narenmusic

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Aditya Kambhampati/ Nami Danam  Label: Self-released  Rating: **** Known for The Classroom Projec t EP , a throwback to childhood, Mumbai singer-songwriter Aditya Kambhampati releases his new song 'Nami Danam', Persian for 'I Don't Know'. The song reflects the feelings of a yesteryear poet who has run out of creative ideas and is looking for the right words and emotions. The lines, "Musafir khoya awaara bechara kaafiyan na likh saka, Mushairon mein baitha uljha phir suljha par kissa na jee saka" explain the poet's mood. The brilliant words are accompanied by some striking guitars by Junaid Gavandi. The gradual tempo build-up adds to the charm. Harrdy Sandhu/ Psycho Label: Warner Music India Rating: *** Punjabi singer Harrdy Sandhu teams up with digital agency Media.Monks on the video of 'Psycho', the first single from his new EP Pleasures . It's being touted as the first virtual production Punjabi music video from India,

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Concert : Tribute To Shafaat Ahmed Khan Artistes ; Ramkumar Mishra & Ronkini Gupta Details : Veer Sawarkar Hall, Shivaji Park, July 24 Rating : **** (Pictures by blogger) Like every year, this year's concert organised by Pancham Nishad to pay tribute to late tabla maestro Ustad Shafaat Ahmed Khan featured a vocalist and a tabla exponent. Thus, Ronkini Gupta's vocal recital was followed by a solo performance by Ramkumar Mishra of the Benaras  gharana . Though attendance was affected by the rains and the fact it was Monday, both musicians enchanted the dedicated followers. Ronkini, who has also sung in films, OTT series and independent projects, has a strong taiyyari in classical music. She has a wonderful command over the swaras , and sings taans and sargams with effortless ease. Her repertoire comprised a mix of compositions by her first guru Chandrakant Apte and her own pieces, besides a popular bandish . Accompanied by Tejavrush Joshi on tabla and De

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Greta Van Fleet/ Starcatcher  Genre : Rock Label : Lava Music/ Republic Records Rating : *** 1/2 (Picture above is Josh Kiszka on the giant screen at Lollapalooza festival, Mahalaxmi Race Course grounds, Mumbai, in January 2023, with a fan raising his hand in similar fashion.  Picture taken by this blogger) One thing American rock band Greta Van Fleet will have to face all their lives is favourable or unfavourable comparison with monsters Led Zeppelin. Whenever frontman Josh Kiszka sings, he can't help sounding like Robert Plant, almost like he's had a vocal im-Plant. Add to that the fact that some of their songs openly follow the Led Zep style sheet. Like on their new album Starcatcher , one hears shades of 'When The Levee Breaks' on both 'The Falling Sky' and 'Sacred The Thread'. But look at the up-side of it all. GVF produces some incredible material of its own, including some true gems like 'Meeting The Master', one of the

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  SamRaag/ Saraswati Label: Self-released  Rating: **** 1/2 Formed by tabla exponent Alpesh Moharir, SamRaag is a band that's inspired by classical and world music. On its latest recording 'Saraswati', it does a fusion rendition of the Saraswati Vandana, the mantra penned by Sage Agastya. The vocals are done in classical style by Madhav Agrawal aka AB Madhav. He maintains the purity of the mantra and shows wonderful technique. The composition in raag Saraswati is played to a nine-beat rhythmic cycle. Siddhesh Borkar's guitars add a rock mix to the sound, and he doubles up on bass. Flautist Kshitij Saxena comes up with melodic passages. Alpesh's tabla, keyboardist Vipul Mhatre and drummer Sanchit Mhatre complete the line-up, giving the song the right balance. Sachet-Parampara/ Deewani  Label: T-Series Rating: *** After releasing the hit song 'Malang Sajna' late last year, the duo of Sachet and Parampara Tandon come out with 'Deewani

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Divine & Sidhu Moosewala/ Chorni Label: Self-released  Rating: *** 1/2 The song has been in the news because of the names involved. Rapper Divine pays tribute to late Punjabi star Sidhu Moosewala in 'Chorni', by using their voices and lyrics in an energetic number. After Sidhu's Punjabi stretch, Divine talks about rejection and the ills of jealousy. He also mentions that he learnt real hip-hop from Sidhu, Nipsey Hussle and 2Pac Shakur. Divine uses the sample of the Lata Mangeshkar song 'Chorni Hu Main' composed by Shankar-Jaikishan in the film Chorni . The use is subtle, coming at the right moments. The treat comes from Navkaran Brar's video, with some amazing sequences and effects. It's a classy production. MGeneric/ Sukoon Label: Self-released  Rating: *** Qatar-based Dr Mufazzal Zulfekar Hussain, who goes by the name MGeneric, had released the rap song 'Sakht Launda' earlier this year. His latest 'Sukoon' follows a s

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Easy Riders/ Virtual Lives (EP) Label: Self-released  Genre: Rock Rating: ***** What a long strange trip this is. Cut to 'Sweet Leaf Like Thing', the second track on  Virtual Lives , the EP recently released by Kolkata band Easy Riders. It's an instrumental that takes a leaf like thing or two from the Grateful Dead style sheet, as guitarists Sumit Bhattacharya and Rohan Ganguli complement each other with gorgeous riffs and brilliant harmonies, the drums and bass dancing away in the backdrop. It's six and a half minutes of pure magic, ending with a earworm-inspiring melody. Roll away the dew. The other two tracks bring on the vocals, whether they're singing "Yes, I was in a strange land, I would like to go back there if I can, I felt like a little hobbit there" on the nostalgia-filled 'Strange Land' or "I've been walking a while now, up the winding road, hoping to lose this city, hoping to shed my load" on 'Mr

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR The Anirudh Varma Collective/ Nirbhay Nirgun Label: Self-released Rating: ***** The Anirudh Varma Collective from New Delhi excels in blending traditional Indian compositions with contemporary arrangements, played in a live setting. Their latest video of the Kabir bhajan 'Nirbhay Nirgun' is from a performance at the India Habitat Centre in the Capital in January. The song is known for the rendition by Kumar Gandharva. Here, it is sung by Aastha Mandle, whose voice fills in the right mix of melody and expression. Adding to the charm are Anirudh on keyboards and Rohit Prasanna on bansuri, besides the lovely choir accompaniment and the interaction of tabla, ghatam and dholak. The words "Nirbhay nirgun gun gaaoonga main" exhorts one to be fearless. The entire vocal rendition and orchestration bring out the song's meaning beautifully. Rahgir/ Rahgira Mila Kabira Se Label: Self-released  Rating: **** This blogger discovered this song purely by chance