experimentdis

Meals & their stories

2010-07-21T12:50:00.000-07:00

What I'm going to do in this post is share pics of memorable meals I've had, and give them a little context. Here goes..

1. Shrek happy meal

Place: McDonalds at Sigma Mall, Bangalore

Occasion: Sunil's (colleague) farewell lunch

Comment: I was vegetarian back then, and had a veg happy meal. The Shrek action-figure in this pic was later stolen from me by a friend, which I found out only when visiting his home.

2. Authentic Andhra meal

Place: Vellore, Tamil Nadu

Occasion: Wedding of friend Murali

Comment: This wasn't the actual wedding meal, but the pre-wedding lunch at Murali's home. It was cooked by the family, and was just what I was craving after a 250km bike ride from Bangalore that day.

3. Rasam (or pepper-water as we Anglo-Indians call it), rice & fried sardine

Place: Home in Chennai

Occasion: My first non-veg meal at home in 1.5 yrs (I was vegan during that time, but finally chickened out ;)

Comment: This is my idea of a perfect meal, nothing compares to pepper-water rice & fried fish! It was my favourite when growing up, and will always be!

4. Chicken biriyani made by moi!

Place: Home in Bangalore

Occasion: Invited friends over for a Sunday dinner

Comment: It's the first time I attempted biriyani! I consider this as the moment I graduated in cooking. The invite's open, let me know if you're in Bangalore or Chennai and want to come over. I'm starting to love cooking more than eating. Make your move fast though, this phase is still very nascent.

90's country-rock in the US

2010-07-21T11:39:00.000-07:00

This post is a lazy compilation of a couple of my recent tweets. Alright, fine, I'll add a couple of videos in too.

#nowplaying golden smog. one of the many alternative-country-rock bands of the 90's i've been listening to recently

others being wilco, the jayhawks, bright eyes, whiskeytown, uncle tupelo & monsters of folk

some things i love about these bands is the unpretentious lyrics, simple melodies & stories of everyday life

one example is the song 'hate it here' by wilco. a song about a break up, but talks of washing clothes, doing the dishes & checking mail

Here's 'hate it here' by wilco. I love the way the guy behind the camera is enjoys himself during the song:

Here's a song that's a good representation of the genre as a whole - 'Two angels' by The Jayhawks:

revisiting the yester years

2009-12-26T09:02:00.001-08:00

we had a small college reunion today. some of the thoughts from it:

the birth of entrepreuneurs
quite a few of the guys are thinking of start ups. always a good sign. was great to see one pal in particular who was very carefree back in college, think business now.
makes me think that the education system (or my college - loyola) should be more realistic & encourage entrepreneurship rather than us having to figure it out only after studies.

the death of study
speaking to the class topper, who's still a student, i realized i've lost the joy of reading. i miss my times of contemplating & living out what i read. my usual weekday used to include a block of few hours for reading - anything from shakespeare, to c.s. lewis, to the encyclopedia, to mario puzo. for hours i'd be thinking of the death of desdemona, or the attempt to kill don corleone, or lewis' thots on marriage (though he himself was celibate). now my 'reading' consists of mashable, outofmygord.com, mad magazine, marvel's comics, rolling stone mag, etc. all these on my comp, lasting 50 pages at max. a lot more practical & useful, but with little focus on art and more on information. i find my reading has changed, diversified, but is less intense, and easily forgotten.

i refuse to accept this as a natural progression. will get back to reading good ol' books. a resurrection of sorts.

2008-11-14T09:27:00.001-08:00

green eyes is such a relief after trying the fast (and fun) 'I'm yours' by Jason Mraz. it's simple and beautiful

From Jamendo: The Tengooz

2008-08-13T20:42:00.001-07:00

back after a long time!

i had to share this album! it's a great listen!

the band The Tengooz is Japanese, and i love their bassy!
right now i'm tripping on the 3rd song on this album - Running!

Introducing Lost in Translation - The Band I'm Part of..

2007-08-24T00:45:00.000-07:00

LiT as we call it has made its first appearance online this week. We've been around for little less than 2 years now, playing gigs at various places in India. We play progressive, blues, and classic rock - the lines between these genres are not clearly defined, but we like our sound nevertheless!

We put out our first 2 songs for free download here

If you have some more time to spare, check out our profile here

Ozzy's Facing Hell.. Or is it the Other Way Round?

2007-08-17T11:33:00.000-07:00

From biting off a bat's head, to pouring a bucket of paint on himself, to a bucket of saliva on fans - this wizard has been there done that, and noone owns the stage like he does. What amazes me about Ozzy is that he may not have the best voice around, but the charisma that lights up any audience he performs for!

I have too many favorites of Ozzy for one post, but here are 2 of them:

1. Facing Hell - Ozzy (with Zakk Wylde)

2. Mr. Crowley - Ozzy (with Randy Rhoads)

Most say Randy was the greatest guitarist who played for Ozzy. Now, I think you can't always say who's greater in music cos each musician has their unique style, and it's the tastes, and influences of the listener that make a big difference. I'd rather substitute 'the greatest' with 'your favorite.' so go on and comment on who's your favorite lead guitarist...

Time for Some Headbanging with Megadeth

2007-08-17T11:12:00.001-07:00

This post is dedicated to Warren - I call him WC. He's the biggest Megadethaholic I've met.

Dave Mustaine's constipated style of singing is the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of megadeth. But, hey, he doesn't let the band down at all. I heard they're coming to India sometime, and I'm sure WC and myself will be there screaming for this song...

A Secret Place - Megadeth

I hope to play this song someday with my band. Any megadeth song you'd die to hear?

Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming - Deep Purple

2007-08-17T10:54:00.000-07:00

With a guitarist like Steve Morse, you bet Deep Purple feels like screaming! This song was sent to me by my band's lead guitarist - Jeet (aka Debra). Jeet describes Steve Morse as a 'guitar virtuoso.'

What I love about this song:
- There's not too much change happening in the song, but the main tune is so catchy that the subtle variations beautify the song
- I'm moved by the lead guitar more than the vocals of this song!
- Lovely backing rhythm chords if you listen carefully!

Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming - Deep Purple

What's your favorite song for soulful guitar playing?

YYZ - Crazy Name for a Song, but Trust Rush to Carry it off!

2007-08-17T10:02:00.000-07:00

One of my dream bass solos is in this song. The legend Geddy Lee is simply awe inspiring. I had to put this up not just for Neal Pert's drum solo at the end, but for the Geddy's superb bass fill-ins from 1:45 of the song. a can't miss...

All 3 greats in their own right. They're one of the most influential bands of their time, and perhaps of all time. What did you love most about the song?

The Entertainer - Stevai Vai with Blue Powder

2007-08-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

What I love about this song are the use of harmonics, and the transitions between parts of the song. It's a mix of hard, and soft with unexpected variations.. and don't miss the nice bass solo in the middle

Blue Powder - Steve Vai

I know some of you may not fancy this one, teme why though..

The Genius Eric Johnson with Cliffs of Dover

2007-08-17T09:14:00.000-07:00

I remember the first time listening to this song at my friend Richard's studio, when Jayakar brought over the video.. I was haunted by the tune for days! For all you lovers of the lead guitar, this is one song you can't miss. One of the most beautiful songs ever played on a guitar. It won Eric the 1991 Grammy award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

Comment on YouTube - fucking beautiful, I almost cried

Proof that even a hard-talking guy/girl has a heart! What'd you think of the song?

Joe Satriani - One of my Favorite Guitar Composers

2007-08-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

The man has taught Steve Vai, Kirk Hammet (the latter not all that credible though - he's all about the 'wah effect'). I've listened to Satch only over the past 2 years, and it's amazing how he can capture the mood of a song, and make it say exactly what its title says. This song is not the best example of that, but is a great listen...

Train of Angels - Joe Satriani

From my friends, I've heard so many favorites of Joe Sat, that I'm sure to find more new ones in the comments section here.. do you have a favorite?

Velvet Revolver Anybody?

2007-08-17T08:56:00.000-07:00

Credit to my cuz Haldane who made me listen to the band a few months after they started. I don't quite fancy the vocals, but the music is GnR standard as expected. OK, we should give them some time to come out with their best, but I see potential if these guys stick together. here's my favorite song of theirs...

Fall to Pieces - Velvet Revolver

Tell me if you loved this song too..

There's Always Room for Some Mush

2007-08-17T08:26:00.000-07:00

None of the songs I've put up on my blog so far were about love, and you know that the single biggest inspiration for music has to make its appearance here sooner or later. Both these songs remind me of my college days. They were played by the VisCom department of Loyola, and the whole atmosphere at the show was transformed! an unforgettable experience..

1. Don't Speak - No Doubt

2. Hold My Hand - Hootie and the Blowfish (my band mate sadly perverted the last word of the band) I couldn't find the audio online so including a video below..

Any song you relate to college? any experience? there's always room for comments...

Kindred Spirits - One of My Recent Favorite Songs

2007-08-17T08:03:00.000-07:00

It's the ringtone for my mobile, on which I loaded the songs about a month ago. The high point in this song for me is Jordan Rudess' keyboard solo! The feel, and energy all at the same time is just marvelous! Listen to the song for yourself and watch out for the keyboard solo from 3:42 in the song...

Kindred Spirits - Liquid Tension Experiment

Agree? Disagree? More to add? comment away!

Songs That Have Interested Me Recently

2007-08-17T07:36:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months I've discovered some new/old artists like Jimi Hendrix, Liquid Tension Experiment, and BlackStratBlues. Here are a few songs I loved:

Little Wing - Jimi Hendrix

Hourglass - Liquid Tension Experiment

State of Grace - John Petrucci & Jordan Rudess

All three songs are very slow, peaceful, poignant, and serene. to make full use of those adjectives, they sort of describe my personality too.

2007-02-23T05:54:00.000-08:00

Petrucci's diet:

Adam02 - The Funniest Guy on Youtube

2006-12-09T05:23:00.000-08:00

Here's a challenge: Watch these 3 videos without laughing!

Why did Kevin Moore leave Dream Theater?

Don't miss the last part - they trip on Myung

Another video in which Muyng is picked on! I know this guy makes a mockery of my bass idol, but it's just too funny, I gota share it!

Dream Theater!!

2006-10-18T05:58:00.000-07:00

I'm back after a reeealy long break. I wanted to tell you about my obsession with Dream Theater. I've started listening to them about 3 years ago, when my friend introduced me to Mike Portnoy as the world's best drummer. Falling into Infinity was the first album of DT that I had, which was followed soon by Awake. These were enough for me to love the music of these guys, but I wasn't yet an addict to their music. It was the saturday afternoon, chill out kinda music that I liked to listen to and unwind during the weekend.

Live at the Budokan! (Full Concert)

Then I came to Hyderabad and thro my bandmates got almost all the other albums of DT. Boy was I blown away at their creativity, energy, talent and composition! Every few days I kept finding a new favorite song of DT. Some of them are Lines in the sand, Metropolis, Change of seasons, In the name of God, and Endless sacrifice to name a few.

John Myung's Birthday!

Petrucci Playing in a G3 Concert (Full)

I just have to give one part of this post to Peruvian Skies. I would only dream of playing a DT song, but recently it became a reality. Thanks to Chikki (my band's guitarist) we started to work on playing Peruvian Skies. We've performed it live only once so far, and I just can't describe the pleasure of playing a DT song! DT was one of the bands I thought I'd every play, but I love the feeling of covering Peruvian Skies!

This is my dream bass solo (from Metropolis). Wana play it someday

Mah Music

2006-02-03T07:24:00.000-08:00

Hey,

I wana say something about my taste in music. Music is more than a hobby for me, it's a part of me all thro my day. And the kind of music I've been listening to as a kid has changed and grown.

Right now I listen to rock music a lot, even that is too vague, I listen to classic rock (the 80's and 90's stuff). I was just the opposite some years ago, I used to listen to pop. Artists like Phil Collins, Elton John and Richard Marx are some of my earliest memories in music. Then I began to listen to boy bands like The back street boys and MLTR. One of my first favorite albums was "NOW 3." My high school friends were rock fans and I remember arguing with them and wondering how they could bear to listen to rock music.

One day I wanted to buy a cd to test my new player and the only option was a cd of Iron Maiden. I bought it to try what my friends thought was good, and the next morning I was in love with this music - I fell asleep with the headphones and had the music playing till morning!

I always call Iron Maiden "my first love", as unsuitable as it seems for a band like that! I soon caught up with some more bands to feed my appetite for rock music. I soon had GnR and the Scorpions. My pal Richard gave me Europe, Dream Theater and other stuff. It's about 4 years since the time I began listening to rock, and I've gone on to listen to a lot of bands since then... Pink Floyd, The Eagles, Def Leppard, Deep Purple, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ozzy, Metallica, Eric Clapton with Cream, Aerosmith, Dire Straits and more recently Nirvana, AC/DC, Back Sabbath, 3 Doors Down, Dave Matthews Band, Joe Satriani, Megadeth, and right now tripping on Led Zeppelin!

It's amazing to look back and see how much I've travelled on the road of music, and I can only imagine what lies ahead. The new sounds, new styles, new talent that I'm going to discover, and maybe some of you visiting my blog would introduce me to some music I never knew existed.

Hail Rock!
Twain