Monday, November 5, 2007

Rockin' On

Ok, I’m not the type who likes to initiate things off. So to be the one to start a tag of certain topic and pass it on to five or six or shit other people is a no-no.

But here’s something I don’t mind setting the ball rolling: Naming two of the most favorite musical bands to have ever spun on your CD/vinyl player.

Some of us had some sort of a good discussion regarding to our respective taste in music and all kinds of band’s names were mentioned. It was just too many that I cant remember which’s which.

Also, as a result from my previous entry, there was a bit of a confusion on which era musically, that I grew up in. People may get this silly idea of me being a kid of the 80s with posters of Cindy Lauper proudly displayed on my bedroom wall. So for the record, I am NOT.

Well, at least I wasn’t into anything intelligent during that period of time except for Star Wars figurines that was huge back then, as well as of the A Team’s (think Mr. T @ B.A Baracus). I mean, what do you expect from a stupid kid who digs on anything that was big and influential?

Let me get this straight to the point. I want friends to know the type of music I really dig and vice versa. There may be countless of them but I’m sure it’s not difficult to just name two that you like most.

I myself find it hard to name two when I have hundreds of CDs I’ve collected over the years. After much thinking and taking every single factor into consideration, I managed to narrow it to the two that I love best. And so here they are…

RANCID

Based in Berkeley, California, One of the best and consistent punk rock outfit ever. Unknown to many, especially the mainstream industry, but still most sell-out bands now days look up to them as their heroes and an iconic figure. They are regarded as a very important part in the revolution of punk movement in the 90s and almost single-handedly revives the popular interest in punk rock music. Still very much active and are currently in the studio recording their latest album.

NIRVANA

Based in Seattle, Washington, they were huge all over the world during the late 80s and early 90s. Managed to produce only 4 studio albums before their frontman, Kurt Cobain took his own life in 1994. the best ever band to have formed during the grunge revolution. If the hippie thinks Hendrix was their biggest influence back in the 60s, then millions of Nirvana fans worldwide would digress and believes Cobain was even bigger than Jimi Hendrix himself. I certainly believe so. Its been 13 years since he passed on and I have yet to come across any musician to come even close to him, talent-wise.


So there we have it. They got my vote and I doubt the new crop of rock bands will ever replace them as my all-time fav. These 2 bands were the product of the early 90s when youth were through with glam-rock genre and wanted a change, at least that’s what from what I gathered.

I have learned to appreciate other genres along the years e.g ballads, rap, dangdut, Thai pops, reggae, irama Melayu and loads of others but punk rock remains close to my heart, and RANCID and NIRVANA are only two of many from this genre worth mentioning, over and over again.

Now though, I would love to hear from others. I’m sure they have theirs too. It could be the Old Blue Eyes, as Bigdog a.k.a Zakhir’s Zoo reveals. Similarly Cikgu Nazir’s Grand Funk Railroad, Tokasid’s Manhattan transfer and Shah’s Lee Ritenor.

I am not passing this on, but incase they’re having writer’s block, this is something they can just fill in, in their respective blog.

And as everyone may have guessed by now, I’m having a total blockage myself.

34 comments:

Zakhir's Zoo said...

I NEVER had any singers/band/artists posters on any of my bedroom wall, when I was growing up.

What I had was:

In MRSM Kuantan, room H18 (when I was in form 2), we had a BIG 'H' on the door, with a knife running through between the two 'i's.

It was the insignia of the 8th SS Panzer Division, the group under the command of Lt. Gen. Willhelm Bittrich, which defeated Maj. Gen. Roy Urquhart's 1st Airborne Div during Operation Market Garden, 17-25 Sept in Netherlands.

Then when I was in MRSM Muo in 1982, I had the poster of MAS's first B747-200 with the RR RB 211 engines.

During A Levels in MRSM Seremban, I had poster of the USAF Thunderbirds on my wall (just above my desk). Thunderbirds performed in TUDM Subang in 1987 and it was a great experience!

When I was in Newcastle, UK late 80s to early 90s, I had a complete Gulf War equipment used by the Allied forces poster on the wall.

Later I had Falklands War poster which depicts the entire war campaign, in a single sheet. This is a very nice detailed poster.

Since I started working, I have had only 3M's "post it"s, a reminder of the things I need to do. In my office in Plaza 138 and Midvalley, I had a nice poster of the Scorpene submarine details (now being constructed in Cherbourg and Cartagena).

Sorry, I'm slightly different :)

cakapaje said...

Salam bro,

Hmm...thought I did this earlier with my 'Way I Feel Tonight'. Anyway, if I have to pick 2 artistes the way you did, I think it would be Billy Joel and M Nasir. Yup, definitely them. A close 2nd would be David Coverdale.

Thought you might want to know the reason why I'm putting up songs now is because I'm hyping - not psyching - myself for 10November, nothing else.

And quite like Zakhir there, I never had any posters up! Couldn't! The female artistes I had the hots for, I had to hide their posters! Kalau dok, habeh kena marah and rotan! lol :)

Bailey said...

teringat when i was a teen, suka gantung poster KRU kat bilik. hihi =P

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

Biggie,

Yes, I have to agree. You’re different. Haha…but hey, each to his own, right?

I gather you’re so much into military aircraft. But you’re very informative la bro. this is the advantage to be acquainted to a cultured-bloke like you.

*eh, you have an office in midvalley? Where exactly, I’m always there strolling around.

Shah, brader…

In your ‘the way I feel tonight’ entry, you basically listed down most, if not all your favorite stuff. But its ok, at least you’ve mentioned 2 of the best. Billy joel is synonymous with his uptown girl hit but my personal favorite has gotta be ‘we didn’t start the fire’. A bit of everything lyrically.

Bailey,

KRU? Hey, they’re quite cool actually. I mean, they write their own stuff and some of them hits the chart so to me that’s commendable. Let me guess. besides them, you also dig westlife and n sync and boyzone. Don’t you lie now…hihi…

Zakhir's Zoo said...

I was with a British based consulting group, which had a collaboration with RAM Bhd., hence our office at the Signature Offices, Midvalley. Its the first one, infront of the Dome Cafe, top floor. I had a nice corner office, facing the Klang River, Federal Highway, RTM and Menara Telekom. Guests were always awed by the view from my desk!

That was back in 2002. After that I joined a facility management co based in USJ and it went listed (back door listing, using a PN4 first board plc) nine months later.

Four months after listed, I was out on the street! Talk about corporate games ppl play and company politics...........

Within three short years, ALL the four GMs were brought in prior to the listing exercise where 'conveniently' kicked out, one after another.

tokasid said...

Kerp:

2 only ka? Tapi for me tak susah sangat la bcoz I really have limited musical inclination.

I'll go like this:

2 fav Malay bands:
1- Black Dog Bone
2-Kembara

2 fav Indonesian bands:
1-Padi
2-GIGI

2 fav International band:

1-Pink Floyd
2-Earth Wind and Fire.

There you go. And a long the way there are not many folk or blues bands(most are solo performers with their own bands, so I can't put them up here.

Bailey said...

he he that way a long time ago...

now my taste in music dah change a bit. listen to slow numbers most of the time. ;)

Bailey said...

silap2 i want to say that was a long time ago. not way. =P

Mat Salo said...

Making a rare appearance from the swamp, M-S has this to say:

Why only two? He-hee. Frankly kerpie and the rest of the gang, my taste is so wide and varied these days that I realize that I'm going through phases. My immediate contemporaries are Dok Acid and cakapje so it's no surprise that our tastes are similiar.

The problem is the older I get seem to like more and more of everything. Can't say I favor which these days (a song by J Browne, heh)

The last four CDs I bought was, believe it or not --

1. Rihanna - Good Girl Gone Bad '06
2. Jeff Buckley - Grace '94
3. Prince - Planet Earth '07
4. Diana Kraal - Greatest Hits '07
5. Joni Mitchell - Shine '07

So these songs are spinning around my Ipod the last few days. To be frank, I'm listening to a lot of modern country rock too and I keep hitting John Hiatt. On the Indo front, KLA Project's Best Of and Gigi's latest 'Peace, Love & Respect' with the hit 'Nakal'. Interestingly Peter Erskine played on Gigi's Dewa Budjana's solo album 'Home' and on most of Diana Kraal's tunes. Oh BTW, I saw Diana in the late 90's in Bukit Jalil. Didn't know that she eventually married Elvis Costello which is another fav of mine... Dia orang ni small world abih...

Nah ni lagi small world. Last year Bob James and Fourplay played at the Jakarta Jazz Festival with luminaries like uber bassist Nathan East and OUR VERY OWN Lewis Pragasam took over the thrown from Harvey Mason since the latter couldn't make it. I did blog about it though. Sayang, I was holed up in Kalimantan or else I wouldn't mind going. Lewis and I are friends since his Revolver Days with Freddie Fernandez and Anuar Razak. Dok TA, hang percaya tak, in '79 (masa F5) I performed with Lewis's Asiabeat ensemble kat Experimental Theatre. I ketuk tambourine jer, he-hee. That was the highest point of my 'musical' journey. After that, semua downhill. Sorry bro' kerpie for taking too much space and digressing... Hey --you started it man!

Lily Abdullah said...

Salam,

Nak menyibuk juga kat sini - as srdra zakhir mentioned - akak pun takde sebarang poster semasa membesar walaupun minat terhadap musik teramatlah ketara. Walaupun minat sesangat kat penyanyi/band/artis berkenaan tapi taklah minat sangat nak gantung poster. Tak tau apasal eee..

Bila tengok kengkawan letak gambar artis dalam dompet - rasa nak kata "apasal la bodoh sangat?" Kalau letak gambar makwe/pakwe tu faham la juga. Kadang-kadang tertanya2 apasal tak letak gambar mak ayah yang membesarkan kita?

Tapi sendiri punya dompet sendiri punya suka laaa...

Tapi mempunyai poster artis kesayangan adalah satu kebangaan - hmmm...jiwa remaja la katakan :)

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

Biggie,

So u’re no longer there. and its been what? 5 years.

Oh btw, I’ve heard a lot about office politics but never get to experience any. I don’t know man but talking about blessing in disguise, I guess its not that bad being on wheelchair after all…haha…

Doc,

2 cukup lar. and since I don’t really listen to Indonesian stuff, its not too difficult for me to choose 2. not that I don’t listen to malay stuff but western rock bands are too appealing that if I had to select 20 best, none of the local artiste wld be in the list. No offence ppl.

Bailey,

I knew it somehow. Teenage girls dig boybands. Hihi…KRU was part of the local boyband scene but hats off to them for being around still.

MS bro,

I don’t know man, but I believe everybody had to go through some phases at some point of their life, and in the process our taste bud musically also evolves. Not that I reject current mainstream music totally, but being an avid rock fan, you tend to go back to your roots.

Btw, lewis pragasam is already a legend in his own way. I’ve heard so much about him. best percussionist in the country perhaps? Got to be.

Hey, the space’s all yours. only that I cant really relate to most of the stuff you guys talk about la. In fact, I’m abit lost. Hahhaha…

Kak mariannie,

Sebenarnya saya sendiri takde gantung poster dlm my room. Belakang pintu je…hahha..

I used to keep a picture of my gf in my wallet but now we have handphones for that. Siap boleh delete then ambik lagi sekali kalo my gf tak puas hati…hhaha…

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Kerp (Ph.D) said...

spammer lagi. pukimak betul.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Zakhir's Zoo said...

Doc TA,

I concur with you. Kembara and Black Dog Bone are really good. I also liked Headwind, in the eighties.

Earth, Wind and Fire is also a staple diet. "After Love Is Gone".....

I was into Karimata in the eighties, with their hit "Rumah Kehidupan". Also Harvey Malaiholo. Actually, there's an array of great Indonesian Jazz/R&B selection, anytime ever.

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

big bro,

hey i like headwind too. they produced a great number of hits and most of them are evergreen numers now days. suraya is my personal favorite.

then when zainal left the band to pursue his solo career, like u, only his first few singles that appeals to us. his later stuff was meant only for his die-hards.

tokasid said...

Kerp:

Minta laluan:

MS-whoaoo!!! You saw Bob James and Nathan East? Aduh...I'm all greened eyed now pak!

Lewis Paragasam is very good. So good that he had done sessions with several big guys in USA Jazz scene.
In the late 70s -early 80s, Revolver is a permanent fixture in MU, these guys are very versatile. Their Bohemian Rhadsody made my hair stand!

And KLA Projek is superb.I have the Best of album too, and a few of Katon's solo effort which are good.
GIGI's latest is a gem eventhough it is more acoustic than their other efforts."Nakal" is really nakal, tapi aku ngak blo-on ya pak!!

Have you tried listening to Padi?

Bro Biggum:

Headwind's "Hati tak berpenghuni " was my all time Headwind's hit.Unfortunately that song was not on any of their compilation albums(that song was on their first album with Polygram).

You were right, Karimata was excellent. They are who's who in the Indonesian music scene. And just look who's the boss now if not Pak Erwin Gutawa who was Karimata's bassist.Pak Erwin used to play for Sheila Majid's album( for Roslan Aziz only picks the best players for Sheila's songs). Isn't pak Erwin Gutawa is the one involved in P.Ramlee the Musical score?

Apart from Harvey malaiholo, there's Utha Likumahuwa(although his vocal range is not as good as harvey's but his rendition of songs made me a fan), and Vina Panduwinata who sang the original "Dia", which later became Sheila Majid's hit.

Personally, compared to Indonesia and the Phillipines, we still have a long way to go,musically.

Kerp: sorry to make you go blurr this time around. Sabor je lah.

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

doc, no problem man, the floor's all yours. in fact, i'm learning new 'old' stuff from you guys, on lewis pragasam especially. everywhere i go, i know somehow someone can relate to this great man.

just wondering, was he part of the asiabeat?

tokasid said...

Kerp:

Lewis Pragasam IS Asiabeat bro.
No Lewis NO Asiabeat.

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

thought so. asiabeat is not just like any other local band i'm sure.

constant drama said...

Hey talk bout the Spice Girls. Bet you loathe themm.Back in the 90es I pretended to be a Spice Girl. Scary Spice to be exact.

Have you heard of the reunion tour? I would sell my left kidney for a ticket...unfortunatley nobody wants my left kidney.

Tinesh said...

Red Hot Chili Peppers and Dream Theater constantly runs in my player/MP3/computer..Though, I listen to alot of Nirvana and old school stuff like Led Zep, Deep Purple, Judas Priest etc..I'm 20 this year, so the songs on radio are the sad ones la..Always went back to the roots :P

Zakhir's Zoo said...

Kerpie,

Wahh! Thought you are rocker! "Suraya"??? Jiwang beb! Lu ni Mat Bunga Bunga ka???

Hahahahhahahahahahahhahahahhahaa

Sorry, I need to reply to Doc TA.

Yes, Roslan Aziz picked the best musicians for Sheila Majid. Erwin Gutama is an oustanding Jazz musician. Yes, he was an integral part of "P Ramlee, The Musical".

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

Hey there constant-drama,

Hey, this may surprise you but I didn’t really hate them. I was just not a fan that’s all. They were huge back then so I got sucked in in all the spicy-hype. Emma Bunton was constantly in my dream only to be replaced later by Britney spears. Thanks for crossing over.

Tinesh bro,

I’ve lost touch with the new crops but I learned that young guys like you digs MCR and the likes. But then again, I’m not surprised for a rock fan to dig older stuff. It’s a must-do to connect with the roots, so we both agreed on something. Thanks for dropping by man.

Biggie,

Smart rocker listens to all stuff, including suraya and spice girls. And u r right after all. Aku mat bunga. guns n roses, stone roses, deflowered, etc…u name it man…haha

No disrespect towards roslan aziz but acis the keyboardist fella is equally good.

Anonymous said...

nirvana rules!!! even until now....i hafta agree on that. too bad about kurt cobain thou...but you're forgetting one thing dude - smashing pumpkins rules too!! billy corgan is almost as close as you can get to kurt cobain...and more good looking too if you ask me...hihihi...

i just lurve both of them....to bits!!

-DeE-

Kerp (Ph.D) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kerp (Ph.D) said...

dee,

sorry sis, cant agree with you on one of your take. yes, corgan is one of them who made rock more appealing to the mainstream masses but kurt cobain was/is a class on his own. he was the rock icon and there r only 2 who were at par along side him in recent times, jimi hendrix and john lennon. some may not agree with me but nobody likes to be on the losing end. too bad.

muteaudio said...

Bro kerp,
MIne would be Pearl Jam & SOAD. Coincidently, both lead singers came out with their solo album recently.

Others would be RS, The Doors, Led Zep, Aerosmith and GNR.

Tinesh said...

OMG Kerp!!! IM insulted la bro!! MCR wtf??? haha..I lost touch with the radio dah..Commercial crap plus too much of hip hop and r and b

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

mute,

nice choice bro. i'm abit lost here la. eddie came out out with his own album? i've lost touch with them too la...they were sucked the last time out. world wide suicide blows big time man.

tinesh,

haha...ok my apology then. no mcr and similar shits here. you're man!

thanks, braders!

anfield devotee said...

Desert Island discs?
1) Obituary - Cause of death
2) Bob Marley - Exodus

ps: Why don't u dig the Misfits if you are into punk?

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

test

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

AD,

I love jammin’ from bob and the wailers’ exodus.

Why don’t I dig misfits. Good question. Never thought of that infact.. Here’s the thing. I grew up in the late 80s and early 90s when grunge was at its peak. The Ramones actually toured together with Nirvana, so that’s when I started to really listen to punk rock. Went back to the 70s, dug their stuff and moved forward from then on. I was overwhelmed by their style that in a way I kinda overlooked on great bands like misfits and the stooges. That was the main reason I guess. Nothing sucks about any of them tho.

Thanks brother.