Pure Class

with reference to the previous post entitled ‘TCBB’, please find attached the official appointment letter for your inspection (click for larger image).

above and beyond the technical prowess (or lack thereof) of the individuals in any band you play in, i think the most important element that should be in place is the ability to get along with each other (ask Andy Summers).  i’d like to take this opportunity to express the privilege that is all mine to play in a band with such passionate, witty, calm and easy-going blokes; who know when to take the piss and when to take the music seriously.  and kick-ass musicians to boot, if i may add.

cheers, mates.  you’re making me look like a whiny bicth for complaining about my status in the band through my previous post.

well played, boys.  well played.  ;-)

TCBB

played a gig at this really swanky, post-modern, fusion-istic, chillout restaurant & bar last tuesday called Daikanyama along Jalan Changkat Bukit Bintang. i have nothing but good things to say about the establishment, its owner and personnel there. check ‘em out if you can!

but this isn’t a food blog.

last tuesday was just something me and Asrif put together particularly for that gig – a duo called Flattops. it was an acoustic set as part of their ‘RAW’ series which saw us cover a lot of material that we spliced into three sets. the first one consisted of new, fresh-ier material from the likes of John Mayer, Coldplay et al. the second set was a walk down memory lane for us, in which we performed (acoustically, no less) songs which we grew up listening to – the Oasises and Soundgardens and Nirvanas and such. the final set was when we came round full circle and played the stuff we actually play now and was more rooted in the blues from the likes of Claptone, SRV, Hendrix, The Beatles, etc. we even had the privilege of having KRW (Kenny Ray Wong) who jammed with us on Pride & Joy from his seat in amongst the crowd. i can’t believe that crazy fella because he outplayed us both, with his guitar um-mic’ed. yes, read that again. and weep. the man broke a string on the guitar as well. what heavy touch. what a monster.

now this week, i’ll be playing again on wednesday with the band i’m currently in (in all honesty, i haven’t actually received an official letter saying that i’m in the band, and i kinda substituted the old guitar player, so i don’t know if my spot is permanent. but anyway…). this post is sort of to whore the performance around in hopes that the lot of you (yes, all three of you) would come and if not to watch us play, just chillout and drink. bring along some mates and use this as an excuse to catch up. meanwhile, we’ll entertain you with some blues and assorted love songs while you have a ball with the people you love. that’s what happened last week, and i don’t imagine it’d be any different this time around.

so Upper Deck at Daikanyama, along Jalan Changkat Bukit Bintang, on the 4th of November, first song at about 9pm. owh, and if you have the itch to come up and jam with us, or alone, feel free.

hope to see you there!

We ask for too much…

i was trawling YouTube tonight, trying to cop some of the more eclectic phrasing ideas by the millions of YouTube guitarists the world over.  but everytime i hear the word ‘phrasing’, i find myself gravitating towards Robben Ford.  yeahhh, say what you will – he ain’t traditional blues (“correct”), he sometimes gets lost and gets ’shreddy’ (“true that”), his saturated, compressed tone is nothing to shout about (“yep”) and he will never be big enough to start a fashion following with that fabulously appalling ponytail of his (“and thank god for that!”).  but when it comes to ‘phrasing’ and ‘colour’ (not in terms of tone, but in terms of sound) you’d be hard pressed to find another guitarist that could hold a candle next to this man.

let us be clear that i aint a great guitarist.  heck, i’m barely even good.  so i won’t insult you by talking out of my behind on how he achieves his phrasing by utilising those exotic scales that only him and probably two other people in the world have knowledge of.  he’s the kind of guitarist i put on just to watch and be blown away by.  the thought of never being impressed by any other guitarist sends chills down my spine.  that’s like, spending a weekend at The Playboy Mansion and returning to your siht job on the Monday.  i don’t even wanna think about it.

now, this is the point i’m trying to make.

maybe i have low expectations thus easily impressed, but i don’t understand how out of 25 votes, his cumulative rating on this particular video is ‘4.5′-ish stars out of a maximum ‘5′.

that means, and wait for it, there are some guitarists on YouTube who rated him a ‘4′ or less.  i bet Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Eric Johnson are too busy playing guitar to find time to stumble upon this obscure clip.  Larry Carlton, Joe Pass and Pat Metheny are jazzcats, so i doubt they know how to work the internet altogether.  and the last time i checked, Jimi Hendrix and SRV are still dead.

so who in hell is rating this dude a ‘4′?!! people like me?  i shudder to even think of the possibility.

for what it’s worth, Mr. Ford, you can come on YouTube and strum a G, C and D in the first position.  i’d still rate you a ‘5′ and that’s a promise.  brilliant, brilliant musician.

Politik

… or as Radiohead aptly put it, ‘politricks’.

i’m going to rant for a bit.  so just hit the ‘x’ button on your browser if you’d please.  i would myself.

my only attempt at a ‘blog’ prior to this one manifested itself in the form of ’smutslander’ – a basic pop ‘blog’ that was meant to test the boundaries of freedom of speech here in this country.  the concept of the whole thing was to take the Malaysian icon of the moment, report on their goings on, glorify the issue with a healthy dose of slanderous elements and deliver the final product wrapped in comic paper.  its first entry was on Fazura’s club scuffle and upon pressing the ‘publish’ button, i naturally whored it around to my close mates.  unfortunately(?), after a lady friend of mine cried at how ‘mean’ the whole tone of the piece was, i pulled it off the air an hour later.

i know.  pussy, right?

but then this guy comes along, blabs on and on about his far-right ideas through his writing which i would consider demeaning to anyone with an IQ above 70, and is still regarded as somewhat of a ‘political activist’.  i appreciate sound ideas.  i appreciate those ideas being conveyed through impeccable writing.  his has neither.  what a wanker.

i have to qualify that i know siht about politics.  well, maybe better than some.  i don’t pledge allegiance to any political party.  i’m more basic, y’know?  the kind of guy who would like to listen to all parties first before forming an opinion.  alah, you know the type lah - the sensible kind. 

coincidentally, i have had certain people come up to me and say, ‘dude, why don’t you write properly, man?  about issues, y’know?  give up all this guitar junk, and just write about something that has an impact on something.  i find it rather bland, and selfish, that you prefer to write about your own self-indulgent hobby when you can at least put out some ideas and opinions on relevant issues that’s going on in our country today.’  all i have to say is, these people (all two of ‘em) should go slow with the ganja, yo.

anyways, as an homage to the brilliance that was ’smutslander’, i shall exit this entry with a quote which, though slightly modified, is lifted from the second and final entry of that discreetly influential, yet short-lived, ‘blog’.

—

I came across a saying that went something like keep your words sweet, just in case you have to eat it later. I’ll keep it sweet, Akhlaken.  Just for you.

“Two words, man.  Tun Mutahir.”

Gladys

Since we’re talking about guitars, I might as well post this up.

This is nothing ’special’ for the purist.  It’s a Partscaster – Warmoth 1-piece swamp ash body, Fender ‘62 American Vintage Reissue rosewood neck, Lindy Fralin Blues Specials, Fender electronics, hardware and plastics; and finished off with good ol’ nitro-cellulose lacquer over the Fiesta Red.

Since this was a custom-made guitar, it’s like a couture dress (yes, ‘dress’) tailored to hug every nook and cranny of my imperfectly formed body.

You may beg to differ, though.  And that is alright, too.