How Music Matters (to me)

Posted on January 26, 2013 by The Nameless One

Universally accepted addiction, healing medicine, entertainment or simply for passing time – Music. What would have life been without it?

What role does music play in my life? I should say quite a big one. Although I don’t actively ~~blast~~ listen to much music now due to so many things happening, or simply I prefer the quiet more (dam am I growing too old already?) music had a big impact on my life, more than I care to admit.

Anyone who knows me in person/virtually or simply judging by looking at the image above, Linkin Park is my most all time favourite band of all time. Not only they are great musicians but also great human beings. Their music was one of the first I heard when I started listening to music when I was a kid in school, I didn’t have a computer back then and it was limited to tv, radio, CDs, and computers of cousins and my uncle. Not to forget my school. I was very much into the developing internet and doing various crap, learning stuff like HTML, Flash, Photoshop and other minor stuff along the way while at it. Everything changed in ’05 when I got my very own computer at home. The TV slowly became a long lost friend, as I was no longer ‘needed it; for movies, music, and hell since then till today, all ‘TV shows’ are seen by me on my laptop.

Coming to music here, from Linkin Park and very few other classic artists like The Beatles, Eagles, Nirvana (I remember back then the first time I thought they were an Indian band because of the name), Led Zeppelin and some others. I was never into Hindi music or any of the Indian pop simply because most of them were either crap while others I simply couldn’t understand (Hindi) properly.

Music, especially Linkin Park, changed my life completely. I was always the lone-wolf on my own, so that was my salvation (in a manner of speaking). Listening to good music and lyrics calmed the mind and made me think (that happens only when you listen to the good ones and not today’s crap mostly in the name of music). Coming to LP, because of them my interest broadened widely, and contrary to my appearance which looks like I’m the kind into rock and metal, I enjoy listening to many artists from almost all genres of music ranging from rock, metal to even classic, orchestra and especially soundtracks from video games, anime, movies and shows. Anything which sounds good to my ears and head.

Heck, Linkin Park has become a part of my identity today, some even introduce me to others as ‘the Linkin Park guy’ here. I have done a lot in my life directly or indirectly inspired by them. Apart from my 2 blogs, I also co-run Linkin Park India Unlimited, India’s #1 Linkin Park fansite, and have met many amazing people here and around the world all thanks to them. I wasn’t always the awesome person I’m now 😛 and I felt shit about myself hell lot of times before, and these powerful words made me stronger and better person. Or I’d like to think that way.

It saddens me a bit as I’m a member of the official fan club Linkin Park Underground and waiting for over 9 years to see them live now, and probably I’m one of the oldest fans/LPUers who haven’t seen them yet. I wish I was (filthy) rich at such times so that I could fly overseas. Well atleast I got all the online privileges and even shout outs by Mike Shinoda himself.

When we started the band, it was because we were waiting for a sound that never happened. We got tired of waiting, and we decided to just do it ourselves.

– Mike Shinoda

This quote by Mike has inspired me a lot personally to do things in my life, and many of my fellow mates at LPIU where we are trying to implement it, in this case most importantly to make our favourite band perform in our country. So far we have managed to achieve some good milestones, small but still important and hopefully will get to see them live here in India soon in the future.

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.”

– Bob Marley

Play it, baby!

Posted on January 25, 2013 by The Nameless One

As if by magic, you can now play the guitar with great skill. What’s the first song you will play?

Hotel California by the Eagles. Unless you are not from this planet, no chance you might have not heard it, even if you don’t listen to music. While I would dig into many other great songs out there, Linkin Park being my most favourite band of all time, and lot of great music out there today (amidst the more crappy ones in the name of music) that is one of the first song which actually made me want to learn to play the guitar when I was a kid in school. That didn’t go so well though, as I’m more interested in drums and in the technical aspect, and till date ~~didn’t get the opportunity~~ haven’t learned a dam thing. Someday for sure.

In Search of Lost Time

Posted on January 7, 2013 by The Nameless One

What song, when you hear it, transports you back in time? What time in your life does it transport you to?

For me, this brings me back to 2005, when I got my first computer, the good old days when the biggest problem was the land-line phone vs. the slow pathetic dial-up internet connection which was a big thing back then. The world wide web was building up, Google became synonymous with God, and peer-to-peer was on the rise. (I don’t know why I said that)

This brings my memory to late ’05 through ’06 and ’07. Linkin Park one of my first and till date most favourite band/music artists close to my heart, (the) Mike Shinoda had released his own side project collaborating with some other artists as a hip-hop group called ‘Fort Minor‘. Fortunately I knew some people back then (they are not dead for fuck’s sake, just not in contact anymore, dam sometimes I sound so inappropriate) who shared my enthusiasm for Linkin Park (now I hardly know who doesn’t)

The album ‘The Rising Tied‘ was a different direction from Linkin Park but yet so great that most of the songs resonated with me, my thinking, feelings (quite questionable to many) and life back then. I remember many days coming back from school sitting at my (then garbage, sole) computer at listening to Fort Minor among many others and forgetting about my shitty life.

I guess music is indeed the gift of the faceless one isn’t it? (now sadly demeaned everywhere, do I need to even start on this?) I don’t listen to music much now compared to earlier years, but sometimes (co-incidentally was the last thing of 2012 and first thing of 2013 I did) was listening to an old or such a song brings me back down the memory lane.