Music from the ears of a deaf guy

Bob Dylan - His Greatest Songs

2008-02-04T05:57:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p20

06/01/2008

MANY would agree that trying to fit the best of Robert Allen Zimmerman, or Bob Dylan, into a single CD is like trying to fit the history of the world into a single textbook. It is an impossible feat and no matter how good a job you do, a big chunk of the story is going to be left out.

Knowing this, Columbia Records and Sony BMG has released a sampler, Bob Dylan - His Greatest Songs, which is a starting point for new listeners to choose which songs they fancy and follow it back to the original album.

Kicking things off is the evergreen Blowing In The Wind, which will forever be known as the classic Dylan song. It has been sung in schools, churches and protest marches. Released on his 1963 The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, it poses philosophical questions about peace, war and freedom. The song does not refer specifically to any particular event which has kept its popularity enduring.

Next is The Times They Are a-Changin', taken from Dylan's third album with the same title released in 1964. A self-conscious protest song, it is often viewed as a reflection of the generation gap and of the political divide marking American culture in the 60s.

Subterranean Homesick Blues, a song written by Dylan released on the 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home. It was thought to be inspired by Jack Kerouac's 1958 novel The Subterraneans, and is about the Beat Generation. In this song, Dylan goes electric. It is a funny look at the downside of abandoning the straight world for a life underground.

Mr Tambourine Man was also featured on Bringing It All Back Home and was a number one single for The Byrds before the release of Dylan's own version. Here, Dylan zeroed in on the best part of his lyric writing, the cascading imagery and flights of lyrical abandon, all rooted in an
internal logic that let's you know there was substance to a dream. Above all that, it will always be known as the song that brought folk-rock into mainstream American consciousness.

In 2004, based on its poll of 172 music industry figures, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Like A Rolling Stone from Dylan's 1965 album Highway 61 Revisited as one of the greatest song of all time. The drums explode like a thunder crack and the song keeps going and going, breaking the time barrier radio had placed on pop songs.

Positively 4th Street's lyrics are bitter and derisive, founding many different meanings for as many different listeners. Some have interpreted the song to be a general disparagement to the opportunistic and disingenuous people of the world. But the song is generally assumed to ridicule the people of Greenwich Village, who criticised Dylan for his departure from traditional folk style towards the electric guitar and rock music genre.

Just Like A Woman from Dylan's 1966 album Blonde On Blonde, is a love song so elegant and confused it's not clear today, so many years later, whether it is insufferably condescending or startlingly loving.

As with many of the lyrics to the songs on his albums, the words to All Along The Watchtower from his 1967 album John Wesley Harding, contains biblical and apocalyptic references, depicting a conversation between a joker and a thief about the difficulties of getting by in life. But what made this song famous was Jimi Hendrix's definitive cover version of Watchtower, forever known as psychedelic rock's finest moment.

Sung by Dylan in a low, soft voice instead of his familiar high-pitched nasal-sounding voice, Lay Lady Lay was released on his 1969 Nashville Skyline album. It was originally written for the soundtrack of the film, Midnight Cowboy, but wasn't submitted in time to make the final cut.

One of Dylan's most well known songs Knockin' On Heaven's Door was originally recorded as a slow acoustic folksy ballad. Knockin' has since been covered in many tempos and styles by many artistes, most famously Guns N' Roses, The Grateful Dead, Wyclef Jean, Eric Clapton, U2, Avril Lavigne, Bon Jovi, Randy Crawford, Ladysmith Black Mambozo and Australian heavy metal band Heaven. The irony of it all, is that the song only has four chords.

Released on his 1975 album Desire, Hurricane is a protest song by Dylan about the accusation, trial and imprisonment of boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter. It eventually helped get Carter a new trial and freedom.

Things Have Changed is a song from the 2000 film adaptation of the Michael Chabon novel Wonder Boys and won Dylan an Academy Award for Best Song in a Motion Picture in 2001.

Finally, Someday Baby won the Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in 2006 and is the fifth track on his 2006 album Modern Times, that won the Best Contemporary Folk/ Americana Album.

From these few songs alone, it is clear why so many musical legends are inspired by this lanky American singer-songwriter, author, musician, poet and, of late, disc jockey who has been a major figure in popular music for more then half a century.

Bob Dylan - His Greatest Songs will be a hit with his fans and is sure to convert many others as well. - NST

Jennifer Lopez: Brave

2008-02-04T05:52:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p18

11/11/2007

HOW times have changed for Jennifer Lopez. Brave, her second 2007 album and return to English-language recording is leagues better than its immediate predecessor, the abhorrently atrocious Spanish-language Como Ama una Mujer and a return to her R&B-club roots - the kind of grooves that have helped make her a multi-platform superstar.

Combining urban dance pop music and easy to relate lyrics, JLo has once again managed to come up with a brilliant album.

The flirty lead-off track, Stay Together, produced by Sean Kingston's daddy, J.R. Rotem, is another certified shaker with a live band feel that pulses across the speakers and is the most personal of the 12 tracks as she gives props to monogamy.

The twice-divorced artiste claims she has finally found her happiness and appeals to the listeners to follow her example.

The mid-tempo composition, Forever, is one of the album's standout tracks due to its beautiful melody and her sensual performance.

Fans of Desperate Housewives will surely recognise Miles In These Shoes from the adverts, with its pleasing deep ideas and interesting metaphors in the lyrics.

For those fond of melodious and deep felt ballads, composition Never Gonna Give Up, a ballad driven with over two minutes of her voice weaving in and out of a string orchestra and devoted to the topic of heartbreak, will do perfectly well.

The most likely candidate for a smash hit is the ass-shaking masterpiece Do It Well, which she has wisely chosen as her first single.

However, it sounds dated and recycled thanks to its reliance on a sample of Keep On Truckin, already heavily used in hip-hop, as does Gotta Be There, which uses a sample of Michael Jackson's overused Gotta Be Where You Are.

Wrong When You're Gone shows she can inject some soul when she's adequately inspired, with its softly clapping production sticking in your head for days.

The title track, Brave, is saved to end the album which can be truly valued only after more than one listening.

Overall, Brave isn't one of her best album to date, but she's clearly in love, pure and simple, and the effect is hard to argue with.

Failing that, she can always fall back on her acting career! - NST

Plain White T's: Every Second Counts

2008-02-04T05:39:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p18

28/10/2007

THIS pop rock band from Chicago, Illinois, which gave you Hey There, Delilah is back with its fourth album Every Second Counts.

There are a few diamonds in this album, other than Delilah. Every Second Counts kicks off with Our Time Now, which finds lead singer Tom Higgenson capturing the euphoria of a new love.

Come Back To Me mixes gentle guitar melodies with power chords and grand vocals from Higgenson, while Figure It Out has a slight Latino flavour and a rolling chorus.

Just when you think things are going to settle down into acoustic sweetness, along comes a song with melodic vocal and blues-metal mashed guitar hooks on Hate, a nice contrast to the aching romanticism of Delilah.

The socially responsible Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk makes a nice change to a lot of the alcohol-driven tracks that bands like to rock. Let Me Take You There seems to be the strongest song on the album while Making A Memory, with a twist of blues, has a chorus that will positively ensure those glow sticks and lighters being waved from side to side.

What Every Second Counts suffers from is a nasty case of inconsistency. About half the album is glorious pop-punk, while the remainder is a combination of lesser rock and uninspired ballads.

But this fourth offering ensures the Plain White T's won't be disappearing into complete obscurity any time soon. - NST

Steve Vai: Sound Theories Vol. 1 & 2

2008-02-04T05:32:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p18

21/10/2007

GUITAR virtuoso Steve Vai does what most people can only dream of on asix and seven-stringed axe, continually pushing the boundaries of guitarplaying and the rock genre to stratospheric heights.

But ever since the first time he heard an orchestra as a boy growing upin New York, his dream was to "capture and make real the audio vision ofmy mind's eye".

And so comes the release of a double-live CD recording from the47-year-old Grammy-winning guitarist, entitled Sound Theories Vol. 1 & 2, which features his compositions backed by the Holland Metropole Orkest.

But the live tag may be a little misleading.

Culled from five Europeanshows recorded in 2004 and 2005, the songs were studio edited to perfection by the meticulous Vai. The end result is a polished piece of aural art, which also includes the recordings of a studio session and a soundcheck rehearsal jam.

On the first CD, Vol. 1: The Aching Hunger, Vai grinds his trademarkIbanez Jem guitars and lets rip side by side with the orchestra and afour-man band. Songs that feature mind-blowing fret technique like For The Love Of God, a fan favourite from his acclaimed 1990 album Passion And Warfare,sound grand with an added presence thanks to the strings and brass.

This modern classical meets rock dynamic creates interesting moods fromthe foreboding and ominous in The Murder to the moving emotion of GentleWays.

For the second CD, Vol. 2: Shadows and Sparks, Vai takes a breather and let's the orchestra have free reign over his compositions. The man may be absent here but the complexity and hyperactive nature ofthe pieces, twisting and turning with many layers, is typical Vai.

These long lush pieces, eight to 10 minutes in length, take thelistener on a journey, like all great progressive rock pieces past andpresent.

A master shredder with more than 20 years of experience in creating andproducing rock-based guitar music, Vai makes it apparent that he's stillgot the groove. - NST

Raul Midon: A World Within A World

2008-02-04T05:23:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p17

30/09/2007

BORN premature and blind, the New Mexico-born, New York-based writer-vocalist-guitarist Raul Midon burst onto the scene in 2005 with his audaciously original debut album, State Of Mind. Now he is back with a sophomore offering, A World Within A World.

This is definitely a very special treat, packed with well produced, well written, easy-to-take tunes put across in rhythm & blues, folk groove with lots of Latin soul beats.

Midon lays out the purpose for his music on the album's first song, Pick Somebody Up, with a string section adding depth. His strikingly powerful voice flows over the top of the music which is backed by a solid rhythm section.

He follows this with Save My Life. It's a mellow tune that develops in a big way, with great blues guitar licks accenting the vocals.

From doo-wop (Ain't Happened Yet) to modern urban (All Because of You) to latin (Caminando) to pop (The More That I Know) to Bob Dylan-like folk (Tembererena), Midon combines his distinct voice, strumming, beats, and acappella sounds with his unique style that shows the influence of virtually every musical genre including jazz.

Plus, in place of having a trombone or saxophone, he uses his lips as a harmonic mouthpiece to add a brassy element into his music. His guitar methods utilise a bass-slapping technique for added percussion.

In Midon, one can actually imagine the soulfulness of Stevie Wonder, the inventiveness of Paul Simon and individuality of Bill Withers.

Tembererana, which employs elements of Argentinean music, pits images of the threat of looming annihilation against "the power of creation", while The More That I Know ponders metaphysical questions like Why do the children suffer so?

The culminating Peace On Earth places the radical humanism of John Lennon's Imagine in an unsettling contemporary context.

If you haven't heard of Raul Midon before, then A World Within A World is the perfect reason for you to fall in love with his music. - NST

Wings: Dua Dekad

2008-02-04T05:09:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p19

19/08/2007

TWENTY-two years ago, Ahmad Azhar Othman (Awie), Rodzane Mohamed(Jojet), Zul and Sham Baharom (Sham) decided to form a school band. They played rock n' roll songs heavily influenced by Scorpions, BlackSabbath and Led Zeppelin. And thus, Wings was born.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Even though the band members came and went, with the current line-up of Sansaidi Ulung Idris (Eddie) replacing Zul as bassist, Azmi Hisham (Black) replacing as drummer and Abd Zamin Abd Kadir (Joe) replacing Sham as guitarist, the group still remains a staple in our country's historyof local rock music industry, selling over 1.5 million albums.

To celebrate 20 years in the local rock music industry, check out itsdouble-cd compilation, Dua Dekad.

It features songs taken from Belenggu Irama (1987), Hukum Karma (1989),Teori Domino (1990), Jerangkung Dalam Almari (1991), Best of Wings 2 (1992), Bazooka Penaka (1993), Orang Asing (1995) and Biru Mata Hitamku (1996).

The masterpieces include Taman Rashidah Utama and Misteri Mimpi Syakilla, that won second and third place for Best Performance Categoryat Juara Lagu 1989 and Sejati, winner of Best Performance and third placefor Best Song Category at Juara Lagu 1990.

Despite the total change in lineup and the initial five-year radio banby RTM that Wings had to endure for Belenggu Irama, and with many more accolades and awards under its belt, many would agree that this band hassurvived the test of time.

And lived to tell the tale. - NST

Kenny Rogers: Kenny Rogers 20 Great Years

2008-02-04T05:08:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p19

19/08/2007

KENNETH Donald "Kenny" Rogers, the American country music singer,photographer, producer, songwriter, actor and businessman, has charted more than 70 hit singles across various music genres and topping thecountry and pop album charts for more than 420 individual weeks in the US alone.

Two of his albums, the multi-million selling The Gambler (1978) and Kenny are featured in the About.com poll of "The 200 Most InfluentialCountry Albums Ever".

Rogers hasn't recorded any new albums for a couple of years, but nowhe's back with his compilation of greatest hits in Kenny Rogers 20 GreatYears, featuring new versions of some of his best known hit singles from1969 through 1989.

Lucille, that tells the story of an unfaithful wife and mother, was Rogers' first major hit as a solo artiste after leaving the successfulCountry/Rock group, The First Edition, in 1975.

Recorded in 1980, Lady, written and produced by Lionel Richie, proved to be an important record for both of them. It became the first record ofthe 80s to chart on all four of Billboard magazine's singles charts -Country, Hot 100, Adult Contemporary and Top Black Singles.

Other songs on this album are The Gambler , She Believes In Me, a country-pop song about a songwriter who has a beloved too good for him, the 1979 hit You Decorated My Life which reached number one on the country charts and crossed over onto the Billboard Hot 100 and Ruby,Don't Take Your Love To Town.

Don't Fall In Love With A Dreamer features a duet with GrammyAward-winning singer-songwriter Kim Carnes, while Daytime Friends (AndNighttime Lovers) is the title track to Roger's 1993 compilation album.

If you like Kenny Rogers, you'll love this album. - NST

Bowling for Soup: The Great Burrito Extortion Case

2008-02-04T05:03:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p20

29/07/2007

THIS comedy influenced pop punk band that bought you the 2003 Grammy Award nominee single Girl All the Bad Guys Want is now back with its ninth album, The Great Burrito Extortion Case.

Bowling For Soup comprises Jaret Reddick (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Erik Chandler (bass, backing vocals), Chris Burney (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Gary Wiseman (drums).

Starting off the album, High School Never Ends, with its Banana Splits-meet-Green Day vibe, is a pop-punk rant against the nation's fascination with pop culture, likening it to the obsessive cliques in high school.

As their ninth album in over a decade demonstrates, the band has mastered its domain: Cheeky lyrics set to viscously addictive pop punk.

In the song I'm Gay, they mean the roaring 20s definition of the word and they sing Don't hate us `cause we're happy.

The final song, If You Come Back to Me/Outro contains two things: One, the song If You Come Back to Me, followed by two minutes of silence, followed by about 13 minutes of the "la la la's" from I'm Gay in in the background, with audio of the bandmates talking.

You most appreciate Bowling for Soup if you don't take them too seriously. - NST

RBD: Rebels

2008-02-04T04:53:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p16

15/07/2007

TEEN Mexican Pop group RBD has unveiled an English-language crossover album Rebels. The group - three girls and three boys - gained fame and a huge following while starring in the telenovela Rebelde, a drama about students at a Rebelde private, upper-class boarding school who form a band.

And so, they did.

The vocals are primarily handled by Cristian, the most fluent singer in the group, with the chorus sung in unison by the group, with dashes of Spanish guitars to give it just enough Latin flavouring.

Combining rock, dance and R&B sounds with a Latin flair, RBD starts off the album with Tu Amor, written by Diane Amor Warren, who turns in a lyric that is bilingual yet elementary in its simplicity.

Within just three days of its release, the song was all over the four most-listened-to Top 40 stations in the US, proving itself to be a mainstream smash.

Wanna Play and and Carino Mio are both excellently light yet trendy reggaeton production style and traded boy-girl vocals that accentuate the undercurrent of budding sexuality central to these bump-and-grind dance songs.

Connected is a promising song, as is I Wanna Be The Rain, yet its stilted English pronunciation and overly simple lyrics weigh too heavily on the songs. Money Money is another reggaeton song that samples their previous hit in this genre, Lento and despite the and despite the English title, it's the only track on the album that is completely sung in Spanish.

The band received a Latin Grammy Award-nomination for the Best Pop Album by a Group or Duo category for their second studio album Nuestro Amor, but after but after Amor selling several albums in their native Spanish language by the millions, their first attempt at an English language album works about as well as you would expect from such a manufactured effort from a pop sextet of actors.

A few sparkles of gems lie in this album. But rather than sounding gorgeous and uplifting RBD, ends up sounding like amateur children's pop instead of more mature wideranging pop they are striving for. - NST

Tori Amos: American Doll Posse

2008-02-04T04:46:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p16

15/07/2007

AFTER disappearing for two years, Tori Amos is back with her ninth studio album American Doll Posse. The big surprise here comes from the shocking use of guitar - both electric and acoustic. Her unexpected vocal layering and harmonies, piano lines driven home at break-neck speed, and an overall sound that is everything. And more.

This time she's angry, fed up and goes all political on us, with a message to the US President, as she opens Yo George with, with...

I salute to you Commander, and I sneeze,

Cause I have now an allergy to your policies it seems,

Where have we gone wrong America?

Recording sessions on this album started in June last year with Jon Evans on bass and Matt Chamberlain on drums. The title consists of five different female characters that Amos "developed around the album's 20 tracks", the titular "dolls" of American Doll Posse: Pip, Santa, Isabel, Clyde, and Tori.

This move allows her to veer off into all sorts of musical directions that sway in and out of rock, folk, alt-rock and pop genres.

Humanistic politics are engrained in many of the songs but there is also a lot of gorgeous string quartet arrangements by John Phillip Shenale (on Girl Disappearing), humour ( on Fat Slut and Big Wheel, singing I am a MILF don't you forget) and and excellent selection of keyboard instruments, all played by Amos, often simultaneously.

Body And Soul, a duet between Pip Soul and Santa, is a marvellous track. It's a full-out proper rock and roll song. But it is in the bonus track Dragon that Amos is at her finest. Her vocals were up front and centre, her piano piece straight out of a fairytale, an almost cutesy tone. It is a track that stands among her all-time best compositional work.

American Doll Posse debuted in the US at No 5, selling 54,000 copies, making it her sixth album to debut in the US Top 10. Many believe Tori has been "softened" by motherhood and family life, and not as fiery as her earlier releases. This record puts that claim to rest. - NST

TRAVIS: The Boy With No Name

2008-02-04T04:29:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p19

01/07/2007

Travis has taken the last four years to square its sunnier sound with a darker one. The Boy With No Name pulls this off without seeming overly planned or calculated.

Produced by Nigel Godrich, the name arose when lead singer Fran Healy and his partner Nora were deciding on a name for their newborn son.

During this time, he sent a photo of his son to a friend by e-mail and labelled the photo The Boy with No Name. The album begins with Three Times And You Lose, an enchanting classical Travis song about feeling trapped and anonymous in the big city.

Closer was released as the first single from the album in Britain in April, and peaked at No 10 in the UK Singles Chart. However, don't let it lull you into a false sense of soothing tones and quiet confidence.

Selfish Jean, with its upbeat display of gusto, and Under The Moonlight are some of the band's best ever.

The album has a handful of absolute crackers, proving that Travis is still capable of penning a tune that wraps its tendrils around your ears and won't let go until at least four minutes have passed.

The Boy With No Name entered at No 4 on the UK Album Charts and No 1 on the UK iTunes charts. In the US, the album debuted at number 58 on the Billboard 200, selling 12,000 copies in its first week.

The album is very well done, arguably the band's most eclectic album to date and succeeds in making any Travis fan happy. - NST

Floored by a Brunei singer

2008-02-04T03:57:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p19

26/03/2006

AHMAD NAZRUL CAMALXAMAN is excited by the mellifluous voice of ZulF. It was a small and noisy concert crowd until an unknown singer stepped on stage and commanded full attention with his melodious song about love.

We are talking about a scene in a film, right? No, this happened in Selayang Stadium recently, Kuala Lumpur and the unknown singer, to Malaysians at least, was ZulF, a charming education
officer from Brunei.

It turns out that he is not so unknown in Brunei, having won the first ever music competition in Brunei, Paspot to Fame (P2F), the equivalent of Malaysia's Akademi Fantasia.

The 25-year-old ZulF - Zul Fakhari Muksin - first sang in public when he was in Form Six.

"I was petrified and excited at the same time."

In October 2000, ZulF, auditioned and signed up for Artist Development Project in Perth, Australia. He had formed a group called, Pneumatic Soulz, soon after and the group's debut was as an opening act for Elite and X-Factor (from Malaysia).

Last year, he was involved with the Asia Aid Charity Concert forTsunami Victims, where he recorded Kisah Dunia composed by Hans Anuar, along with other local artistes.

"Of course, the highlight of my career was being crowned the champion of P2F - Brunei's first ever reality TV talent contest series - in May last year."

ZulF says tthat before P2F, most people in Brunei only listened to Malaysian artistes.

What did he learn from the P2F experience?

"Friendship. There are some great people on the show. I made friends with the other contestants as well. And dancing," he added with a laugh.

"I enjoyed doing it. Before the show started, we had to train to dance for about two weeks for the
opening. It was fantastic. I used to be quite stiff, standing in middle of the stage and just sing. P2F has changed all that."

Since then, ZulF has performed at various events including Konsert Muhibbah Di-Raja for the Sultan of Brunei singing alongside popular Malaysian artistes like Siti Nurhaliza, Vince, Ezlynn, Nasir Wahab and Francesca Peter.

Last December, ZulF started recording at Pro DG Studio in Kuala Lumpur for his official single entitled Engkau Adalah Cinta, produced by music director Rudin and lyrics by Kuci Kuci.

"It all happened in quite a hurry. It is hard to come out with an album in Brunei as we lack the expertise. A friend of mine told me about Rudin in Malaysia and asked if I would like to work with him. I jumped at the opportunity."

The single will be released on April 2, along with another song, Bersama Bintang, also by the Rizhar-Rudin team.

"The song is about loneliness, and the satisfaction of finding this great love in the end." - NST

Charisma of O'Connor

2008-02-04T03:51:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p5

04/12/2005

SINEAD O'Connor, one of the key iconic artists of the 90s, is back with Sinead O'Connor Collaborations that portrays the Irish pop tart's collaborations with other musical giants throughout her career as one of the best Irish export ever.

This collection of appearances from the last 20 years starts off with Special Cases (Radio Edit) with Massive Attack and 1,000 Mirrors , a 2003 single with the Asian Dub Foundation.

In both songs, once O'Connor rises up out of the mix, the songs themselves take on an incredible vitality. It is as if O'Connor knew just what the song needed to get the heart pumping and the soul soaring and she hits it each time out.

One of the best tracks in the album is Visions Of You with Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart, where O'Connor sings the surrender of spiritual devotion coming not from weakness, confusion and desperation, but from strength and clarity .

One of O'Connors early liaisons saw her hooking up with Matt Johnson in Kingdom Of Rain (Album Version) from the 1989 album Mind Bomb with a cameo from former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr.

The dark duet Blood Of Eden (Radio Edit) with the legendary singer-songwriter Peter Gabriel is perhaps her most infamous, presaging as it did her meltdown, but set in the contexts of these other songs, you can clearly see what an incredible contribution O'Connor made to Gabriel.

The newest track on the album is the collaboration with the hard-hitting Dublin singer-songwriter Damien Dempsey in It's All Good, with Dempsey making it real with his thick accent and roughhewn delivery contrasting nicely with O'Connor's gentility.

Not all songs in the album will strike a chord with the listeners. The Moby track Harbour sounds a little limp when you add in the "O'Connorwail".

This oddball collection of 17 songs from other people's albums, many unheard by most, holds together nicely, is enjoyable from start to finish and could give you a new appreciation for the bad girl from Dublin. - NST

A Treat from Tong

2008-02-04T03:22:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p13

16/10/2005

IT'S All Gone Pete Tong double album soundtrack brings together the film's musical highlights. Based on a true story and winner of Best Feature Film at the Toronto Film Festival and Gen Art Film Festival, It's All Gone Pete Tong (2004) is a comedy following the tragic life of legendary Frankie Wilde.

The film features award-winning British comedian Paul Kaye (a.k.a. Dennis Pennis) and Kate Magowan (24 Hour Party People). Taking the form of a bio-pic, it takes us through Frankie's life from one of the best deejays alive, through subsequent battles with a hearing disorder, culminating in his mysterious disappearance from the scene.

Set on the party island of Ibiza, the film includes cameo performances from many familiar faces in the film, including Pete Tong (of course), Carl Cox, Sarah Main, Paul Van Dyke and Tiesto.

The first CD in the album, CD1 Day, highlights the more melancholic moments from the film and opens with an exclusive Graham Massey remix of 808 State's seminal hit Pacific State. It is an ambient number that teases the listener with its lazy conga instrumental sound and exotic bird call sampling.

This is closely followed by Cloud Watch by Lol Hammond and Moonlight Sonata by Massey again, both melancholic piano numbers.

Baby Piano by Hammond is the first track with vocals. It retains the mellow atmosphere of the CD, before mixing into Pete Tong and Chris Cox's Ku Da Ta.

The album then takes you on a serene journey through tracks such as the classic 1930s love song Parlez Moi D'Amour by Lucienne Boyer and Goldfrapp's awesome remake of Depeche Mode's Halo.

Even Ferry Corsten appears on the CD with Holding On featuring Shelley Harland, proving that he's diversified from his trance roots and electro phase.

CD 2 Night moves things up a gear, taking you into the clubbing heart of Ibiza with Schwab's DJs In A Row kicking off the party with deep vocals, guitar riffs and groovy beats.

This is followed by Deep Dish's instantly recognisable house anthem Flashdance and amazingly fresh Good 2 Go by Juggernaut, mixed with Christophe Monier and DJ Pascal Representent Impulsion's Rock That House Musiq.

The party vibe continues with Black Rock featuring Debra Andrew's Blue Water. Tong's splendid second track in the album is Serendipity with Steve Mac and features Lingua Franca.

Corsten's popular electro tune Rock Your Body Rock gets a rework from Rennie Pilgrim. Triscos' Musak (Steve Lawler Remix) is followed closely by the incredibly funky tribal sounds of Filterheadz Yimanya.

The album ends with Tong and Cox's More Intensity before things finally round off with Orbital's Frenetic.

The film is intensely funny and captivating. It has the same propulsive, punk rock vibe as Trainspotting and 24 Hour Party People, with the critics likening it to Spinal Tap for ravers. But if you can't watch the film, then perhaps the soundtrack is the next best thing. The music is not just a soundtrack, but a complex emotional language. - NST

Another beautifully eclectic hit from Moby

2008-02-04T03:10:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p2

03/04/2005

THE man has been moving around the word quite a bit and living in hotels, and aptly he has named his fifth studio album Hotel.

Known to many as the world's greatest electronica extraordinaire, Richard Melville Hall, a.k.a. Moby, has recorded another beautifully eclectic top spinner. Hotel was recorded and mixed during 2004 and is currently leading the European sales chart.

Unlike his other efforts, which focus on the dance genre, the music this time round is more diverse. The 39-year-old bachelor has stretched his own boundaries from quiet instrumentals, to stadium anthems, to downtown sultry jams, uplifting electro-disco, New Age, ambient and ballads.

In Hotel, Moby's voice is featured in 10 out of the 14 tracks in the album, with two instrumentals and two duets with the heavenly voice of Laura Dawn, famous for her seductive and passionate debut album Believer, a collection of songs illustrating her early years in New York City.

Dawn is also the cultural director for the politically leftist group MoveOn.org and a close friend of Moby. And this time round the album has no voice samples.

To start it all off is Hotel Intro, which is your typical Moby-esque instrumental track - starting off slow while picking up the pace towards the end. Diversity comes into play quiet early in this album as the second track, Raining Again, with Dawn on guest vocals and live drums by the phenomenal Scott Frassetto, showers listeners with trippy New Age wholesome goodness.

Magnificent electric guitar riffs is found in the next song, Beautiful, while Lift Me Up reminds you of those groovy disco days.

Next up is the glorious ballad Where You End, followed closely by Temptation, with Dawn on lead vocals, which makes her sound like a cross between Kim Deal and Dusty Springfield, a voice that goes from a breathy purr to a soulful wail.

Evidence of Moby's brilliance is aplenty in this album, with Oriental elements in track seven, Spiders and love ballad Lie To Me, with Dawn joining him on lead vocals.

The songs start to get ferociously upbeat in the electro-dance track Very, with Dawn once again on lead vocals, and the hypnotically charged I Like It.

The balding, bespectacled outspoken musician hits the piano keys on the slow ballad Love Should, while Slipping Away could very well be the next pop rock anthem. This is followed closely by Forever, another superb Moby-esque piece.

The last track, the slow but soul nourishing Homeward Angel, and the bonus hidden track, 35 Minutes, a violin and keyboard instrumental outro, brings an end to Moby's most outstanding album yet to date. - NST

Must-have compilation for any rock fan

2008-02-03T09:39:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p2

20/03/2005

THE rock phenomenon has been around for many years and is the very foundation of our local music scene since the very beginning. Be it local or international bands, the rock scene has captivated the minds and souls of generations of music lovers.

In recognition of this, EMI Music has come out with a compilation of international and local rock anthems.

All in one album, rock music lovers will be able to listen to international legends such as Deep Purple, Gary Moore and Black Sabbath, and local greats like Search, Wings and Bloodshed on Rocksteady Timur Lawan Barat.

With 15 tracks (six international and nine local rock tunes), the best of both worlds are represented in this CD.

These include the evergreen Fantasia Bulan Madu (Search) and Intan Ku Kesepian (Wings), two great Malay rock classics with their recognisable intros and great vocals. Following this is the ever-popular Still Loving You (Scorpion), the hit that transformed the German band into one of the most popular rock giants in the world.

Next up is Sentuhan Kecundang (Ekamatra) and Sri Kandi Cintaku (Bloodshed), two great hits written by the formidable M. Nasir.

The classic Still Got The Blues by one of the finest guitarist that the British Isles has ever produced, Gary Moore, the former member of Skid Row, whose solo intro to the song has been described by many as the "hardest but sweetest" piece of music they have ever heard played, is featured next.

Iklim makes an appearance on the album with Aduhai! Seribu Kali Sayang while Lefthanded belts out its popular hit Debunga Wangi.

Rock fans will be ecstatic to find two of legendary Richie Blackmore's greatest masterpieces with two different bands in Rocksteady. The first is Soldier of Fortune which was taken from Deep Purple's ninth album, Stormbringer, with Blackmore's immortal solo intro. The second is the Temple of The Kings taken from the 1976 Blackmore's Rainbow album.

Poison, who embodied the whole hair metal attitude in every aspect of the lives of its members in the 80s, also makes an appearance with Every Rose Has Its Thorn, taken from its 1988 album Open Up And Say Ahh!, which is without a doubt the best power ballad ever written, with Bret Michaels' superb vocals and the illustrious Matt Smith's first class guitar playing.

Another classic anthem available on Rocksteady is Black Sabbath's Changes, taken from the Symptom of the Universe: The Original Black Sabbath album, which captures one of Ozzy Osbourne's outstanding vocal to date.

Also included in the album is C.T Cinta Kenangan Silam (XPDC) and Sendiri (May).

Not only has this album managed to capture the very essence of the rock genre, the rich diversity of the music, from Moore's blues to Poison's ballad right up to Blackmore's bewitching guitar-playing magic makes Rocksteady a must-have album for every rock fan.

This compilation album is available on CD (RM34.90) and cassette. - NST

In the club groove

2008-02-03T09:28:00.000-08:00

NSUNT p3

06/03/2005

LONDON's dance duo Groove Armada comprises Tom Findlay and Andy Cato. The group formed in the mid-90s and soon started their own club, also named Groove Armada (after a 70s discotheque), which featured their spinning.

The boys, who brought you hits such as the massive club anthem Superstyling, are back to bring you 17 glorious house tracks with their latest album Doin' It after Dark Vol 02, offering loads more blinding tripped out psychedelic blues calypso dub-hop disco electronic-house grooves.

Similar to the Light Outs compilation by Steve Lawler/Global Underground and their own Doin' It after Dark Vol 01, this new series is based on the theory that the clubbing experience is made more intense when it takes place in a dark environment with powerful music.

To start of such an experience and to get the listeners in the mood is the fabulous upbeat track Rena, written and produced by Cato. This is followed up next with the funky calypso drenched Rumpfunk (Raw Substance Mix).

Listeners will surely be shaking their bodies to the cacophony of percussions and drum beats in Pardon My Freedom (Maurice Fulton Instrumental Mix) and Lip Trick.

Next up is the trippy and funky Mandate My Ass (Askesian Society Remix). Some exceptionally twisted disco and diva vocals from Booty Bounce is abundant in Free Your Mind (Booty Bounce Vocal Mix), which is then followed through with Hands Up.

One of the biggest tunes of 2004, Chicken Lips, Love Is War (Chicken Lips Remix) blasts its way into the mix at track 8 while being helped along by the some embellishment from the MC and the percussionist as well.

The second half of the CD impresses with the surreal house of Musique, Sweetlove (Alex Phountzi Remix), 24K, Gonna Make You Sweat and Champagne.

Other songs in the album includes Analog Pressure, Pain (Freakspschyspeakeasy Mix), Raw Jackin' and Step Up.

To date, Groove Armada has sold over 1.2 million albums, which is not very surprising after listening to this magnificent compilation, which showcases some amazing music that a lot of us may not get to hear otherwise and gives fans something to look forward to in the future.

This latest mix of deep dubby disco is available on CD and was produced in conjunction with Lovebox: Groove Armada's itinerant party.

For more information, visit www.ragbull.com - NST

Rockin' on his own way

2008-02-03T09:00:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME p7

20/02/2005

Being the younger brother of M. Nasir is no stumbling block for Zoul, if his second album is anything to go by, writes AHMAD NAZRUL CAMALXAMAN.

EVERYBODY knows how hard the pressure is to follow in the footsteps of an elder brother, especially so when it comes to career achievements. And what more when your elder brother has been at the top of the music industry for so many years and accomplished so much where others have failed.

What if that elder brother happens to be M. Nasir, the ever popular and accomplished producer, singer, songwriter, painter and music arranger?

But his younger brother Zoul, 43, is unfazed.

Born Zulkipli Mohamed, Zoul, as he is known widely in Singapore, began his career as a musician in 1984. He joined popular group Kembara with his brother Nasir and produced two
albums, Hijrah 1404 (1985) and Duit (1986).

Zoul then moved on to another famous band at that time, Sweet Charity, as the vocalist (1985-1986), replacing Ramli Sarip. He later formed a duo called Tenggara with his friend and came up with Spektra in 1993 before embarking as a solo recording artiste with his self-titled debut Malay album in 2000.

Now, Zoul is back with his second solo album Di Celah Gigi, featuring "rock" as the album concept with singles Di Celah Gigi and Tiada Lagi Dusta.

In Di Celah Gigi, listeners will be overwhelmed with the fusion of rock and nusantara elements in songs such as Mentari, Jiwa Yang Tenang and Tiada Lagi Dusta.

Strong, powerful and mysterious lyrics can also be found in Layar and Belerang Merah, both written by Kuci Kuci, another talented Singaporean singer/songwriter.

Other songs in the album include Esok Tak Bertemu, Malam Nanti, Dia, Seri Mahkota Hati Nurani, and Siapakah Aku.

Most of the songs in Di Celah Gigi includes instruments indigenous to Malay music such as the seruling (bamboo flute) by Mohar and the gendang Jawa (double-headed long barrel drum with two different skin heads), rebana (membranophone instrument), tambourine and shaker by Ramli Hamid.

For the musical arrangements, he collaborated with old friend and composer-songwriter and fellow Singaporean, Rudi MN for all songs except for Tiada Lagi Dusta, which was arranged by Nasir.

So why, after being in the music industry for so long, has he only now chosen to cross over to Malaysia?

"The opportunity has always been there. I mean, it would have been great if I did what my brother did and based myself here in Malaysia all those years ago. But at that time I felt that I had to keep away from my brother's shadow.

"But now, as my music has progressed, it is natural to spread my wings to Malaysia, to introduce my music to a wider and more diverse group of listeners."

Yet, how does it feel to always be known as the younger brother of the great M. Nasir, instead of being known as Zoul, a singer in his own right?

"It's unavoidable. I will always be Nasir's brother. And I'm proud of it. He will forever be my teacher, my mentor, my friend. The only difference between us is that I'm a little younger, and he plays the acoustic while I play the rock guitar. While Nasir and I are inspired by the same people and the same music, we portray our music differently.

"Nasir has his track record, so do I. He has his own different style of playing the guitar, so have I. While Nasir has his unique way of singing, any listener can surely recognise his song, his lyrics, his music. I hope listeners in Malaysia will recognise mine with Di Celah Gigi.

"And this is how I hope the listeners will get to know me - through my voice, my lyrics, my songs, my music."

Just how different is Zoul's music from other rock bands?

"Musically, I'm influenced by Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton. I try to use these musical influences as a technique in my writing, by applying these Western musical elements and fusing it with our own unique nusantara style.

"I don't want to write like them. I would just be another singer doing his covers. Instead, I create my own style. Our Malay roots have always been there, ever so rich with our own exceptional uniqueness. We just haven't exploited them to its full potential.

"Instead, We tend to humble ourselves to the styles and rhythm of Western music, which I think is just a shame. I'm not trying to preach but sometimes, we have to develop. And what easier way than to use the resources that are already available in our own backyard?

"For example, you might be listening to one piece of music and you think to yourself, at this point in the song, it would be better if we added just a little riff - or an alternative chord - to make it a little more Malay, a little more unique.

"I am awed by what Carlos Santana did with Latin music. Before he came along, it was just another obscure kind of music. Santana and his band exploded onto the world stage with an electrifying performance at the 1969 Woodstock Festival.

"His music has spanned five decades, outlasted countless musical trends. And yet if you follow Santana's style of music, you will realise that, from the beginning, he has been doing the same thing - playing his own style of music.

"He played Latin music, samba, dance music, but he fused it with his rock guitar. This was something different and thus created a new genre of music altogether.

"I would love to take this formula and use it with Malay music. Make it truly distinct and original so that when people hear it, they will know that it is Malay music. As for Di Celah Gigi, my crew and I have done the best that we possibly could." - NST

* Di Celah Gigi produced by Luncai Emas Sdn Bhd and distributed byUniversal Music Sdn Bhd, is now available in record shops.

Prana weaves a fusion spell

2008-02-03T08:43:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME p5

31/10/2004

THE fusion music of Prana wove a spell that drew the audience to its feet at the end of the concert, writes AHMAD NAZRUL CAMALXAMAN

AFTER their debut concert in May at the Actors Studio Bangsar to a sell-out crowd, Prana - a fusion ensemble of Indian and Western musicians - was back once again by popular demand, this time at the Petaling Jaya Civic Centre Auditorium, last Saturday.

The concert, entitled Life Breath, comes from the Sanskrit translation of Prana and also happens to be the title of their first commercial album which was launched in June.

Prana, which blends Indian and Western instruments to create a charismatic fusion, opening up to a new genre for the local music scene, is headed by Samuel J. Dass on the sitar.

Dass's 30 years of playing locally and around the region places him as Malaysia's foremost sitar exponent. He has come out with seven albums, of varying genres and has played at numerous venues with appearances on national television and radio. Dass also wrote and composed all the songs in Life Breath.

Accompanying Dass are some of the best, the most creative, and, some say, mystical bunch of musicians ever assembled in one place, including the much-touted sessionist, producer and songwriter Jamie Wilson on the acoustic steel guitar and the most sought after secessionist in Malaysia, Fauzi Samin (a.k.a. Aji) on the acoustic nylon guitar.

In addition, there was Prakash Kandasamy on the tabla, who in 1999 recorded two albums with Ustad Usman Khan, the tabla maestro extraordinaire and S. Sivabalan on the mridhangam, ganjeera and ghadam, who, in 1992, was bestowed the title of `Layaanjali' by the Temple of Fine Arts in Kuala Lumpur.

Prana's music has caught ardent fusion, jazz and world music lovers by surprise and with accomplished names like these on the bill, the audience was in for a treat.

What Prana does is bring this rigid 5,000-year-old Indian classical music to something more fluid and imaginative.

The uniqueness of Prana is that it combines Indian ragaa - 64,848 ascending or descending scales providing thousands of combinations and bringing out emotions such as happiness, bewilderment, sorrow, spirituality and love - and fuse it with blues, rock, jazz, flamenco and funk to create resonance.

As the curtain was raised and all five of them were seated together at the middle of the stage washed with red lighting, they started off with their signature piece Prana Express.

It was simply magical as Dass started off the piece with a slow solo as Wilson and Aji intertwined the sitar echo with their soft guitar pluckings, warming up the audience, while Kandasamy and Sivabalan provided an ever-changing beat that in the end made the song faster and louder.

Most of the audience didn't quite know who to react as Dass and his band moulded the sounds and notes of their instruments into something they had never experienced before, but from their faces it was quite evident that they were captivated.

Next came Kampung Ku, a song inspired by Dass's memories of his childhood. If anyone ever wondered what a Malay song would sound like if it was played on the sitar, well this was it.

When Dass started on the piece, one could imagine that the song was something that the late P. Ramli would have written if he had a sitar handy because the similarity of Kampung Ku and Ramli's style of composition and writing is uncanny.

The unmistakable Malay feeling of the song was further imposed as both the guitarists joined in, taking the audience back to their own memories of their own childhood as Wilson added some classical Spanish guitar playing during the bridge while Aji finished off the song with a stupefying solo.

To end the first set was Vibration, a piece Dass wrote after climbing up 10 floors of his apartment in Brickfields.

The beginning of the second set saw Wilson and Aji dominating the stage with Brickfields Blues, composed by Wilson, which is a mixture of western and Malay blues that got the crowd clapping and cheering for them to play more. Some of them even stood up and danced in the narrow aisle.

Then it was time for Life Breath, which started of with Dass playing slow but gaining momentum as the song moved on. In came Aji and Jamie, contrasting Dass's classical Indian tune with a little bit of jazz and flamenco, creating a most unique blend of music, while the percussionist provided the backbone.

It was like listening to Ravi Shankar, Sting, Jesse Cook and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, each a master of his own genre, playing together at the same time.

About this time, 12-year-old percussionist prodigy Arthur Kam (See previous blog: Arthur, The Drummer Boy) walked on stage. Initially nervous, Arthur seemed to get over his anxiety of playing with some of the greatest masters while at the same time impressing the audience with his remarkable talent as the band played Damascus, another piece composed by Wilson.

The band was awarded a standing ovation as the crowd clapped and cheered and thanked them for a wonderfully magical night.

Prana brings new meaning to "bringing new life to ancient music". - NST

Young and Funky at Paul's Place

2008-02-03T08:34:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME p5

10/10/2004

PAUL's Place in Damansara Utama was packed as music lovers, young and old, came in droves to enjoy a night of funky alternative grooves. Billed Next Stage Volume III, the event by Lemang Music saw young and old musicians showing off their talent with aplomb.

First up was an unknown band, Call The Paramedics, comprising Meng (guitar, vocals), Mulon (guitar), Sam (bass), Alda (drums), Rene (vocals) and Ajeep (keyboards). All of them were in their early 20s. With muted strings on wah, running basslines and haunting keys, they managed to warm the place up with Easy On The Paramedics, Call Me and Repercussion. Although their music was good, their lack of experience really showed during their performance.

Soft Touch had older members and were doubtless the most experienced name on the bill. Founded in 1999, the band's line-up now comprises Peter Hassan Brown (vocals, guitar, harmonica), his wife Markiza (keyboards, vocals), Shahril (bass), Wong Lip Kee (lead guitar) and singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Alex Ang (drums).

The Browns have self-produced two albums while Peter recently released his fourth solo album, Warm. That night, Soft Touch performed some new songs. One, Better World , is a plea for world peace. The groovy reggae beat invites the listener to feel the music and not just listen to it.

There was a guest band performing - all the way from Singapore. Zhen which is made up of Zeph (vocals), Flo (drums), Wendy Phua (bass), Riez (guitar) started off by playing the instrumental numbers Into The Storm and Feather In Cap, which gave a chance for the guitar, bass and drums to have excellent uninterrupted solos, something you don't see often from our local bands.

They finished off the night with a beautiful trippy instrumental number which was a mix of progressive rock, funk, classical renaissance and jazz.

Telebury with Adrian Alphonsus (vocals/ guitars), Awang Hisamudin (bass), Dzul Haswandie Taha (guitar), Haizronnaha Hasan (guitar) and Iskandar Mirza Omar (drums) sent up heatwaves with their energetic show and terrific originals such as Can't You See? and Overdrive with plenty of great guitar playing by Dzul and Awang.

Most of their songs are heavily influenced by Radiohead, Longpigs, Elbow, The Cure and U2. The band has also recorded an EP/Demo entitled Is There `US' In You?, released in October last year. Currently, plans are underway for a single with hopes that recording will happen soon.

Says Iskandar: "The local urban music scene is growing fast. Now companies and many groups are actively supporting the local young new musicians and bands to showcase their talents by organising gigs, contests and concerts.

"Even big companies such as Pan Global and radio stations such as Hitz.fm are showing interest in our local scene. That is what we call progress. Give another few years ... it will be even better, trust me."

"It is quite hard today to find good talented young musicians like the ones we have here tonight who play their own songs instead of doing covers of other people's work," says Peter, who, together with Markiza, are the founder of Lemang Music, a publishing, production and promotion company.

"What we do try to create here is a platform for this kind of raw talent to get noticed and to introduce their music to the public and, with the help of musiccanteen.com, to the world. As you can see from the reaction of the audience tonight, many of them are quite impressed with the performances." - NST

Jazzin' up Mont' Kiara

2008-02-03T08:21:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME p11

05/09/2004

IT was the happening place, the fountain courtyard at Plaza Mont' Kiara in Kuala Lumpur when it hosted the Sunrise-Carlsberg Jazz Festival 2004 last Friday evening.

It was all that jazz indeed, with major music names and budding talent entertaining fans and curious passers-by as well.

First up was Julian Mokhtar, the famed lead guitarist of Blues Gang, and his friends who got down to the business of heating up the evening with various good ol' rock-a-billy numbers such as Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze.

Next was the sensational Zalila Lee, the renowned sessionist and back-up vocalist, playing her original compositions with her band.

Then came the multi-talented and versatile band Soft Touch, headed by the gorgeous Markiza and Peter Hassan Brown. With their indie rock-jazzy kind of music style and a little grunge thrown in, they captivated everyone with their own compositions.

The final act was the beautiful singer-songwriter Shelley Leong and her band, Jazz Odyssey. Shelley, with her sweet and folksy voice, entertained the crowd with songs from her latest album, Storyteller.

Jose Thomas and his band, Groove Junction, and Mia Germain Palencia completed the line-up for the wonderful night.

Organised by property development company Sunrise Berhad and co-sponsored by Carlsberg, the event was to showcase Malaysian jazz music in a festive live outdoor atmosphere.

"This is our fifth Jazz Festival and the fan support keeps growing bigger every year," said Joachim Ng, senior manager and head of corporate communications with Sunrise.

This time around, the performances were sponsored by musiccanteen.com, an online music website dedicated to promoting Malaysian independent artists to the world. - NST

Forget `Hijau', it's a fresh Zainal

2008-02-03T08:04:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME p1

15/08/2004

HE may have been missing from the public scene for about two years, but Zainal Abidin still had AHMAD NAZRUL CAMALXAMAN and a horde of fans spellbound that night.

IT is not the Zainal Abidin of Hijau these days. Rather, it is a different Zainal Abidin, a new artist with a fresh approach.

The former lead vocalist of the popular 80s band Headwind entertained his fans at Planet Hollywood, Kuala Lumpur last Sunday in conjunction with the release of his latest album, Puteri.

"I'm bringing out this album not as a comeback or the next Hijau," said the veteran.

"This time it's totally different. My approach to this latest album is as a new artist. A fresh approach. A matured approach."

Indeed, one can only do a comeback if one have left the music scene for a while. Although it was Zainal's first public outing after a two-year hiatus, he maintains that he never really left the music scene.

"I have been doing some private functions over the years, but I haven't been doing the club scene for a while. It is great to be back."

And the fans at the Planet Hollywood were glad that Zainal was back too.

Belting out hit tunes from his earlier ethnic-pop releases as well as songs from Puteri, Zainal proved once again that he is not a has-been.

Zainal, together with long-time collaborator Mac Chew on the keyboard, and other musicians and back-up singers, shattered the pre-performance quiet of Planet Hollywood with Senang-Senang, followed by Sabar, Bongkar and Kunang-Kunang.

Being able to sing is well and good but a true entertainer knows how to hold the audience's attention. Zainal did this effortlessly with his wit, jokes and anecdotes which were all greeted by roaring laughter.

Zainal also sang the song that he wrote for the Malaysian version of Tarzan, Kau Di Hatiku and a new piece from Puteri, Menari Dengan Mu.

Just as the audience was getting all warmed up, they were quite upset when Zainal announced he would sing his final song for the first set. Mac Chew, his fingers dancing gracefully on the keyboards, played out an introduction that quietened the audience, as if they were deep in
concentration, trying to figure out from which song it came from.

Then, as Zainal announced the name of his most famous song, Suraya, the audience just went wild. It was truly amazing to hear so much youth in such a matured voice in the Suraya that was sung that night as you relived your past.

The effect was fantastic.

Zainal came back after the break with a new number from Puteri, the melodious Gaia.

It was during the second verse of the next song, Orak Arek, that Zainal stopped performing and encouraged the audience to join with him in the chorus. And they did, vigorously.

While the evergreen environmental-conscious Hijau brought Zainal the recognition that he deserved in 1991, it has been difficult to handle that fame for each new number Zainal subsequently recorded was inevitably compared with that hit.

"Everything has to change as the world evolves. The taste in music, the audience, the artist themselves change, develop and mature," said Zainal.

"I do not want to be simply known as `Zainal Hijau'. To me, that was a brilliant past. Now we must look and move forward. In this album, I'm a new artist bringing forth new music."

Zainal managed to shock the crowd to silence once again when he sang Puteri, the title track of the new album. The audience were spellbound.

"It is totally different. It is unlike anything I've ever did. It's a combination of current music and the traditional."

Unlike his previous albums, Puteri is splattered with pop Hey Honey, reggae Menari Dengan Mu and even stadium anthems like I Love Rock and Roll.

Is this a sign that the public can expect more of him from now on?

"It all depends on how well everything goes. Right after we launch the album next month, we have lined up a few dates for our tour. I plan to stop at Johor, KL, Penang, Kuantan and Sabah."

As regards to his album, Zainal is up against a lot of criticism and evaluation after his last album, Terang ...Sang, released in 1995, failed to make an impact.

"At the end of the day, what really matters is that I have done my best and the album is the result of the hard work put into it. I am doing this for the next generation of music listeners. Now, I leave it all to them to decide whether the album is a hit or not." - NST

Punk and gothic with 360

2008-02-03T07:54:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME p5

01/08/2004

ONE can't help but wonder what sort of people would spend their time listening to punk and gothic music that not only sounds macabre but also offers anything but joy to the listener.

The recent Joy Division tribute at Paul's Place in Damansara Utama drew a motley crowd. The sort who like to listen to music which seems to emphasise the grotesque, the mysterious, and the desolate.

"Music is like food. It's all about preference. Some like roti canai while others prefer nasi lemak," said Rafil Elyas, front runner, vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of 360 degree Head Rotation.

"People like me, we like punk and goth."

360 Degree Head Rotation (aka 360) was formed as a gothic /punk outfit in December 2003, with Rafil, 37, on vocals, rhythm guitar, Jack Nathan, 38, on the lead guitar, Nazrul Ahmad, 25, on bass and Mohd Nuhi Adha Selamat, 26, on drums.

"I just came back from the United States and haven't played for at least 10 years. After a while, I decided to form my own band with Jack Nathan,"said Rafil.

Jack, a long time friend of Rafil, was helping to set up the stage at a night spot called Paul's Place. He also plays the guitar there and noticed two budding underground musicians, Nazrul and Nuhi.

"Jack is a great friend of mine and a great guitarist. Nazrul and Nuhi were chosen because, to me, they are the raising stars in the underground scene."

Claiming inspiration from Joy Division, The Cure, Tom Waits, Jimmy Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Bauhaus, 360's music, just like their idol's, are very depressing, dark and terrifying.

360 perform predominantly original work. Most of their songs are based on short stories written by Rafil.

"What I love so much about the gothic influence in the music are the intense lyrics, coupled with brilliantly timed music all throughout the songs."

And intense they are. The feeling of existential dread, expressed with a sense of torture through distortion-drenched power chords and monotone vocals, suggesting so many different mental elements and conditions, confusion, depression, frustration and hate fuels their songs.

"It is all about contrast. All about yin and yang. You cannot find happiness if you were never sad, depressed, deflated. There is no joy without grief," said Rafil.

Even their band name has some sinister tone to it.

"I was forced to think up a name for the band quite quickly. At that time, I was really looking forward to watch the director's uncut version of the Exorcist and the first thing that popped into my head was the scene when Linda Blair's character Regan's head began to turn 360
degrees.

"That's how I came up with the band's name."

The band were introduced to the public when they were invited to play two gigs organised by Lemang Music, a publishing, production and promotion company.

The first was on Jan 4 at What's the Alternative? and on Jan 28 at Tuesday Acoustic Jam at Paul's Place along with well-known veteran Hassan Peter Brown, Markiza and Broken Scar.

They organised their own gig on April 24 and called it Strange Occurrences I. It went so well that the band organised another on July 24 as a tribute to Joy Division, a band which has the greatest impact on them, along with other local underground bands Hike, Crimson, Sick Society, Lurks, Hike, Triple Six Poser and Fazi.

"Not many will like the music but what we are trying to do is show the public that there is another type of music. A different dish with a different flavour."

Rafil writes the lyrics and conceptual musical framework while Jack does the lead compositions, direction and final arrangements, Nuhi the drum patterns and Nazrul the bass lines.

As for their future, Rafil says they are in the midst of discussing when the band can get together and record our materials. With about 15 songs ready, all they need now is sometime off to record
the songs, which is not quite easy as they all have day jobs.

With songs that carry frightening titles such as Blood, Bury, Control, Edgar, Head Set in Stone and None Shall Worship You, it may not be everyone's preferred choice of music, but gothic and punk fans will not be disappointed.

For further information on the band, visit http://www.360dhr.com/. - NST

Cannon blasts of inspiration

2008-02-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

NST-YQUAKE p6

25/06/2004

AHMAD NAZRUL CAMALXAMAN meets the young members of a band who hope to dispel the myth that to rock, booze and drugs are a must.

IT is not easy to get a decent gig especially when nobody has ever heard of you or your band. And it is even harder when your chosen genre is not mainstream.

Realising this, five bright young lads decided to get their friends together for a concert which they hope will make their music known to the public. The band Frequency Cannon was formed four years ago and is led by Kua Chee Seong (vocals). The others are Wong Yu-Ri, (lead guitar), J. Siva Shanker (rhythm guitar), Azril Dino' Malik (drums) and Azrul Farique (bass).

"Our music is very much a group effort. The end result is a combination of ideas and different styles. I think this is why some find it hard to categorise our kind of music," said Kua.

"Some say it is rock, while others argue it is modern pop alternative," said Siva.

Contrary to what most would assume, not all the songs are about anger and hate, although most of them are deafeningly loud. Their songs are inspired by everyday emotions and feelings.

Raise Above was written when they felt that they were being denied what they wanted to do most. Second Chance is all about getting another chance in life, while Free Falling conveys a feeling of being liberated.

Girl is about a band member's girlfriend who died of cancer. It was an instant hit with their fans, along with their catchy Fame and Glory.

Yet, the members said that they do not play for fame or glory.

"At the end of the day, we do not anticipate getting a lot of money. We'll be lucky to break even," said Wong.

The boys' concert, Frequency Cannon and Friends, has a strict "no drinking, no smoking" rule.

"The public needs to be aware that we (rock bands) do have fun without drinks or drugs," said Kua.

The concert will be held at the Sunway Monash multi-purpose hall in Petaling Jaya tomorrow from 4.20pm, with tickets selling at RM10 prepaid or RM12 at the door. It is organised in conjunction with the Sunway Monash Music Society to raise funds for a new piano.

Bands also expected to perform are Vespertine, Wednesday, Disagree, PopShuvit, Estranged, Y2K, One Buck Short, Flatline and Furniture (formerly known as Rush).

For more information or tickets, call Isabella at 012-267-8560. - NST

Kristal-clear rock sounds

2008-02-03T07:24:00.000-08:00

NSUNT-SHOWTIME P1

13/06/2004

DON'T let the cover of Kristal's new album n.t virus fool you. Looking quite like a bunch of amateur schoolboys, it gives the wrong impression of the high quality of music inside the cover.

Over a couple of years, the young men, Mohd Razlan Mohamed Yusof @ Lan (vocal), Muhamad Rody Baharudin @ Rody (guitar), Izaludin Ibrahim (bass) and Johari Yusof (drums), sound so much matured than their previous albums, Pak Belalang and Semut & Lebah and this is reflected in their latest effort.

The album title was taken from the track Virus, composed by Joe Wings, a metaphor to describe their readiness to fight against all bad influences and viruses in the music scene.

A lot of energy was channelled into most of the songs that will keep rockers moving, especially the rawness of Kasut Terbang, with superb lyrics from Loloq.

Highly-charged emotions seem to be flowing in their sentimental numbers Saat Itu and Suatu Kenangan - two great examples of the development of their talents, although it was the catchy Hembusan Meniup, Hei Bambino and Bohemia La Rambla that got the head-bangers really charged up.

A noticeable evolution in their style of playing can be found in Cita-Citaku, with some of the most impressive guitar solos in the whole album that is sure to please rock fans.

The most impressive song in the whole album must be the remake of Keindahan Pantai, originally sung by the late M. Shariff and The Zurah's, where Kristal has managed to retain its feel and styling while improving on the music arrangement to suit their rock image perfectly.

It has been argued that they sounded too much like Wings, especially in the intro to the upbeat song Joena, which is no surprise since the album was produced by Joe Wings, with Awie as the executive producer.

Although this may not be a bad thing, it keeps Kristal from carving their own mark in the industry. - NST