Dissonance

A few months back I came across this band Anata (from Sweden). Now I don't usually post here about random bands I am following (ok ok but not that frequently) but this I had to. The music is so fresh and original, which is so rare these days. If I were to classify it, I'd probably say they are progressive technical death metal. However, this is not why they are really unique as a band. It's the dissonant harmonies they use in creating complex song structures. Two different guitars playing different arpeggio riffs in dissonance creating an unsettling beautiful melody. Listen to downward spiral into madness and you'll know what I mean.

Its not that unusual to find dissonant chords in metal, especially when we are talking about black or death metal. However, creating something as original and complex as this using dissonance is awe-inspiring. The pounding double bass drumming is typical tech death mixed perfectly. There is nothing really I would like to add not because there is nothing more to but because the best music is the hardest to describe. Besides it will never do justice to the music. The only way to understand it is to listen to it.

I bet you are wondering "What's the catch?". Well music this extreme and complex isn't that easily accessible. So you have to give it multiple listens even though you will probably not like it. There is a reason why the most talented bands and musicians aren't famous.

Hypocrisy

"I am a victim of hypocrisy"

I am sure you are familiar with the above words. This line is used regularly in common parlance so much so that its almost a cliche now. However, cliche or no cliche everyone has either felt it (in a particularly dejected state) or seen others going through the same phase. Ever wondered why this is so common? Because of our own nature obviously. Man by nature is selfish and so has a tendency for self deception. There is no selfless act-no selfless altruism. In performing an act of selflessness one looks for respect and gratification which convinces you that you are a good human being in spite of your previous actions. This maybe a conscious or subconscious act but its there.

The selfish nature of man demands self deception. One does not want to show ones true self but instead the image which is well accepted by the society, for ones own selfish gains or merely because the real self is too iconoclastic by the normal accepted standards. In any case one does not want to be ostracized and so the portrayal and the hypocrisy.

Its common knowledge that all (at least 99%) men watch pornography. More than 40% of the internet is nothing but pornography in various forms. But pornography as a profession is still a taboo. Just one blatant example of hypocrisy. Man is a hypocrite. The point is why is it so derogatory.

We are hypocrites accept that! What is the need to feel offended? Why can't anyone proudly accept it? See I accept I am one. Oh wait did I just say I am a hypocrite? Isn't that an antithesis of what a hypocrite should be? So I am not, which again makes me one...
Hmmm guess I'll sign off here.

Introspection

Have you ever been so totally mad at someone or something that you just want to go berserk; just lose it?
Have you ever felt like going on a rampage desecrating everything that comes in between?
Have you ever felt the rush of adrenaline gearing up for a flight or a fight; your face red hot with rage ?
Have you ever felt your blood curdle underneath your skin?
Have you ever felt like venting out all of your pent up frustration and hatred?
Have you ever been in a fight so bad that you shudder to think about it later?
Have you ever..??




Me Neither.

\m/ ... \m/

Its 3:22 in the morning..I just finished watching "METAL: A HEADBANGER'S JOURNEY".Cool Movie.Must Watch.Ok I am done with the review.

Ofcourse this is not about the review,its about the conclusion that Sam Dunn points out at the end:

"Ever since I was 12 years old I had to defend my love for heavy metal against those who say it's a less valid form of music. My answer now is that you either feel it or you don't. If metal doesn't give that overwhelming surge of power that make the hair stand up at the back of your neck, you might never get it, and you know what? That's okay, because judging by the 40,000 metalheads around me we're doing just fine without you."

Also some tit-bits from the movie:

"Sam Dunn: ...Do you have a comment on that?
Necrobutcher (Mayhem): Yeah, I got a comment... FUCK YOU!... Ya know?"

"Nobody wants to be the weird kid, you just end up being the weird kid. You don't know how you ended up getting there."
-Rob Zombie

Ahhhh had to post that..I feel better already.

The Sweet Knight

The new Batman movie was recently released here and in case you don't know its compulsory for us to watch it. Besides since we have vowed that We Will Answer When Duty Shall Call, we obediently went to the multiplex. The whole jaunt turned out to be very "sweet".

We were fortunate enough to sit in front of a group of girls who were pretty well versed with English. The good thing was that they wanted everyone in their vicinity to know about their proficiency. As a result we had to endure non-stop commentary which wasn't even mentioned on the ticket. The best part,however,among the ooohhs and aaahhs was the word SWEET!!! mentioned after every couple of minutes, so much so that when we came out of the cineplex we were wondering which movie did we just see - The Dark Knight or The Sweet Knight.

But as fate would have it we happened to come across the same group of girls the next day in a mall. Payback Time!!
We sneaked up behind them at the food court just as they were ordering and...

1st guy: "dude..What will you have?"
2nd guy: "er...I dunno.Lets have soup."
1st guy: "Which one?Hot 'n' Sour?"
2nd guy: "Nah.Sweet Corn!!"

Murphy's Law...

I just came up with this oh-so-cool name: "ION DISSONANCE" for the metal band I am in the process of forming.
Alas! A Canadian mathcore band of exactly the same name exists. Life's a Bitch.

Bow Down To The GODS

I must admit I used to be an atheist until I happened to come across a band named TOOL. It is kind of ironical as it turns out that the members of the aforementioned band themselves aren't quite impressed by religion. But then again the phenomenal music this quartet creates is nothing short of inducing fanatism. You can certainly dismiss me as a sycophantic Tool fan but after reading this article :).


It is said that the best music is the hardest to describe and I couldn't agree more. Therefore I would conveniently skip raving about the Tool albums, the reviews of which you can find easily on the internet anyway. The purpose of this article wasn't to review the albums in any case. Instead lets embark on a journey frightfully intimidating and awe-inspiring.

For those of you unaware of the Fibonacci series: its a series which has its first two terms as 1 and each subsequent term as the sum of the previous two terms. So the series is 1,1,2,3,5,8,13 and so on. No I am not digressing. Its just that you need to know this small concept before you can grasp what I am trying to convey. The title track of Laterlus is based on the idea of this sequence. At first Lateralus appears to be simply another track about tripping on acid. However on repeated listens one realises its about evolution. Fact is: it is much more than that. The song is the key to decipher the album which contains 13 tracks(13 itself being a Fibonacci number). Just to give you an idea about this immensely complicated work of art sample this: the time signature in the track varies as 9/8,8/8 and 7/8 (987 being a Fibonacci number). This is certainly math metal but much more diverse and complicated than that. It has a drum sequence which progresses in Fibonacci series (1,1,2,3,5,8,13)and then repeats the pattern.Even the lyrics have the same pattern in the syllables. To really experience this you will have to carefully listen to the song.

The song Lateralus has the predominant rant towards the end "spiral out...keep going". Co-incidence?? There is no such thing as co-incidence in the parallel universe of Tool's music. It turns out that the Binet's formula,which gives the value of the nth Fibonacci term, when plotted on the Argand plane forms(hold your breath) a spiral!! For the geeks the formula is :
Fib(n) = 1/√5 [ {( 1+√5)/2}^n - {( 1-√5)/2}^n ]

Here (1+√5)/2 is phi or Φ which is the golden ratio(1.61803399). More about golden ratio and stuff later. The track numbers on the album when arranged,according to the spiral-beginning with the middle track, and listened produce an astounding effect. The apparently random tracks suddenly merge flawlessly with the time signature of the outro of the previous track matching with the intro of the next track. In some cases(like the transition from Schism to Ticks and Leeches)the drum beat is same and progresses mathematically. The effect is mindnumbing. The seemingly noisy meaningless long interludes fit in perfectly,as if they were just waiting to be put in the right place.

Another beauty of an example is the first and only single of the album Schism. The song is structured in 12/8 time signature and divided into 5/8 and 7/8.Can you guess what Maynard chants throughout the song eerily? I know the pieces fit!!!
There is so much more to blabber about. I can just go on and on...But i guess I have bored you enough already. So I guess I'll come up with the sequel to this post some other time.

Trivia: In case you didn't know(obviously you didn't), M.J.Keenan(vocals) went through rigorous curriculum in both Mathematics and English as a student. Now you wonder "no wonder the music is lyrically so cryptic and mathematically so beautiful". Danny Carey(percussions) is well versed(obsessed?)with sacred geometry apart from being one of the most technically proficient drummers ever. Adam Jones(guitars) has done special effects for Terminator 2, Jurassic Park and Predator 2.

P.S.: The music is dark,brooding and cerebral filled with narcotic passages. To say that its deep or complex is a gross understatement. Tool's music can't be classified,it transcends genres. The most you can do is label it : Art Rock,Progressive Metal,Math Metal and so on...

P.P.S.: Maybe now you can guess why my blog is named the way it is named. :D