Friday, March 8, 2013

Musical Euphoric Reverie - A Headbanger's Post

I Love This Pic!!
                                 Allow me to indulge myself with a bit of vanity for a moment.


This pic brings back so many good memories.
First off, it was probably the best overall performance we had ever given as a house band.
Secondly, I took a few risks that i had never taken before. The guitar wasn't mine (Scarlett wonked out on me), and the strings were pre-attached right before the show which means they would be prone to falling out of tune and tuning. The "top button exposed shirt" look was one my mom forced on me at the last moment before we went up on stage. I played an impromptu unrehearsed guitar solo and extended the normal one of my own accord.
Thankfully the guitar worked fine, the shirt didn't look as embarrassing as i thought it would and the guitar solo was apparently not bad at all.

But what i love most about this pic is that it is a 100% Money Back guarantee spontaneous pic. Yup, i'm not posing in the pic.
I wasn't even aware the pic was being taken while i was playing the guitar and i did not position myself perfectly in front of the mic, my head bent back at an almost perfect angle while playing the guitar in an off hand manner. Yes, this is probably the best pose i will ever strike, knowingly or unknowingly, for a camera ever and it was me, not me trying to be some cool looking badass with a guitar. It was just me.

But this post isn't about this pic per se, it isn't about how good my ego is shined up in describing how i look in this pic of full on RockSt*r awesomeness (Which it is >_<) {Vanity : Off}

This post is about WHAT i was feeling as i unconsciously posed for this pic. Because what i was feeling then was not just an emotion. It was a statement of Life.

People talk about how they love music and how music affects their lives. I believe this is true for all human beings who have a sense of hearing. No matter who you are or what type of person you are, there is going to be some piece of musical work that will move you in a way no other media or drug can. True music is one that moves the listener in some way. It doesn't have to be an earth shattering effect, it can be a slight tap on your shoulder making you smile or think in a small measure. It can uplift you, bring out a moment of happiness and bliss or it can focus your rage, stand for every cut, scar and bruise you've ever had and help you overcome sorrow. (Which is why i believe music should be divided according to moods, as well as genres. But thats a topic for another post :D)

It isn't a feeling exclusive to musically inclined people, or people who would consider themselves music literate. You don't need to understand how the music is made to enjoy it, or to be an avid, rabid fanboy to understand that the music can make you groove.
BUT i will admit that being a musician gives us an insight that most people would not understand. Especially in the genres of Rock and Metal. I'm not saying that we feel MORE for the music, we just feel it differently at times. Something metaphorical and primal.

The feeling you can get as you're up on the stage and you GET IT RIGHT is unparalleled. You feel this surge of feeling and electricity and you just want to channel it out any way you can. Its like being in an ecstasy filled cloud and everything around you just dies down and its between you and your instrument. And its like this mist is around you, this mist which starts to engulf you and reaches out to the crowd, and when it envelops the audience, and they start reacting to your music, its like you've made a connection. Like you're channeling all the emotion from your soul to their ears. It may last just a few seconds, but in those few moments, it is Nirvana. Every stretch of the muscle feels powerful, every signal through your nerves is like a bolt of lightning and every right note is like a shot of adrenaline. There is no logical explanation for why it affects us the way it does. It just does. And those moves you've seen on those 80's and 90's MTV/Vh1 vids?? The way those guys seem to be 'pouring the sugar on' or 'riding the lightning'?? Those happen naturally. Obviously, we would love to look as cool as Slash when he rips through the November Rain solo, but without TRYing to look like a rockstar, those movements just naturally happen, as if its what the universe deemed the right way to rock out.

And balls to anyone who exclusively associate narcotics and intoxicators with it. I was stone cold sober, but i still felt drunk as hell. And i loved it. Love it. Will always Love it.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

since i stole ur thunder on the "i don't know what to write about post"... u decided to beat me on the "music is my life" post huh??

Njldst said...

Actually, this is the first of a series of music related posts i might put up lol. And i also ended up posting that "i dont know what to write about" post too xD