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malliman having a good time
at DEMF 2007, Detroit
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As
a kid growing up in India, I was fortunate enough to
have parents who enjoyed listening to music and who
let me have at it with the record player and the reel-to-reel.
A SANYO mono cassette player was off-limits
as it was what my parents listened to music on (sigh!).
The music on those 33's/45's
and spools was a mix of sometimes familiar tunes from
Hindi films of the 50's and 60's (my dad's favorites),
at other times strange yet haunting tunes like Mexican
mariachi band music and Hugo
Montenegro's Western Film Themes. There
were legendary playback singers and musicians such as Rafi,
Hemant Kumar, Asha Bhonsle, Geeta Dutt, SD Burman,
and son RD - a doyen of funk in Indian cinema. |
There
was also 'Western music' - The Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel,
Neil Diamond, Santana... music
from the 60's and 70's passed on to me by parents
and their friends. Hush
and One More Rainy
Day (from Deep Purple: Singles
A's and B's, my first rock album) are
songs that got etched into my memory at an early age. This
exposure to a wide variety of music, coupled with the funk
and disco themed music that dominated the filmi music
of the 70's and early 80's was probably what started my
lifelong affair with music. It's a pity that so few of
those wonderful records from childhood have survived the
conditions of time and harsh treatment suffered at my hands.
With
hardly any TV growing up - there was one government-run
TV channel (broadcast hours 6am-10pm) with shows like I
Love Lucy reruns from the 50's, BBC's
Wild Planet on Sunday mornings, Chitrahaar (a
primetime Saturday evening program featuring Bollywood
film hits), and the bulk of programming devoted to
farmer-friendly shows that discussed stuff such as
protecting the cotton crop from Bol
weevils and the optimal harvest time for wheat.
In fact, color TV's were a novelty in our neighborhood
in Delhi as recently as 1980. This left plenty of
time to listen to music and twiddling the dials on
my shortwave radio to tune into English language
broadcasts such as Voice
of America and
BBC. Live shows and concerts were
also in perpetual drought. My first concert was in Delhi
in 1988 when the Amnesty
International Tour featuring Youssou N'Dour,
Tracy Chapman, Peter Gabriel, Sting and Bruce Springsteen
rocked the Indian capital for a dusk to dawn show.
I guess when it rains it pours! My next show was six
years later - Jethro Tull in Bangalore in 1993.
Fast-forward
to 1999, when I get to Madison, Wisconsin where I soon
start catching up for lost time. WIthin my first few
months in town, I had been to see The Flaming Lips
tour The Soft Bulletin at
The Barrymore and Yo La Tengo play songs from And
Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out at the
Regent Annex. I grooved to Richie Hawtin spin at The
Cardinal Bar. Those shows were the turning point and
there was no looking back! |
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On
the Platter (Vinyl in rotation) :
Radiohead - In
Rainbows (2007)
Calexico - Feast of Wire (2003)
Music from/ Motion Picture - I'm Not There (2007)
Chet Baker - Once Upon
A Summertime (1980)
Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself
Inside Out (2000)
Ahmad Jamal - Sun
Set (Live at the Pershing) (1976)
The Sea and Cake - Everybody (2007)
Muddy Waters - Folk Singer (1959)
Billie Holliday - The First Verve Sessions (1976)
Nick Drake - Fruit Tree (Pink Moon, Bryter
Layter)
Oscar Peterson - Plays for Lovers (1969)
Cat Power - Jukebox (2008)
Matthew Dear - Backstroke (2006)
The Bombay Connection - Funk from Bollywood
Action Thrillers 1977-1984 (2006)
Jazzanova - Blue Note Trip (2005)
On the Tray (CD's
in play):
Congotronics Vol 1. (2007)
Ry Cooder/Manuel Galban - Mambo Sinuendo (2003)
Grant Lee Phillips - Mobilize (2001)
The National - Boxer (2007)
Holly Golightly & The Brokeoffs - You Can't
Buy A Gun When You're Crying (2007)
Indian Ocean - Desert Rain (Live) (1997)
Pale Young Gentlemen (2007)
The Sea and Cake - The Biz (1994)
Grant Lee Buffalo - Fuzzy (1993)
Mercury Rev - Deserter's Songs (1998)
DJ Kicks - Annie (2005)
Toubab Krewe (2005)
Garcia, Grisman and Rice - The Pizza Tapes (2000)
Baaba Maal - Missing
you
(2001)
Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002)
Ali Farka Toure & Toumani Diabate - In the
Heart of the Moon (2005) |
Settled in Madison since,
I have been busy building up my collection of CD's and records
and indulging myself in my hi-fi hobby. My wife
calls it a disease/drug, depending on the money/time spent
and my general uselessness around the house. I have a preference
for the 'tube' sound, hence vintage vacuum tubes abound in
my amplifier, pre-amp and yes, my CD player.
The hi-fi:
Impulse Lali horn loaded speakers, made in England, circa
1993; Rega P25 turntable with RB600 tonearm, made in England,
Dynavector 10x4 II cartridge, made in Japan; Ah! Njoe Tjoeb
CD Player, modified in Holland; Magus MFA C tube pre-amplifier
with phono stage, made in U.S.A. circa 1992; 'Silk' modified
Dynaco SCA 35 tube amplifier, circa 1964; Rega MIra 3 solid
state integrated amp; homebrewed Cardas speaker cables; WireWorld
Eclipse III interconnects; assorted power cables, tubes.
I
am also a DJ-in-the-making. Though I have been playing
music at house parties ever since high school, it was
only in 2005 when I first began spinning records at parties
and venues. 2007 was the year when I got my hands dirty
on the dual-deck Technics 1200 with an FX mixer (courtsey
my friend and DJ-in-the-making Tim)... Serato Scratch
Mix next? My taste in DJ music spans genres though I
am partial to Afrobeat, funk, and Detroit Electro Techno.
Jazz, soul, groove, blues and 80's also get a fair share
of disc play.
Upcoming Shows
Shows I have been to recently or planning to catch:
Oct
11 Bassnectar @ High Noon Saloon
Oct 14 Toots and the Maytals @ The Barrymore
Theater
Oct 20 Drive By Truckers @ The Barrymore
Theater
Oct 25 Matthew Dear/Mobius Band @ Cafe
Montmartre
Oct 26 Global Drum Project @ The Overture Center
Nov 08 Cracker/Jason Isbell @ High Noon Saloon
Nov 13 Neil Young
- Chrome Dreams Tour @ Chicago Theater
Dec
05 Youssou N'Dour
@ Wisconsin Union Theater
Dec
13 Asiko @ Regent Annex
Dec
18 Marla Hansen, Pale Young Gentlemen
@ Cafe Montmartre
Jan 24 Carolina
Chocolate Drops @ High Noon Saloon
Feb
07 Dark Star Orchestra
@ The Barrymore
Feb
12 Mark Olson @ Cafe Montmartre
Feb
21 Galactic
@ Majestic Theater
Feb
27 New Orleans Jazz Orchestra
@ The Overture Center
Feb
29 The Black Lips @ Mad City Music Exchange
Mar
08 DJ Derrick Carter
@ Majestic Theater
Shows/Posts/Links
to Reviews and Photos from a few of my favorites:
Some links to Amazon.com for camera gear I use:
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The lens I'd love to have!
I have been using a Nikon DX 18-135mm, 3.5-5.6G
for the past two years and love it. |
More
Gigs, more pics!
After using 2GB cards forever, these make life easier at festival shoots |
Batteries
needed!
Always carry a spare charge |
The updated model (with video) of the camera I use.
I like my Nikon D80. Some pet peeves, which I think this new model takes care of. |
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Contact
me: Ankur(@)madisonmusicreview.com
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