Destroy......Erase......Improve.......

The deafening whirring of chainsaws. Snakes slithering around me. Shards of glass, piercing the skin. The crimson of blood becomes all pervading. Hypnotic discombobulation of coloured lights. Flashing out of nowhere. Crackle and pop of firewood. That burnt smell of smouldering, charred skin. Snapping of bones under immense pressure.Pain. The dull thudding of a heavy jackhammer. Repeatedly hammering into my skull. Again. Again.

Till my brain was turned into mulch and my conscious behaviour was rendered non-existent. Broken were the bones and those sinews that gave them motion. Bleeding with the Rational Gaze into the Electric Red. Combustion renders the Dancers to the Discordant System useless. Do Not Look Down at the Future Breed Machine, for In Life is Life and In Life is Death too. The New Millenium Cyanide Christ is the Demiurge which presents a Catch-33 in this Chaosphere.

Thank you, Meshuggah. Thank you. Thank you.

Stage on Fire......

When you want to see a live musical show, you want your moneys worth. Any way it comes. And bands like Rammstein and Marilyn Manson recognize the seriousness of putting up a great stage show along with good music. It is entertainment ultimately. You want people to come back to watch you play. Today, watching Rammstein play, blew my brains all over Target Center. Brilliant! For example, see the video below!

Oh, and when we are talking of theatrics, check out this new Swedish band called Ghost. Oh yeah, Satanism still rules. On stage and with music too. They are badass!

Living on a Prayer......

The title, as the title of the blog, is a Bon Jovi lyrics and may sound specious, especially for a devout atheist. But, when normality won't do, inspiration is the only way to survive without losing your mind. So, these are 4 great songs, modern rock compositions, that are helping me keep my sanity. The melody, velvet gloved aggression and the feel of this music is beyond the realms of what is real.

Haikus - 2

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Tranquility of exterior belies
A torrent of emotions inside
Amongst kith and kin alike
Weep I, for someone in whom I don't confide?


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In different colours and different hue
Same as the difference in me and you
Against the backdrop of vermilion, a patch of grey
is the beauty of silence amidst a lot of say.
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Agneepath....

No, this is not about the movie(s). This is about the Agneepath that is far more inspiring, much more expansive in scope, way simpler in its structure and boundlessly more profound. The real Agneepath, that epic piece of poetry written by Shri Harivansh Rai Bachchan.

Agneepath Poem:
Vruksh ho bade bhale,
ho ghane ho bhale,
Ek Patra chhah bhi mang mat, mang mat, mang mat,
Agnipath, Agnipath Agnipath;


Tu na thamega kabhi 
tu na mudega kabhi
 tu na rukega kabhi,
Kar shapath, Kar shapath, Kar shapath,
Agnipath, Agnipath, Agnipath.


Ye Mahan Drushya hain,
Chal raha Manushya hain,
Ashru, Sweth, Rakta se Latpat Latpat Latpat..
Agnipath, Agnipath, Agnipath. 




A Rough Translation
Trees standing mighty and tall
Dense and huge
Don't ask for an iota of shade.
On The Path of Fire


Thou shalt never halt,
thou shalt never turn,
thou shalt never stop.
This will be your pledge.
On the Path of Fire.


In this huge Scene and frame,
Man is continually progressing,
Bathed and by trial of Tears, sweat and blood,
On the Path of Fire.

When Overwhelmed......

When overwhelmed,

sensory isolation

brings mental clarity.

In that moment of dissolution,

Emerges a map of creativity.

Figures take shape,

Colours fill voids,

and these walls come alive. 

For, when overwhelmed,

Claw away at the vines of complexity;

To reveal the simple beauty.

And, when overwhelmed,

The want of that moment to be perfect. 

Seek to connect,

To a kindred soul

Share the nestling smile,

in the collective bosom

of a satiated creature.

Beauty and Brains......

Next time you smirk when you hear that title, remember this moniker that I invented just for you, "Scrotum carrying arseholes!".

Hedy Lamarr - Austrian sex siren, actress, hated Hitler, came to US and with the help of her pianist neighbour (who she was probably having an affair with, but that's not official.) invented the first frequency hopping system in the world which the Allies refused to use. Hedy and Herr Pianist got the system patented, but the world got around to using it only after the patent expired. Fucking miserly cunts!

Don't believe any of it, do you? Read this and weep. Alone. Or rejoice and jizz.

The Majesty....

Again, we come to heavy metal. Bleak, rebellious, loud, brash, arrogant. It does have a cerebral side to it which is, I guess I can use this word, beautiful and inspiring. And at the peak of this hill, are those very Brits, Iron Maiden.

Every metal head has their favourite metal band, depending on what aspect of metal they like. But if there is one band that embodies all the best aspects of metal and does it with infinite grace and integrity, its the Irons. They are not my favourite band of all time, not even of their peak decade. I do not have their entire back catalog. But doesn't matter what mood I am in, how dark everything looks, just a play of "Hallowed be Thy Name" or "Fear of the Dark", it always makes things look better. And doesn't matter if it is Rock in Rio in 1985 or En Vivo in 2012, they have just personified excellence, integrity and done that for as long has they have on stage and off it. And I guess, every metal head on this planet is proud of them. Up the Irons. Enjoy some of their best.

Haikus......

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Endless carpet of grey

Flanked by colours, myriad and shape

Clouded sky

Come Clarity.

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Moment of silence

I close my eyes

And see the carnivore inside.

Paranoia devours my flesh. 

=========================================

Aerosoul - The Final Hurrah

For a band of musicians, the venue will make a difference. A good one will spur you on and a bad one will bring out the poker face. Aerosoul's last performance was at the terrific Ted Mann Concert Hall, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and that is as good as venues get. Feels good to leave this at such a high.

Thanks to Shruti Iyer for meeting me at Einstein's Bagels, Harsh Mankodi for breaking up with his earlier band, Arjun Kumar to agree to playing keyboards and Quresh Sutarwala for all that enthusiasm and energy and coming onboard just before the first gig. Enjoy these videos and a round of thanks from a grateful musician who never thought that this would ever happen!