You know how your life depends on things that are not essentially vital to your 'survival'?
It's an almost fatal situation when you have to share a laptop -the only machine in the comforts of your home to have access to the net- with 2 other siblings. Nah, you can't even think of exercising your veto rights on them coz all you want to do with it is surf till you drop and to try and win another season with your mesmerizing, tailored-to-success Man Utd (read: Football Manager). They on the other hand, are tight-faced about their assignments.
My 'survival struggle' has been going on for weeks now. With no effort of doing anything that's remotely close to productive, I compensated my lost net hours with flippin' TV channels and racking up my sleeping hours to unattainable heights.
But today, today in particular, was different.
It's
been close to 2 full months now that I've been silently moaning about
the sudden writers block that swept my songwriting senses off my
half-dead brain. So naturally I did all sorts of things to kickstart
things back into the course that it should be threading on but sadly,
none of it worked. This block, and a combination of so much more
slumped me on a slow ride to somewhere I'm not sure if I'll like it
when I get there. It did occur to me that perhaps what I need is after
all, just a plain ol' soul searching; something I've yet to do in my
"did all sorts of things" claim.
So today, I unearthed treasures that I thought was gone in the folds of history. The ones that stood as witness to my teenage years of being an avid follower of the local music scene. Oh boy, it was surely booming with immense quality back then. The discovery of press clippings that I collected from 2001-2002 surely brought me down to earth. I remember daydreaming about 'making it' someday. I can't say that I've made it yet with Telephony Delivery but the thought of whatever we're doing now is the sort of things we somewhat should be doing to achieve that, it's pretty surreal. I was looking back at how I started my fascination with all this.
Yeap, that's it. All of 'em scattered on my bed.
Damn. I even have the flyer for TONEdef. One of the many things that should've been the highlight of my high school years. Hmm.
Back then Poetic Ammo was still rockin' da flow and Lostprophets circa Shinobi was even cooler than Muse but they 'lost' their 'prophets' and pull off that emo anthem drag a.k.a The Last Train Home. Slipknot was donning the coolest jumpers ever but unfortunately it wasn't during their brilliant self-titled release phase. I could never find even an ounce of love for Iowa.
Urban XS mannnnnnnnnnnnnnnn! I miss it so much I can't even recall how's the song was like. And that Butter article was from Malay Mail, they got the coolest local music content next to TONE coz Terrina Hussin can really write. She's the one married to Emmet, yes? And that ATDI review was nicked off Galaxy. That former tween music bible had its awesome moments. Much missed.
Damn fucking Dirty Apes weiiii. After reading that brief yet inspiring review by Daryl Goh, I sprinted to the nearest cyber cafe and mailed Pedram about.....I don't remember what. That Nirvana piece was cut out from Times mag. I think I stole that from the school library. Hey, rather than it being a proof of felony, it proved that I even set foot there at least once. I so proud.
I don't remember which came first. My love for Herb Vendors' infectios jungle twists or Cyberwerk's ambient wickedness. Perhaps it was Discomafia's earth-shattering breakbeats (the only electronica record I still listen to till today). But local electronica was not spared from my ever-hungry ears for music. And apparently, not even Hong Kong's LMF too.
Fwah. Bloodymary also got. I remember writing a letter to them coz I wanted that cassette so badly. But the letter never even went into the envelope anyways. Also, if my sense of history serves me right, Jayzuan of Free Love's fame (or now, of Mohd Jayzuan's fame) was playing bass for that Ipoh band.
Haha. I plan on posting that pic of Irman on Malaise.
Back in '01 this would be considered the closest thing ever to a Holy Grail. The maniacs behind that crazy Slipknot masks were yet to be known by the general masses so this Kerrang! exclusive shot of Corey's mask-less back was something to lap up about.
So yeah. I found myself
smiling like a kid again going thru all that. I miss that innocent
naivety that was once my driving force to prove that I was not just
some kid going through a phase. Deep down I know what I was doing then
would run its course throughout my entire life. So did this whole
rediscovery helped solve the block? I doubt so.
But I can now move on knowing that I've not left any stone unturned.
I don't know what struck me, but I am somehow compelled to regale my first porn video experience.
That fated day back in '99 was not a first encounter. I mean, before that I had considerable access to soft porns in all directions. Like that one time at Mum's (my mother's sister) BBQ back in primary. I've always had this impression that Papa Zul's somewhat a sex freak. C'mon, the man's married with 5 kids and still he uses that condom container keychain for his car keys. Heh?
Anyways. So everyone else was outside the house. Trading gossips, shuffling between eating and drinking and all. I can't remember what was it that drove me and Zharil (my cousin) to his parents room but once we got there, he opened their wardrobe and at one deep corner we saw one huge pile of magazines and much to our giddy excitement, it was porn mags! I still vaguely remember the images we saw in those mags. Hey, those early days ya know? A lot like first love maybe, hard to forget.
Then there's also this one time (still in primary) where I somehow got so techy with computers. The Internet was rather new back then, back when Jaring was the hottest thing ever since Pamela Anderson. I somehow figured out how the History thingie works, and it gave me this grand illusion that we can surf the net without being connected at all in the first place. Silly, I know. But I didn't own a PC at that time. I think I picked up the know-how from the hours I spent at Afiq's. That dude was a tech-freak. His room was filled to the brim with stuff.
I put that newfound 'revelation' to the test when my family went visiting to Uncle Talib's. His Pentium II desktop was quite the ish those days so it was only natural that me and his son Nabil played around with it while both parents continue their chit chat in the living room. Then it came to a point when we got bored and perhaps, horny.
I browsed through the folders like a seasoned pro. Clicking at those links with such tenacity and precision that would make Gary Kasparov proud. My fiddling fingers came to a halt when we struck gold. Or more like, when the page loaded. The rest of the evening was one of the highlights of my life. It made me proud that I was so computer-savvy at such a young age. Haha.
But up to that point, it was all still very much soft porn. But I wasn't addicted. Just contented that I finally know why they make that nosebleed scenes in comic books whenever the character sees a hot chick passing by or more importantly, babies aren't delivered by storks to their parents through chimneys.
Ah, and then came '99. One of the many highlights in my life. It was the year where we Form 2s ruled the afternoon session by default as there were only us and the Form 1s for the session. I was in 2 Amanah, but we were far from goody two shoes. It's the only point of my life that I got the most disciplinary action ever. Like, 3 times. Hahaha.
I like having a small clique. A 4 crew posse was just nice. It's easier to handle with and dynamics wise, we would bounce and compliment each other well and there was no such thing as a third wheel nor was there a fourth.
Me, Hibat, Chee Keong and new boy Azrie was always doing stuff together. Be it in class or during recess. And then there's this time in KH that we're told to form a group for a project, no prize in guessing who was in my group. So for the next 3 weeks or so, we congregated at Chee Keong's to get to do the project. I think it was a wooden rack or something. We would get to his place very early just so we don't miss out on that tasty nasi lemak near Chee Keong's for breakfast. We'd buy like, 3-4 packets each. Crazy I know.
But that wasn't exactly our motivation to show up so early at his place.
Being the good china man that he is, Chee Keong has a healthy collection of VCDs (it was so booming back then) and yes you guessed it right, he got them porn vids too yo!
But it was a good driving motivation. We furiously get the project over and done with (in phases) just so we could enjoy the rest of the morning watching it. It was so clear that I was a virgin at it. I sat there eager and wide eyed, and even at one point reached for the remote and skipped it backwards just to yell out:
"Gila la! The girl said 'fuck'!"
Haha. The guys were so mad at me. Potong stim they said. Hahahaha.
And then the rest they say, is history. Still in the making. Ngehngeh. But the 4 of us grew apart after that year as we entered the morning session. Azrie went back to Johor, trying to grow his eyebrows back perhaps (long story), Chee Keong frolicked with them gangstaz at school which made hanging out with him very inappropriate. Hibat and I has always been bumping into each other even to this day. But we grew out of each other I think, for the better perhaps.
I remember Zul once asked me, will I still be doing music when I have my own family and all, I told him it's the same as porn. You can never let it die in you. But porn somehow thought me respect towards the opposite sex. It made me appreciate the whole complexity in emotions and relationships. So really, it isn't a bad thing.
My first proper post in ages and it's about porn.
Great.
It's been a hectic month so far, February. Particularly the Valentine thingamajig my class was handling. Classes was canceled (i hate that), lunch time were cut short (i really hate that) and heads were aching as we tried figuring out the best way to rack up astronomical profits by churning out the most can be churned out of a crew of six.
Me and Akak handled the singing telegram service quite well I must say. I was really very nervy at first since I've never ever played on acoustics all of the songs that was requested. Akak, well, she took it all as if we're running a 2-hour long arena concert and left everyone in awe.
All my life I've never bothered the vibe that Valentine's Day transcended. There's never a special day in my life since, every single day is always special on its own. But a week before, it took just a giggle, a face, and a smile. Ok, no butterflies-in-the-tummy thingie, but it was a sign for me pull another "what the heck?" job.
Her name's Nina, a Y2/S2 UEL student. All I did was spending RM5 on a pretty Selvam-made balloon and Akak acted as the messenger (she insisted). Wanna know what I said on the card?
Hey, I love the way you laugh.
Tea with me sometime?
019-2517394
Was it a bit too direct? Perhaps it was. But I'm not breathing down her neck, professing my love for her whatnot. I mean, it is the most sensible thing to do right? Having tea on the first date. I mean, first meet.
Despite all this Valentine hoopla, Ms. Mai still gives her news assignments and boy I'm kinda bored with it. Not writing, but the subject that we wrote about. I must learn the art of twisting boring stuff into something interesting. A good writer starts with that. I'm really looking forward to the court case write-up.
The family's off to Perth this Monday till Sunday. Sounds fun. But my fun factor dropped to an all-time low since most assignments are due right immediately after the holidays. Sad, I know.
Telephony Delivery is doing pretty well these days. Both our February shows are over and done with. The private party was our most decent show and Indie-Licious being a disaster of sorts. Initially we were suppose to take the stage after Project Ei8ht, but then IG Collective requested to play on our slot leaving us to play theirs. Out of courtesy, we agreed. The Collective mesmerized the largely club-going crowd and for a moment there, I thought Jam Asia was Alexis Bar. Things started to fall out of place when the Collective were packing their gears, allowing us on stage. The whole crowd literally left the scene! We played to less than 20 people that night. Half of it were made up of friends and other bands. The bad mojo kept on flowing as by the 3rd song, my guitar string snapped. Whether having Adib's SG is a blessing or not, I'm still thinking over it. It was badly tuned, and when it was locked in tune, it slipped instantly as we struggled through our 4th song. Nightmare.
But that horrid experience was somewhat a revelation to me. I said to myself, "Now you've been down at your lowest point, time to rise up. Rise up!".
Ajil mentioned a couple of weeks ago that Phang's doing a review on the Bear With Me gig. Then some nights ago I was browsing through Kakiseni.com. It was up! Here's what he has to say about our set that night:
"Easily the best newcomer to the scene that night was Telephony Delivery. I saw them play at Giggers' Café a few weeks before -- and although their potential was obvious at that time, what I heard at Bear With Me was far beyond my expectations.
A crew of six, Telephony Delivery delivered a stellar post-rock experience. Armed with relatively complex equipment (an array of effects for both guitarists, a vintage synthesizer, and a DJ playing god-knows-what-the-hell-are-all-those-knobs-and-buttons) the band created vast, intoxicating soundscapes and meshed them perfectly with details, resulting in intricate musical designs. The band's rhythm section fuelled the pace, weaving the entire set into a tapestry that would have put magic carpets to shame. Telephony Delivery is now on my personal 'Most Underrated Bands in the Scene' list".
That man was too kind with his words. And a couple of errors too. Were not a crew of six (we're a quintet) and I am the only guitarist. We were so hyper that night and everything went blurry that he might get the impression of us having another member. Heh.
We have 2 new songs in the works. Hopefully it may be unveiled by next month (we've 3 shows so far). March will definitely be a busy one. Adib's planning on doing a 3-way split with Deepset and Teenage Glory For The Wasted. If this goes through, we might do a mini-tour around the state/country(?).
The family did a surprise BBQ for my dad since it's his 60th birthday this year. We had sirloins, lambs, fish, chickens, bubur kacang, bubur jagung, fruit salad, freeflow-homemade pizza, mushroom soup, sup tulang, sandwiches, and so many more I can't even remember. The house's side lot turned into street-side warong with all the tables and chairs.
I have 2 EP deliveries to make today. KJ and Shah Alam. Whose idea was it to put 'Delivery' as part of the band name? Sigh.
Where was I all this while?
Beats me, really. It's like staring at the mirror. You're looking at the bruise on your lips and do absolutely nothing about it.
This brand new year so far has brought a whole new meaning to the term
'brand new'. It's not an upside down, but more of an inside out. Never
even once found my own comfort zone, I crawled out of a losing
battlefield and immediately plunged into another raging war zone. So,
for the second penultimate time, I was expelled from UiTM. With the
amount of thinking I did, the dishearteningly painful upset I felt, I
finally gathered myself to make my final stand. "I want to do Mass
Comm".
YOU HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED INTO STAMFORD COLLEGE'S SCHOOL OF MEDIA STUDIES
So, yeah. Why Stamford you ask? Well the tuition fee is a lot cheaper, the syllabus is more writing-based as opposed to other colleges/govt. universities and the most calming factor is that, Akak's there as well. I really like the fact that the School Of Media Studies is a small, close-knit family. There's only 4 lecturers (all of them are already aces in my book) and I've only 5 other classmates in my batch. Somehow I finally have one of my childhood dreams realized: studying in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the city. And I got Pudu. Cool.
Surely there's more to that right? I mean I've been away from this space for almost a full month. Of course there's more. I'm not that boring, you know.
Before 2007 arrived, I took the night train to Singapore for an actual holiday. I thought spending a day or two basking in the air of the Lion City would seep in some sense in my head to cap off another turbulent year. Thank God for Tash. I never had so much fun hanging, walking (lenguh!) and yakking with someone for almost 12 straight hours. The only things I spent on was (other than food) 2 CDs from The Union Of A Man And A Woman and B-Quartet.KFC's Cheesy Fries are sex.
There's nothing much you can buy with SGD50. I even maxed out on my allowance for the trip. My hunt for a BOSS or 1Spot adapter came to no avail.
Back at home, things were pretty hectic. School season's back and Abg. Aidil's wedding in JB was just around the bend. Not to mention Hari Raya Korban too.
Right. Prior to the wedding, the band played 2 shows in Jam Asia and Giggers Art Cafe. Well, I actually wrote about it in the band's blog:
Oh and, we released our first EP last Saturday (interested parties, contact me to get your hands on it)hey there!
this is our first blog post, so feel special! heh.
well we're halfway through with this month's series of shows. and i must say it's a relief having been through it all so far without any major hicks. the MOEN showcase last week was a new experience for us, playing for a totally different set of crowd. we were the only "takda orang nyanyi ke?" band that night but nonetheless we enjoyed ourselves. hey, if the organizer's happy with what you did, you scored mumfucking "A"s la kan? heh.
last night's Weekender series was also another first for the band. Old Klang Road was a new turf for us, so we kinda took the experimental approach by not practicing for the show and boy were we in for a backfire. we sucked wei! hahaha. kantoi sana sini and all. i don't know exactly why, but the post-show feedbacks that we got from the other bands were surprisingly positive. well, thank you guys!
great great thanks to the Guitar Store Hartamas for giving the chance to test drive the awesome budget stompboxes (i'm getting a MOEN Violent Metal soon, hopefully) and Myo for the word of mouth on us (we owe you a lot bro!). Also to Acap and The Fridays for letting us be a part of the Weekender family. it was inspiring to the bone. thanks to Phang of Citizens Of Ice Cream as well for seeing us in action, we were caught off guard! and to the bands we shared stages this month, here's to a prosperous life ahead!
btw, cool Mr. Stalin from RadioGravityLamePost did a short review on us at his website here. thanks man!
up next, the pivotal Bear With Me! see you cats there!
The Bear With Me gig was really, really an important moment for us. Playing alongside our heroes (TWKUA) was kinda nervewrecking, and being the 4th band on the bill that night somehow did wonders to our esteem. I must admit that it was our best set ever. The crowd were all pumped up, the equipments ran well, the sound was awesome (thanks Wadi!) and we clicked with the songs like clockwork.
We brought along 20 copies (but Azhar by mistake brought all 27) of our EP that night. All I had in mind was, if we could at least sell half of it we're already happy. At the end of the night, Na told me that we sold 22 copies! Crazy.
We have another two shows for February. Then another two in March. It'll be a busy year for us. And hopefully something awesome'll happen in June. Heh.
My college's Mass Comm Club held a field trip to Sri Pentas last Tuesday. Nothing much can be said about that, though. It's just normal.
Well, that's about it I guess. Be back soon.
Hopefully.
Pa'an Murtabak said:
aku bukan nak cakap apa
Pa'an Murtabak said:
tapi Puteri Angkasa ni macam jambatan
Pa'an Murtabak said:
jambatan yang mewaraskan ruang antara kekacauan dan ketenangan yang melanda iklim music indie tempatan
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tak phm
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sehingga kelmarin
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku melihat dunia yang kita bergelumang ini
Pa'an Murtabak says:
di pecah belahkan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
di puak puakkan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
di dalam setiap belahan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
di isi dengan kata kata, perasaan dengki
Pa'an Murtabak says:
perasaan keji
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ahaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
knapa dow
Pa'an Murtabak says:
bila kau sedar tentang kewujudan pengisi ruang ni
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kau mula hilang arah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kau mula benci dengan keadaan kau yang bergantung harap dan menumpang
lalu di dunia yang kau sendiri bersama sama orang orang puak lain,
belahan lain wujudkan
En. Phillipa Monica says:
alahaiii
En. Phillipa Monica says:
sedih nyaaa
En. Phillipa Monica says:
knapa ko ni tetiba camni bro ?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kau bagai berada di gaung yang tiada penghujung. seolah olah di humban di dalam mesin basuh yang tiada hentinya
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
si Puteri Angkasa
Pa'an Murtabak says:
memberi ingatan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
memberi amaran
Pa'an Murtabak says:
ada sebab kenapa gaung tiada penghujung
Pa'an Murtabak says:
ada alasan kenapa mesin basuh tidak berhenti
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dan ada alasan kenapa aku seakan akan berputus harap
En. Phillipa Monica says:
halus nya kau mlm ni
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kerana nyawa ini, anugerah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
nyawa ini, istimewa
Pa'an Murtabak says:
nyawa yang mengajar kita merasa, mengajar kita erti nurani
Pa'an Murtabak says:
mengajar erti sayang
Pa'an Murtabak says:
terima kaseh
Pa'an Murtabak says:
Sang Puteri
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ehehe
En. Phillipa Monica says:
trima kasih kt apai la bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
dia penulis lilik
En. Phillipa Monica says:
dan jazmi penulis lagu
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kita bersyukur kerana Allah memberi kurnia, Allah menentukan segalanya
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tapi Allah juga sayang akan mereka yang menurut perintahNya
En. Phillipa Monica says:
betol
Pa'an Murtabak says:
jadi bukan jazmi dan apai sahaja yang patut menerima kasih
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ahaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi aku rasa aku tak memberi apa2 pon dlm lagu tu
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kau sendiri bilang
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kau tarik apai
Pa'an Murtabak says:
jadi di mana akarnya punca luahan hati ini sebenarnya?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
engkau lah akar, engkaulah belukar
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ahaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
belukar tu betol
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ehehe
En. Phillipa Monica says:
bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
aku nk tanya ni
En. Phillipa Monica says:
knapa mlm ni ko begini ?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
entah la
En. Phillipa Monica says:
pasti ada tapi dia
En. Phillipa Monica says:
apa tapi dia ?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tapi kenapa ada dia?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kenapa tanpa dia, tidak boleh ada apa apa?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
apalah dia sekadar apa apa yang ada apa
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ahaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ko ni beroo
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kenapa sihh
En. Phillipa Monica says:
apa yg ko gusar ni ?
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ckp je
Pa'an Murtabak says:
bukan gusar
Pa'an Murtabak says:
cuma perlu perubahan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dalam pencarian
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kadang kadang kita berhenti
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ouhh
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tengok kiri
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tengok kanan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kita tengok diri sendiri sebenarnya
Pa'an Murtabak says:
cuma kita takut nak tengok kat mirror
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sebab kita sedar. kita semakin hampir dengan apa yang kita cari
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dan kita sedar itulah sebenarnya yang kita benci
En. Phillipa Monica says:
haaa
En. Phillipa Monica says:
btol !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku sudah tidak larat. tapi nak buat macam mana, aku suka berlari
En. Phillipa Monica says:
jln la slow
En. Phillipa Monica says:
byk benda leh kutip
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kalau lari terlepas
Pa'an Murtabak says:
cuba kau bayangkan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
setiap bende yang kita kutip itu
Pa'an Murtabak says:
menjadi sebati bagaikan susu pekat di dalam kopi
En. Phillipa Monica says:
aduhaiii
En. Phillipa Monica says:
sakit
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dengan pantas sahaja kopi itu diminum
Pa'an Murtabak says:
hidup ini singkat
En. Phillipa Monica says:
chill la beb
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku sedang chill
Pa'an Murtabak says:
cuma
En. Phillipa Monica says:
cuma ?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
mungkin cara aku chill agak lari dari norma persepsi
En. Phillipa Monica says:
btol
Pa'an Murtabak says:
chill yang sering digunakan pada hemah aku
Pa'an Murtabak says:
satu proses yang memenatkan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tidak menggunakan akal walau untuk perkara remeh
Pa'an Murtabak says:
satu pembaziran yang memenatkan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
apa guna mengampil protien dan nutrien
Pa'an Murtabak says:
apa logiknya mengambil vitamin dan buah kismis
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ahahaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
makin dalam ko niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
En. Phillipa Monica says:
wehh p tulis lagu dan lirik
En. Phillipa Monica says:
pasti meletop !
Pa'an Murtabak says:
haha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
seryes ni
En. Phillipa Monica says:
terapi la
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku tak cukup rapi untuk ke arah itu
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku mungkin mahir membuat benang
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tapi aku kalut di dalam menjahit
En. Phillipa Monica says:
takpa
En. Phillipa Monica says:
slow jahit
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku tak pernah kenal erti perlahan, slow, mahupun pelan pelan kayuh
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sepanjang hidup ini kita bagaikan di paksa paksa untuk lekas ke sana, lekas ke mari
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tanpa kita paham apa sebenarnya yang menanti di sana, apa sebenarnya yang di tinggal kan disini
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ha kan
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kejar sana sini
En. Phillipa Monica says:
penat
Pa'an Murtabak says:
baiklah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku rasa aku ingin kembali
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kembali kepada ketidakendahan
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kembali ke mana bro ?
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ahahaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
yes
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi kau takleh camtu
En. Phillipa Monica says:
sbb kau dah biasa amik endah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
walau sudah cuba
Pa'an Murtabak says:
walau sudah tahu
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku masih ada insan insan yang berada di dunia yang akan aku kembali
Pa'an Murtabak says:
insan insan yang menjadi penyegar hati
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ehehehe
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi kadang2 perlu penyegar tu
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kadang2 kau sendri segar sendiri
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kadang kadang aku fikir
Pa'an Murtabak says:
mungkin ada sebab kenapa kadangkala aku cemburu melihat pasangan berkasih
Pa'an Murtabak says:
bukan kerana aku cemburu tiada orang untuk aku berkongsi kasih
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi ?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku cemburu kerana aku sangsi aku boleh berikan kasih sedemikian
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku terlalu takut untuk mengecewakan sepertimana aku takut dikecewakan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dan belum lagi sepanjang 21 tahun aku bernafas
Pa'an Murtabak says:
belum aku temui insan yang aku sanggup lupakan segala kesakitan yang bakal tiba, segala kepayahan yang akan datang
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ala bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kau pikir kau camtu ke
En. Phillipa Monica says:
aku pon la
En. Phillipa Monica says:
aku tade komitmen
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi aku cuba
En. Phillipa Monica says:
benda ni cam main musik gak bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kene cuba baru rasa
Pa'an Murtabak says:
apa kau pikir aku tak pernah mencuba?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tak pernah mengambil setapak langkah ke hadapan?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku sudah cukup melangkah untuk kenal erti 'berundur'
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sudah cukup paham dengan erti yang tersirat
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
jgn sampai mengalah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku cuba mengalah untuk jadi pengalah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
masih mencuba
En. Phillipa Monica says:
knapa mesti kau mengalah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
dan aku rasa cubaan aku hampir berjaya
En. Phillipa Monica says:
knapa weh
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku sudah berusaha
En. Phillipa Monica says:
kau kena ada sifat pentingkan diri weh
En. Phillipa Monica says:
seriusss
En. Phillipa Monica says:
jgn la ko pikir nk jaga hati org
En. Phillipa Monica says:
sedang hati kau kau buang jauh
En. Phillipa Monica says:
serius
En. Phillipa Monica says:
pentingkan diri
En. Phillipa Monica says:
fuck ah apa org nk ckp
En. Phillipa Monica says:
yg penting kau puas
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sejak kehilangan ayahanda, aku mendidik diri untuk memuaskan diri dengan melihat kepuasan orang lain. terutama
adik-adik aku
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tak sangka
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sekarang barangkali menjadi pemakan diri
Pa'an Murtabak says:
tapi aku tak mengeluh
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku tak pasrah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
aku malah berterima kasih. bersyukur
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sebab secara tidak langsung, aku menjadi dewasa di dalam kekalutan mencari diri
En. Phillipa Monica says:
btol bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
tapi
En. Phillipa Monica says:
sampai bila
En. Phillipa Monica says:
?
Pa'an Murtabak says:
barangkali sampai sudah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sampai habis
Pa'an Murtabak says:
bila itu, perrkataan yang kejam
En. Phillipa Monica says:
jgn la bro
Pa'an Murtabak says:
empat huruf tersusun itu
Pa'an Murtabak says:
semudah itu menjadi penyentap jiwa
Pa'an Murtabak says:
semudah itu mendiamkan suara
Pa'an Murtabak says:
b i l a
Pa'an Murtabak says:
allahuakbar
En. Phillipa Monica says:
aduhaii
En. Phillipa Monica says:
terok kes ko ni bro
En. Phillipa Monica says:
jgn la
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kalau kau rasa situasi ini teruk
Pa'an Murtabak says:
usah bimbang
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kerana aku, sepertimana semua umat manusia di bumi ini
Pa'an Murtabak says:
pandai berlakon
Pa'an Murtabak says:
lakonan aku tidak mahu tidak, memang akan berterusan
Pa'an Murtabak says:
hanya seorang pelakon yang tahu bahawa dia sedang berlakon atau sebaliknya
Pa'an Murtabak says:
jangan risau
Pa'an Murtabak says:
lakonan kau tak akan terbongkar
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sepertimana lakonan orang lain, dan orang lain selain nya
En. Phillipa Monica says:
ehehe
En. Phillipa Monica says:
aku tak tau apa lagi ayat nk aku susun
Pa'an Murtabak says:
sudahlah
Pa'an Murtabak says:
kita semua penat
Pa'an Murtabak says:
biar sahaja ia tergantung
That was my MSN chat with Efry. I never knew a song could get me all nonsensical. Well, maybe some of it made sense. Forgive me if you'r reading it and not knowing a single thing. It's entirely in Malay or as it is formally known, Bahasa Malaysia. If, if, if you're someeeehow intrigued, ask me and I'll explain in a language we mutually understand.
Bye.
What's on your holiday wish list?
I know I just went on a spending splurge, but this is a scheduled buy for another 6 months
I've seen this around at gigs. Never gave that much thought to it. But
Syamil's suggestion became the turning point. It's simple yet lush,
clean yet sultry. Saw a Youtube demo and fell in love with it. Could
money-growing trees be a reality?
Yeah, I spent RM1400++ on a single day for these babies.
Well actually, those only costed me approximately RM1100++. So what was the extra RM300 for?
This:
So, I know I've been lazy lately. I'll be even careless about this space once I start tweaking my new toys. Heh. See ya soon.
I have been neglecting this space for a long while now. Well, I have been neglecting a lOt of things lately.
So December's finally here. It's been a wonderful November. So where was I ever since the fated car crash? Allow me to regale...
(Click photos for further descriptions)
The moment I came home from Sg. Buloh, the only thought that ran in my
head was, "could we pull this job?". Oh, for those who's just tuning
in, Hafeez requested a song
from us to be used in his short film entry for RTM's Anugerah Filem
Pendek. He gave us the assignment way more than a month before the
deadline but given my previous state (exams!) we were forced to put
works on hold for a while longer. What made me ponder even more is that
what we're asked to do is something the band isn't used to; "short,
brooding and magical".
So the following day after my 'unscheduled' crash we had a practice session at my place. I somehow came up with a riff suitable for a piano rhythm section back in campus so that was pretty much the starting ground. And not forgetting the faux percussive riff I stumbled upon when playing around with Azhar's Triton somewhere during Ramadhan. Safe to say that we can basically picture the song from start to finish. Typically, I already have the song title in my head prior to practice. Simply, Mubarak. I was told that the short is about a defunct father - son relationship with the son having a monologue wondering what went wrong and how he wished that they're on speaking terms again. I read the script, tried consuming the whole theme but I guess what made the process easier is Hafeez himself. I've known him long enough to get the point he's trying to get across. I think.
Day 1 of Mubarak went pretty breezy. It took Azhar a little over 5
minutes to translate the whole tablature onto the keyboard. Yeah, the
riff is that simple. We did discussed a while back about the gears we
used. Like how the KAOSS Pad is becoming a monotonous staple to our
sound, the limitations we imposed on the EMX and how the microKORG is
clearly untouched. I personally was kinda bored with guitars so this
soundtrack is a perfect test run for both EMX and microKORG, and a good
window to throw the guitar away out of the picture.
We spent the day literally looking for the right beats to suit the mood. This is where Shah's EMX unleashed its wrath. Rummaging the many patterns it has to offer might take more than a year if it falls in uncapable hands. We settled for desert-ish whooshesh and cymbal chimings which we thought back then, was minimal enough. Ended the session with the customary drinks at Pelita.
Adib's been busy with his job at the design firm so he was left out from practice sessions. Day 3 of Mubarak saw us hitting the studio for the first time with hope that somehow his drumming will whip up something inspiring. But fate has it that a day before, Shah's home was struck by lightning and all his gears was electrocuted so yeah, we hit the wall pretty hard that night. We spent the studio time locking thedrums for the faux percussive part -another frustrating episode- and left with yet another dissapointment in our minds. We braced for the worst as the electrocution might cause the whole project to cease.
We took a brief break from the whole process. Some perspective outlook
was needed. Day 4 of Mubarak started on a high note. Shah's rig was
done in a day since the lightning only caused damage to the power
supplies. But that alone costed him RM400. Ouch. But everyone was
relieved nonetheless. As we were taking a breather from figuring out
the song's arrangement, I accidently played something. Something
sensible.
Spending the next half hour frantically figuring out chords for the progression proved to be an exciting series of events. Shah consequently came up with gorgeous ambient bleeps to replace the previous unimaginative patterns and I finally prevail with the microKORG after spending a couple of nights with it. We recorded the proposed arrangements of the song and ended the day thinking 'we might just make it'.
Day 5 of Mubarak was our 2nd studio practice. We were the last patrons to use the space so we pretty much have all the time in the world. But that seemed too much as it only took us an hour to finish up the song. We switched off most of the lights in the studio so the atmosphere was kinda serene with flickering LEDs from our instruments guiding the night away. We were so uplifted that night that we even played a new rocky tune (tentatively titled Instant-Teriyaki Romance) to wrap up our session. Had a blast at Mango afterwards. My banana shake was surprisingly Slushee-ish. Yummy.
As the deadline for submisson was dawning upon us, we decided that the song's ready to be recorded. After a few phone calls, Meng's studio (officially known as StandingWave Productions) was the place to get it done since Mokh's filled to the brim with metal noiseniks. Another session at Azhar's was no more than just finalizing details. But it went pretty dready with the weather and all.
Then came Thursday.
We initially booked a 10:30 p.m slot but since Meng was somewhat late, and Lied's Adlin and Wan were still laying down drum tracks, we loafed at the lounge talking crap and making fun of Shah and his neverending quest for the perfect body. Bono decided to tag along since her band didn't record that night. Meng summoned us when the watch flashed 12:30 a.m.
Adib was in a rush since he had to session for ElmKids gig the next day so we had to make it quick without rushing it. The one-all approach suggested by Meng complimented the whole process greatly as it saved us a lot of time (and money). But that wasn't such a smooth sail. We were kinda lost with the proposed tempo that it took us almost 5 minutes to get back on track. Come recording time, Adib majestically took just one take and it was good for keeps.
Will the song make it for the soundtrack? I have my own opinions on that. But I do hope the short film make its way to its deserving spot.
I'll be back here regularly. Watch out this space.
What's your favorite music for a Sunday morning?
Submitted by Nick.
Well not exactly favourite, but I did discover it on Sunday morning. I had no idea how this happened. My brother missmatched the inputs and outputs, the ipod was plugged in and all I did was twist the volume knob and BZKZTKSJZTTZKZKZTTZKZKZKKKTTTT!!!!!!!! Brilliant. See and hear it for yourself.