From Veteran of the Psychic Wars by Blue Oyster Cult:

You ask me why I'm weary, why I can't speak to you
You blame me for my silence
Say it's time I changed and grew
But the war's still going on dear
And there's no end that I know
And I can't say if we're ever...
I can't say if we're ever gonna to be free

Dirty Window

Released in 2003, Metallica's St. Anger was their biggest commercial failure in years. The sounds were intense. It creates an intense mood and there's no escaping it through the length of the album.

Yet, there are parts of it that I keep going back to. Like Hammet's brilliant solo in Invisible Kid around 0:44. Or All Within My Hands, where Hetfield's vocals waver between steady purposefulness and demonic full-throatedness.

I was listening to Dirty Window today and, for the first time, the lyrics made sense to me.

I see my reflection in the window
This window clean inside, dirty on the out
I'm looking different than me
This house is clean babe!
This house is clean

Am I who I think I am?
Am I who I think I am?
Oh, Am I who I think I am?
I look out my window and see it's gone wrong
My court is in session and now I slam my gavel down!

I'm judge and I'm jury and I'm executioner too
I'm judge and I'm jury and I'm executioner too

Projector, Protector, Rejector, Infector
Projector, Rejector, Infector
Injector, Defector, Rejector

I drink from the cup of denial
I'm judging the world from my throne
I drink from the cup of denial
I'm judging the world from my throne

It fits well with the political mood in India at the moment. Maybe this was the song's intended context. Some of us are protesting on the streets against the crippling corruption thrust upon us by the state. But we have given little thought to our personal deviations.

We seek instant solutions, not the nuances of our constitution. And we have little patience for moderate views on the subject of corruption. This is an extraordinary time for India where sides are been chosen like never before.

My own over-the-top response to this impatience — especially on Team Anna's part — was this image.



Let me explain my stand with a simple metaphor.

When people get sick, they go to a doctor. They get treatment but also seek precautionary advice about diet, hygiene, exercise, etc to avoid falling sick again.

The philosophy of the JLP Bill is that if one is sick (read: corrupt), seek treatment but forget about the precautions.

This way, corruption may be spotted, but its root causes will remain. Ultimately, the JLP will align with India's massive bureaucracy and make corruption worse. I hope this doesn't happen in my lifetime. I don't want to be around to say I told you so.

Slumdog Millionaire Lyrics - Jai ho

I saw Slumdog Millionaire for the first time a couple of weeks before it hit the Indian theatres. My wife had managed to get a downloaded copy from her office. As we watched it on our laptop, I was blown away by the first 15 minutes. I said, let's watch this on the big screen, it'd be totally worth it. She argued that the India release was still a long way away, so we continued watching.

Last weekend, we saw it on the big screen the day it hit India. Our schedule allowed us to watch the dubbed version, and we settled for it. It still was pretty good since much of the dialogue is in Hindi anyway.

My frank assessment of the film: it's very good. Rich cinematography, beautifully paced, well directed, well acted. Dev Patel and the kids were fantastic and AR Rahman's score is of the rare kind that lifts the overall quality of a picture. Hans Zimmer's score for The Dark Knight is another example. If anybody deserves an award for Slumdog, Rahman does. Anil Kapoor was a bit loud - in the film and at the Golden Globes. Reports also say he has developed a clipped accent overnight.

There was a matter-of-factness in the narration. It was authoritative story telling, the kind that respects a viewer's time and intelligence. I find that missing from Indian movies, where the emphasis is not on story-telling but on star actors.

But is the film worth the hype? I don't think so. Would I put it on my Films To Watch Before You Die list? No.

Another thing I don't understand is why some Indians choose to rubbish the film as a westerner's take on Indian poverty. The last time I checked, the story was a perfectly Indian one. Danny Boyle's team only made a film out of it, and a pretty good one at that. I'd endorse it whole-heartedly.



Jai Ho!

I looked around for the lyrics to Slumdog Millionaire's soundtrack and I was appalled by the search results. So I asked the wife to help me transcribe the lyrics to Jai Ho. We obviously couldn't understand the bits in the foreign languages so we left them out. Here are the lyrics. If you spot mistakes, please leave a comment. I'll update this with a credit line.

Jai ho! [x4]

Aaja aaja jind-e-shamiyaane ke tale
Aaja zari wale nile aasmaan ke tale

Jai ho [x2]

Aaja aaja jind-e-shamiyaane ke tale
Aaja zari wale nile aasmaan ke tale

Jai ho [x2]

Jai ho [x8]

Ratti ratti sacchi maine jaan gawaai hai
Nach nach koylo pe raat bitaai hai

Akhiyo ki neend maine phookho se uda di
Gin gin taare maine ungli jalaayi hai

Aaja aaja jind-e-shamiyaane ke tale
Aaja zari wale nile aasmaan ke tale

Jai ho [x4]

Jai ho [x8]

Chakh le, haan chakh le
Yeh raat shahad hai

Chakh le
Rakh le
Aa dil hai, dil aakhri hadd hai

Rakh le, kaala kaala kaajal tera
Koi kaala jaadu hai na

Kaala kaala kaajal tera
Koi kaala jaadu hai na

Aaja aaja jind-e-shamiyaane ke tale
Aaja zari wale nile aasmaan ke tale

Jai ho [x2]

Jai ho [x5]

Kab se, haan kab se
Jo lab pe ruki hai

Keh de
Keh de
Haan keh de, ab aankh jhuki hai

Keh de, aisi aisi roshan aankhein
Roshan dono heerein hain kya?

Aaja aaja jind-e-shamiyaane ke tale
Aaja zari wale nile aasmaan ke tale

Jai ho [x8]

In Hindi

जय हो! [x ४]

आजा आजा जिंद-ऐ-शामिआने के तले
आजा ज़री वाले नीले आसमां के तले

जय हो! [x २]

आजा आजा जिंद-ऐ-शामिआने के तले
आजा ज़री वाले नीले आसमां के तले

जय हो! [x 8]

रत्ती रत्ती सच्ची मैंने जान गवाईं है
नच नच कोयलों पे रात बिताई है

अंखियों की नींद मैंने फूकों से उड़ा दी
गिन गिन तारे मैंने उंगलियाँ जलायीं हैं

आजा आजा जिंद-ऐ-शामिआने के तले
आजा ज़री वाले नीले आसमां के तले

जय हो! [x 4]

जय हो! [x 8]

चख ले, हाँ चख ले
यह रात शहद है

चख ले, रख ले
आ दिल है, दिल आखरी हद है

रख ले, काला काला काजल तेरा
कोई काला जादू है ना

काला काला काजल तेरा
कोई काला जादू है ना

आजा आजा जिंद-ऐ-शामिआने के तले
आजा ज़री वाले नीले आसमां के तले

जय हो! [x 2]

जय हो! [x 5]

कब से, हाँ कब से
जो लब पे रुकी है

कह दे, कह दे
हाँ कह दे, अब आँख झुकी है

कह दे, ऐसी ऐसी रोशन आँखें
रोशन दोनों हीरें हैं क्या?

आजा आजा जिंद-ऐ-शामिआने के तले
आजा ज़री वाले नीले आसमां के तले

जय हो! [x 8]

Pichle Saat Dinon Mein - Rock On!! - Lyrics

I have a new favourite song. It is titled Pichle Saat Dinon Mein, and it's from the film Rock On!!

Don't blame me for those ugly exclamation marks; that's how the film was named.

Anyway, here's the uber-cool music video.



And here are the lyrics. Sing along!

Meri laundry ka ek bill
Ek aadhi padhi novel

[Chorus]

Ek ladki ka phone number
Mere kaam ka ek paper

[Chorus]

Mere taash se heart ka king
Mera ek chandi ka ring
Pichle saat dinon mein maine khoya

Kabhi khud pe hasa mai or
Kabhi khud pe roya

[Chorus x2]

Present mili ek ghadi
Pyaari thi mujhe badi

[Chorus]

Meri jeb Mary Jane ka ek packet*
Meri denim ki jacket

Do one-day match ke passes
Mere naye sunglasses
Pichle saat dinon mein maine khoya

Kabhi khud pe hasa mai or
Kabhi khud pe roya

[Guitar solo]

Kaise bhooloon saatvaan jo din aaya
Kisi ne tumse ek party mei milwaya
Kaisa pal tha jis pal maine tumko pehli baar dekha tha

Hum jo mile pehli baar
Maine jaana kya hai pyaar
Maine hosh bhi khoya, dil bhi khoya

Kabhi khud pe hasa mai or
Kabhi khud pe roya

[Chorus x2]

Maine pichle saat dinon mei yeh sab hai khoya

I saw the film this weekend and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Farhaan Akhtar may not cut it as a singer but his vocals work in the context of the story, which is about an amateur rock band called Magik.

* Thanks Anon, for the correction.

The best music of 2007

2007 is coming to an end. Thought I’d list the best songs I’ve heard this year. Note that these are songs/album I liked, not just songs which were released this year.

Songs
Sappy ^[video] by Nirvana. What I've Done ^[video] by Linkin Park.

Sappy, it turns out, dates back to 1987. But I hadn't heard it till recently.

Linkin Park's Minutes To Midnight was a digression from their last two albums, which were characterised by LP's style of building up the intensity to a point where the song explodes. That style was missing in this album. Needless to say I didn't like it as much as I liked Hybrid Theory and Meteora.

Albums
Life In A Metro, especially Alvida ^[video]. Metro is by far the most impresive OST I've heard in a long, long time.

Sliver by Nirvana. Some of these songs are so good, you wonder how they hadn't made it to any of Nirvana's studio albums.

People I'd like to listen to less
Shreya Ghosal and James [of Alvida] fame. Not because I dislike them, but because I liked them so much, I hope they are choosy about their work.

People I've tagged
Illuzon, Rachna, Vijayendra.

Oooooooooooh...

Give me a peek
Give me a peek
Give me a peek
Give me a peek
One time come come come come come.
One time come come come come come.
One time come come come come come.
One time come come come come come.

This completely makes my day!