Questions? Comments? Pies to throw? (I prefer Boston cream)

listen..love..learn

2008-01-06T23:02:00.001-08:00

Welcome to my music blog. I've always wanted to have a place to deposit my random ramblings about music that interest only a few, and so here it is. You may know me from another blog, another name, another life, but here I am Adriana, singer and snarky-ass music critic. Enjoy, or go away. :)