narenmusic

  BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Uday Benegal with Podsongs/ Hollow Bones   Label: The Independent Record Company  Rating: **** It started when Indus Creed frontman Uday Benegal appeared on British musician Jack Stafford's series Podsongs , where he interviewed telepathic animal communicator Manjiri Latey. He and Stafford wrote the song 'Hollow Bones', where Indus Creed guitarist Mahesh Tinaikar and keyboardist Zubin Balaporia were joined by Italian musicians. Uday's voice is in top shape as he sings, "Hollow bones, human-based telephones, all embraced, calling all creatures, every race, tune into your inner space". The song communicates the essence into the journey of animal communication. Bassist Luigi Falcione, drummer Massimino Voza and multi-instrumentalist Maurizio Samicola complete the line-up, and all the musicians blend well with the voice. Parikrama/ Life Is Certain Label: Self-released  Rating: **** Delhi rock super-heroes Parikrama have been very prolific over...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR   Sting @   Lollapalooza   Genre : Rock/ pop-rock Details : Mahalakshmi Race Course, Mumbai, January 28 Rating : **** You'll forget the sun in its jealous sky, as we walk on fields of gold... The sun had set a long ago, and the walk had been tiring and endless. But everything changed around 8.20 pm when Gordon Sumner aka Sting marched on to the Budweiser stage with a message in a bottle. For the next 85 minutes, every little thing the Englishman in Mumbai did was magic. The green carpet in front of the stage had been converted into fields of gold. The hardcore Sting fans should get those puns, and there were plenty of them who watched his concluding act at the two-day Lollapalooza music festival at the Mahalakshmi Race Course, Mumbai, on Sunday. Some had attended his shows abroad, some were seeing him for the first time, and others had been present at Mumbai's Rang Bhavan in 1980, when he played with his band The Police, or at the Amnesty International ...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Green Day/ Saviors   Genre : Punk-rock Label : Reprise Recotds  Rating : **** After the phenomenal success of their 2004 concept album American Idiot , every subsequent album by Green Day has provoked comparison. They tried a similar formula five years later on 21st Century Breakdown , but couldn't match the predecessor. Today, most fans would agree that they won't ever repeat the brilliance of that record, or probably match the classic 'Boulevard Of Broken Dreams' or 'Wake Me Up When September Ends'. So where does that leave Saviors , the Californian punk-rock band's latest and 14th studio outing? Without getting into comparison mode, let's suffice it to say that it's a very consistent record, with vocalist Billie Joe Armstrong again proving why he's one of the top rock vocalists of his generation. His guitars have that mastery too, and with bassist Mike Drint and drummer Tre Cool, we have a skin-tight power trio. Rather th...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Aruna Sairam & Ruupa Raaman/ Raghupati Raaghava Label: Self-released  Rating: **** The fabulous vocalist Aruna Sairam renders this version of 'Raghupati Raaghava', composed by Ruupa Raaman in raag Miyan Ki Malhar. The recording uses lyrics compiled from the original and the ones written by 17th century poet Shri Lakshmanacharya in the 'Nama Ramayan'. Sairam's singing has an air of serenity and is spiritually uplifting. She's accompanied by well-known artistes like Sridhar Parthasarathy on Carnatic percussion, Sreedhara Chari on pakhawaj, Ashish Jha on tabla, Narayan Mani on veena, Yogesh More on shehnai and Deepak Borkar on other percussion. Raaman's composition uses both the vocals and musical arrangements, coordinated by Atul Raninga, in a balanced way. Neeraj.NRP/ Fiza Label: Self-released  Rating: *** 1/2 Singer Neeraj.NRP has been regularly releasing singles, and his previous ones have included 'Fasla', 'Teri Meri'...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Perfect Strangers/ City Of Heartache  Label: Self-released  Rating: *** 1/2 Known for the songs 'On The Wild Side' and 'Stay', Bengaluru band Perfect Strangers has recently released the video of 'City Of Heartache'. Directed by Sanket Chakraborty, it features nightlife shots of Bengaluru streets, a Fiat Premier Padmini and performance clips in the studio. The seven-member band is tight, with Pranav DM and Ananya Raja sharing the vocals. The words include lines like "How do I make you feel the pain that I've been through, gonna go back in time baby oh". Keyboardist Joshua Costa and saxophonist Sweethin Hartman are joined by bassist Shalini Mohan and drummer Preran Gulvady, and the highlight is Debjeet Basu's fabulous guitar solo at the end. The sound draws from rock, pop and jazz, making it eclectic. Aditi/ The Queen Label: Self-released  Rating: *** In her earlier songs 'Never Met You', 'Deleted Your Number' ...

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Anirudh Varma Collective/ Dekho Sakhi Label: Self-released  Rating: **** Delhi-based Anirudh Varma Collective is known for its wonderful amalgamation of Hindustani classical raags with contemporary arrangements. On their latest 'Dekho Sakhi', they use raag Tilak Kamod. Spearheaded by composer Anirudh on keyboards, the song features Prateek Narsimha on vocals and Rohan Prasanna on sarod, besides tabla, drums, guitars and bass. It uses traditional lyrics by late Bhupendra Krishna Chatterjee - "Dekho sakhi Shyam nithur nahin maanat, karat tithori Kanha rokat maga chalat". Saubhagya Saxena's video sees the Collective boating on the river banks, and the visuals match the spiritual and serene nature of the composition. Malvica Chopra feat. Pranav Nigam/ Ahilya Label: Self-released  Rating: *** A disciple of classical maestro Pt Nayan Ghosh, sitar player Malvica Chopra has released her instrumental piece 'Ahilya'. It's an easy-listening c...