narenmusic

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Forever Friends/ Crosscurrents, Shakti & Friends - A Tribute To Zakir Hussain Genre : Fusion Details : Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, December 15 Rating : *** 1/2 A tabla set watched in silent admiration, as guitarist John McLaughlin, vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan and kanjira maestro V. Selvaganesh took their positions on the Jamshed Bhabha Theatre stage on Sunday night. The audience couldn't see anyone behind it, but yet they heard a flurry of sonorous rhythms emanate from the instrument. Ustad Zakir Hussain was present in the room, and one could only visualise his bright blue kurta and flowing hair as the opening notes of 'Shrini's Dream' caressed the air. Today, December 15, marks a year since Zakir Bhai physically left us. His music and its influence linger. To pay tribute to him, and to celebrate his life, the other members of his group Shakti got together for a memorable, one-off reunion. It was part of the two-day tribu...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR The Songsmiths/ Coming Home Self-released  Rating: **** Hailing from Hyderabad, the Songsmiths have been around for over 12 years, using influences of rock, funk, blues and jazz. Songs like 'Blue Guitar', 'Citylights' and 'A Song For You' have had their fans. Now they are out with their latest 'Coming Home'. Vocalist-bassist Saikat Basu, guitarist Avinash Ekka and drummer John Mark come out with a cracker of a tune that's straight-ahead retro-rock. The words go, "Long road finds me within, takes my hand and the wind, long road have time to keep, engine clocks while my soul beats". Add to that a very Dickey Betts-meets-Jerry Garcia-styled lead guitar solo, and we have a clear winner here. As an add-on, the band has made a 12-minute YouTube film on the song. It starts with R.D. Burman's 'Musafir Hoon Yaaron' in the backdrop, builds up the narrative, and takes you on a scooter ride to open fields with the song. K...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Parvaaz/ Na Gul Na Gulistan   Genre : Urdu-rock Label : Self-released  Rating : **** When founder-guitarist Mir Kashif Iqbal quit in 2021 after a decade-plus stint, fans wondered which direction Bengaluru-based rock band Parvaaz would take. But vocalist Khalid Ahamed was joined by Bharath Kashyap on guitars, and the gig appearances were revived. Now, six years after releasing Kun , Parvaaz has come out with its new album Na Gul Na Gulistan . The title translates into 'Neither flowers, nor garden (remain)', which may symbolically have multiple interpretations. Naturally, themes of loss, longing, angst and rebellion recur. The lyrics are in Urdu this time, not getting into Kashmiri as they occasionally did.  Bharath fills in smoothly for Mir, as is immediately evident in the second track 'Talafi' (atonement or compensation), which follows the brief, slogan-chant opener 'Hu'. With Khalid's earthy vocals, Bharath's smooth riffing and effor...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Rahul Wadhwani/ Time Travel (album) Label; Self-released  Rating: **** Rahul Wadhwani is one of the most gifted and prolific pianists and keyboardists on the Mumbai jazz scene. As expected, his latest album Time Travel is filled with sparkling numbers. On five of the six tunes, Rahul uses a trio formation with Shashank Das on bass and Gini Banks on drums. The title track, whose video was released a few days ago, and 'Dot In A Circle' are marked by tight playing. 'Melody Of A River' is a beauty with subtle playing. The last two tracks had a solo arrangement in Rahul's previous album Awakening In Silence . The six-and-a-half minute number 'And It Continues' has a certain energy at the start, but changes pattern mid-way, and keeps changing course, blending rawness with improvised passages. The first video was of 'Morning After War', which has good coordination between piano, upright bass and drums. One of the highlights is the open...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Jon Batiste/ Live in Mumbai Genre : Multiple  Organised by : BookMyShow  Details : NMACC Grand Theatre, November 26 Rating : **** 1/2 What on earth did that grand piano drink before the show began at the NMACC Grand Theatre on Wednesday night? Over two hours, it sang like Freddie Mercury, danced like John Travolta, charmed like Robert Redford and sprinted like Usain Bolt. It played the blues, Beethoven, jazz, rock n' roll, soul, hip-hop, half the history of western music, switching from genre to genre like a slithering snake. Clearly, American star Jon Batiste was in another cosmos, adding his trademark vocals and a magic spell on the melodica to that piano wizardry. This was pure music, and it needed no classification, no branding. What was remarkable was that for most part of the show, he was alone on stage, with sitar player Megha Rawoot joining towards the end. And despite a somewhat inconsistent second half, marred by adventurous experimenting, h...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Alif // Char-su Genre : Kashmiri/ Urdu rock Details : NMACC Studio. November 20 Rating : **** I had seen Kashmiri singer-songwriter Alif at the Mahindra Roots Festival at the Bandra Amphitheatre in Mumbai in early 2023. That was a compact set, and I was hearing him the first time. As such, his performance at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) Studio on Thursday November 20 was more elaborate and gave him a chance to present the range of his repertoire. Titled Alif // Char-su , it was divided into four segments - Charsuu, Arzuu, Rafuu and Lahuu. As such, it was a thematic show. Alif sings in Urdu, Hindi and his native Kashmiri, using a lot of poetry that he's penned himself. The live set had a more rock-oriented approach compared to his studio recordings, with Tanmay Pawar on electric guitar, Aditya Bhandakkar on keys, Nikhil Nair on bass and Karan Chitra Deshmukh on drums, ghatam, rap and vocal harmonies. For two hours, Alif displayed marvellous expr...