Playing sets at the Skylark Lounge and The Wanch to folks that really listened. Sharing stage with Bobby Taylor (producer, the Jackson 5) and his band. Connecting with a whole bunch of new people. Walking the narrow streets, packed in wall-to-wall with skyscrapers. Eating REAL Chinese food. Dumpling Yuan. Nha Trang. And buying the bull at Wooloo Mooloo (that was one pricey steak). It’s a blur; a real doozy of a defocus. And things have never been clearer!

Got to go back. Play. Play. Play.

I have returned!

See pics here

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Driving to Queens’ (our rehearsal space) yesterday, playing Charlie Byrd’s So Danco Samba in the car, windows down because it’s quite pleasant, even with the smoke. Blue Maruti pulls up alongside at the Vellara junction lights, single occupant, peaceful-looking gent with an odd hat. Suddenly turns to me and says – “It’s so odd to hear good music coming from a car these days… all this boom-chick nonsense is what you usually get! What you playing?” I smile and say “Charlie Byrd!”; he then goes – “You know I saw him live once in Chennai I think.. many years ago – he was GREAT!” Boom, we bonded on that. The lights change and we’re still discussing who plays drums with Charlie – I mistakenly thought it was Joe Byrd for some reason (and was instantly corrected – Joe plays bass).

See the Maruti briefly at the next intersection again, but then we’ve smiled and waved and gone our separate ways.

Today, driving to Queens again, this time with the windows up. A spanking new Fiat Punto (nice car, btw) Regn Z 1906 hangs behind me all the way from BTM till the Museum Road lights.. pulls up alongside and the driver, gent about my age perhaps, ready for the working day ahead, says something to me – rolled down the window and he’s going – “I’ve got YOUR music in my car!” I crack a grin and ask him what’s playing, and he pumps up the volume till I hear Holy Jose come blasting my way. What can I say? “You’ve got good taste!” is all I can manage. Smile and wave, and go our separate ways again.

The smallest things can make my day these days.

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We had a blast. Lots of new material road-tested, some back for retreading in the shop, some good to go…

Was initially skeptical about my tone through the ubiquitous Marshall DFX amp, but was pleasantly surprised by what eventually emerged. Had to use the FX return and set the X3 Live to ‘Combo Pwramp’, but then it worked fine. Nice stage at this Cafe – much better than B’lore and Mumbai, sound also set up very well.

Missed our usual date with Karim’s for lunch (followed by usual post-gluttony stupor) – next time, I guess.

Off to Hyderabad next, hopefully. See ya’ll.

The post Hard Rocking Delhi appeared first on Thermal and a Quarter (TAAQ).

Image from www.fromthevaultradio.org. Thanks.

I remember the first time I heard about him, his name was pronounced ‘Lay Paul’ to me, and it was a while before I figured he wasn’t French, and his name didn’t mean, literally, ‘The Paul’. The next thing I heard was how he asked the doctors to set his right arm (shattered in an accident) in a permanent guitar-playing position. This was good stuff – a tribal rite that impressed the hell out of a 16-year-old wannabe guitar player. Endurance of great pain and a deliberate deformation just so one could keep playing? Wow. This guy was way cool.

I didn’t know about his contributions to multitrack recording and effects (delay, reverb, etc) till I started mucking about with recording myself. But I did know that without the Les Paul Log, I would probably be playing a very different kind of electric guitar. For so many of us who believe we are defined by the instruments we play, that’s really something.

The Gibson Les Paul, much like the Fender Stratocaster, is one of the most enduring images of modern rock and pop music. It’s a quintessential ‘electric guitar’. With it, you can change the world. With it, you can wail, growl, cry, scream, beg, and love. At least, that’s how it still feels.

I heard about his passing just after a gig. A good gig, I might add, where we felt we’d played our hearts out. A gig where I didn’t play my Les Paul guitar, but where I played an electric guitar nonetheless, which means some tribute was paid to his genius. I think that many other musicians around the world would have heard the news in very similar circumstances. And I think most of them would have thought or said something like “Thanks Les! You lived well. Have a good one at that big electric gig up there!”

Thanks, Les. Took a while to learn how to say your name right, but to me, you’ll still be ‘The Paul’.

The post The Paul appeared first on Thermal and a Quarter (TAAQ).

Got there (Fireflies is quite a ways out of town) just in time for the first Guru of the night, John Anthony. The Fireflies amphitheater was already looking pretty full, and despite the ubiquitous blue tarps over the stage, sound console and speaker stacks, the ambience was everything Fireflies is known for. The old Ficus religiosa that forms the stage backdrop was as entrancing as ever, dreaming quietly in the intermittent drizzle.

I’ve heard John play before (he’s even guested on an early-Rzhude acoustic album called 4/4). On stage with him that night was Fayaz Khan on Sarangi, and Darbuka Shiva on percussion; everything else was coming from some sort of computer/groovebox/sampler/gizmo. It’s always great to watch John play, his Carnatic-twisted licks blurring with rock distraction, but somehow the mechanical rhythms and loops over which he played diluted things a bit for me. He also seemed to be having some small trouble with his tone, which tended towards muddy on the faster passages. The compositions were quite fun though, and I liked the gentle acoustic pieces best.

Ran up to get some local chow before settling down again to watch Amit Heri and Sanjay Divecha. Had heard so much about the latter, and was really looking forward to this. Two guys, two Godin nylon-strings (which brand caused a pal some confusion – “hey look, they’re playing Go… Go… Goblin guitars!”) and some great chops – couldn’t be better. Starting with a truly elegant version of Eleanor Rigby, the duo proceeded to defy the damp (it had begun to pour) and pick their way through each other’s tunes with a real sense of joy. That’s the only word I can use. I’ve seldom seen Amit happier on stage, as each egged the other on to greater heights. It was, for the most part, a wonderfully restrained, thoughtful set. Another Beatle track showed up delightfully mangled – Get Back. Sanjay is a really expressive, lyrical player, and I’m glad I finally got to see him play. Amit showed off some his famous non-linear licks, but I somehow preferred his more restrained playing that night.

Up next was the first ‘band’ of the night, with axeman Derek Julien at the helm. Playing an unabashedly 80s Carvin, Derek had Dwight Pattison on bass and I’m sorry I didn’t catch the names of anyone else in the band. Nice tone, decent instrumentals, but it was that time of the night when the sandman gets busy, and I was having some trouble staying fully alert. Decided to walk about a bit, and bumped into various friends and bookends.

Got back in just as Vikramjit ‘Tuki’ Bannerjee was getting on; with Jeff Rikh (Jeff Rocks! Er, Jeff Rikhs!) on drums and others from the Krosswindz line-up, I figured this would be the real band of the night and was not mistaken. From the first note, you could tell this was a bunch that had been playing together for donkey’s years, and that rhythm section was just magic. Tuki – well, he had the best tone of the night, a singing, stinging, growling, jangling, mangling Strat sound that had me riveted. He’s a bold bold player, always out front, effortless bashing away, and with a charmingly sloppy stage act to boot. ‘Tuki’ is just such an apt name, I thought… he’d be in the midst of a blazing solo, step over his beloved GT-5 – and into a spot not covered by stage lighting (resulting in a mild scatter of strange notes); step back, get his cable stuck under his effects and yank it out of the guitar – twice I think – and still stay completely sanguine! His version of Jeff Beck’s Cause We Ended as Lovers was stellar. Overall, his performance was, well, ‘incendiary’ (remember Almost Famous?).

Decided to split (it was 3 am) before the big jam at the end. A great night. Should do it again sometime…

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Bruce at Kyra

Kyra is the kind of place Bangalore needs. A venue planned around performance, acoustically designed, with a good-sized stage, appropriate sound installation, lights… They call it a ‘dinner theatre’, and it’s a bit odd on stage at first; dinner tables are set right up against it, and the audience is seated in vertical rows so they can turn a few degrees to watch. But it sounds good in there. The ‘atmosphere’, we’re sure, will follow soon enough. And by the number of acts performing there already, that shouldn’t take too long.

Sound check was early this time around – we were supposed to do the Live Gig at the Music Strip in Cubbon Park in the afternoon, in memory of Sunbeam Motha. Straight away, we know this is going to be a good gig – there’s a nice drum kit, everything works, and it sounds good even without the warm bodies of your audience to soak up those frequencies. You know how it is sometimes in these indoor gigs – soundcheck is one big boomy waffly affair with random howls and suspicious wolves (notes, that is). But here, everything is nice and tight. You feel like digging in and playing.

Had some trouble with the acoustic guitar – really need to a) invest in one with a kickass pickup system or b) somehow get said kickass pickup system and install in current axe. Anyway, manage to get it sounding ok by bypassing all the floor gizmos and plugging right into the board.

Trek to Cubbon after soundcheck to find everyone rather sodden with rain-grief. One brave band manages to belt out one song standing in the freshening drizzle. Interestingly, there was a blue tarp being held over the dry drummer, who, not being plugged into anything with electrons buzzing through it, wasn’t in much danger of said electrons fizzing up his nostrils or anything. The guitar player and bassist dripped – but walked off unscathed. Kudos! Needless to say, that Gig was called off before things got any Live-lier. Hope to play there again another day.

Back to Kyra – we start just after 8 (nice minty chocolates, those), with our brand new version of How Can I Get Your Groove. Nice crowd in there – can see some regulars, new faces… and they’re singing along. Do our still-cooking version of It’s Probably Me and jump into all the brand new stuff – Jazz Yuppies, The Song, Mighty Strange – and all of it is going down well, I say!

Rzhude and Rajeev

Pony up for the acoustic set and actually manage to pull off Andy McKee’s Drifting without completely mangling it. Rzhude also steps up and does some old favourites before getting in an acoustic version of Brigade St. Second set has all the usual suspects – Jupiter Café (The Work Song cropped up again in the jam) Chameleon, Simply Be (which went down really well) with grand set-closer Motorbyckle. Gave away our free This Is It CDs for all those designated drivers, signed a few. Good gig! And the food is pretty good too…

Photos courtesy Akhil Gupta

The post TAAQ Live @ Kyra, May 17th 2009 appeared first on Thermal and a Quarter (TAAQ).

Bruce was quoted in DNA today. Excerpts:

On the low turnout:

If you think about the way our country has been run, in the last few years at least, there are far more spectacular ‘failures’ that deserve mention. We believe that the campaign is a success that is still in the making.

On the comments of certain leaders that the campaign was a failure:

The assignment of blame is perhaps our nation’s most absorbing pastime; there’s always someone else responsible for your problems.

On voting for the first time:

It felt good to use the finger. I can’t say it was the best candidate who got my vote, but in the context of the ‘big picture’ maybe it was the right choice!

More

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Landed in Jakarta 3rd afternoon. Heard it was rainy in these parts, but perhaps they were taking it a bit too far – it was actually raining inside our Air Asia Boeing from KL to Jakarta (last leg). Greeted at airport by the very friendly Mike from Java Jazz, holding a big ‘TAAQ’ sign. Helped through paperwork; all the baggage shows up – it’s a great day already!

taaq with prasanna @ java jazz 09

The Sultan Hotel used to be the Hilton (that rhymes – if you’re Mark Knopfler) and it’s swankus maximus, so all’s well again! The JJF folks are amazing, really friendly, really efficient, and really hard working. Have lunch at the Peacock Café here, and we are immediately hit with the realization that we’re not getting back without carrying a few extra pounds. If there was ever a buffet to die for, This Is It.

Spend the rest of the day bumping into (name dropping coming up!) Dave Weckl, Mike Stern etc, while 40,000 odd folks queue up to get tickets for the festival. Yes, 40,000.

TAAQ jams with Prasanna

4th morn, meet Prasanna on his way in – we’re supposed to jam tonight at our first pre-festival warm-up gig here, at the Airman Planet Lounge. Do a small ‘Glaswegian’ practice (if you followed our UK tour, you know what that means) in Prasanna’s room – fix up to play new track Grab Me and the staple Brigade St. Nice vibe! Nice PRS axe too.

Brigade Street goes to Indonesia

Gig starts 10:30 pm, no soundcheck; launch into Sunset Man, Look at Me, etc. Good vibes from the crowd so far… Prasanna comes in on the last two tracks and puts his distinctive stamp on them, all right. Finish up with a fully jammed out Brigade St and our first gig at Java Jazz is done… two more to go, sowatchthisspaceetc!

The post Rites from the Road – TAAQ @ Java Jazz 09 appeared first on Thermal and a Quarter (TAAQ).

For those who didn’t make it, we played ‘unplugged’ at Le Rock, Brigade Street on Friday the 18th. We took some electric guitars along but couldn’t use ‘em. Playing the Turner steel-string, I had two dratted cables coming out – the soundhole pickup and the saddle transducer – so I was twice plugged actually! We don’t really own an acoustic bass, so Rzu was on his new Ibanez 5-string as usual. I guess Rajeev was the only true ‘acoustic’ player for the night.
There was a darn good crowd – the place was packed to the rafters. Lots of old friends and bookends.

Started with some solo Pink interpretations of Floyd tunes.. important songs these are. Haven’t lost their bite in 30 or 40 years. The Vocalist Live 4 did an amazing job really – doing 3-part harmonies on Goodbye Blue Sky alone was quite a trip! I could see quite a few surprised faces looking around for the hidden backup singers! Band came in and we jammed into Brigade St. – not very often we get to play that tune on Brigade street. Straight away we knew this was a special night – you know how it is when the band nails breaks on completely improvised jams together: playing with one mind, the trio merged into a uno magnifico stereo mono entity… great fun. The wah-wah worked great on the aforementioned double-plugged acoustic. Our song for world AIDS day, Keep the Promise, followed and got some folks singing.
Played through a few newer tracks, including the brand new blues Grab Me, Simply Be (which we dedicated to old friend  and fan Suresh Raju, off to Prague, following the Sun), Origami (which everyone knows now, somehow) and so on. Did some Cat Stevens as well. Thought we’d wrap up with the new Won’t Stop, (for all the artists who shouldn’t), but ended up doing two encores.

Super fun gig overall. Thanks to the peoples at the Le Rock and everybody else that made it possible.  Honestly, we didn’t go into this with a great deal of positive energy – especially after doing a spot with Radio Murky, er, Mirchi, that involved two 5-second clips of TAAQ songs (“can’t play any more, you see we are regional channel..” ); after finding that Skinny Alley was playing the same night at Opus; after discovering we couldn’t have Vinay, our usual sound engineer at the gig; and after meeting a big galoot outside the pub supposedly covering the event for Mirchi with a ‘live-feed’ – said galoot was standing alongside a 10-foot promo cutout of the band with “Thermal And A Quarter” emblazoned in flaming foot-high letters, our mugs badly photoshopped alongside… and the first thing he asks us is – “So, which band are you from?” Gadzooks. All’s well that ends well I suppose.

Will put up some pics soon as I have ‘em.

Cheerio!

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Ha. Not quite, but we made it to page 27, page 37, page 65, page 120, page 156, and page 164. Thass not baaaad… agreed some of those are just mentions, but hey what the heck. This is Rollin’ Stone maaaan.

And now of course, everyone knows the title of the new album, so there’s one extremely well-kept secret OUT of the TAAQ bag. Sigh. And our Web site is just days away from completion… We got nearly a four-star review, so it’s ok.

All you lovely people out there who are still waiting and not totally pissed off with our sluggish pace this year, don’t lose heart! We just want it to be perfect that’s all. And while you wait, you can buy a copy of Rolling Stone magazine and let us know if you find the Words “Thermal And A Quarter”, “TAAQ” or Bruce, Rzhude or Rajeev anywhere else. Busy busy busy lot, aren’t you.

Thanks to the Rolling Stone people for all of that – it’s an honour! And this will be a collector’s thing just a few years from now.

Today page 37, tomorrow the world!

Ciao.

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