Friday, November 26, 2010

A guitar in hand is worth a song in the head

I've been wanting to add some music to my life since I moved to Bombay, and all i get to do is bathroom sing *sigh*, or perhaps the more free, *Street sing*. Yes that's true, I do tend to hum a tune rather loudly while I walk by my ownsome-lonesome. This though you can say is a substitute of my otherwise *Car singing*. Anyway, so as you may have figured out, music, my source of inspiration and sanity has eluded me since I moved to Bombay, for many reasons. So let's just jot them all down and begin moping.

1. I don't know too many musicians in Mumbai as I did in Delhi, and somehow I feel the musicians that I meet here are a little too pseudo for me (such a pseudo thing to say), but it's true. I've grown up listening to tonnes and tonnes of random music, starting off with a lot of slow ballads from the 50's-60's to the Beatles to the 80's Rock, 90's Pop and then finally a lot of Jazz n Funk. So now when I meet musicians who bob their head talking about the newest rock song they've just heard or they sing, I nod my head in equal enthusiasm but wonder in my head, I wish they would open up their minds to the music that makes music what it does. I find it strange how some peoples music tastes never evolve. It's like a stuck record, that plays over and over again. Some are stuck in college rage, as if they never grew out of it, or are perpetually trying to relive their childhood with utmost failure. To prove my case, I bring to you observation 1: Go to Cafe Mondegar's in Colaba and sit for a bare minimum of 20 minutes in the restaurant. If you do not hear Coming back to life or Another brick in the wall, please feel free to throw some bricks at me. I mean, come on! Stop playing those awfully over played songs. I'm sure these songs have played in Pink Floyd's own music players. And i can assure you, Roger Waters would really appreciate if someone removed those songs from that Jukebox.

2. I've been wanting to record and sing like i used to in Delhi, but i don't have the luxury of Anindo's studio, where i can just meet up and jam and be happy without having to think of anything. I am always guaranteed of good music and a good time. I'm pretty sure we together have composed enough songs to last us many seasons. It's times like these that I miss, sitting late night, recording endless tunes without the pressure of peering eyes of musicians who are trying to figure out whether you are worthy of their time. Music is fun, it should always be that way.

3. My guitar at home is unused. My vocal chords are doing pretty much the same thing, i'm getting depressed about it, and every time i try and belt out one of those ol' songs, I remember all the techniques and exercises I had learned that made sure I could sing for 60 days straight without losing my voice.

I wish I wasn't feeling so musically depressed today.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Noel.. I know exactly what you mean of Musicians in Bombay ( anybody from Bombay reading this, so sorry). But yeah. Its sad. Remember Ruhaniyat? The world's best 8 mystic singers come to Bombay and for what - to sing to a crowd of 100. Sad.But you know, it's also the times like these when I feel - I *do* know better. Please dont stop playing music. Or singing :)