Avial - A common man’s review

My colleagues and myself have this not-so-unusual habit of sharing songs that we admire and relish. Now and then there is that odd comical interpretation of malayalees done by some jovial bunch of engineering students. Ironically that’s how I was introduced to Avial the first time. The song “Nada Nada” was forwarded to me and the subject line read, “Mallu rock – funny as hell”. So I open the music file expecting something along the lines of “Neela bucket” (a novelty mallu rap piece by the aforementioned group of engineering students). But BOY was I in for a surprise!

I was mighty impresses by this song and the logical counter reaction to this is finding out more about this “Avial”. I get to hear some more samples from their videos on YouTube. I liked it so much that I went and got the album for myself! Now to tell you why I’m writing this review. I googled for “Avial music review” and I’m not very impressed by the search results. It was not because Google faltered (duh!) but more so because of the stifled welcome these guys got. And this exactly is the inspiration for this post. My attempt at reviewing music I thoroughly enjoyed.

Ok lets dive right in. The first song is “Nada Nada”. This has become the signature song for the band and rightly so. Its got plenty of airtime (Thanks mainly to ACV jukebox and Rosebowl) and the video has already clocked in a 130K+ hits on YouTube. The sound is supreme and is what I can blindly classify as Alternative Rock. You must’ve seen a slightly modded version of the next song “Chekele” from the movie “Sancharram”. This song is a revolutionary piece of arrangement. A pure folk song has been morphed so beautifully into its evident form. “Njan Aara” is my personal favorite. The song is very hummable and the lyrics a are so deep and can have a multitude of emotions attached to them. I could listen to this one over and over. The snatch is the manner in which the song fades itself with a haunting melody. “Arikkuruke” starts with dialogues from what seems like the movie “Sphadikam”. This song’s shifts to a different tempo and takes the listener with it. While I listened to this song over and over, I was wondering if this song would sound better with a voice like Chad Kroeger. “Aranda” is another rebellious sounding song. Frankly, my measly brain could not comprehend the real essence of this song, it sure reminded me of one Mr. Mike Shinoda and his group. “Karukara” has a beautiful guitar piece in its intro. Although the song sounds alright especially with Aparnashree syncing so beautifully with Anand Raj, I personally felt it didn’t emote the real mood of the lyrics. Nevertheless, the strings are beyond words in this one. One song which sounds like a LOT of songs but nothing like ANY of them is “Aadu Pambe”. This really is one of the most innovative and daring pieces of music I’ve heard in recent times. This song made me an absolute admirer. And what better way to end this fiesta than with a haunting masterpiece. That’s what “Ettam Paatu” is. Mind-blowing lyrics and a tune that brilliantly emotes the feeling. I completely lose myself in this song and I’m sure you would too if you could what the words meant.

So all in all, “Avial” cannot be compared to too many debut albums out there. It would be unfair on the competitors. Its so magnificently arranged, masterfully sequenced and very professionally arranged. I give these guys a standing ovation failing to completely express my awe at what I call a seminal piece of work in Malayalam music and Rock history. Its all thumbs up for “Avial” and an addition to their growing fan club. Ardently awaiting more from them…

Check out Avial performing with the Italian band A67
http://www.myspace.com/sessantasette

Anticipation…

Its been a little over 3 months. 3 months since I went home. I did go once in between but the anticipation was mising then. Let me explain anticipation to you my friend. Anticipation begins with the excitement to book a train ticket, the ticket where the destination station is ERNAKULAM JUNCTION. A nano second of sheer ecstacy when I see that berths are available on this train. Anticipation is eating the rotten hotel food gleefully, beaming with the realisation that Amma’s gonna cook for me in the coming days. Anticipation is listening to those damned boring office lectures with a glint in the corner of my eye knowing that Acha’s waiting to have some amazing conversations with me. Anticipation is looking out at the monsoons beating down on a construction site, but seeing only the array of palm trees in the background…smiling…thinking that this is the only thing I’ll be getting to see for the next couple of days. Anticipation is…feeling restless while simply writing about it. …Can’t wait to get home!

The (slightly) technical dilemma…

The other day I went through a much forwarded news paper article. It was about this new class of techies called the “Softicians”. So what did the article talk about? Go read it

More importantly, the point of discussion was how a lot of “NON IT” crowd is flowing into this domain and how they’re finding it difficult to survive. The start to their careers is a dream one - A hefty package, 6-7 months of relaxation (which is also called training or the more eclectic “ORIENTATION” in some IT cos) and then the actual  work with an awesome crowd and all the office perks. The dream comes crashing down sooner than later.

The fundamental flaw is the reason or more so the lack-of, to initiate a career in this sector. How many techies know what is the real difference between the 2 terms CODING and PROGRAMMING. More importantly how many know whether they code or program? The truth is coding is something ANY trained individual can perform. Good coding is a totally different matter which is more or less a myth! Programming is the art. The art of problem solving. The programmer is like Arjuna and the parrot’s eye is the target, the problem to be solved. The bow and arrow are like programming languages, mere tools. He could very well attain his task with a pointed piece of wood, a sharp dart or any other means. If there was a strong wind blowing accompanied with some heavy showers, Arjuna would have to improvise. And the programmer, when he has to improvise his only tool is his logical or lateral thinking ability. THIS is what is missing and this is the fundamental flaw.

I would be grossly unfair if I would generalise this trait with all the mechanical, chemical(ceramic!) engineers who drfited into this realm. This trait is common with anyone who was never been passionate about programming, who never wanted to put his problem solving skills to test, who believed “KNOWING” Java would be all that he required, who thinks Linux is cool but Windows is user friendly, who feels lost within 2 years of “Coding”, who hates “programming” in anything other than .NET.

Only by considering your self as an empty pot can you fill more. This saying becomes all the more relevant when it comes to technology. I have realised that to think that you know some technology in and out is suicide. There is ALWAYS more to learn and the only finite constant. There is just not enough time. This is the dilemma and there is no way out…

MTV Roadies - Why I LOVE this show!

MTV Roadies is probably the best TV time I’ve got since the first “Contender” series on AXN. The human emotions are so unadulterated and raw. It takes a lot of guts or a moment of brainlessness to actually go and audition for this show. Not cuz the “judges” are so majorly oppressing and wannabe “mean” people (and go to any lengths to try and establish the same), but simply for being so open about some really deep dark secrets of your life. Be it the dumass who deserted his ex in some non-descript in the rape capital of India, Delhi or the guy who blackmailed his ex to extort money and maybe some revenge or even the really freakish Sonel from Delhi who supposedly “breathed fresh air” into the show or my favorite Simran/Ankita, India’s answer to Avril. But I would never participate in the show. No sir, not even for a million bucks or fame or anything of that sort! Simply because I just cannot be so naked infront of so many people, my emotions, my traits, my dark side…Its best kept to myself and best kept for myself! So hats of to you guys who’re actually doing it, it does take a lot of guts to reveal yourselves to us, every weeknight!

My experiments with lens

Land of the blessed

Beautiful poison

Stand out

Malgudi days…

The village called Bangalore…

So what characterizes a village? Hmmm lets see…

First and foremost villagers…
A bunch of simple folk who wake up early in the morning, rush off to their rice and paddy fields to work for their livelihood. Yes, Bangalore has that in the form of IT guys (like me). We wake up early in the morning and go to work in our cubicles for our livelihood.

You also see the odd jobless, illiterate loafer lying under the village Banyan tree. Hmmmm…of course we have that too, the odd traffic cop who simply loiters around aimlessly.

The quintessential doe-eyed village belle…We have plenty of them here.

Not to mention the greenery and the dusty roads.

But yes what makes Bangalore really a village…NO FRIGGIN ELECTRICITY!!! To think that we had to spend a whole night without electricity, enslaved to the mosquito brigade and the humid climate as the cherry to top it off. The BESCOM office seems to have emplyed only 2 engineers, one of whom is always “working at the site of a major power breakdown”. The situation is pathetic and warrants immediate attention from the authorities. An unseeming byproduct of this tragedy is that the working population have become more producitve. How? We prefer spending more time in the comfort of our workplaces rather than come home to the mosquitoes. Hence we’re voluntarily doing overtime!

But hey wait a second; How could I categorically classify Bangalore as a village?? A village atleast has consistent water supply!!!

The apparent verdict — Bangalore — Worse than a village! They call this the silicon valley of India. My plea is sell off some of that silicon in the valley and buy some power for your people!!

The Manipal journey…

Last weekend I decided to head to my bro’s place in Manipal to spend the weekend with him and my folks. From the outset I felt that the trip was not going to be kind on me. It started off with the bus coming in late. I was traveling by Vishal Travels and they had this weird concept of distinguishing their buses by means of a route alphabets. So there I was at 9PM waiting for my Route ‘G’ bus. After routes ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C’, buses started pouring in at random. In came ‘M’ followed by ‘D’ and I was desperately trying to find a sequence in the midst of all this. But finally route ‘G’ arrived to my relief. The human mind is really tough to convince and so is mine. I went up to the conductor and asked if this bus goes to Manipal. And the billion dollar reply was “I DON’T KNOW WHERE IT GOES…ITS JUST ROUTE ‘G’!!!”. I stood staring at him…realising that this was going to be a really long trip! Surprisingly the bus looked pretty neat inside. It had a 2+1 seating arrangement (where there are 2 rows of chairs one of them with 2 chairs and the other with one). I got a single chair for myself and it felt really comfortable. Now the fun begins…

A girl walked into the bus and found an old man sitting in her seat. She politely asked him to check his seat number. It became clear that this guy was in the bus on the basis of an “adjustment” with the conductor. Worse still he had 2 women and 2 very small children with him. Our hero, the conductor, was summoned. And what does he do? He asks the man and his family to get up from their seats and sit somewhere else! This made way for a major heated argument while I was snuggling into my ultra-comfy single chair.

Suddenly the bus stopped near Majestic bus-stand. When I peered outside the window some people started loading the bus with a plethora of material substances which included multiple sacks of flowers and vegetables, cartons which contained alloy wheels for cars, 8 massive truck tyres, umpteen reclining chairs and lots of other stuff which I could not make out in the darkness. I’d just realised that this bus was actually a convertible! They were converting the bus into a cargo transporting truck!

And the porters did not seem to be in any hurry at all. They were taking their own sweet time in loading the goods. Finally it took a bout of sharp rainfall for the incompetent men to speed up the loading process. I was just about to thank the rain gods when this “blessing” turned into a “nightmare”. Through a small crack on the roof of the bus above me a little river started flowing!!! My bag and my shoes were drenched. Not to mention the ultra-comfy chair!

After about an hour we finally started moving to our destination. The road to Mangalore is famous for its striking similarity to the surface of the moon. The “craters” were so beautifully placed that my head kept oscillating from left to right whenever I slept. I managed to slip into my slumber amidst all the chaos on the road. When I woke up in the morning I overheard some people saying that in the middle of the night, one of the tyres had gone flat and they’d spent over an hour trying to fix it. Frankly I did not know whether I should’ve been glad that I slept through the whole episode or ruing the fact that we were already 3 hours behind schedule. The bus reached Mangalore and guess what?? All the cargo was to be unloaded here. This time the porters were even more complacent. They were talking to each other like long lost friends recollecting their experiences. Tempers were rising high inside the bus but “M/S Vishal Travels” was least bothered. After about one-and-half hours they were done with the unloading.

The penultimate nail on the coffin - Another bus from Vishal Travels arrived as we were leaving Mangalore. For reasons known only to the Almighty and the conductor and driver of that bus, they decided that they would not go any further and declared Mangalore as the final stop. A frustrated bunch of passengers from that bus got onto ours and seated themselves on whatever micron of empty space was available. And the final nail? Our bus reached Udupi which is a good 10-20 minutes from Manipal. The ever-friendly conductor called upon all the people who had to get down at Manipal and in his oh-so-sauve demeanour announced that we had to get down here!! Our unfortunate bunch had to hire a cab to finally get us to Manipal.

Contrary to what I’d foreseen, ultimately I did make it to Manipal…but with one extremely sour pair of buttocks and an even sour mood.

Verdict:M/S Vishal Travels — Categorically eliminated from my tour-operators’ list!