Emily Gould - Blogging At Its Extreme

I've been reading this : (it's Long, by the way!)

...they like the idea that there’s a place where a record of their existence is kept — a house with an always-open door where people who are looking for you can check on you, compare notes with you and tell you what they think of you. Sometimes that house is messy, sometimes horrifyingly so. In real life, we wouldn’t invite any passing stranger into these situations, but the remove of the Internet makes it seem O.K.

..The will to blog is a complicated thing, somewhere between inspiration and compulsion. It can feel almost like a biological impulse. You see something, or an idea occurs to you, and you have to share it with the Internet as soon as possible. What I didn’t realize was that those ideas and that urgency — and the sense of self-importance that made me think anyone would be interested in hearing what went on in my head — could just disappear.

And this is from another one of her blogs

When you write about things as they’re happening — which is what most people do on blogs — you lose perspective, or rather, your perspective shrinks, so that only a tiny slice of your reality gets recorded. The cumulative impact of several months’ worth of posts can lead to an entirely different conclusion than a few snippets taken out of context. This is the danger of blogging and also its seductive charm. It’s so easy and fun to report on your current state of mind and your opinions, especially when you have strong feelings, and strong feelings are also fun to read about.

The Sound Of "Strings"

I've always liked their sound. Faisal's got a very manly voice. I like his tone too. And Bilal's short, melodic guitar licks have always made me smile. It's never anything complicated but he invariably gets the rock-ish distortion right.

Like everybody else, my introduction to Strings was through Duur. I remember the cassette that I owned. It had Lucky Ali, Strings, Euphoria and some other 'Indi-Pop' bands. It was a treasured possession.
Then there was the other song. Anjaane. It was the song which made me realize the power of Barre Chords. Suhas and I used to sing that song, taken especially by the damping rhythm we could generate. It didnt sound anything like the original. But on his Signature acoustic, we did our own version. And we loved it.

Titliyan - It's easily the most melodic song from their latest album 'Koi Aane Vala Hai'. The guitar and the flute combine to create an amazing bittersweet effect. It's a very 'Indian' tune packaged with a persistent bass, distorted guitar riffs and strong drum beats. Sounds great to me.

dil tha khilauna
chalo toot gaya
kya kahein

koi saathi tha
jisse chaha tha
vohi loot gaya
kya kahein

titliyan yadoon ki
udti jae
lamhon me mujhse kuch
kehti jayein .....

Humsafar is another track which I like more than the rest. But I will leave it to you to find it out if you really want to.

The album's nothing great but it shouldn't do very badly either. It's definitely got that 'Strings' touch to it. For the next few days, it should keep me entertained.

P.S. And yes, I know they are a Pakistani Band and these are not the only songs by them that I enjoy listening to.

I'm just out to find...

I can't stand to fly
I'm not that naive
I'm just out to find
The better part of me

I'm more than a bird:I'm more than a plane
More than some pretty face beside a train
It's not easy to be me

Wish that I could cry
Fall upon my knees
Find a way to lie
About a home I'll never see

It may sound absurd:but don't be naive
Even Heroes have the right to bleed
I may be disturbed:but won't you concede
Even Heroes have the right to dream
It's not easy to be me

Up, up and away:away from me
It's all right:You can all sleep sound tonight
I'm not crazy:or anything:

I can't stand to fly
I'm not that naive
Men weren't meant to ride
With clouds between their knees

I'm only a man in a silly red sheet
Digging for kryptonite on this one way street
Only a man in a funny red sheet
Looking for special things inside of me

It's not easy to be me.

I'm no superman. And I don't know of anybody who is. But some of the lines still ring true.
At times, its nice to go back to a song you listened to long ago and like it all over again.

Day After Day

A little something gained. A little something lost.
A little pain remembering what could have been. A smile thinking about what can be.
An incident from the past which makes you smile. A sudden flash of the future which makes you doubt.
Fear of the unknown. Comfort in ignorance.
A small window to dream about the next year. One to feel the restlessness of the present.
A moment when everything feels alright. The more prolonged feeling of 'I'm not meant to be doing this'
A new song loved. An old one hated.
A step closer. A step farther.

Evey day brings countless possibilities. A chance to dream. A moment to ponder.

Taking a Break

Yes, I know that of late I have come to dislike the 'soft-acoustic guitar-sentimental lyrics' kind of songs (and Rohan would vouch for that more than anybody else) but this one just cant be Not liked.
So taking a break from my Blues/Classic Rock playlist, here's James Taylor for you.

Never Die Young
Love what he says at the beginning.

Fire And Rain
The minute long applause at the end is totally deserved. I wish I was there.

As with most such songs that I like, listen when there's no noise, preferably with your headphones. And have a look at the lyrics too.
And I wont even bother to do my usual 'sublime guitar blah blah blah' thing. Just listen to the songs. You will know.

Maddu thanks for the intro!

The Rear View Mirror

A casual glance over the shoulder was all that was required. My dad's Bajaj Super didn't have any rear view mirrors. In Bokaro, you didn't need one. I, didn't need one.

As I looked at the right rear view mirror to make sure that the Tata Indica wasn't going to hit me, I noticed a tiny grasshopper sitting on it. Traffic was heavy and we were approaching a signal. I wondered how long it would be able to hold on. The light turned to green and I quickly changed gears to move ahead of the menacing trucks which were slowing down the traffic. My speedometer read a little less than 80. The insect was clinging on to the mirror with all its might. A couple of minutes later, I was at the basement of my office building, parking my bike. It was still there. Not holding on as tight as it had been a few minutes earlier, but still there.

I can't imagine riding without one. Its too scary. Each second brings so many decisions to be made. Each glance, each little swerve has to be carefully done. It wasn't always like this. On my dad's Bajaj Super, it was simpler. Often there wasn't even the need to look back.

What if life came with a rear view mirror. To see how far is somebody whom you left behind. To see who's coming up to you. To maybe slow down a little at times. To have a different perspective, if not anything else.

I half expected the tiny grasshopper to be still there when I came back in the evening. It wasn't. But I wondered about the view it must have got from there.