Conversation between a child and a visitor from the sky
Kid: “Do you really have to go?”
Visitor: “Unfortunately, yes. But you know what? I think the universe has a plan”
Kid: “Thank you for everything”
Visitor: “Thank you for everything”
I tried to turn this conversation into a song.
Hope you like it.
Its simple. Like this:
Michael Jackson
Influences: Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, James Brown, etc.
Neil DeGrasse Tyson( ‘copying’ does not apply here but other aspects of influencing does)
Influences: Carl Sagan, Isaac Newton, etc.
Iron Maiden
Influences: Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath, Yes, Led Zeppelin, etc.
Robin Williams
Influences: Richard Pryor, Jonathan Winters, etc.
Skrillex
Influences: Marilyn Manson, I don’t really care
Graham Linehan (Creator of The It Crowd)
Influences: Don’t really know. Just slipped in.
Antonio Vivaldi
Influences: I’m pretty sure he had influencers. You got my point.
What all of these people have in common is that they took specific ideas from their influencers, moulded it into their own, mixed it with their own fresh ideas and then built upon it. In other words, they picked up where their influencers left off. I think, if you are creative enough, all this will happen subconsciously. They did not try to ‘imitate’ their influencers. They did not purposefully alter their content to avoid similarities with their influencers. They did not actively try to borrow ideas and manipulate them so that people won’t notice it. The ideas for which these people are known for, were birthed within them. They only needed influencers to fuel their inner passion.
I hate it when we lose great artists. I really do. It’s because we don’t know what amazing things they would have done. A creative mind doesn’t just stop manufacturing ideas. It’s the body that fails. Not the mind. I’m a 90s kid. The type of music that I like is dying out slowly. I don’t have anything against modern day music. I enjoy it. But there’s this deep nostalgia. I can’t let it go. That’s why I love it when new, awesome artists have the balls to pickup from where great artists left off.
Greta Van Fleet
Influences: Led Zeppelin
Airbourne, Jettblack, The Treatment
Influences: AC/DC (in my opinion)
Everyone knows musical interests are subjective. Why then, do some people beleive that certain genres of music is garbage? There is also a tendency to think less of people who listen to certain genres of music. Does the type of music you listen to say anything about the type of person you are? I really don’t know. What I do know is that there is no such thing as BAD MUSIC.
A few years ago a friend of mine made me listen to a song that she liked. At the time I was trying to win her over so I pretended to listen carefully. I chuckled and said that her taste in music was a little weird. And that was the end of it. This so called “song” that she made me listen to was basically static noise with some kind of a beat laid in between. It was the “uh oh” moment for me. I could not understand how it could be called music.
I realized later in life that this was a major flaw in me. If I didn’t understand something, I was automatically inclined to dislike it. I came to realize this flaw in me while learning to play drums. I used to wonder how amazing rock drummers would end up playing jazz as they grew older. I was ignorant at the time(much more now). I did not understand jazz and obviously disliked it. I’ll be honest. I thought it was gay(which is another problem altogether that I will have to deal with later. One problem at a time). As I got better at playing, I slowly began to appreciate Jazz drumming. I still don’t like to listen to Jazz but I “understand” it now.
I think that in order to understand and appreciate the beauty in some things, you have to reach a certain point of intellectual maturity and understanding of the subject. Same goes with modern art. I used to wonder why the fuck are these people staring at spilt ink on a piece of paper when there is so much more going on in this world? Why waste time like this? Little did I realize that those papers of split ink were speaking to the artists. It was moving them emotionally. Almost like a new method of communication that came from another dimension. That’s the magic of art. There are so many ways to look at it. Many scientists are excited to send artists into space to show them the vast magnificence of the universe. It will be super exciting to see what they will come up with after experiencing the deep unknown.
So there is no bad music. I feel like music has an uncanny ability to invoke particular emotional responses. Its just that every individual resonates to different styles of music. Its sad that some of them are ashamed to reveal their musical interests and have to keep it a secret for fear of not being accepted by society. Don’t get me wrong. “Call me maybe” might not be a scientific marvel but it is entertaining to some and it is noise to others. If you are one of the people who dislike it, just accept the fact that you don’t get it and move on.
I can relate to this song in so many ways. So it feels like this song was a gift.
Storytelling at its best. The band fuses progressive metal with Kathakali to portray the horrors of bullying.
Information on the artform shown in the video
I sometimes shut off the world with these magical instruments. I feel different when I wear them. I feel safe. Reality fades and emotions takeover. I escape.
After a while, I take them off. I return to a refreshing reality. Somehow everything sucks a little less after that.
Why do some people force others to listen to their music? I am looking at YOU, inconsiderate person who drives around blasting out noise with the windows rolled down. However, I am curious about this urge. I can even understand it to an extent. Some songs make some people feel good. So all that these people are trying to do is to make others feel good too! However, there are also people who do it just to annoy others. Annoying others makes them feel good! I love it when someone likes my music. When I was a kid, me and my friends listened to the same kind of music. Then one day, I heard a song that was so good, it blew my mind. I couldn’t wait to show it to my friends. One day I was hanging out with a few friends. I set the song up on a nice stereo. With a lot of excitement, I pressed play. They were busy talking to each other. I was eagerly waiting for them to stop abruptly and say “holy shit! That sounds so awesome!”. Surprisingly, none of that happened and they continued talking to each other until I asked for an opinion on the song. They were like, “meh”. I realised something that day. I liked something that was different. That genre of music did not please others very well. It was hard to find others who like it. If anyone’s curious, this was that song:
So good! And I totally get why they didn’t like it. Linkin Park had already started to occupy their minds!
Anyway, it took me a while to stop forcing people to listen to my songs. I was living in a bubble. I know now that everyone has their own interests and are passionate about them.
Sorry kids. This is not the kind of rejection you are thinking about.
I am a huge fan of Freddy Mercury. For those of you who don’t know who this legend is, I highly recommend you keep it that way. He was the lead singer of the band Queen. I am equally inspired by his music and his energy. He worked hard to get to the top. He had the ability to influence people just by talking to them. I wish I had his influencing skills. The rest of this post will explain why.
It was one of those weekends where I was struggling to keep myself busy so that I don’t get bored and fall into an endless pit of depression. I decided to attend a small gig. It turned out to be an arena for beginner bands to showcase their talent to the world. The only problem was that the place was filled with college students and I was the odd 25 year old with no friends. However, all that feeling of embarrassment faded away when one particular band took the stage. These guys were my age. They sounded unbelievably great. They were a trio. One played the acoustic guitar, one played keyboards and one vocalist sat on a chair playing just a bass drum with the foot pedal. They performed few covers and originals. Need less to say, they took me on a musical journey. I could feel that special sparkle in their music.
I am at the moment desperately trying to form a band. So I approached them after the show and thanked them for playing here. They seemed like very nice people. I also hinted that they need a full drum kit rather than just a base drum(I am a drummer). They seemed to pay little attention to me and stressed that they were a “Trio”. However, they thanked me for the feedback and asked me to follow them on Facebook for tour dates. I went back home and did just that. I also sent two of them a friend request(because three friend requests would be like super begging ha ha). I came back home and listened to the original songs that they covered that day. Believe me, their version sounded much better. It was when they covered this song that I realised that they were exceptionally talented:
I soo want to be in this band. They are the whole package! I wouldn’t have to go hunting for individual members. All I have to do is get in!
And then the waiting began. A week passed. None of my friend requests were accepted. Then one day to my surprise I received a notification saying that the vocalist had accepted my request. I did not waste much time with chit chat. I asked if I could come see one of their jamming sessions. To my surprise, he replied that they preferred to keep their jamming sessions private. I told him that I totally respect his decision and thanked him for his time. This is my first time being rejected to my face. So I felt very bad. However, a glimmer of hope shone soon after. He said he’ll speak with the other guys and let me know. Looks like he felt a little bit of my pain! :-). So now I am back to waiting. Hope something good comes out of all this.
First of all, I would like to apologize to all those of you who clicked the play button thinking its a video. Oh! The agony! Its a screenshot of a video. Make no mistake. I have not used any filter or special effects. Apparently this is what happens when a stage light beams directly onto your camera lens. Interestingly, the picture sort of portrays my emotions at the time. I was having fun. The picture was taken at a concert. So what does the universe have to do with this?
Well, as I have mentioned in my previous posts, the universe speaks to me in mysterious ways. This time, it was through one of my all time favourite drummers, my man, Marco Minnemann. Shortly after this picture was taken, I managed to tiptoe through all hulk-bodied security guys to talk face to face with this legend. He was awesome. He was the reason why I attended the concert. It was an extraordinary experience.
Something even more extraordinary happened that day. I made friends. My dear friends, that bright light in the picture is the universe whispering to me, “Look around you. These are all people you could be friends with. I have literally brought them all together in the same spot. Don’t fuck it up”.
Be warned. I am bad at writing. Most of it wont make sense unless our brains could somehow sync with each other.
Like many of us, I’ve often wondered what to do with my life. Do I make my life meaningful by helping others or do I just enjoy my life to the fullest? My life at times gets so depressing that I have to struggle to keep myself happy. However, I have a strong feeling that I am here for a purpose. I have absolutely no reason to believe so. Its just a feeling. I think I am here to make people happy. I like to make people happy! Although I am not a very people person, I do not waste chances I get to be useful. Be it fixing electronics or just cheering people up, I wish I could do it more often. The happy face you get to see after you fix someone’s computer is simply priceless.
So I gave it some thought. What do I like to do the most that would also be meaningful? I know that music makes everyone happy. Even during the worst of times, a little music can cheer you up. I love to make music and especially to play drums. Using these skills, I believe I can make people happy someday. The universe will show me the how. The universe talks to me very rarely but in powerful ways. The universe has been very quiet of late!
So I think I would be happy to be a drummer. I never thought that would be my ultimate aim in life but that’s what it looks like now. No matter what job I do or what course I study I have a feeling of unfulfillment. I initially thought I wanted to compose background scores for movies but upon giving it some deep thought I realised that I would run out of ideas pretty soon. However, when I play in a band, beats just pop up like magic. When I sit on the drum throne I feel like I an actual king! ‘Throne’ is a very apt name for the drum seat.
Is it just me or do great ideas pop up in your mind when you shower? or take a walk? Brilliant guitar riffs pop up in my mind when I go for long walks. Especially after work! My mind plays extraordinary music when I go for walks. I wish I could record them! I am happy that my mind is creative enough to play its own music instead of playing pre-existing songs!
I have not played in that many bands but I certainly know how it feels when a bus labelled with your band’s name comes to pick you up for a show! I think of a real band as a family where everyone can read each others mind. Although I have never been in such a band, I hope I will some day. Here’s the problem. I am afraid to choose drumming as a career path. I do not know if I can make a living off it. Not only do I don’t vibe with people, but I also only like to play for genres that people don’t usually like. I also know that it is hard work. I am amazed to see really old bands still kicking ass. I am happy for them. If you are in a mood for some ‘feel good’ talk, I suggest you watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V80-gPkpH6M
Random Thought Beam 