FOO FIGHTERS – WASTING LIGHT – REVIEW

‘ Wasting Light , ‘  is the seventh studio album of Foo Fighters. Though I started listening to this band just about at the start of this year , I love them every single bit . Their music is heavy, raw and crazy  in most cases, but then there are some delicate acoustic pieces too . The band’s lead Dave Grohl, in my opinion is a true rock star as  he can scream where he has to and be melodious when he wants to (this is apart from being godly on drums and decent with an acoustic guitar ) . Other than  this album I have tried ” Echoes silence patience and grace” and “Foo Fighters – Greatest Hits.” On comparing them , I feel that their new album is seriously heavy . \m/  with heavy use of distortion. In most songs the rhythm section is raw, rough and adrenaline charging. The lyrics of few songs especially “Walk” is motivating.

The Track Listing

• Bridge Burning  -  The opening track is kick ass ! awesome intro riff !
• Rope –   Nice intro riff  , having traditional punk elements
• Dear Rosemary – This one is something different . Its crazy and groovy.
• White Limo – another typical song with heavy rhythm section. I felt the song was overcooked with distortion. I didn’t really like it
• Arlandria – the intro riff is weird, the song is average ( but still not too bad)
• These days – finally an acoustic intro riff ! love this song , good situation song when one someone is looking back to ones past ( opinions may vary , but this is mine ).
• Back & Forth – average song, but it didn’t  quite excite me .
• A matter of time – another average song , better than the previous one though , some really good lines .
• Miss the misery – The intro for a second reminded me Jimmy page’s Embryo 1 – which he plays in “It might get loud”, average song.
• I should have known – a slow piece with some Blues flavor
• Walk – The best track of the album ! loved the lyrics . This song is in line with “Everlong” and “my hero”

Surprisingly, I didn’t really like this album initially. But , its sort of catching up slowly with time , in matter of a week i must have listened to the entire album at least 4 times , other than individual track plays.

on a scale of 5 , I would rate this album

3.5/5

Foo Fighters FTW !

There and back again !

Well the title of this post is my reply, to all those people who thought I would leave my blog in dust and cobwebs  (and yes I am a J.R.R. Tolkien fan ).

Well apart from excuse fueled procrastination, the only other reason for my absence was that I really did have a very busy year .

2011 ! ah what a year , let me recall the events and milestones achieved

• After 20 years , finally my sister got a victim whom she could bug for the rest of her life (I do miss her a lot though )
• I learnt my fair share of Spanish in matter of 2 months ( Enough to kill the language )
• Got my VISA , packed my bags and landed in Tempe, Arizona on July 26 , to start my stint at ASU.
• I thought Chennai is warm , no place can beat it as far as heat is concerned . That thought vaporized after I set foot in Tempe, the baking HOT welcome shocked me.
• In the next few weeks, The validity of the quote “There is no place like home. ” was etched hard in my mind.
• I was made to realize the ground realities of Grad life both on and off campus .
• After some rather risky experimenting the price for mother’s cooking was finally found to be PRICELESS.
• And now at the end of a semester , I have learnt  that , “Coffee is the fuel , Procrastination is the devil , exams are a duel and professors are Evil ! “

I am not making any promises or planning any resolutions , I will try to make sure that my absence wont be this long in the future .

I am planning to make some changes in my blog , let me see how far things will shape up .

GUZAARISH – Movie Review

I have seen many “Bollywood” movies, but only a few interest me. The main reason for this kind of attitude towards “Bollywood” movies is the heavy overuse of the concept of love. To make matters worse, the repeated usage of the traditional concept of a hero falling for the pretty lady with the jealous villian chasing the pair all over the place only to loose or die in the end with the only possible variations  being,  making this theme a family or a corporate affair; has made me detest it in certain cases.

The “Traditional love plot” has made  such an impact , that today there are bunch of people who define the word ‘Love’ with it. There have been many efforts to revive the lost meaning of love in bollywood , most of these attempts have ended in grand applause of critics and fading chimes of money. But the few that try, have a meaning and sense by portraying cinema in its sincere essence.

Guzaarish in my opinion though may not be the best, yet stands out to be a sincere attempt.The movie revolves around a paraplegic Ethan Masceranhas (Hrithik Roshan) who  in his glory days, was the best magician. He is supported and cared by his nurse Sofia (Aishwariya Bachchan). After living a bedridden life for 14 years , inspiring paraplegics and normal people all over the country to live through his talk show in the radio; Ethan makes a “Guzarish” (request) for euthanasia or mercy killing. The effect of this request and does he finally get it, is the theme of the movie.

The Canvas of the movie like most Sanjay Leela Bhansali movies is grand and larger than life.The screenplay though delicate suffers a few points out of logic. One such obvious question is why should Ethan (considering his condition) be housed on the top floor of the huge house ?. When it comes to acting, this is probably Hrithik’s best performance as an actor. Aishwariya Bachchan performs her role well but it gets sidelined due to the plot.

THE VERDICT :

If you are looking for entertainment , this is not your type of movie as you will end up terming it a ‘Melancholic tear jerker’ (I didn’t see any tear jerking moments though) . But if you want to see cinema in its pure form , as an art, then go for this one.

My rating:   9/10

ENTHIRAN – Movie Review

Finally a week after its release , i got to see Thalaivar’s  ’ENTHIRAN ’ . For all those people who don’t know the how to preset their mind before watching a Rajinikanth movie (though i doubt if there are any ) here goes the instructions :

• No matter what be the case,  Thalaivar rocks  ( it is more of a commandment- cross questions are forbidden)
• His movie is an entertainment package , so don’t go there with a serious mind expecting an art movie . Just have fun.
• For any other doubts refer my first point.

Though personally i respect him as an actor and as a human being , but i dont consider him to be a  demi god (rajini fans no offence) .

Coming back to the movie , i can define this by the following equation

Shankar + A.R.Rahman + Aishwariya Rai Bachchan + RAJINIKANTH = grand commercial movie seasoned with shankar’s logic.

This is what is expected and the movie delivers this with ease.The much talked about special effects involved in the movie is seriously grand for Indian cinema and is probably a milestone achievement. It has set new benchmarks for future superhero or desi sci – fi movies.

Coming to the story , Shankar has managed to use the commercial , severely overused love formula in a sensible way by potraying a case of ” what would happen if a robot starts experiencing emotions ?” .The plot reminded of  ’ Bicentennial Man‘ . I am not going to be spoiler and reveal out the entire plot.  I would just say that the story revolves around theme of how a humanoid can help , compete and destroy mankind. As with all shankar’s movie , it ends with a message .

Coming to the roles and acting , Aishwariya Rai does a good job of being the traditional love interest of the male lead. Comedians Santhanam and Karunas  did their parts fairly well ,but  cant really blame them as their roles were really small. Veteran Danny Denzongpa does a neat job of playing  Dr.Vaseegaran’s jealous patron. Finally Rajinikanth doing the roles of Dr.Vaseegaran and Chitti  is at his best , especially Chitti version 2.0 (villian) . I felt that the evil Chitti was the real star of the movie and no one could have done it better than Rajinikanth.

Now let me sum this up

ze +’s :

• Evil Rajinikanth rocks ! – loved that maniacal laughter
• The story revolves on a novel theme
• There is appropriate use of logic ,  Shankar has done a good job
• The special effects are exceptionally good

ze -’s :

• The film could have done away with a few songs
• There are no typical Rajini punch lines
• The roles of the comedians could have been extended
• The climax though being heavy on special effects  is ostentatious

Ze verdict :

On a scale of 10 i would rate this movie : 7/10 , for being a sheer entertainment package to sit back and enjoy .



JOE SATRIANI – BLACK SWANS AND WORMHOLE WIZARDS – REVIEW

Finally the guitar god brings out his  new solo material titled Black Swans And Wormhole Wizards . The last we saw of him was with the super-group Chicken foot – releasing a self titled album ‘ Chickenfoot’ . Though Chickenfoot was a good material , but it was no where close to slash’s first solo album titled ‘Slash’ .After making heavyweights like ‘Andalusia’ and ‘ I just wanna rock ‘ in his previous album , satch seems to have been experimenting a lot lately. Although his new album  maintains the traditional satch ingredients like crazy riffs and the slow fast combination, but  this one seems to have a new dimension.

The Track listing :

• Premonition — the opening track is awesome , loved the mid- section.
• Dream Song –- has a neat intro , but this reminded me of  Van Halen (dont ask me the reasons)
• Pyrrhic Victoria — didn’t really like this track , i felt the start to be  abrupt )
• Light Years Away — one of the best track  ! loved every bit of it \m/
• Solitude –- though being less than 1 min in length , the solo is neat and peaceful
• Littleworth Lane — its OK , but not one of his best , it suits well when you are in a drowsy mood
• The Golden Room — is a mix of traditional Indian percussion and electric guitar , the track is awkward yet awesome
• Two Sides To Every Story — not one my favorites and i dont think i’ll want more of this
• Wormhole Wizards — neat track , but not eye-popping
• Wind In The Trees — Slow and peaceful  track
• God Is Crying — The best track in the album in my opinion , its really groovy. \m/

On the whole , Satch’s new album is not something that will grip you when you hear it for the very first time. It will take time to get accustomed to the music. On a scale of 5 I rate this album :

3.5/5

LINKIN PARK – A THOUSAND SUNS – REVIEW

In my opinion the only word that describes  Linkin Park’s new album A Thousand Suns is CONFUSING . The  album which took 3 years in the making with promise of being ‘ grandiose insanity ‘ though sounds convincing but falls short of the grandiose part . I really appreciate the new direction the band has taken , taking the decline of Nu Metal as a challenge to reinvent themselves. But the album misses ” magic”  to make it great.

The album is something i’ve never heard before and i cant really limit it to one genre. The album has a nice techno vibe in most tracks . Also listening to each track individually gave me a feeling of  the track being incomplete . But , when i listened to the album as a whole i was vaguely able to figure out the direction of their sound and it was definitely good , but falls short of being great.

The track list :

1. The Requiem —– liked the intro music , but lady’s voice was too glassy
2. The Radiance —– loved the BGM
3. Burning in the skies —- good track
4. Empty space —— small interlude .
5. When they come for me —- the intro is kickass , but the rest is OK
6. Robot boy —— didn’t really like this track
7. Jornada Del Muerto —– this is crap interlude
8. Waiting For the End — nice intro but hate the direction the song took .
9. Blackout ———- the intro reminded me of kerala’s  traditional drum roll  , chester screams loud but still the song  is not appealing .
10. Wretches and Kings —- this song is bad-ass awesome \m/
11. Wisdom , Justice and Love —- another interlude ending with a robotic tone .
12. Iridescent —– reminded me of coldplay (dont ask me why ) , but the track is peaceful
13. Fallout ——- perfect intro for the catalyst
14. The Catalyst —- this is my favorite track in the album
15. The Messenger — = chester + acoustic guitar + piano

On the whole the album is good . But the direction of the music remains uncertain . i would rate the album 3 /5 .

SATCH is god !

Joseph Satriani born in july 15 ,1956 has earned his rep of being  one of the most influential guitarists of all time. He is my personal favorite . I got introduced to his music by Vindo when we were checking for background tracks for our first ever short film. I consider him the best guitarist alive ( behind jimmy page of course ). He is  often referred by his fans as “Joe” ,”JS” or “Satch”. Very serious fans consider him a god and  follow the religion “SATRIANISM” (i just joined it ) in which life is defined by his music  and has a tag that says ” Satch shaved his head for your sins”   . I wouldn’t be suprised if it does become a major religion in the future . His skills as a guitarist is reflected in his works and his skills  as a guitar insturctor can be seen by the quality of guitarists he produced namely Kirk Hammett , Steve Vai , Kevin Cadogan and few others.

DISCOGRAPHY:

the list of his solo albums :

• Not of This Earth (1986)
• Surfing with the Alien (1987)
• Flying in a Blue Dream (1989)
• The Extremist (1992)
• Time Machine (1993)
• Joe Satriani (1995)
• Crystal Planet (1998)
• Engines of Creation (2000)
• Strange Beautiful Music (2002)
• Is There Love in Space ? (2004)
• Super Colossal (2006)
• Professor Satchafunkilus and the Musterion of Rock (2008)

He was the lead guitarist of Deep Purple , and has worked with a number of artists like Steve Vai , Eric Johnson and many more . Currently he is the lead guitarist of the supergroup ChickenFoot .

His music style in my opinion is very diverse ,  some are  simple and straightforward like “Home – Joe Satriani ” ,  some are  furious like “Attack – Engines of Creation ” and “Satch Boogie – Surfing With the Alien ” and some are epic like “Andalusia - Professor Satchafunkilus and the Musterion of Rock” . Some of his tracks  like “All Alone – Time machine” , “Flying in a Blue Dream – Flying in a Blue Dream ”  bring about the mood the title specifies.  The  variety in his work describes his varied influences .

some of my personal favorites and some tracks worth trying are :

(Track name – Album name )

• Andalusia - Professor Satchafunkilus and the Musterion of Rock
• Flying in a Blue Dream – Flying in a Blue Dream
• I believe – Flying in a Blue Dream
• Crystal Planet – Crystal Planet
• Secret Prayer – Crystal Planet
• A Train of Angels – Crystal Planet
• Attack – Engines of Creation
• Satch Boogie – Surfing With the Alien
• The Extremist – The Extremist
• Motorcycle Driver – The Extremist
• Why – The Extremist
• Driving at Night – Not of This Earth
• Belly Dancer – Strange Beautiful Music
• Mountain Song – Strange Beautiful Music
• The Meaning of Love – Super Colossal
• Made of tears – Super Colossal
• All Alone – Time Machine
• Hands in The Air – Is There Love in Space ?
• Just look up – Is There Love in Space ?

The god has proved over and over again , that he is the best and  that you dont need a full fledged rock band for success . Eagerly waiting for his new solo album to be released in 2010 , i can  just say this

” SATCH ” truely is god !

DEDICATED TO MY FRIEND …

THIS ONE IS DEDICATED TO A FRIEND OF MINE,
HOPE THIS LIGHTENS HIS HEART AND STRENGTHENS HIS MIND….

i came across the story of a love triangle,
yet this one had a very strangle angle ….

the usual pair had a boy and a girl,
the 3rd thing was something predominant in this world…

the boy was sin free and organized (conditions applied),
he was dedicated & sincere having no real pride…

he considered his girl better than any other flower,
he took care of her unnoticed , for hours…

his heart was cracked when she said “NO” ,
to his love and affection that was so pure…

shaken he was but not shattered,
was determined to find “the reason” that now mattered …

it was hard to see how fate was sealed ,
to a couple which seemed perfectly ideal…

his friends told him that “she” had lost a jewel,
they suggested him to move on now for real ….

as years passed he did do his best ,
to move on with his life like the rest ….

but “the reason” still pricked his heart ,
it took him years to realize it  at last….

he realized his love story was funny triangle ,
with FEAR sitting in the third angle ….

though both loved each other in heart ,
but fear had sprained the girl’s thoughts …

unknown to him she was haunted by it ,
not able to speak out she was tormented by it ….

“listen to the family , who’ve loved me all along
or
listen to this heart which has been restless for long”

this was the dilema that broke her head ,
she chose family leaving her dreams to death ….

it was choice which cannot be termed wrong ,
for fate had planned something else all along…..

there are many stories that glitter far better
but the lesson learnt from it is what matters

” IT DOESN’T MATTER IF U COULDN’T MINE THE COAL,
BUT BE SURE TO MINE THE DIAMOND WHEN IT UNFOLDS “

—

PIRATE

And the Razzie award goes to ….

Awards in any form are awards , it aint fair to give all honour to best alone , the worst and loosers also need some appreciation. Afterall its because of loosers that we have winners . The Golden Raspberry Awards or the Razzies are those accolades that appreciate the worst moviemaking /cinema that the industry has seen that year , started in  1981 by John J.B . Wilson , its become more of a tradition few hours before the oscar .

This year’s winners , were pretty much predictable , and it was (bang,buzz ,drumsroll , thunderstrike and TADA) Transformers : Revenge of the fallen , personally i feel that the only reasons as to what helped this movie make up some loot in the box-office were the twins (bots) and Megan Fox .

alright , cutting out the usual if ,buts and shits , I finally list out the winners

Worst Picture of 2009 : Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen—- expected

Worst Actress of 2009: Sandra Bullock (ALL ABOUT STEVE) —–  expected Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to get this one (she may be a good actress , but she certainly screwed it up in The Pink Panther 2 )

Worst Actor(s) of 2009: All Three Jonas Brothers (JONAS BROTHERS: THE 3D CONCERT EXPERIENCE) — missed it

Worst Screen Couple: Sandra Bullock & Bradley Cooper (ALL ABOUT STEVE) —- missed it

Worst Supporting Actress: Sienna Miller (G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA ) —- I expected loads from this movie but i ended up saying – ji enuf I g0 !

Worst Supporting Actor: Billy Ray Cyrus (HANNAH MONTANA: THE MOVIE) —- was never a fan of hanna montana

Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel :  Land of The Lost (UNIVERSAL PICTURES) —- the award was well earned

Worst Director: Michael Bay (Transformers : Revenge of the fallen) — here we go again

Worst Screenplay: Ehren Kruger,Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman ( Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen) — and again

Special 30th RAZZIE®-versary Awardz

Worst Picture of the Decade: Battlefield Earth , 8/10 (won /nominated) —- now thats an achievement

(INCLUDING WORST DRAMA OF OUR FIRST 25 YRS)

Worst Actor of the Decade: Eddie Murphy 3/12 (won /nominated ) —- funny man goofs up again
includes ADVENTURES OF PLUTO NASH, I SPY, IMAGINE THAT,
MEET DAVE, NORBIT, SHOWTIME

Worst Actress of the Decade:Paris Hilton, 4/5(won/nominated)– dont think there was any competition for this one 
including THE HOTTIE & THE NOTTIE, HOUSE OF WHACKS,
REPO: THE GENETIC OPERA

so there we have it , Transformers : Revenge of the Fallen a clear Winner with 3 awards and Sandra Bullock makes a personal record by winning 2 awards in a year .

With just a few hours for the oscars , the wait for the winners is still on