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Gig review/ Steven Wilson

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Steven Wilson/ Live in Mumbai Genre : Progressive rock Details , Nesco Grounds, Goregaon, November 3 Promoter : Live Box Rating : **** 1/2 As luck would have it, it didn't rain in Goregaon on Monday evening. Maybe the rain gods wanted to have an overview of the concert taking place at the Nesco Grounds below, as British musician Steven Wilson began his India leg of The Overview tour. The crowd was considerably smaller than the one that paid twice the amount to see Enrique Iglesias lip-sync at the MMRDA grounds a few days ago. But they surely got their money's worth as Wilson's 135-minute set, break excluded, dazzled with scintillating live performance, aided by pitch-perfect multi-channel sound and Imax-equivalent visual effects. Wilson had come earlier with his progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, playing at IIT Mumbai and as a solo act at NH7 Weekender. The current visit is part of an international tour to promote his latest solo album The Overview , ...
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Gig review/ Enrique iglesias

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Enrique Iglesias/ Live in Mumbai Genre : Pop/ Latino-pop Details : MMRDA grounds, Bandra Kurla Complex, October 29 and 309 Presented by : Eva Live Rating : ** 1/2 As he proved at his shows at the MMRDA grounds in Bandra Kurla Complex on October 29 and 30, Enrique Iglesias has some special talents. His voice can have the same volume whether his microphone is close to his lips or three feet away, or whether it's perched safely on its stand as he's dancing some 10 feet away. He can also trick the cameraman to show he's singing high notes on the giant screen when his mouth is shut.  Most of the audience, of course, didn't notice this brilliant improvisation of the art of ventriloqu-lipism. They had come to party, and a party is what they got. They had come to dance, and dance is what they did. The ladies in their early 40s wanted to remember their first real-life crush, and they did that secretly. They had come to sing along with their 'Hero', a...
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Naren's indie round-up/ Oct 2025, Ep 3

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Louiz Banks/ Morning Mist Label: Self-released  Rating: ***** One has heard jazz maestro Louiz Banks' composition 'Morning Mist' live in concert a few times. Each time one is impressed by the melody and musicianship. Now, the tune has been recorded live at the Island City Studios in Khar, Mumbai. The video shows bassist Sheldon D'Silva beginning with the outline, after which there are elaborate portions by guitarist Rhythm Shaw and Louiz on piano. Drummer Gino Banks provides perfect accompaniment. The track runs into seven minutes, but flows smoothly. It has a wonderful hook and some well-rendered improvisation, and lends an air of serenity that goes with morning mist. Incidentally, Louiz and his group have also released videos of 'Mercy Me', 'Stargazer' and 'Love Eyes' as part of the In The Studio series. Worth checking out. Swapnil Garg feat. Soubhagya Mohapatra/ Tu Udle Label: Self-released  Rating: *** 1/2 The video take...
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Naren's indie round-up/ Oct 2025, Ep 2

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Faheem Abdullah/ Teri Yaad Label: VYRL Originals Rating: **** Known for 'Ishq' and the Saiyaara title song, Srinagar-bred Faheem Abdullah has a resonant voice and very personal style. We now see him in the video of 'Teri Yaad', the first song he ever wrote. It's a sad song, beginning with the lines, "Hai yeh kismat ka faisla jo hua tu hai mujhse juda, hai yeh zindagi bewafa, jo liya hai mujhse mera jahaan". Qassam Hussain's rabab gives it a traditional Kashmiri flavour, and Amandeep Singh Soni's guitar adds a contemporary touch. The video, directed by Ruman Hamdani, features Faheem and the pretty Zainab Khan. It reflects the melancholic nostalgia of the song. Divyam Sodhi & Khwaab/ Achcha Lagta Hai Label: Sony Music  Rating: *** 1/2 Singer Divyam Sodhi has an extremely pleasant voice and smooth style suited for softer songs. His teamwork with producer and composer Khwaab has yielded numbers like 'Piya' and 'Baal...
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Tribute/ John Lodge of The Moody Blues

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  BY NARENDRA KUSNUR My introduction to the Moody Blues didn't begin with 'Nights In White Satin', their most famous song. Yes, it played on the radio when I was 16 in the late 1970s, but I never paid attention. Three or four years later, a tape with the album To Our Children's Children's Children on one side and Seventh Sojourn on the other caught my attention. Not having the inlay cards, I knew little about the group members or who wrote which song, but I later discovered that John Lodge wrote the gems 'Eyes of A Child', 'Candle Of Life', 'Isn't Life Strange' and 'I'm Just A Singer In A Rock N' Roll Band'. Lodge, who passed away on Friday at the age of 82, was perhaps the most underrated of the Moody Blues members. Though he sang quite a few of the British progressive rock band's songs, played bass majestically and wrote some memorable gems, the genius and personality of vocalist and main songwriter Justin Haywar...
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Naren's indie round-up/ Oct 2025, Ep 1

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Akhil Sahni/ Puzzle (EP) Label: Self-released  Rating: *** 1/2 He's only 22, but Akhil Sahni displays a certain maturity in his songwriting. Hailing from Delhi, he's spent four formative years in London, and uses the piano as the main instrument to drive his songs. Akhil's debut EP Puzzle contains five songs, marked by strong lyricism and a simple approach to vocal delivery. The title track has been released as a video, where director Tushar Rochak uses a jazz bar ambience and a formally-dressed Akhil graces the piano. The opening lines are, "Some things don't end happy, they don't end at all, no closure is worse, 'cause you keep wanting more". Besides his piano, he is accompanied by violins (Fiona Griffin), bass (Aditya Shukla) and classical guitars (Dhananjay Chhetri). Akhil seems to be influenced by John Mayer, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran, and that shows in his approach. On 'Ignorance', he sings, "What you don't kno...
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Naren's indie round-up/ Sep 2025, Ep 3

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Sonam Kalra/ Chaleya Momin Label: Self-released Rating; **** Delhi singer Sonam Kalra and the Sufi Gospel Project are known for songs that blend many voices through poetry, prayer and music to create a universal language of faith. On her latest song 'Chaleya Momin', she reiterates that God is in every being, and that kindness and compassion are the only true religion. Sonam has herself written the song in Punjabi, besides composing the piece. Saptak Chatterjee provides backing vocals and arranges the song, with Deepak.Ramola writing additional lyrics. The word 'momin' means 'believer', and the main line is 'Chaleya momin chaleya, chaleya momin Makke'. Later, she sings, "Na main Hindu na Musalmaan, main te rab da banda", which is like a summary of what the song conveys. For the visualiser, Sonam has teamed up with Iranian visual artist Faezeh Sepehrsadeghian and Indian artist Gopika Chowfla. There's some very creative anim...
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