Beethoven’s Funeral

ZahraJ ji.. Qutabshahis trace our ancestry back to Qutab Shah (and to Hazrat Ali). Qutab Shah ruled in the 15th century and then his son (Jamsheed) they were defeated by Aurangzeb in the 17th century.

Feroz Qutabshahi:

I am so amused to read the name that I have no words to express. It`s such a heavy name. Qutab`shahi ? What does that mean? How come someone with such a formal last name decided to use such an abrasive nick? Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde syndrome? Or probably that has been taken by some others?Anyway, dear Kulharee, this was a sweet write-up. I have decided to check out a few concerts in the past at BBKing but everytime something came up. Last time when I was planning to look into the said location, Gypsy King was playing there. After that, Air Supply decided to daeraa` jamao-fy for a long time. No doubt the ones with some lyrics are not playing that frequently in NYCity and you have to locate them in god forsaken places like Saratoga Springs, NY and Holmdell, NJ. Well, when it comes to good music and beautiful lyrics, distance does not matter. Since you do seem to enjoy good music, you must hear Andrea Boccelli live. He was at the Madison Square Garden a few weeks ago.

#18: Both Poison and Cindrella have some beautiful lyrics and music. I think it was way beyond lipstick stuff.

Re: # 20
Zahra: Sorry to have hurt ur feelings, but the fact remains that those bands were/are the Munni Begums of Metal.
Nobody talks about Rush, Rainbow, W.A.S.P, Thin Lizzy and Mian Mohaamad Nazir Tablay walay & Humnawa anymore...

Re: # 24

I have not heard of the ones you are talking about. Even if I did that must have been a story from the teenage days. Poison was a favorite from my teenage years. In the past couple of years, I came across a few concerts by them and was pleasantly surprised that they were still alive. I agree that they are not the talk of the town anymore, but they still keep on coming back after a couple of years with their live performances. I am sure that is a good way of letting your fans know that you are still alive.

My son is very upset because we will be away on vacation in July when one of the original “melodic” DM bands, Emperor (from Norway) is coming to NYC. However, we will be going to see Morbid Angles in April.

#20

ZahraJ ji.. I think Kulharee is a pretty sharp name. I do like all kinds of music. I am biased towards north Indian classical, but I listen to pretty much everything. In my next life, I want to be either an Indian classical dancer or a Sarood player. Qutabshahi is a pretty common name from where I come from. We are like Smiths or Rodriguez of Sargodha.

Re: # 21

Kulharee: Thank you for the information on Qutab`shahi. Please don`t be offended but it`s a heavy name. No doubt you decided to opt for a sharp tool. You only live once so if you are so fond of classical dance then you should either take some classes or continue with the passion if you have been into it. You can find anything you want in NYC. Why wait for the next life to fulfill your passion?

I do like the way your raising your son, wish I saw more of that in parents :)

peace

Aha....What about Poison and Cindrella?

Re: # 17
Poison & Cinderella?? That was lipstick stuff...esp. Poison.

Feroz, that was a good read!

Burpinder:

You are indeed a very knowledgable guy. Thanks for refreshing my memory here and adding to my knowledge there :-)

Rust in Peace and Youthnasia are the cassettes (yes cassettes) that I had bought, but after listening a while, had traded them with my younger brother for Ratt, LA Guns and Cinderella stuff.

CheGuevara at # 11:

I admit that I was referring to Sepultura, not Pantera. The Brazilian group definitely sounded death metal, but with a twist. Their lyrics revolved around Brazilian politics rather than dark matter.

I was discussing the band with a Brazilian coursemate in mid-90s and he said that Sepultura was not liked very much in Brazil.

I have listened to Anthrax and Megadeath. I think it was the vocalist / guitarist of Megadeath who had formed Metallica, but then later separated.

Also you seem to be the right person to remind me who was that DM vocalist with a name ending or beginning with `king` and he was from Denmark, but performed in the USA. I used to listen to him as well in the early 90s, but have since forgotten the name.

burpinder at # 9:

Now let me confirm. It was the guitarist of Pantera (brother of the vocalist) who was shot dead last year while performing live?

Madhya at # 8:

I agree with you. When I went to listen Danzig (their song `Mother` was a mega hit by DM standards) there were quite a few girls around. However, none of them merited a date with a sub-conty :-) In Pakistan, girls always welcomed rock bands. Rockers loved to have girls listening to them during performance, because they provided color (through their dresses) and made the boys rock n roll their hearts out.

Well, I don`t know about DM, but rock and roll will never die :-)

Re: # 12

Yes, Dimebag (formerly Dimebag) Darrell, guitarist of Pantera, was shot by a crazed fan during a concert last year. Dimebag`s brother Vinnie Paul is the drummer. Their last name is Abbott (rarely used). Bassist Rex and vocalist Philip Anselmo completed the line-up. Incidentally Pantera had split down the centre with the Abbott brothers on one side and larger-than-life Phil on the other. (bass players don`t matter nyway :))))

And yes, Dave Mustaine quit Metallica- the story goes that he made a homosexual pass at one of his bandmates, but who`s to say what actually happened- and formed Megadeth. Good decision. With their classic Mustaine-Ellefson-Friedman-Menza line-up, the band gave us some of the best thrash metal albums of the 80s: Rust In Peace, Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia. Mustaine, now a born-again Christian, is the only surviving member though he still calls the band Megadeth.

The Brazillian band you`re referring to is probably Sepultura one of my favourite bands of all time. Also check out some Anthrax, Megadeth and Motorhead. Good luck on you`re journey of musical discovery, just remember to stay well clear of crap like Slipknot I would rather have the scabs on the penis thing.

Once, someone asked Mehdi Hassan, ``What do you think about pakistani pop music?``.
He replied,``Yeh shaitani music hai``. I am wondering what will he say about DM?

i wish my dad would accompany me on a dm concert.....
#5 ep is good but faraz`s vocals in mizraab suck......by the way i agree with about d rap part....only fakhr-e- alam has the nerve to try that out!
#4 what chicks are you talkin about?? the eighteenth century ones???

this is a very interesting writeup the way you switch back and forth. hehe

DM music without the context and its counterculture paraphernalia would come off as quite boring and simplistic with amps upped and feedbacks and maxed-out distortion and all..... beneath it all.. it is almost like metalheads ODing on truckloads of decibels... and the funny thing is the very straightfaced posturing, unironic..

if you get a chance to check out then do look for old-punk or generic indie-rock... you might find a little something goiing on there.... they do the similar schtick but you might like it after these DM guys...... the game is generally three chord simple progression with a hook supported by a rhythm and bass... i can think off the top of my head superchunk, sonic youth, dinosaur Jr., sex pistols.. pixies are little off but worth to check out..

qutubshahi junior might find a common cause there with you. :)

Re: # 6

Raw Dust Ji.. I did occasionally listen to punk rock back in my college days (it was a lot more enjoyable than DM). Sex pistols are obviously one of the best. Another progressive UK band that I remember from my college days is the Marrillion and I had a good fortune of meeting with Fish ji when the Marriollion did a gig at our Student Union.

I am personally a casual listener of anything. However, Hindustani is where my heart and soul lies. A heavy duty Raga gives me more high than I can handle. Now I have little choice but to listen to my boys’ music (at home, at their band practice, in the car, etc.) so I am being exposed to Metal. And you have described it perfectly that mostly it is a simple chord progression supported by rhythm and bass, and good solos are rare and too far apart.


#5

Ahmadzai ji, I am not familiar with any of the bands you mentioned, but I will look them up. And you are right, I do have a very close bond with my sons. I have two boys. I support whatever passions they have. I just want them to be happy. They hate my music (which is Tabla) but I don’t hate their music (I just can`t stand it, but I don`t tell them that).

#4
Chaltoo... There are other ways to get good looking chicks. Metal is one of the ways to get away from them. Girls suck.

FQ ( Kulharee)

FQ / Kulharee:

Re: # 7

Since you mentioned about your two sons, let me also share that I have two children. My son has started to listen to melodic rock bands who enjoyed their heydays in the 80s and 90s like Great White and Scorpions. He also enjoyed listening to Metallica`s live CD, a fusion of heavy metal with San Francisco Philharmonica. My daughter is beginning to listen to Avril Levine (spelling?).

My collection of over a 2000 DM, TM, HM, and melodic hard rock cassettes, CDs, videos is still running the risk of rotting in the basement :-(

I salute you for providing us with this article. What a great break from the rut. Thanks again and please do write more on music (Indian music included) :-)

Re: # 13

Avril Lavigne.

Although I have tried listening to such DM bands as Danzig and Pantera (were these two DM?), my all time favorites remain non DMs Metallica, AC/DC, David Coverdale, Deep Purple, Scorpions, etc.

I still think melodic heavy metal ought to be more popular than any other type of HM for us sub-conties.

Pakistan’s most popular TM/DM band is EP. Their CD is out and may be available on line. Although I admire bands playing DM, I don’t think there is much future for them. Melodic hard rock bands like Karavan with danceable guitar rhythm and leads are more pleasant experience. Poised half-way in between the above-mentioned two bands is Mizraab with boyish Faraz as the lead guitarist and vocalist. The basic problem that I see listening to bands like EP and Mizraab is that Urdu language does not support the lyrics and the delivery of the same in HM. Good news is that we are spared of rap music in Urdu, because the language does not support that either.

Btw, Feroz, you have a very close relationship with your son. If I had inched a little for that kind of relationship with my father, he would have killed me and I would do the same to my son if ever he thinks to come any closer :-D

Re: # 5 ahmadzai,

Pantera is definitely not death metal. Melodic thrash metal is how I`d define them, but ask nine other metalheads and you`ll get 10 different definitions. The trick is to be as `genre dyslexic` as possible, just listen to the music and allow your heart to decide whether you like it or not. Pantera, for example on first listen is insufferable noise, after repeated listening the melody just shines through. One of my favourite bands, especially their power ballads.

Re # 1, spider
I saw a video clip of Faraz Anwar and thought the guy rocked. Pakistan produces some good rock guitarists- I like Salman Ahmed`s and Shallum Xavier`s playing as well. Bilal of Strings is an all-time favourite, though he`s a major disappointment live!

No way man... as I told your boy..all this death metal garbage is just that..Garbage. No good looking chick I have ever known listened to death metal. Chicks like to dance, and this siht sounds like an airplane crash. He should think of Crooning...Dean Martin. Now that man had style.

Spider Yaar. I am so delighted to know about Pakistani DM bands. Do you know if there is anyplace I can buy their CDs? That’ll make a superb Christmas present for my son.

Chaltoo, Wait until your son turns your basement and garage into Faluja.

Waisay yaar, you know that how opposing my and my son’s preferences are in music. Wouldn’t it be cool if your son turns out to be left wing commie socialist hippie? Hahaha..

wait till kulharee reads this...he will just be elated.

I loved your writing style man! but I would like to add that there area dozen or so death/heavy metal bands in Pakistan. One such popular band emerging out of PK is Dusk, which consists of local celebrity guitarist Faraz Anwar-this guy also has a death metal album released somewhere in Europe. Also Karachi and Lahore also have their own share of underground rock concerts, complete with praises to Satan etc, though I must add that their acts r very much fake. But nevertheless there are a couple or more bands which arn`t that bad.