Tag Archives: pop culture

Thank You Steve Jobs

For opening up a whole new world of music to me.

For giving me wonderful experiences through your magical products.

For being a source of inspiration and teaching me important lessons. Through your Stanford commencement speech. Through your Thoughts on Music. Through your many keynotes. Most importantly, through the act of building a great company that built great products.

Coke Studio India Must Be Cheered

Coke Studio debuted in India last Friday. Armchair critics did detailed analyses proving conclusively that the first episode sucked. “Loud and empty” said one post. Another post said it “veered dangerously close to cacophony at times.”. There were some voices that attempted to tone down things a bit including this post, this tweet and this tweet.

Still, the general buzz around the first episode (based on a highly unscientific analysis of tweets, blog comments and Facebook status updates) seems to be negative – Coke Studio India pales in comparison to the Pakistani version.

I say it’s premature the pass the verdict. Till will get to the end of this season, I say we should cheer Coke Studio for what it’s attempting to do.

Coke Studio puts the focus squarely on music. Can you think of any television program (let alone a music program) that is not interrupted by ads? No ads, no garrulous presenter, no arrogant judges, no “reality” drama, no idle chit-chat – just one song after the other for one whole hour.

Coke Studio puts the spotlight on musicians. The musicians own the stage. Granted there are a few famous artists in the picture, but so were a number of musicians who would never had the opportunity to present their art to such a large and diverse audience, had it not been for Coke Studio. The most recent print of Sound Box magazine describes the plight of musicians in India:

Ask the mass consumers of music out there about what comes to mind when they think of Munni badnaam hui? Malaika Khan Arora and Salman Khan…..Ask them about who composed these songs…..and you can bet your last rupee that the vast majority of them would have no clue.

And if this happens to musicians who have “made it big”, do other musicians really stand a chance unless platforms like Coke Studio come along? Next time I hear a Mousam Gogoi song, I will have a smiling face to put against the name – and that’s a cool thing to be able to do.

Coke Studio challenges the language barrier. Other than Hindi, the first episode of Coke Studio India featured Bangla, Assamese, Punjabi and Tamil. This is great for music lovers – they have more choice. And it’s great for musicians – they get a bigger following. One of my favorite songs from the Coke Studio across the border happens to be in Persian. And with 1.5 million plus hits on YouTube, I know Coke Studio can encourage people to care more about the music than the language.

Coke Studio challenges the genre barrier. It throws in a bunch of musical forms in a melting pot. What comes out can either be surprisingly good or chaotic. My favorite number from the first episode was the Tamil folk – Sufiesque (I just invented the word, feel free to use with credit to me) collaboration between Chinnaponnu and Kailash Kher. And while I felt that the Punjabi folk – Carnatic fusion by Tochi Raina – Mathangi Rajasekhar was more confusion than fusion, I admired Coke Studio’s audacity to try out something like that. In the end, I think this kind of experimentation must be encouraged. Even if it produces only a handful of gems, I think Coke Studio would have delivered.

To those who are bemoaning the first episode, I say – settle down and give the show a chance. If you are involved enough to have an opinion about the first episode, you must be a music lover. I hope MTV takes note of some of your suggestions and doesn’t get all defensive and snooty.

And while this season of Coke Studio is on, you should be cheering it. You should be cheering it because it could make a difference. You should be cheering it because it is significantly better than the alternative. Oh wait, there is no alternative.

Popular Is Not Always Good

Stung by poor reviews of “Ready”, and outraged Salman Khan asked – “Are my fans stupid?”. My answer – Not all of them, but the truth is that there is no correlation between people’s intellect and their taste. As the saying goes, “There is no accounting for taste”.

I haven’t seen “Ready” but a number of people (non-critics) told me they had a splitting headache after watching it. I also had some people tell me that it’s an “entertainer”. The box office numbers for “Ready” leave no doubt that it’s a hugely popular movie. But based on what I have heard so far, it’s also possible that “Ready” happens to be a lousy movie. How’s that possible? Isn’t popularity an indicator of good quality? Not always.

Bad products can become popular. What makes bad products popular?
- Star appeal – Fawning fans can be extremely forgiving of poor quality.
- Marketing – Marketing campaigns can make you believe a product is good, even if it’s not.
- Lack of options – If the market is full of mediocre products, products that suck less can become popular.
- Titillation – Sometimes, an ordinary product can become popular by possessing a “leave your brain behind” quality that titillates but does not satisfy.
Good products are not always popular. Absence of star appeal, poor/no marketing and a competitive market can prevent a good product from becoming popular. Being unconventional can hurt a product too. If a product strays too far from the norm, people can find it difficult to accept it.

I may not agree with all the critics all the time but I believe they play the hugely important role (at least the good ones do) of assessing product quality. The distinction between good and popular would be lost on us, if it were not for critics.

Perhaps Salman Khan should not be concerned about what the critics say. After all, he (like some others of his ilk) is not really in the business of being good. He’s in the business of being popular.

Or, he could consider the possibility that good can also be popular.

A.R. Rahman – The Spirit Of Music – Book Review

Conversations, Not Biography

“The Spirit of Music” sets the readers’ expectation right on the cover by declaring “Conversations with Nasreen Munni Kabir”. Unfortunately, a lot of people have been referring to it as ARR’s biography. It is not. It is just a very long interview. It makes for a light and entertaining read but it is constrained by two things – a) ARR’s ability to communicate with words (not nearly as good as his ability to communicate with music), b) His willingness to share information.

Nevertheless, the book is a great read because Ms. Kabir does manage to get ARR to open up like never before. There are some very personal insights that could have come only directly from ARR. Examples:

When ARR hits a composer’s block, he writes tunes to Bulleh Shah’s and Amir Khusrau’s poetry. Guru’s “Ae Hairathe Ashiqui” was composed on Amir Khusrau’s “Ae sharbat-e ashiqui”
He deals with pressure at work by heading out of Chennai to visit a Sufi dargah near Mahabalipuram

ARR’s Struggles

The one thing that struck me the most in the book is the description of the years of struggle ARR went through. His rise after “Roja” may have been meteoric but here is what his career looked like before it:

1978 – 1979 – Started working as a roadie when he was 11 years.
1980 – Played keyboards on Doordarshan program, Wonder Balloon
1981 – Played in school band
1985 – 1986 – Played in band, Magic. They had two gigs. To quote ARR – “And that was it – finito.”
1987 – Composed Album called “Disco Disco” for Malaysia Vasudevan
1988 – Played in band, Roots. Gave one performance.
1989 – Setup Panchathan Studio, a recording studio, in the backyard of his house. His mother had to sell her jewellery to finance the studio.
1979 – 1989 – Sessions musician. Played keyboard for Illayaraja, Raj-Koti, Vijay Anand
1990 – Released English-language album called “Set Me Free” with Malgudi Shubha
1989 – 1991 – Composed ad jingles.
1990 – 1991 – Played in band, Nemesis Avenue. Played one gig.
1992 – Played keyboard on Zakir Hussain and Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan’s album “Colours”. Credited as Dileep.

Sure ARR has loads of talent but even he had to work his ass off (and meet the 10,000-hour rule somewhere along the way) to achieve success.

Nice Guy

ARR has endeared himself to his fans not just because of his music but also because he comes across as a nice guy – humble, honest and spiritual. This comes across several times throughout the book. My favorites:

The first page of the book has this written in Tamil script – “Ella pukazhum iraivanukke” meaning “All praises to God”. He used this phrase while accepting the Oscar Awards for Slumdog Millionnaire
This Q&A

NMK: What do people say about your voice?

ARR: What do people say about my voice? It sounds like me of course. [laughs] I suppose they find character in the voice.

Collector’s Item

The book also happens to pretty cool collector’s item with the score sheet for “The Bombay Theme” and a CD of Rahman compositions that you will not find anywhere else.

Verdict

A good read for any music lover and a must-buy for ARR fans.

Why Streaming Music Is Not The Same As Owning It

An acquaintance of mine asked me why anyone would ever buy music when there are multiple on-demand streaming services available in India for free. I can answer the question from my perspective:

Quality – I am yet to see any form of streamed music that matches the quality of CD music. In India, internet service (whether it is broadband, Edge, 3G, or any other variety) is erratic and/or slow. Even in the West, where these problems don’t exist, streamed music is nowhere close to CD quality. I may sound like an old-timer but when I am home, I use my CDs when I can instead of plugging my iPod to the home theater. The difference is mind-blowing. And for people who plonk a good deal of money on a home theater, it makes sense to spend on CDs to get the most out of their investment. In fact, when I rip my CDs, I use the AAC encoder instead of MP3. Although AAC files take more space, the sound quality is a lot better. When storage becomes cheaper and more compact, I know I will be re-ripping all my CDs in WAV format. Forget about CD quality, I also haven’t heard streamed music that matches the quality of the 256 kpbs songs that are available on iTunes.
Physical Ownership – I like arranging (and re-arranging) my CD rack. I like showing off my collection to people! I enjoy reading CD inserts. I also enjoy spending time on my digital collection. I constantly update ID3 tags. I like the fact that the songs I have on my device songs have special meaning for me unlike everything else that exists on the cloud. They are a manageable subset that I listen to more frequently than everything else.
Everything in one place – This is specially relevant for Indians who tend to have eclectic tastes. There is no single streaming website that can sate my interests – rock, pop, jazz, Bollywood, Koliwood, Mollywood, Carnatic, Hindustani, Bhajans and some really obscure, independent stuff. One of my all-time favorite albums is a fusion instrumental album called Conversations by L Subramaniam – not available on any streaming service. I don’t want to go to different places to listen to different music.
Independence – I don’t like being dependent on things I don’t have control on – availability of internet, internet provider reliability, the streaming company (its financials, its agreements with the labels, etc.) – to be able to listen to music.

Which doesn’t mean I don’t use streamed music. I do. I use it to discover new music and to try something new before I buy it. Nobody can deny these differences but I understand that there are many who are willing to overlook them for one thing – streamed music is free.

To each their own.

Bangalore’s Live Music Scene Making A Comeback

Bengaluru will not let go of the Rock Capital tag easily! Despite all that transpired in the city potentially spelling doom for music lovers, it appears that there is enough and more support going around.

Here ‘s a link to a blogpost belonging to a local rising artist, Fidel Dsouza, who he talks about the new kids on the block pitching in to recreate the city’s magic.

Good thing he also works for Mavrix!

5 Songs For Women (And An Update)

God made man first, and decided he could do better. Here are my top 5 songs dedicated to the women in my life:

Kabhi Kabhi (Mukesh)
Nee Kaatru, Naan Maram (Hariharan)
Amma Endru (Yesudas)
Phoolon Ka Taaron Ka (Kishore Kumar)
Daughters (John Mayer)

What’s your favorite song about women?

A cool announcement on Women’s Day – our first lady employee – Madhuri – joined yesterday. Check out her profile on our team page.

Bollywood Musicians Bare Claws

Is there something off in the Bollywood music industry? Consider this:

Shaan on Twitter about Rahat getting off easy – Rahatbhai found rahat pretty easily with DRI and FERA. A Fine and he’s fine to carry on. Wonder if we were in Another Country in similar situation, would it be as easy ??!!

My take: Shaan’s public outburst is a little disappointing. Even if there is some truth in what he is implying, he comes across as a bitter, fading star. I think he’s better than that.

Abhijit alleges a music industry racket involving producers (Mahesh Bhat), music labels (Tips) and Pakistani musicians (like Rahat). He doesn’t exactly spell it out but with the Rahat arrest incident in the backdrop, is he insinuating money laundering?

and

Sonu Nigam roasts Shankar Mahadevan, A.R. Rahman, Himesh Reshammiya and Adnan Sami at GIMA awards. Sample this song sung to Maa’s tune –

Main kabhi batlata nahin, Kharaj (low note, sa) se mooh phirta hoon maa,
Gaane do mujhe uche suron me, Neeche ke sur se darta hoon main maa

My take: Good fun! And by the looks of their laughter, it looked like Shankar, ARR and Adnan Sami were having fun too. Or was it a case of “Tum itna jo muskura rahe ho…”?

Objective Fans – An Oxymoron

In the last couple of days, our blog got a nice spike in traffic. A quick peek at Google Analytics showed that most of the new hits were for a recent post regarding A.R. Rahman. Almost all the hits for this post came from a Yahoo Group and good ol’ Google helped me figure out that this group belonged to an A.R. Rahman fan club. One of the members of this group (Thanks Rivjot!) had apparently shared the link to this post with this group.

The post elicited the following exchange in the Yahoo group:

Thanks, Rivjot for this. I agree with him

To me, if we agree with the writer then it would mean AR hasn’t given music in 2010 which is not as good as his music before 2009 but that is not the case here. 2010 was really a good year with varied genres of music by AR.

My agreement with him is about ARR’s popularity being down up North in 2010, not his quality of work. Whether ARR’s music in 2010 was as good, better or worse than previous years is a subjective take. I think his quality has not suffered at all, just his popularity.

I don’t agree with the author’s assesmen of 2010…he clearly hasn’t heard VTV or Endhiran (Robot doesn’t count as its dubbed..both albums were popular and were of spellbinding quality..also how can people overlook 127 Hours??…if it were some other Indian composer they’d act like it was the moon landing!

My response:

I have heard both VTV and Endhiran songs (in fact, my son is a huge fan of Endhiran songs). VTV is very good but I didn’t enjoy Endhiran. I have also heard the soundtrack for 127 Hours and watched the movie as well. As I wrote in an earlier post, I liked the score for 127 Hours but I liked The Social Network more. I still think his work in 2010 as a whole does not match up to his earlier work.
A.R. Rahman is probably the only Indian composer with a truly Indian identity, if not global (as opposed to a state or industry or language identity). When it comes to him, I don’t think there is a North-South divide just because he happens to be from the South. If there is a North-South difference of opinion, it’s because of the inaccessibility of some of his music due to its language (I did make this point in the post that triggered this debate).
Of course, my views are subjective. So are the opinions of the fans above. Becoming a fan is not just about the quality of music (although that plays a big part), it is also about some very personal associations we make with songs and artists. Those personal associations are different for each one of us and make it very difficult for us to be rational and objective while discussing our favorite music or artist. And there is nothing wrong with subjectivity in this context. The world would be so boring if everyone liked the same music.

People – Please Get Off A.R. Rahman’s Back

For some reason, a Facebook status update from me about 127 Hours elicited some negative comments against A.R. Rahman. This is not the first time I have heard such comments. I am intrigued by generalizations that A.R. Rahman is overrated. Why would people say something like that despite the brilliant work he has produced over almost two decades? What else does the guy have to do to prove his greatness? Here are some factors that may be leading people to make these assertions:

Rahman is competing with himself. He is being judged against his own extremely high standards. Is it fair to expect him to keep churning out masterpieces like Roja, Rangeela or Rang De Basanti all the time?
Recency effect. 2009 was not his most prolific year (probably because of the ruckus following Slumdog Millionaire) and 2010 was not his best year. My sense is that people are assessing a career spanning 20 years based on output from 2 years.
We are always catching up with Rahman. It is not unusual for people to say that they start liking Rahman songs after they have heard it a few times. In my opinion, it’s because he experiments and creates new sounds that we are not used to. His music forces us to open up our minds and broaden the scope of what we have traditionally defined as music. Remember – entire generations of Indians ignored Kishore Kumar for two decades because he sounded so different. His found broad acceptance only with Aradhana (1969) more than 20 years after his first song.
Not all his music is accessible to everybody. He has created gems for Tamil movies that are not accessible to non-Tamil music lovers (Pudhiya Mugam, Rhythm, etc) and vice versa (Rangeela, Swades, Rang De Basanti, etc.). How can people assess his work in its entirety when they haven’t listened to everything he has composed?

My take:

Rahman is not overrated. However, some of his lesser work (like Jai Ho) does tend to ride on his fame.
Rahman is an epoch-making composer. No music director has had the kind of broad impact that he has over the last two decades. He starts trends and continuously pushes musical boundaries. Many, many years from now, people will talk not just about his compositions, but about his positive influence on the Indian music scene as a whole. We are lucky to be living in Rahman’s era.
Yes, he is not perfect. A couple of minor grouses, I myself have – a) He uses his voice far more than he needs to or has in the past. b) Has he been playing a tad safe of late? He is no longer introducing as many new voices as he has in the past.

Some of this anti-Rahman buzz reminds me of what Sachin Tendulkar went through a few years ago, when many were gunning for his head. I am comforted by this parallel because I know that Rahman will do exactly what Sachin has done since then – continue to build upon a magnificent body of work that will seal his place as an all-time great, work that will win over all doubters – for good.