A Certain Shade Of Green

Moving my blog

2007-04-16T21:07:00.000+05:30

I've shifted to Wordpress for want of a better blog/template management system. More posts coming there soon! Also, I must make a mention of WP for their great 'Move your Blog' service, which worked like magic. Posts, formatting and comments all trooped to their new home in an orderly fashion. Great job, WP team!

Vista-schmista

2007-03-20T18:19:00.000+05:30

Windows Vista is supposed to be the greatest thing to happen to the PC since, well, Windows xp. For most people who choose to upgrade, they're not going to see much of a difference from xp, save for some cosmetic changes. Thats fine, especially since we had Windows Me, which didn't really have anything new to offer. So I guess Vista could be written off as another embodiment of the trend over at Redmond. But what really gets me is that the company is also boasting better performance, faster-running applications and so on.
Well, of course you'll have better performance! Vista needs a machine with lots of processing power, RAM and hard disk space (did someone say 14GB?) to run smoothly. With that kind of rig, xp would do quite well, too. So Vista is no miracle from the sky, even with all their new managed code and API. If Vista would run on my current PC, and started up Photoshop in 5 seconds, burned a DVD in 1 minute, and took up less space than xp, then I'd upgrade. Right now, I don't think its even worth taking the time to pirate.

Its amazing what you can do...

2007-02-02T21:00:00.000+05:30

... with Google Reader.
That's right, minions, I'm a Google fanboy, and I'm damn proud of it. Google Reader is the company's in-beta RSS (Really Simple Syndication) aggregator, that's chock-full of features and very easy to use. And it's addictive as hell.
For those who came in late, RSS is a way of staying in the loop with your favourite websites and blogs. Most pages have an RSS feed symbol with a link. Once you've logged in, you'll be greeted by the home page, which has a summary of all your RSS feeds. To add a new feed, simply click 'Add a subscription' on the left and enter the feed link. If you've got the Google Toolbar installed on your browser you can simply click 'Subscribe' and it'll be added to Reader.
Reader also has a list of neat feeds categorised by topics that you might enjoy. I've got several feeds on my Reader, including Neatorama, Haha.nu, several technology blogs, web comics, friends' blogs and some photography sites. Other notables include The Deviantart Skins & Themes gallery feed, which keeps me updated on the latest skins that are out, seeing as how I manage the gallery. Plus, the Giveaway of The Day feed lets me know if there's any good free software available that day.
Are you still here? Start using Reader asap. Chop chop!

SNW

2007-02-01T20:43:00.000+05:30

Deftones - Saturday Night Wrist
If there's one thing that comes through on the first listen to their latest offering, it's that Deftones makes music on their own terms. Saturday Night Wrist (SNW) is at once quirky, edgy, and in-your-face, while still showcasing the band's signature sound. Swirling keyboard samples, a powerful drum-and-bass backing, rushing guitars and Chino Moreno's idiosyncratic vocals make for a simply wonderful listen. The lyrics are very surreal, and keep shifting in temperament, just as the the rhythms and chord progressions do. The first single, 'Hole In The Earth' does justice in an effort to showcase the essence of the album. Guitarist Stephen Carpenter isn't afraid to play lush arpeggios to back the chorus, while also belting out grinding riffs all over the place. While the whole album is a delight, other tracks that deserve a mention include the haunting 'Beware', 'Mein' (featuring Serj Tankian), 'Kimdracula', and the lovely instrumental 'U, U, D, D, L, R, L, R, A, B, Select, Start'. All in all, a great package that stands testimony to the evolution of Deftones' sound. 4 stars.

Random, left-of-field, call it what you will...

2006-10-23T23:00:00.000+05:30

but here's my question: is it wrong to enjoy music without really paying attention to the lyrics? Well, with the internet being what it is these days, I have no excuse. Most media players allow you to read the lyrics of the song currently playing (I use Winamp, so Lyrics Plugin works best for me). I'm a musician first and foremost, so to me, the music is key. But I'm proud to announce that I've begun listening to lyrics. And I've gotta say, music is a lot more fun! Its almost as cool as the time when I became able to listen to bass, keyboards and guitars separately on tracks!
As it turns out, everyone's got something to say. Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder creates all these images and stories that simply unfurl of their own volition in my head (See Severed Hand, Jeremy, Ocean, Garden, Rearview Mirror). In hip-hop, The Roots get real tongue-in-cheek kinky on The Seed, as do Gym Class Heroes on The Queen & I. Maynard James Keenan of Tool/A Perfect Circle really gets me (or do I get him?) - The Outsider, Schism, Right in Two, The Noose, Blue, The Pot, The Grudge are all simply perfect pieces of work. Steely Dan lyrics are always a joy to read, though sometimes I have to refer to The Steely Dan Dictionary to understand what Becker and Fagen are smiling about.
I wish I could write like some of these folks. The ability to plan an idea in someone's head, and then direct its course, is something I've always wanted. So far, I've only tried writing about things that scare or amuse me, but I haven't been able to go much further than pulling a bit of wordplay here and there. Its kind of like how your bodily movements are inhibited by some mysterious force (try walking a like a crazy for a bit a la Jack Black in Nacho Libre (5 stars!), or twist your arms while you jump - the fact that you're not leaving your seat bears testimony to my theory). I wonder how listeners will react to my contrived imagination, all of it. Because thats what I would like to be able to put down on paper. All of it. Samples coming soon.

Digging Deeper

2006-10-17T22:50:00.000+05:30

So I've got my semester finals on right now, and what better time to get important things done, like cleaning up rooms, moving furniture, taking long walks, and reading news on things I enjoy? Well, digg.com helps you get the last part done, and how! Most of you might already be familiar with the Web 2.0-styled news giant, but for those of you who haven't stumbled upon it yet, be prepared for a treat! The site gets news articles from all over, with little blurbs from users. If you found the article enjoyable or useful, 'digg' it, so that it gets a higher ranking. You can pick from topics like Technology, Science, World & Business, Videos, Entertainment, and Gaming. You can even personalize your news preferences, view all news at once, and search for articles as well. Check it out!

I'm Back!

2006-10-02T12:47:00.000+05:30

I'm not very sure how one goes about making a comeback on one's blog, especially when your reader base is, well, small. Still, I've always enjoyed writing for anyone who'll read, so here goes nothing.

Fiction / Family Matters by Rohinton Mistry A poignant, personal and touching story about the trials and tribulations of the aging Nariman Vakeel and the various people whose lives he has touched. The tale makes its way through avenues of grief, bylanes of mirth, and side-streets of intense drama. All the while, Mistry ensures that each character creeps into your psyche, yanks out every ounce of feeling you've ever had and hands it to you wrapped in gilt-edged paper. Mistry's attention to detail is impeccable, and his understanding of the human mind and heart belies his age. His sensitivity draws you in, and his imagery alienates you, both deliciously so. The story ends with a touching epilogue which makes for a fitting finish to a masterpiece like this. A great read!

Music / Steely Dan - Aja I can't get over just how amazing Steely Dan is. Donald Fagen and Walter Becker are some of the cleverest musicians to ever walk this earth. Aja, their 1977 album, features a bunch of 7 great tracks that showcase witty lyrics and fine songwriting, especially Josie and Black Cow. Steely Dan specializes in smooth jazz-pop; this album doesn't feature their now-signature horn section in all its glory, but the sound is full and warm, with great keys and guitars. Aja also sounds like the perfect forerunner to their more recent work, such as 2000's Two Against Nature.

Film / 16 Blocks / Directed by Richard Donner, Starring Bruce Willis, Mos Def
Easily one of my favourite suspense movies of all time, this 2006 flick follows retiring cop Jack Mosley's (Willis) last assignment: to transport a witness from a police station to the court where he will testify. However, there are lots of folks who don't want this witness to reach the court... ever. And they will stop at nothing to achieve their goal. Its up to Mosley to keep the nervous, edgy Bunker alive. I loved this!

More Web Goodies

2006-05-13T13:27:00.000+05:30

Since my PC is on the blink, I've had to resort, of late, to using any damn system I can get my hands on. However, most of these don't have an IM or any music to listen to. For those of you who use MSN/ICQ/AIM/Yahoo! Messengers, there's hope yet: go to www.meebo.com and sign in on your service(s) of choice, and chat easily. I love how my contact list is intact, complete with user groups too!
As for music, last.fm offers the perfect solution. Just register (a very brief process), and download thier radio player. Then, you can search for music by tags or similar artists. The quality is pretty good, and works even on 64-kbps connections, skip-free. Give it a spin!

Quick Firefox Tip

2006-04-25T16:17:00.000+05:30

As you might know (c'mon, you're one of 5 people who read my blog), I work for Deviantart Inc., and there's a lot of PR work involved. This means that I have to frequently visit user pages, which have URLs like username.deviantart.com. Its a pain to type this over and over again, especially since I'm used to hitting Ctrl+Enter for http://www.sitename.com (type sitename, hit Ctrl+Enter, and Firefox/IE will add the rest for you). Here's a trick you can use for deviantart pages, blogger blogs, and anything else with a similar URL type:

Click Bookmarks > Manage Bookmarks > New Bookmark.
In the 'location' field, type 'http://%s.deviantart.com' or 'http://%s.blogger.com', without the quotes.
Add a keyword thats short and easy to type/remember. For deviantart pages, I use 'da'. So, to go to my page, i simply type 'da abe-x' (without quotes) and hit Enter. Similarly, for blogspot pages, I use 'bs'.

PC Nightmare!

2006-04-06T19:20:00.000+05:30

Litestep is an excellent shell replacement for Windows, with a lot of nifty features and much room for customization. A shell (for those of you...) is something like a large program that runs many sub-programs within itself. Windows runs its own shell, explorer.exe, and Explorer runs all the sub-programs, like your browser, media player, etc.
Now, I work for Deviantart.com as their Gallery Director for Skins & Themes, meaning I handle artist relations among those who create skins on this massive digital art community. This means checking out tons of skins, themes, dishing out advice, help, doughnuts, and what-have-you. Now, we accept submissions of Litestep themes, and one of them looked so good, I just had to try it. I also claim to be pretty adept with PCs, seeing as how I've been using them since I was this high. So I headed to the website, downloaded the installer, got my theme, and got down to work. Now, once you've got Litestep installed, you'll notice a different taskbar, your windows will look different, the way you access programs will change, and so on. The beauty of this is that you can configure it to work the way you want. It requires a lot of coding, but I just wanted to see what my PC would look like with that neat theme. I allowed Litestep to replace Explorer as my default shell.
Once I applied the theme, however, the computer froze.
So I rebooted it.
Then it said I needed to download some additional software in order to get Litestep working properly. But I couldn't do that, since my cable internet had to be logged into before I could be online. And this login box would show up only after I got past this download box, which only had the options 'Download' and 'Cancel'. So I hit 'Cancel'.
Once I cancelled, I realized that if I didn't download that stuff, I wouldn't see any icons, taskbars, or anything that would allow me to use this computer. I would simply have to stare at a Litestep wallpaper. And cry.
On my friend Sudhanva's advice, I tried starting up in Safe Mode, and Last Known Good Configuration, only to find that I would still have to deal with that download issue. I resembled a mime actor depicting loss, tragedy, betrayal and dumbfoundedness all at once. A low-rank mime actor at that.
Finally, I decided to boot up normally one last time, and planned to just hit keys wildly till something worked out in my favour. I cancelled the download process that wouldn't happen, and hit Ctrl+Alt+Del, just like I had done so many times before. Then, I had a brainwave: Task Manager > File > Run > explorer.exe.
This action opened up a folder view of 'My Documents'. I hastily redirected it to 'Desktop', which had a shortcut labelled 'Explorer as Shell'. I double-clicked, and regained my freedom, sanity, and my wonderful PC.
Moral of story: Don't try this at home. Not for n00bs! I wish Litestep had some kind of rescue button somewhere. Would have saved me a lot of pain. Ah, well...

Chillout is the new Electronica

2006-04-04T18:48:00.000+05:30

I've discovered a lot of great new music over the past couple of months, that can loosely be generalized as 'Chillout'. I'm talking about downtempo world music, jazz-influenced pop, indie-rock-tinged electronica, latino-glazed-hip-hop and such. Its mostly very freestyle stuff, and I'm sure a lot of it falls under other genres too, and many movements. Still, you get the idea. Here are some artists I highly recommend (albums in parentheses):

Nitin Sawhney (Philtre, Human, Prophesy)
Zero 7 (Simple Things, The Garden)
K-OS
Air
Bill Laswell
Royksopp
Cornershop
Massive Attack
Fiona Apple (Extraordinary Machine)
Talvin Singh (Ha)

I was introduced to many of these bands by a friend from college, who is half-Nepali, half-Indian, somewhat US-bred, and well-versed in underground/dance/trance/house/groove/hip-hop and other such genres of music. Its amazing how much great music is out there, that is solely for the purpose of serving as the background score for your engaging in doing nothing. Don't get me wrong, these artists know exactly what they're doing; some of those I've mentioned above are very into fusing regional sounds with drum & bass, blips and bleeps, traditional beats and myriad strains of violin, organ, and samples. Hit up your Torrent client for some of this stuff, and I'm sure you'll be pleasantly surprised. Look up isohunt.com for 'Pure Chillout', a 40-track album that should give you a good idea of what I'm so excited about.

movies.metal.mornings

2006-03-22T21:44:00.000+05:30

movies

Pink Panther - Steve Martin / Directed by Shawn Levy (avoidable)
Good Night, and Good Luck - David Straithairn / Directed by George Clooney (fabulous)
Se7en - Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Kevin Spacey / Directed by David Fincher (must-see)
Memoirs of a Geisha - Ziyi Zhang, Michelle Yeoh / Directed by Rob Marshall (good)

music
I've been listening to a lot of alternative metal, which is actually very straight-forward 4/4 nu-metal with a tinge of noir. Still, its good music. Also some other stuff, here's a list:

Dark New Day - Twelve Year Silence (good alt metal)
10 Years - The Autumn Effect (very boring)
Lacuna Coil - Karmacode (almost as boring)
Joe Satriani - Super Collosal (similarly boring)
Eric Johnson - Bloom (smooooooth)
Fiona Apple - Extraordinary Machine (simply brilliant)
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Howl (excellent indie-style Brit rock)
Mattias Eklundh - The Road Less Travelled (solo guitar wizardry)
36 Crazyfists - A Snow-Capped Romance (inventive hardcore)
Dave Navarro - Trust No One (alternative rock, not bad)
Helmet - Meantime (good, angry hard rock)
N.E.R.D. - Fly or Die (Hip-hop done right)

As you can see, a lot of therefore are therfore justified when they say, 'I liked their old stuff better.'

mornings
I need more sleep. Waking up is over-rated. I'd rather just close my eyes, and pretend to be surfing Savage Chickens, a neat comic strip made on post-it notes. Here's one of my favourites from there. Good night, and good luck.

Worship her, she's French!

2006-03-09T21:18:00.000+05:30

::Film:

Alias Betty (Betty Fisher et autres histoires)

Directed by Claude Miller, Starring Sandrine Kiberlaine, Nicole Garcia

This is a fine French film, a wonderful story told in as bleak a manner as possible. It tells of the novelist Betty Fisher, who loses her son while her mother is in town to visit. Now what kind of mother would this woman be if she didn't replace the lost child with another one straight off the street? Betty's mum thinks so too, and in less than a day, Betty finds herself caring for another child. The kidnapping makes the local news, which causes a lot of trouible for the actual mother's boyfriend. Several other stories also surface, and each one is tied together with another, culminating in a grand, mind-boggling finish, one that satisfies, and also leaves one quite tongue-in-cheek indeed. Edouard Baer plays the bungling Alex Basato, a con-man living off his mistress. His character undergoes trials and tribulations of all sorts, and is sure to have you in splits.
A very well-made film, with excellent camera work and a lot of great acting. The French sure know how to tell a story!

Paper Street

2006-02-21T22:17:00.000+05:30

I just had my midterms last week, so I decided to de-stress by catching a few flicks:

Ira Mediyama (August Sun) - Written and Directed by Prasanna Vithanage

The first Sinhalese movie I've ever seen, this film captures 3 stories that show the impact of war on the daily life of ordinary people in Sri Lanka. It did that quite well, but it failed to tie the 3 stories together, something the director kept stressing on. Other than that, this film was well shot, but the pace could have been quicker and more consistent. I guess you have to be Sri Lankan to truly appreciate it.

Fargo / Directed by Joel Coen, Starring William H Macy

Absolutely wonderful! A really well-made noir film, about a man who hires criminals to kidnap his wife, so that his father-in-law can fork over a million dollars in ransom money, which he would take his own cut from. Unfortunately, things go wrong. Horribly wrong.
Macy and Steve Buscemi put in very strong performances that make this film very special indeed. The dark humour wasn't lost on me, and I had a blast watching this. 5 stars!

Fight Club / Written by Chuck Palahniuk, Directed by David Fincher, Starring Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, Helena Bonham Carter

Only the best film I've ever seen. I've seen it a few times before, but this time it really hit me: this is a masterpiece, one that should be preserved, shown at high schools all over the world, translated into as many languages as the Bible, and should be thrown in with your paycheck from work (just so you don't miss it). The book by Chuck Palahniuk is fantastic as well; I can't say which one is more impactful.
This movie has a lot to offer to those who are looking for entertainment, flim-making ideas and inspiration, or even a purpose in life. The story is extremely well told, with scenes and dialogue that will stick to you like badly-made toffee. The tagline says it all: Mischief. Mayhem. Soap. Come get some!

Living In The Past

2006-02-05T22:26:00.000+05:30

Jethro Tull was nothing short of perfect on the 3rd of February, as Ian Anderson and Co. belted out classics from the past 3 decades that made the group a force to reckon with. The premier progressive-folk-rock outfit played hits including 'Living In The Past', 'Aqualung', 'Thick As A Brick' and also renditions of pieces by Bach and Mozart in their own magical style. Anderson was in top form, displaying his mastery on the flute and on vocals. A true auditory treat for the 3000-strong (or so I believe) crowd present.
Thermal and a Quarter opened the show, with a short and sweet set, beginning with Queen's 'Radio Ga-ga', and moving on their originals, including 'How Can I Get Your Groove', 'Bend The World', 'Paper Puli' and more. A great set, but I've seen TAAQ do better. All in all, a great experience.
Bangalorean Deviants met up today at the second B'lore devMEET, at the Garuda Mall Cafe Coffee Day, for a cuppa and conversation, and later on, lunch at Casa Picola. Pictures can be seen here. We had a good time, and I hope we'll meet up again soon. Feb 26th, whatsay? Deviantart.com

Whew!

2006-02-01T22:36:00.000+05:30

Well, the Forum Three Playfest 2006 is finally over. It was a great learning experience for me, scoring the music for 2 plays, plus playing a bit part in one of them. There are so many things an actor needs to keep in mind; not quite the cakewalk I imagined it to be. Anyhow, I'm sure I'm richer from the whole month-long exercise, and maybe I'll sign on to their upcoming projects as well. Three cheers! By the way, there are a few pictures here.
Music: I've been listening to Charlie Parker's Jam Sessions, as well as Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Mars Volta, Galactic, Sonic Youth and Primus. All good, all very good.
DevMEET coming up this Sunday, the 5th, at Garuda Mall's Cafe Coffee Day. Be there, or be elsewhere! Aditya Pandya aka iamlame is expected (visiting our fair city to attend Unmaad 2006, the IIM-B fest). There's also the TAAQ + Jethro Tull concert on the 3rd. Good times ahead!

News

2006-01-18T14:09:00.001+05:30

Its been a while since I blogged, hasn't it? I've been really busy with two plays that Forum Three will be performing this month (see the Forum Three Bulletin Board for more information). I've been playing around with my digital camera and Photoshop CS some, too. Results will be up soon. For some plain-vanilla photos of the Ghoshals from this year, click the Flickr button to the right (or just go here, same difference).
I've been listening to a lot of great music, including Thelonious Monk, Derek Trucks Band, John Mayer Trio, Gov't Mule, some Indian bands (Zero, Acquired Funk Syndrome, Pin Drop VIolence, Moksha, Motherjane), and the like. I'm hoping to get hold of the recently-recorded Caesar's Palace EP. They're a great new band that specializes in jazz-funk-rock.
I don't know if I've mentioned this, but these days, I work. I write for the Sri Lankan magazine IT Times (see the December issue in PDF format here), and I'm the Gallery Director (Skins & Themes) over at Deviantart.com. Hectic, I tell you. Haven't watched any good movies in a while, but that will change as soon as this play-fest is over. Lots of stuff to do, come back next week for more. Cheers!

Maria

2006-01-04T22:51:00.000+05:30

Well, Clara has been replaced, by a new Sony DSC S-60. Her name's Maria, and she's got similar features, save for a more petite LCD screen, and her buttons are a bit more dusky. Other than that, I love her very much. I'm going to make sure no one loses her, by taking several drastic precautionary steps, including making the current user wear a suit of velcro so as to be able to attach Maria to his/her body and not be able to misplace her.
What have I been up to? Oh, not much. Sleeping, eating, taking in a few movies (that I don't think are worth mentioning, except for Green Street Hooligans - easily the worst I've ever seen). I'll gather up my thoughts soon and write something more coherent. Till then, y'all be nice to each other.

2005-12-21T22:16:00.000+05:30

I'm hurting too much from my recent loss to write a bunch of concert reviews. Gangamma, Where Is My Pleasure? placed 3rd at InBloom 2005, the annual inter-collegiate fest at Christ College. I'm absolutely stoked!
Bands I saw over the past week: Soulmate, Orange Street, Thermal and a Quarter, Zero, Pin Drop Violence, Junkyard Groove (winners of Strawberry Fields 2005), Panatella, Demonic Resurrection, Inviktus, Morrison Avenue. Good stuff!

Gone...

2005-12-13T16:36:00.000+05:30

Our brand new digital camera is lost. Her name is Clara. If you see her (she's a Sony DSC-S90), please return her to her family. Thanks so much.

Clara, I miss you already.

Flick Fanatic

2005-12-06T20:29:00.000+05:30

I attended the annual COMMITS Seminar, named Flickers, today. This year's focus was new trends in Indian Cinema, and featured Ashutosh Gowariker, Nagesh Kukunoor, Khalid Mohammed, Mahesh Dattani, and Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar as speakers. The first three filmmakers mentioned spoke at length about how they entered the world of cinema, what kind of films they make and want to make, and of course, their views on what Indian cinema will and should look like in the near future. All three were very impressive, during their individual addresses, question-and-answer sessions, and the joint discussion. They answered several key questions, including Nupur Basu's "Why don't you make films with strong political messages, seeing as how you have the power?" She should have thought things through before asking that one, in my opinion. Why should every filmmaker have a bloody message? Can't one simply tell a good story? Its going to be bloody difficult to make a movie in this country if its got to have a message. To each his own, ma'am. If these directors don't feel like making political films, they damn well won't.
Mahesh Dattani explained the process of his shift from theatre to film, and how strange it felt. He also answered questions about his various works, adaptations and the like. I didn't stick around for Nagathihalli, since he failed to hold my attention beyond a few minutes into his speech.
All in all, it was an interesting seminar, but I felt that a few more topics on the subject of new Indian films could have been touched upon. For instance, whether multi-language films will be seen more frequently, the broadcasting of documentaries made in the country, and so on. Well, maybe next time. I had fun. Lots of folks had quirky accents, asked nonsensical questions, and one mate, after hearing Gowariker's speech, screamed out, "Mr. Ashutosh, before you leave, I just want to tell I LOVE YOU!" Fanatics will be fanatics...

:: Update ::

2005-12-04T19:54:00.000+05:30

Now watching: Tim Burton's Corpse Bride

Now listening to: Weather Report - The Jaco Years (Jazz), Mastodon - Leviathan (Metal)

Whats new? Hmmm... a lot, really. Firstly, its December, which is a good thing, especially this time of year. Secondly, I've been appointed Gallery Director - Skins & Themes over at Deviantart. I'm really enjoying my new responsibilities. Plus I hope to buy some prints once I get paid (the 10th of every month, I hear)...
Also, I'm now using xp, which runs a lot faster and smoother than win2k. I've also installed Photoshop CS, which is a joy to use. My friend Sudhanva was a godsend, patiently installing, reinstalling, formatting, and doing whatever else was required. So sweet!
In real life, Gangamma, Where Is My Pleasure? competed at Campus Rock Idols, Bangalore. We didn't make it, but it was still fun taking to the stage again. We played Purple Haze, Alive, and Poundcake. We hope to have Matthews around to play bass once Strawberry Fields and InBloom are upon us (16-17 December, I think).
Also, my dad and I picked up a couple of very neat gadgets, namely a PalmOne Zire31, and a Sony S90 Digital Camera. I love 'em both! I'm planning to take up photography classes next month or so, at college. On Tuesday, I'm off to Flickers, a seminar on Indian Cinema. Speakers include Mahesh Dattani, Ashutosh Gowariker and others. I can't wait!
Whats next for Abe? Only time will tell...

Working Man

2005-11-23T17:15:00.000+05:30

I've been working a couple of part-time jobs lately, including being a roadie (see related post below), and running a campaign for Lee Jeans Co. Proceeds go towards the POD XT Live, which I hope to pay off within the next 30 years. Its taking a while, but I'm sure I'll manage. Any work you guys got for me?

I get home at five o'clock
And I take myself out a nice, cold beer
Always seem to be wonderin'
Why there's nothin' goin' down here

Well, they call me the working man
I guess that's what I am

Buttons, buttons, more buttons... and then some!

2005-11-18T19:39:00.000+05:30

Well, this is primarily for my oh-so-techie family, who keep pestering me to let them know as and when I update my blog ("Beta, if you're going to spend time in front of that screen, we want to know what it is you're up to... and turn down that evil music!"). So there it is, a blogarithm so you can be updated by email when this page has some new graffiti on it (anti-RIAA or otherwise). There you go, folks. And its not evil music, its just your everyday Scandinavian Death-Doom-Goth-Black-Symphonic-Power-Progressive-Speed-Thrash-Sludge-Stoner-Gore-Grind-Hardcore-Nu metal...

2005-11-16T18:48:00.000+05:30

A very rudimentary first recording featuring my Ibanez GAX30 and Line6 POD XT Live can be heard here. Please let me know what you think. Cheers!

Roadie 101

2005-11-15T19:02:00.000+05:30

Bangalore witnessed the final day of Kingfisher's OctoberFest this past Sunday. The main attractions were local acts Lounge Piranha and Thermal and a Quarter. I roadied for TAAQ, and learnt a couple of things that day that I thought I should share:

To appear busy, keep calling out random names and mentioning technical terms. Example: "Tony, that preamp needs a jumper, could you look into it? Tony, hey, Tony!".
Its not about what you lug around, its how many items you lug around.
'To err is human' does not apply on stage.
A marked set list is your best friend.

TAAQ took to the stage at 8:20 PM, to soar through a brilliant set of approximately 15 well-chosen tracks of their fantastic catalogue of over 100 tracks spanning 3 releases over 8 years. TAAQ plays 100% original farm-fresh 'curry rock' (more akin to jazz rock, IMHO), and features four fabulous musicians who are masters in their own right - Bruce Lee Mani (Guitars, vocals), Rzhude (bass, vocals), Sunil Chandy (keyboards, guitars, bass, vocals), and Rajeev Rajagopal (drums).
The band kicked off in earnest with Pink Floyd's Shine On You Crazy Diamond. Bruce shone on lead guitars, displaying a great deal of proficiency and feel that was worth blogging about (see what I mean?). He said it was their way of getting the crowd on their side, though, after the show, anyone would say that it was hardly a neccessary tactic. Other great tracks included How Can I Get Your Groove, Look At Me, Falling Down, and Drunk (my favourite.. besides, a lot of folks in the audience could easily relate to it). This song had a killer groove, with some neat drumming by powerhouse Rajeev.
They also played a short acoustic set, including a rousing version of Lennon's Imagine, with Chandy on keys and Rzhude on vocals. Next came Closer To Heaven, with Chandy taking up a fretless Bass. Very good stuff. Also of note was their version of Roxanne. I absolutely loved this one, since it was a very interesting take on an already great song. Next, they performed Holy Jose, and dedicated it to a very inebriated young man in the crowd.
Cat Stevens' Wild World saw them return to the rest of the electric set. Paper Puli was pull(i)ed off really well - that riff is stuff of rock legend, I tell ya! They wrapped up their show with a brilliant instrumental Hoedown, which was a treat for all the guitar fans present.
All in all, a really tight, energetic show. It had been ages since I had last seen TAAQ perform, so this was a special treat for me. Their relentless pursuit of excellence has definitely paid off, and made them the top rock act in the city, and a force to be reckoned with, this side of the Pacific. Rock on, y'all!

The Vikings Cometh...

2005-11-13T08:43:00.000+05:30

::Concert::

Seagram's 100 Pipers Legends Live Presents The Jonas Hellborg Group, featuring Mattias IA Eklundh and Morgan Agren
12th November / 7:30 PM, ITC Hotel Windsor Sheraton & Towers, Bangalore

When I finally realised that I was going to get to watch this show for sure, I was beside myself with excitement. Mattias Eklundh is probably my favourite guitarist (he also fronts the brilliant Swedish Prog-rock act Freak Kitchen). His proficiency, feel and versatility have always been a major source of inspiration for lil' ol' me. Jonas Hellborg is a renowned bass player and jazz exponent, and has collaborated with V Selvaganesh on various projects.
Eklundh made it very clear that the night would be loud. Very loud. And they delivered. The trio performed a selection of tracks from Hellborg's albums and compositions, including 2 new untitled pieces . I think the exact genre would be heavy metal jazz, and I've never heard anything like it. This was especially fascinating for me, since I've just begun getting into jazz (Pat Metheny, Alex Skolnick Trio, Thelonious Monk, John McLaughlin, et al), and seeing some of the best in the business at work (or was it play?) was just the thing to propel my interest further.
Eklundh exhibits some very fluid playing, but also brings a lot of start-stop stacatto riffing to the table, and a whole lot of whammy histrionics. But what is even more astounding is his sense of melody. Hellborg really brought the house down with his bass mastery. His style is very expressive, and refreshingly no-holds-barred. Agren is a great drummer to watch. Every beat resonated with energy, and his drum solos were truly stuff of legend.
My favourite piece was Who Do You Want To Be?, primarily for its ferocity and marvellous composition. On the whole, this was one of the best jazz concerts I've been to. It was great meeting Eklundh in person as well; a very down-to-earth, peaceful Viking... Once again, props to Sunil Chandy for taking me along (and darling little Kiarna for sacrificing her ticket!). All hail the Swedes!

Wazza!

2005-11-09T11:19:00.000+05:30

Woke up at 6:30 am today. Studied a bit, then got down to leeching Clutch's 1999 album Jam Room. Clutch plays some really good Stoner Rock, which I'm absolutely loving right now. Its like fun bluesy-groovy-rock with deep Southern sludge vocals, if that means anything to you. Anyway, its all good. Been playing their 2005 disc Robot Hive/ExodusI also subscribed to 2 years of Worldspace Digital Satellite Radio programming. As if I didn't already have enough music to keep me busy (as of now, 33 GB). RIAA, come and get me... I live in Kaval Byrasandra. I'm yours if you can find me... muhahahaha!
Had breakfast at India Coffee House, MG Road, this morning, with my mate Prateeque. Scrambled eggs on toast, cold coffee, mutton cutlets and some more toast... 50 bucks a head. Even got hassle-free parking just outside, which is a first (probably a last as well, given Bangalore's rising traffic and parking problems).
Mattias Eklundh will be playing in Bangalore on the 11th of November, joining bassist Jonas Hellborg's jazz group. I'm hoping to go, but several minor technicalities might prove to be a successful obstacle. Time will tell.

::Book::
The Stranger by Albert Camus

A story about a young man living his day-to-day life as a cynic, as several minor events (the death of his mother, the disappearance of his neighbour's dog, the seemingly inconsequential affair with Marie) eventually lead to the climax: the protagonist's murder trial. There's enough of character formation, but one can't really feel for the old chap. Anyhow, its a really short novel, and reading it would do you just as much good as not taking it up.

::Music::
Clutch - Robot Hive/Exodus (2005)

I love this album. Great vocals, neat blues-rock-funk riffs, fun RHCP-esque lyrics with a twinge of realism, and an overall killer sound. Every track is a classic. My favourite, however, is 10001110101. This album is full of all those tracks you want playing behind you as you walk down the street, y'know, when all is right with the world. Lots of nice guitar and keyboard bits all over the place. 5 Stars. I'm now hooked.

::Software::

Iconoid (For Windows 98/2000/Me)

Nifty features to fiddle with your desktop icons. Change the icon text background colour, font colour, make your icons do a little jig (!)... its free, too. Go here.

Firefox Extension: All-in-One Gestures

Use your mouse to perform functions (Back, Forward, Previous/Next Tab, Close Tab, etc.) simply by holding down a button and gesturing (drawing a rough pattern). Its really neat. Its available here.

A Certain Shade Of Green

2005-11-05T00:43:00.000+05:30

As you can see, I've added a couple of links, and a shoutbox (courtesy cbox.com). Please take the time to check them out. I'm also trying to figure out how to use flickr and photobucket to upload photos directly to my blog. Lets see how far I get.

Get Your live music kicks here

2005-11-05T00:40:00.000+05:30

I found a really neat site, chock full of high-quality audio files in various formats of live concerts. Several bands are featured here, and some of these collections are priceless. Go here to see what I'm talking about. At present, I'm leeching stuff by Alex Skolnick Trio (Guitarist from thrash metal band Testament playing jazz - kickass!), Derek Trucks Band (some fine blues here), 311 (reggae-rock meets Incubus), and Toad The Wet Sprocket (ballady rock - some of the finest songwriting I've ever seen).

Lucky... No Time For Love

2005-10-30T22:00:00.000+05:30

Thats what they all say. The average hindi-speaking autorickshaw driver indulges in 3.67 romances with Bollywood actresses. That means 14 letters to each actress' address (Rs. 85 per address from a 'trusted' source), totalling 51.38 one-way correspondences. Add to that, say, 3 postcard-size photos and 1 poster of each actress. Silk shirt meant for that special occassion, plus matching bandana. Total cost of dream: Rs. 878. Life's a bitch. 'You can trust a snake, but don't shake hands with a girl.' 'No time for love - Lucky'... Senthil sighs as he ties his fluorescent scarf around his neck, runs his hand through his collar-length oiled hair, and starts the engine, and drives into the deep dark night.
Right, lets move along, shall we? I've been leeching some quality stand-up comedy off the usual P2P networks. Pristine 352x240 .mpg files of Comedy Central Presents. I've seen Dane Cook, Russell Peters, Carlos Mencia, and Pablo Francisco so far. Brilliant stuff! Cook is a tad overrated. Maybe the physical humour is what gets 'em. Still, all thoroughly enjoyable. Francisco does some marvellous imitations (of Latino girlfriends, male dancers, and Arnold Schwarzenegger), and Mencia is very, very angry. Peters has changed my life. A round of applause, ladies and gentlemen!
My MSN Messenger 7.0 doesn't seem to be able to connect anymore. Thats why I'm using Trillianv3.0 now. Very nice, as always, but now its gotten a lot better. There are now tons of great skins available for it, so you can dress it up as you wish. Neato!
I recently got a Line6 POD XT Live. Its a wonderful guitar effects processor, with lots of big buttons and shiny knobs to play around with, to get killer tone. Trouble is, it costs a bit. To pay it off, I'm handling the Graphics and Design column for Sri Lanka's IT Times. Check out an issue here.

::Music::

Ra - Duality & From One

Great, straightforward rock from this tight foursome. Check out Fallen Angels, Do You Call My Name, and Superman.

Foo Fighters - In Your Honor

They've still got it. I like this double album a lot. Neat hooks and stuff. I'm in this place right now where I'll listen to anything that sounds good. Nothing in here is highly thought-provoking, but its nice nonetheless.

Pat Metheny Group - Offramp

This disc isn't very in-your-face. Lots of flowing moody stuff. Its very moving, in a way. Makes you feel like you're floating... Au Lait is probably my favourite track, although I love the entire album. Offramp is one trippy piece. Very Mahavishnu Orchestra. 5 Stars!

Jet - Get Born

Some really fun retro stuff from this neat Australian band. Apparently, they bought a bunch of riffs at a Garage Sale held by Angus Young, and they decided to rework them for their own album. The results are crunchy, with a smooth texture on the outside. I love this disc!

Jerry Cantrell - Degradation Trip

Now this is rock done right. Strong, groovy and with purpose. Cantrell's vocals are delightfully Layne-Staley-esque, and completely complement his songwriting and playing. Very good stuff, again. Anger Rising is one hell of a song.

Liquid Tension Experiment - I & 2

The Dream Theater boys up to mischief, featuring Tony Levin on The Stick (12-string bass instrument). This instrumental side project is absolutely balls-to-the-wall-multi-genre stuff, with 4 virtuosos strutting their stuff and bringing the house down. Mindblowing work. See if you can get your hands on the videos. Weirder than watching David Blaine.

Clutch - Robot Hive Exodus

Great stoner rock, with some great riffs, and neat songwriting. Every track is a gem. Possibly one of Clutch's top albums. Loved every minute of it!

Come closer...

2005-09-24T23:21:00.000+05:30

Just got back from watching the stage version of the film Closer, performed by Bangalore's Black Coffee Productions. Good stuff, in my opinion. Darius, however, sucks.
More importantly, though... MSN Messenger 7.0 Skins! Get them here. There are loads of them, all packaged in nifty little installers. My current favourite: Tiger MSN Aqua.

Get Over It

2005-09-13T13:18:00.000+05:30

What is it with people and their concerns about privacy? Every second IT company worth their salt these days is being sued or coming under fire from the public and the media for posing a threat to peoples' personal information. Perhaps there are some related issues I'm not clear on, but still, the article I've linked to below mentions how Google might compromise people by providing personal details to the government. I don't see how its a huge problem. For one, the government can anyway use Google (or any search engine) to find personal details about people, that they may have submitted or posted online. Secondly, so what if the government knows about you? How would it matter to them whether or not you enjoy looking at pictures of little girls and ponies?
I can see how this might inconvenience a criminal/fugitive, but isn't that a good thing? Besides, I'm sure Google can't provide terribly confidential information like your credit card and so on. Where's the problem?

See the Yahoo! article here.

Weekend Film Fest

2005-09-11T12:44:00.000+05:30

I watched some really good movies over the weekend, though I have mid-semester tests on...

Madagascar (Animated) - Voices by Ben Stiller/Chris Rock/Jada Pinkett-Smith/David Schwimmer : Directed by Eric Darnell

A very cute film about 4 animals that escape from New York's Central Park Zoo to go live in the wild. Things don't go as they expect, and its a fun roller-coaster ride all the way. 3.5/5

Constantine - Keanu Reeves / Rachel Weisz : Directed by Francis Lawrence

A gripping plot, neat twists, fabulous special effects, Rachel Weisz... very good stuff. Keabu is a bit too wooden though, and his character could have been better established. Still, I loved this one! 4/5

Raghu Romeo - Vijay Raaz / Maria Goretti / Saurabh Shukla : Directed by Rajat Kapoor

Rip-roaring comedy, with some of the most absurd moments in Bollywood history. Very feel-good, with marvellous dialogues and sequences. A must-see! 4.5/5

Papillon - Steve McQueen / Dustin Hoffman : Directed by Franklin J Schaffner

A true classic, with a brilliant performance by McQueen. It does get a bit trying towards the middle, but picks up the pace again, to keep you on the edge of your couch. Good stuff! 3.5/5

Googleness!

2005-09-10T02:01:00.000+05:30

Google is taking over my PC. And fast. And I can't wait till my computer is completely Googlified, simply because every single product of theirs is so damn good. The company has a brilliant attitude towards projects and customers, and their efforts are truly inspiring. Everything they do, from the idea of expanding from just the quickest and most efficient search engine to providing the best email service, the most innovative planet-mapping software and more, seems just ingenious. And as I said before, I can't wait till they create software for just about everything I need.
Google stuff I use:

Google Search
Gmail
Google Talk
Google Desktop Search
Blogger
Orkut
Picasa
Google Personalised Homepage
Google Suggest
Google Toolbar
Google Earth
Google Translate

In short, I'm just waiting for their media player and OS. Click here to check out all of Google's services and products (did I mention they're free?), and here to check out projects in progress.
I love how they launch their products in a quiet, unobtrusive way. Google now offers all the extra services that older search portals like Yahoo, MSN and Excite do, but unless you want them, you don't even have to know of their existence. Google products also offer convergence, but if thats not your thing, turn it off. Its that simple. I love this brand!

Talk the talk

2005-09-07T00:00:00.000+05:30

The folks at Google have done it again: a brilliant take on an existing product/service that scores over everything else out there. This time, its an Instant Messenger with VoIP, called Google Talk. Its still in its beta phase, but the voice chat works fantastically well. Get it here. Once you've got the hang of it, you can check out CustomizeTalk to, well, um, customize Talk (with skins and plug-ins). Note: Google Talk requires Win2k/xp, but can be connected to using other clients for Mac and Linux. Enjoy.
I wonder how long Google will take to develop an OS and thereby ostracize Microsoft? Let it happen!

Geek Goodies!

2005-08-23T01:15:00.000+05:30

What kind of nerd would I be if I didn't add some neat software + web links on my blog, eh? Here's a grab bag:

Konfabulator: Add widgets to your Win2k/xp pc, i.e., add fun(ctionality). More RAM, better performance.
kewlpAd: Only the best notepad on the planet. Free. Skinnable. Excellent 'Find' feature, reads any size .txt files (not restricted to 60kb like Windows Notepad ;-) ), especially useful for IRC file lists.
Approcket: Cute little program launcher (Win2k/xp). Also launches bookmarks, media files and more. Again, needs memory.
WackyVids.com: Great little videos to watch, including banned commercials, bloopers and more. Free.
Extensions:

Foxytunes: Control your media player (choose from the list) from your browser. Very neat, plus skinnable!
Gmail Notifier: QUickly log in to your Gmail account with 2 clicks.
CuteMenus: Adds icons to context options when you right-click. I'm a gfx fetishist, so this works for me.

2005-08-21T15:40:00.000+05:30

Nothing really. I've gone off posting those reviews for a bit, since I haven't been watching or reading much. Maybe when I finish a couple more books I'll have something substantial to say.

Great new albums out this year:

Nevermore - This Godless Endeavour (Power Metal)
Pagan's Mind - Enigmatic: Calling (Power Metal)

Opeth - Ghost Reveries (Progressive Death Metal)

Freak Kitchen - Organic (Progressive Rock)

Ill Nino - One Nation Underground (Nu-Metal)

Design for the masses

2005-07-24T23:19:00.000+05:30

I've been looking at a lot of practical design lately, and I've seen some great work, particularly from smaller firms and independent designers.

Santiago Calatrava is currently my favourite architect. His sweeping lines, surreal structures and brilliant ideas, that combine form with function, just take my breath away.
Philippe Starck has an extensive portfolio, with product design, print and so much more. His Icon Condominiums are a sight to behold as well.
Check out Lebedev Studio's Industrial Design section. They have some beautful products on display and in progress.

Upwardly Mobile

2005-07-24T17:14:00.000+05:30

::Film::

Cellular / Starring Chris Evans, Kim Basinger ][ Directed by David Ellis

Its been a while since I watched a good thriller. This film can't be described as a classic, but its fast-paced, energetic and fun. None of the performances are spectacular, but they do justics to the script. I enjoyed every minute of this!
3 and a half stars / 5 stars

2005-07-04T19:10:00.000+05:30

::Film::

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
Starring Jack Nicholson, Directed by Milos Forman
File under 'heartwarming', 'poignant', 'Jack Nicholson's finest moments'...
I loved this one from the very beginning. A great story, fantastically told, with just the right details. Vintage Nicholson is obviously a novelty, and he also delivers the goods. A very strong performance, with his classic go-on-slap-me-i'll-think-its-funny smile adding to his character an indescribably apt element. Human and alien emotions express themselves beautifully through the thoroughly captivating inmates. A must-watch!

The Usual Suspects (1995)
Starring Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio Del Toro, Kevin Pollak, Kevin Spacey, Directed by Bryan Singer
Now this is a carefully wound surprise that leaps at you over a span of an hour and a half. This jack-in-the-box of a crime flick is brilliantly directed (and edited on film) by Singer, and stars the brilliant Spacey. Although every actor delivers a splendid performance, Spacey steals the show. His delivery, timing, everything, is just impeccable. The story twists and turns at a hundred a second on a roller coaster rail, and takes you with it. Verbal (Spacey) is a character unlike any I've seen before. Another fine yarn. Definitely a must-watch.

::Book::
Tokyo Cancelled - Rana Dasgupta
Still reading it... its a wonderful collection of 13 stories disguised as a novel. I'm halfway through, and each tale is as enchanting as the next. The stories take you across the globe, through various moments of trepidation, horror, pity, and so much more. Great stuff!

More of the same old same old...

2005-06-21T20:36:00.000+05:30

::Film::

The Big Kahuna - Starring Kevin Spacey, Danny DeVito, Peter Facinelli, Directed by John Swanbeck

I quite liked this eclectic hour-and-a-half conversation between three salesmen that covers various topics, from American sub-standard sterile ritualistic sales conventions to life, death and their causes and effects. Good show. I admit, not too much happens, but still, I haven't seen a film this frank and poignant in quite a while.

The Shawshank Redemption - Starring Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Directed by Frank Darabont

What a brilliant film. What a magnificent, mindblowing film. This is a great prison story told fantastically well, with some fabulous acting and scintillating dialogue. You've got to see it if you haven't already. And it has been a while since its release.

Movie Mania

2005-06-01T00:39:00.000+05:30

Username: abhimanyughoshal
Now Playing: Dead Soul Tribe - In A Garden Made of Stone
Now Hating: Multiplexes
They just suck. They're way too expensive for me. Why should I pay Rs.130 to watch a Hindi movie, or an English movie (they sometimes have the gall to charge more for these)? Rs. 130 could buy me a buffet lunch at a fancy Oriental restaurant in the heart of the city, 2 games of bowling, 8 pirated movies at National Market... Essentially, Rs. 130 is a lot.

::Film::
Starsky and Hutch / Directed by Todd Philips, Starring Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson
Great fun, this flick. Wilson and Stiller have great timing and an unmatched on-screen comic chemistry. Brilliant dialogues, cool action sequences, and marvellous performances from everybody, including Snoop Dogg as Huggy make this a top-notch (or should I say notch one - see movie for details) film.
Rating: 4/5

The Interpreter / Directed by Sydney Pollack, Starring Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn
Nicole Kidman, a Ku-speaking translator for the UN stumbles upon a clue that leads to a well-thought-out conspiracy to wipe out the universally-opposed President of Matobo. Sean Penn, a US Secret Service agent deployed to protect her, begins to uncover the entire masterminded plot that twists and turns, eventually weaving a tale worth telling. Good stuff!
Rating: 3.75/5

What's cookin'?

2005-05-28T13:03:00.000+05:30

Again, its been a while. I've been busy, what with the release of my school yearbook (that I designed) and getting my progressive metal band together. I've been receiving quite a few calls from musicians who are interested in the project. However, its pretty hard to work with more than one drummer and one bassist and two guitars. Oh, does anyone have any recommendations for band names? We're into progressive rock and metal, with a technical feel as well as some jazz and funk bits thrown in. A lot of heavy riffs, with a generous infusion of melody. Influences: Dream Theater, Pain of Salvation, Evergrey, Freak Kitchen.
Here are some names I've been thinking of:

The Limit
The Dust That Settles
Synergenetic
Chains of Reaction

::Film::
Bose - The Forgotten Hero / Directed by Shyam Benegal
Nicely made, providing a great insight into the life and struggles of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Apparently, Bose's character was not portrayed powerfully enough (from what many viewers who have read up on Bose tell me). He was far more stern and driven than the film shows. Still, I thought it was quite interesting to hear the story of such a wonderful character. Its people like Bose, who have ambitions strong enough to decide for them their paths in life that strike me. Good show!

::Music::
Freak Kitchen - Dead Soul Men / Heavy\Experimental Metal
What a brilliant band, and what a marvellous album. Freak Kitchen is refreshingly politically incorrect, witty and amazingly talented. Every song features great songwriting, and the lyrics just get you. Their music is part prog, part straight-up heavy. Must hear: Gun God, Silence, The Sinking Planet

You mean I don't have to have a point to write here?

2005-05-23T01:45:00.000+05:30

I'm still watching Bicycle Thief and The Interpreter, and reading Slaughterhouse-Five, so I can't submit a review of any of them just yet. So I'll just talk about the blogging experience.
I can still remember the old days, when blogging had just begun to take the world by storm. "Just a phase, Abe, it'll go away soon. Pah! Who needs blogs when you can just make a website?", I would say. Little did I realise that within a few months, everything anyone said would be replicated on their blogs. Thats right, anyone. And apparently, everybody has something to say. Thats when I jumped on the bandwagon and began blogging myself. And it feels great, to know that I'm putting down thoughts and interesting URLs open for anyone who might be interested, to take a look at (even though I have practically no readers, other than my brother - thanks mate). Besides, its a great way to enhance my writing skills, which I hope I have. I'm glad that I can express myself more or less accurately with words, and this is a brilliant proving ground (proving to myself, that is - I ensure that I maintain a level of quality that keeps me coming back again and again to read my blog).
I've also been reading several other blogs, and I've learned a lot from them, especially about how to improve my own. I'm toying with the idea of trying to promote my blog to get more readers, because I wouldd love to know what people think of what I'm saying (online, at least). I highly recommend blogging as a daily ecercise for the brain. Very good stuff, this. Try it out -> Blogger.

The Return of the Green Giant

2005-05-20T22:56:00.000+05:30

I'm back, so lets get down to business.
::Book::
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
This is such a great antiwar book. Vonnegut's style is fabulous, and the book is laced with a whole lot of black humour, reminds me a bit of Sue Townsend and Douglas Adams (RIP). Its so funny, I wish it was titled slaughter houseI'm still reading it though, so expect a synopsis and rating later.

::Music::
A Perfect Circle - eMOTIVE
What can I say? I must be on an antiwar kick right now, for who knows what reason. Probably coincidence. Anyways, this album is APC's brilliant alternative-rock take on several peace and antiwar songs. Each track has some clever new treatment, some chilling, some brooding, but all fantastic. Special mention - 'Passive' and 'Imagine'. 4/5

Dream Theater - Octavarium
Found it released on Bearshare. No great shakes at all. This album lacks any progressive moments, and really disappointed. What happened to the crazy time signatures and counter-melodies and everything? This sounds like a really good nu-metal album, which is not saying much. However, most of the tracks are catchy, and feature some amazing solos by John Petrucci. 2/5

::Film::
Page 3 - Directed by Madhur Bhandarkar, Starring Konkona Sen Sharma, Boman Irani...
Really tacky dialogues, horrible acting, and very irritating, up until halfway through. Then it picks up the pace, with some neat twists and turns, and eventually the quality improves by leaps and bounds. The ending isn't even the 100% feel-good kind you normally get, so thumbs up from me. 3.5/5

Ray of Light

2005-05-12T21:48:00.000+05:30

Jamie Foxx rocks as Ray Charles Robinson in Ray. Superb editing, marvellous acting and a wonderful sense of authenticity about the film just makes one of the best I've seen this year. The depiction is honest, intense and absolutely mindblowing. Foxx steals the show with his scintillating performance that is frighteningly real, and makes seem Ray's character seem sometimes, human, sometimes high-flying, sometimes sensitive and sometimes stoked just the way he probably was. 11 on 10.

Lateral Thinking

2005-05-10T20:40:00.000+05:30

Just watched Sideways. I quite liked it, because it featured some great acting, good dialogue, great camera work, and a good storyline. It also has some great comic moments, and it seems to me like they did everything that you would say 'don't tell me they're going to...' to. Good stuff. Next on my watch-list: Ray.

Things to do at night...

2005-05-10T00:53:00.000+05:30

My brother just flew out of Bangalore, and is on his way back home to Montreal. That makes the house about 70% more vacant, and leaves me with practically nothing to do. So I got home, and after dinner, tried to keep myself busy by doing the following:

Watching 'Page 3' (Madhur Bhandarker) / I'm not done yet, will write about it soon.
Testing new Google products and services over at Google Labs. My favourite: Google Suggest (It shows you relevant suggestions to use for your search before you click the button. Great job!)
Checked out a fabulous website on my favourite guitarist John Petrucci. See it here.
Sent out an invite on Deviantart to several Bangalorean deviants (Deviantart members) to join the group bangaloreans. I'm planning to start a couple of community projects as soon as we get a few more members, and maybe have a live meet somewhere. We had one last year, and it was great fun.
Checked out snipurl, a great free service that creates shorter URLs for you to follow. For example, http://snipurl.com/erf7 will lead you to this blog. They also have a service that sends you interesting links by email. I signed up.

Up, up and away...

2005-05-08T00:08:00.000+05:30

Just watched The Aviator (I'm late, com sue me). Its a wonderful story about a genius, a filmmaker, an airplane enthusiast, a businessman, and a human being with a relentless desire to make his dreams come to life and then some. Leonardo di Caprio truly delivers, with a brilliant performance as Howard Hughes. His portrayal of the driven individual (who I'm surprised I haven't heard of before) is very well done, and brings me to think about who is more eccentric, a run-of-the-mill-nine-to-fiver or Hughes.
I think life should be led the Hughes way, you know. King-size, quarter-mile, pedal-to-the-metal, all-guns-blazing, envelope-pushing. you-get-the-idea. Wish I could do it. Instead, here I am, watching movies on the telly and blogging. Ah, well, someone's gotta do the dirty work.
I was talking to a friend today about trust, and how I don't have any. I just can't trust anyone, its too risky. Everybody's got some hidden agenda or the other (they better, its what keeps them sheltered from the world outside), and its absurd to expect people to be flawless in character. Somewhere along the line things go wrong, and everything just goes up in flames. Right now I have no issues, so I have no need to trust someone with the keys to my skeleton-riddled closet, but still... I think its best I handle things myself.
Music
System of a Down - Mesmerize / Metal
No great shakes, although there a few inimitable moments on this record. Not a fan? Stay away. Pick up their early stuff instead.

Dream Theater - Train of Thought / Progressive Metal
Tight as hell, very hard-hitting stuff. Great hooks on this one, some marvellous playing by the entire band. But its no Images and Words. Still worth a listen.

Band baja

2005-05-06T00:42:00.000+05:30

Well, I'm at the helm of a new phase of my life... in a real band. I'm still stuck at the helm and will be so becuase the band hasn't completely materialised yet. I've met with a good vocalist (who knows a keyboardist), and am meeting a drummer tomorrow. I'm also in constant contact with an apparently great guitarist, who knows a bassist. I'm really hoping that this works out, because I've got a whole lot of ideas I need to play out, and I've been yearning to write some music and lyrics for quite some time now. Besides, this band will also need a logo and possibly flyers, CD designs and stuff, which I'd be glad to try my hand at designing. Can't wait to see what happens next...

So much to say/do/hear/think about/write/create...

2005-05-03T22:31:00.000+05:30

Well, I'm back... meant to write a couple of days ago, but I've been really busy. My brother Indrayudh is here (and has been since the 25th), so I've been spending some time with him. Kolkata was fantastic. I really enjoyed catching up with my cousins and other relatives, and jamming with the whole family. I don't know what I would do if the rest of them were as musically inclined as they are.
Sikkim was marvellous too. Saw an abandoned fort town, went white-water rafting, stuff like that.Travel really opens you up, makes you feel closer to nature, and hilly places never fail to remind me how small I really am compared to this planet. Its a very calming, inspiring feeling. So much so that I resolved to form a progressive metal band as soon as I got back home. And thats one of the things that have been keeping me busy. Gigpad has a great classifieds section, where I posted an ad and have received a lot of calls about since. I've spoken to lots of people who are interested, and will meet them soon. My only fear is that I may not be good enough for my own band (how lame is that?)... time will tell.
I wrote my first of 3 law school entrance exams on the 1st, which was for National Law School of India University. The competition's really tough, so I don't think its going to work out. I have 2 more on the 14th and 15th, for Symbiosis and NALSAR respectively. Other than this, I'm looking at studying economics or english at some good colleges in Bangalore itself.
Books
Impressing The Whites by Richard Crasta - Its about how the third world is desperately trying to be white, trying to emulate the western lifestyle, just to get a piece of the unfortunately hypothetical pie of respect that the whites hold. Good stuff.
A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson - A great guide to everything around us, in plain, snappy, and humourous english.

I have a lot of artwork to do, primarily graphic design. Need to finish a piece I've been working on for a while, practice some typography and logo design. More later.

Vaykayshun

2005-04-20T10:09:00.000+05:30

I'm off to Kolkata for about 10 days (2 in a train, really), to attend both my cousin's wedding, and my parents' 25th wedding anniversary. The latter takes place in Sikkim, with close to 40 relatives tagging along for the celebrations. Should be good.
I learnt to cook curried eggs this morning, from our housekeeper, and it didn't turn out too shabby. This is for my cousin Gap who asked me to cook her something when I came over. Lets hope I can recreate it when its most required. Do you want the recipe? It'll be good practice for me to type it out. Here goes:

Bengali Curried Eggs
You will need:

x eggs
x potatoes, peeled chopped into quarters
x/2 onions, peeled and chopped (1/2 quantity as fine as possible,the other 1/2 roughly to save time)
x/4 tomatoes
chilli powder (1/2 tsp for 2 eggs)
jeera powder (1/2 tsp for 2 eggs)
salt (1/2 tsp for 2 eggs, and then as per taste; go easy on the initial salt for safety)
turmeric powder (1/2 tsp for 2 eggs)
galic (1 pod per egg)
ginger paste (1/2 tsp for 2 eggs)
3 tbsp oil for frying
cloves (1 for 2 eggs)
elaichi (1 for 2 eggs)
cardamom pieces (3 small pieces for 2 eggs)
water (1 cup for 2 eggs; this makes for a thick curry)
chilli/jalapeno sauce (use your imagination here, just make sure the sauce you pick is spicy)

Instructions:

Boil eggs and potatoes together in a saucepan for about 10-15 min. Then remove the egg shells. Make slits along the top and sides of the eggs to prevent them from breaking while they're frying, and to allow the masalas in.
Place the finely chopped onions, garlic, ginger paste, chilli powder, jeera powder, turmeric powder, salt and tomatoes in a food processor (sic: mixie), blend on high power for 15-20 seconds, or till the tomatoes and onions have disintegrated completely, forming a thick paste.
Heat one tbsp of oil in a kadai. To the hot oil, add the eggs and potatoes and fry for a minute or so, remove and set aside.
Heat another tbsp of oil. To the hot oil, add the remaining onions, and fry till golden brown. Then proceed to add the blended masala, and then the cloves, elaichi and cardamom.
Add another tbsp of oil and then the eggs and potatoes and cook for a minute. Add the water and cook till the curry becomes thick and consistent. Check the salt and add more if required.
Serve hot with boiled white rice.

The Art of Faffing

2005-04-19T21:43:00.000+05:30

Faff
faffed, faff.ing, faffs

To pass time at leisure, idle

Yeah, well, thats what I do. All the time. And I'm damn proud of it too. Why do I do it? Because its the easy way out, and its so fulfilling. But there's a certain way of going about things if you want to indulge in some quality faffing. A novice might just laze about at home and consider him/herself a prime faffer, but thats for, well, novices. Quality faffing involves taking a further effort in making sure that what you're doing (or not doing) is from every possible angle an absurd waste of time. One must also take care to ensure that once the activity in question is initiated, absolutely no effort may be made by the faffer to do anything. Thus, we can conclude that faffing essentially involves indulging in an activity that is passive in nature, seemingly fruitless (to the untrained eye), and physically relaxing. NOTE: Faffing also means doing something out of the ordinary in an endavour to unwind. Therefore, watching television is not considered faffing, however passive it may be. Listening to soul is a classic faff activity, as is sitting on the pavement. Notice the lack of consequence of the aforementioned activities. Also notice that I'm taking time out of my heavy faffing schedule to enlighten you (blogging is SO not faffing...). Entering a restaurant and not ordering anything is also defined as faffing (since all one does is engage in altering one's surroundings, but not circumstances, which may go from not eating to eating). So you see, its all very technical. But you'll get the hang of it, if you're lazy enough. If you're enough to ignore this, you're already a faffer. Good on you!
Of late, I've been looking at some photography, over at Deviantart. I've never had an eye for it, but I'm slowly beginning to appreciate this contemporary art form. The site had a very good news post that featured some wonderful work by several artists who specialise in many varied styles of photography. Check it out here. One of my favourite shots can be seen here. Enjoy.

Minimal // Thought | Expression

2005-04-19T09:14:00.000+05:30

I saw a few other blogs today... really small posts, compared to mine. I think I want to take the same route, and instead of post huge paragraphs, just say a few lines each time. And maybe post more often. That should make this blog easier to read, my thoughts easier to digest, all while fulfilling my need to say a whole lot.
You can check out those blogs here and here. They're quite interesting. The second one is a friend's blog, while the first is Craig Newmark's. Craig is the creator of Craigslist.org, a huge forum-cum-marketplace for San Francisco. It started as an email listing of events in the area, but has now snowballed into a full-fledged website. Inspiring.
Now playing:

Symphony X - V & The Divine Wings of Tragedy. This is Michael Romeo's brilliant progressive metal band. Both fabulous albums.

Death - The Sound of Perseverance. I keep hearing, "What, you DON'T have it?" I'm glad I do now. Its just that I don't know what to make of standard 4/4 music anymore. That cuts out a whole lot of rock (I daresay all rock). Well, alright, not completely. I still love listening to my favourite rock bands from when I was 13. Its just that I enjoy music that requires a little concentration, music that grips you, music that twists and turns, takes you to the edge, asks you to take in the view, and then urges you to just revel in its brilliance. This album does that. Its raw, and it gets the point across.

I bought a pair of Converse All Stars recently, and they're easily the best shoes I've owned in a while. Whats even cooler, though is ConverseGallery.com, a site where you can watch 24-second films by independent filmmakers based on Converse footwear. Worth a look. I loved them all. My favourite: Eat & Run by Christopher Davis.

Rants and Raves v1.0

2005-04-16T21:40:00.000+05:30

I watched a play the other day, called 'Heaps of Broken Images' (Directed by Girish Karnad, starring Arundhati Raja). Its about this struggling author who writes in her vernacular (Kannada), and her sudden rise to fame and fortune when she releases an English novel that takes the world by storm. But it turns out that she's got a lot (or should I say, a heap) of skeletons in her closet which slowly tumble out as she discovers her true self in a television studio.
What struck me more than the plot was the way it was done. The protagonist appears on television to talk about her new book and dismiss the critics and skeptics who questioned her sudden change of language. Once she's done with her spot, the screen in the studio retains the image of her in her seat, and begins to converse with the real character. Its very well timed and co-ordinated, and I've never seen anything like it. Very clever, fast-paced and altogether solid. Two thumbs up!
I also watched Kill Bill Vol. I. I had exams to write, places to go, and so on, and so never got a chance to watch it before. Not bad. A bit overrated, but isn't everything? At least its different. True, creating something different does not completely shield you from criticism... your 'different' work can suck more than 50 Hoovers on overdrive. Great action sequences. And its different. I have so many politically incorrect things to say about the majority of the world's population right now, but most people have trouble getting over it, so... just picture me bitching and start hating me, and everything I have to say will miraculously materialise in your head. Cherish the moment.
Anything else? Ah, yes. Have you heard of Chuck Schuldiner? He's a genius. Died of brain stem cancer a few years ago. He formed two (to my knowledge) fabulous bands that raised the bar in their respective genres, quite a few notches each. Death (Death Metal) and Control Denied (Progressive Power Metal) have churned out some marvellous music that has influenced several bands of today, and should have influenced many more. Their music is complex, intense, and utterly wonderful. Its a shame that most of today's metal bands don't even aspire to achieve the levels of brilliance Schuldiner did. I mean, maybe small-time bands should get away with it, but once you're making money doing what you love, shouldn't you be striving to expel the best and only the best that you can produce? And if the best you can produce sucks, shouldn't you pull out and walk away, or do something else? Shoeshining is a very respectable trade, if you can break through into the mainstream...
Books - Hari Kunzru: Transmission. Interesting, but why do Indian authors who write in English only write gritty tales of povery-stricken, ribs-exposed India? Or about FOB-struggling-to-adjust Indians migrating to the west? Get over it, I say. Didn't any of you ever live in a nice Mangalorean-Christian neighbourhood in Bangalore? Weren't you friends with Anglos and Tam-Brams and Madus who had money pouring out of their noses? OVERfuckingRATED, all of you. Write about reality. Stop painting pictures of the world as you see it through your Oakley sunglasses, in shades of gray. Its so easy to just pick up an advance for a few million dollars and write inconsequential stories encased in matte-finish hardbound covers about slum-dwellers and part-time waiters, and make a name for yourself. Write a real story, one with substance, and call me when you're done. In fact, don't. I'll call you. Till then.

New noises, new elixirs, newmismatics...

2005-04-09T19:27:00.000+05:30

Fine, so I don't know anything about coins, but I can give you the low-down on some exciting rock/metal acts. First up on my list of mentionables is Reflux, a first-rate technical progressive aggro-metal band that is kicking a lot of dust in the metal warfields these days. Heavy, intelligent, and musically brilliant, their debut album The Illusion of Democracy has raised concerns regarding the credibility of other bands that are making the big-time out there, in spite of not being able to touch these guys. Any comparison? Well, they sound a bit like Shadows Fall and Lamb of God, but Tosin Abasi's guitar work is, in my opinion, way more wicked than that heard from the aforementioned bands. His playing is intensely melodic, and there's a strength in his notes that I'm yet to hear on another record. It feels like having your teeth kicked in, and let me just say that pain is sweet. I'm really glad to hear a band playing such a great blend of progressive, aggro and melodic metal so fearlessly. I just hope to see them rule the charts soon. Noteworthy tracks: The Keats Persona, An Ode To The Evolution Of Consciousness.
Next up is Revis, one of the best rock bands to ever set out from Illinois. Revis is pure emotion, and Justin Holman's vocals are the most beautiful I've ever heard. Its a pity this band has only one album out, since 2002. They could have reached the top, and then some. The brilliant songwriting all though their album Places For Breathing pretty much displaces any rock written this millenium, IMO. Holman's lyrics really dig deep and unearth emotion in the most imaginative way. Pardon me for waxing extremely eloquent here, but their music sounds exactly like what I've been looking for all my life. (Un?)Fortunately, I can't describe their sound by drawing comparisons to anything you've heard before. Check them out yourself.
Thats what music should sound like, for the time being. Thirsty? Google has something to chill your insides...
Anything else? No, not really. At least not right now. I'll be back as soon as something else noteworthy hits me. Thanks for reading!

File-sharing on mIRC

2005-04-07T22:37:00.000+05:30

I was looking through my music collection this morning, and was delighted to find a whole lot of great new music. I'm a fan of all kinds of rock and metal. Recently, I've been feverishly collecting whole new complete albums of several genres, ranging from goth metal to progressive rock, and even some dance and R&B. Truth is, right now, i'm hungry for a decent music repoistory, not the music itself. I hardly have time to really listen to the stuff I've leeched. But I'm hoping that once I've got a few mp3 discs worth of music, I'll hook myself up to my cd player and rock out.
I just wanted to share a few tips on using IRC (internet relay chat) to leech files. IRC is an internet communication service that runs on servers all over the world. Once connected, you can join a channel (chat room), create your own, and get chatting. IRC also allows a whole of manipulation, and so makes word games and interactive topic discussion sessions possible. Plus, IRC can also be used to find and leech files quickly. It takes a little setting up at first, but once you're hooked up, its a breeze.
The following tips may not be universal in reference to every IRC client (IRC chat software that allows you to connect to a server and so on). I use mIRC (win 9x/2k/Me/xp) v6.16, because its fairly simple to figure out, and is also the most widely used client. Follow these steps for a hassle-free leeching experience. Please note, however, that common sense and statutory warnings do apply with regard to virus attacks. So don't leech weird looking files, and don't accept candy from strangers.

Download, install and run mIRC. In the dialog that pops up, enter your personal details (real name/username(come up with one)/etc.). Notice the 'Connect to Server' button. You'll have to click it later on. First, pick a server from Connect > Servers. I usually stick to EFnet, Undernet and PhaZeNet for my metal/rock requirements. A random server should be fine.
Under Sounds > Requests, check 'Accept Sound Requests', and uncheck 'send !nick file as private message'. This is essential, because otherwise your file requests won't be acknowledged. If you want, change the destination folders for the files you leech.
Under DCC, select 'Auto-get file' and check 'minimize'. Under 'if file exists', select 'Resume'. Then go to DCC > Ignore, select 'Method' - Accept Only, and add the following to the list, without quotes: "*.mp3" and "*.rar". The .rar is for when you hit the big leagues and begin downloading whole albums in RAR format (like .zip, but you'll need winrar for those files).
Finally, head to Display > Options > Tray, and configure it as you wish. I like my mIRC out of the way, so i keep it minimised in the tray all the time. Once you're done, head back to Connect, and click the 'Connect to Server' button.
Now, once you're connected, you'll need to find a channel. Click the fourth button from left on the taskbar, the one that resembles a globe. Under Match text, type a search term, such as 'metal mp3' or 'albums' or something like that, and click 'Get list'. You should see a list of channels that match your search definition. Double-click one of them. If the window yields unsuitable results, try again.
Once you've found a channel, you'll see a whirlwind of colour, hear a smorgasbord of whooshing sounds, and feel a blast of hot air that will cause your hair to separate at the roots. Fine, so I'm exaggerating... just checking if you're paying attention. Well, anyways, if there's something you want to find, type @find artist OR @find trackname OR @find album.Soon, you'll begin receiving messages with search results, which look something like !Abe Band - Track_name.mp3 :: INFO :: 4.20 MB. If you want that file, just select and copy !Abe Band - Track_name.mp3 (notice how i left out the :: INFO ::...) and paste it into the main channel window. Soon, you'll begin to receive a file. See where it lands up, and you'll have a file!
Sometimes you might want to see what your choices are. Thats when you'll have to head to the channel, and check out who the big kahunas are. They usually havean ! before their usernames. Example: there's a user named !Abe. To get his list of files, type @Abe. You'll receive a text file (which might be zipped) which contains a whole lot of filenames like in the example above. Follow the same guidelines and paste whatever you want into the channel. Leave out the info part to prevent yourself from getting kicked out of the channel.
Alternatively, you might want to automate everything by using a script (this is where mIRC scores, it has more scripts coded for it than any other IRC client), such as Autoget, available from Omenscripts. There are others available, which allow you to serve your files as well.
Lastly, mIRC may not have every single file on the planet. Thats why I suggest you check out Ares and Limewire, both of which are really good, easy-to-use P2P software. I use them when I feel the need to leech some Remy Shand, DJ Tiesto and N.E.R.D.

Neverland, Nevermind...

2005-04-05T21:09:00.000+05:30

I'm switching to blogger.com from blogsome.com, since this site is a lot more user-friendly... But there's a good post there about my poetry discussion group. Anyway, on to today's topic. I watched Finding Neverland (Johnny Depp/Kate Winslet/Dustin Hoffman) today (PVR, The Forum - Rs. 130). Good film, great acting by Depp. He really brings the movie to a higher level. Otherwise its not really worth watching. Same goes for Secret Window.
I also caught the Sunday Jam hosted by Guruskool last week. Lots of death metal, some good, some monotonous, but all the acts showed great potential. There was also a chap named Kamal who just sat cross-legged on the floor, pulled up a red Strat, plugged in to a low-level overdriven amp, and belted out a really good tribute song to Cobain, incorporating his lyrics into it. It was very touching, and the song had a nice feel to it too. You could feel the respect in the air. I love the atmosphere at these jams. The whole thing just inspired me to get down to writing some good riffs to jam up with and perhaps play at the next Sunday jam... can't wait!
Music Recommendations:
Symphony X - The Odyssey :: Prog metal gods ::
John Mayer - Heavier Things :: Great pop (yes, there is such a thing!) ::
Dexter Gordon - Live At Carnegie Hall :: Marvellous tenor sax work ::

Ramblings v1.0

2004-11-17T23:13:00.000+05:30

When I was younger, I never really thought much about who I was, what people thought about me, and what facades I should put on. And yes, I believe everyone should have a facade of some kind, an external buffer, so people don't really get to know you very well unless they deserve to. I say all this without any intention of giving myself too much importance. Its just that at some point of time, you need to filter the what-you-get to precipitate the what-you-want, at least to a small extent. Back to what I was saying. A while ago, I was a total cynic; the perfect definition of it. I would put down people putting things down, and then zoom out some more, to put down that level of being as well. And zoom out some more. But then I realised that somewhere or the other, the levels must end. So I turned to being far more positive about things. And its working out nicely, just as well, in fact, as when I was cut off from all feeling. But I'm glad that I've been on both sides of the wall. Because I now how to keep my head above the water, by not getting too deep into things, taking life only as seriously as I see fit, and not as someone else does. But I do get involved sometimes, and much as it might get a little tedious, its important to step in and test the water. Its not all bad, and you learn a lot.

I'm going to make an honest attempt at keeping this blog alive. It shouldn't be too shabby. I'm 17, live in Bangalore, India, and study computer science. I read a bit, and am fascinated by Douglas Adams, as well as Salman Rushdie and Jhumpa Lahiri. I'm very into music, and listen to quite a bit, from Indian classical to Coldplay to Evergrey (I'll have a Now Playing thing at the beginning of each succesive blog). I play guitar myself, and find it to be one of my best method of expression. With a guitar and a whole lot of teen brashness, you can be loud, incoherent and just plain stupid. But when the angles are just right, you can be sombre, insightful and sensitive. And I oscillate between both states, and several in between.

I'm also into art; not fine art as such, but more of digital and urban art. I'm a member of Deviantart [www.deviantart.com], which is a humongous community of artists worldwide. Its worth a visit. I dabble a bit in graphic design myself, but don't claim to be very good at it.

Other than this, I'm not very extraordinary. I'm writing this blog mainly for myself, because its something to do, and also because I talk to myself a lot and don't fancy wasting words on just myself. I don't intend to achieve much with this, just attempt to salvage some sanity and pour it out here.