There are radio channels that have made me want to wreck my own car while driving. Sirius XM The Blend is one of them.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great channel. Plays music without interruption twenty four seven and if you’re into pop and soft rock that can excite your senses into a stupor so you can go wreck your car while driving – you’re good. Just walk that line without humming to Bruno Mars’s Grenade and such or the officer on site might wanna throw one at ya!
So why the waste of energy and time and – uhm – cars? Because I need a song for my book. I could use my old playlist but the sequel is a new book or at least should be treated as one; it calls for a new spirit, new energy, hence, new songs aka songs that aren’t part of the old playlist.
My new find did well in introducing me to bands and singers that I’d heard my friends rave about but never tried myself. For instance, Maroon 5. No offence but the nasal quality of their vocals makes me want to gargle my chords out. Just for the record, I never forgave Axl Rose for it either. Who else could stand taller? And then after hearing Jon Bon Jovi “take a stand because we can!” for the fifteenth time in two days (and I adore Jovi), I wanted to run someone over to demonstrate my right to freedom of expression! But I didn’t because I can’t.
*deep breath*
So, not much luck there; apart from the occasional Adele. My quest then took me to a concert. I’d been listening to Shehzad Roy since I was in school on account of him being one of the 2.5 stars in our then comatose music industry (him being the 0.5). I admit I’m not a fan but when you’re living oceans away from your native culture and as desperate for a playlist as I am – you buy a ticket to any fundraiser that promises musical entertainment. You gladly welcome a severely jet lagged singer from back home who looks nothing like the dolled up icon you see on TV but you think what the hey, he’ll sound better.
And he did. I realized he had a very nice voice and listened intently as he talked (not sang) about his NGO Zindagi Trust, ran 2-minute clips on the screen that was inconveniently blocked by a bejeweled column of a floral centerpiece at the VVIP table in front of us, and had his singing performance interrupted, sorry - refreshingly paused, by the rigorous hand-me-your-wallet fundraising tactics of the admin. Twice.
So...Pffffffffffft! And moving on.
Mr. Roy’s melodic bass voice did inspire me seriously to donate. And I’m pretty sure I would’ve found a tune that inspired me to write too if only he’d sung enough. Hence, several hours, a spicy dinner and four songs later all I could think of was I gotta go home and pay my babysitter. I scrambled out of there an hour before midnight while the singer was still warming up. Well, if nothing else I learnt how nobly he was dedicating his songs and life to his cause. I like that. Good boy Roy!
But then…I still need a song. And The Blend is free and still plays to the hilt in my car. And here’s a slice of Roy for you –
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great channel. Plays music without interruption twenty four seven and if you’re into pop and soft rock that can excite your senses into a stupor so you can go wreck your car while driving – you’re good. Just walk that line without humming to Bruno Mars’s Grenade and such or the officer on site might wanna throw one at ya!
So why the waste of energy and time and – uhm – cars? Because I need a song for my book. I could use my old playlist but the sequel is a new book or at least should be treated as one; it calls for a new spirit, new energy, hence, new songs aka songs that aren’t part of the old playlist.
My new find did well in introducing me to bands and singers that I’d heard my friends rave about but never tried myself. For instance, Maroon 5. No offence but the nasal quality of their vocals makes me want to gargle my chords out. Just for the record, I never forgave Axl Rose for it either. Who else could stand taller? And then after hearing Jon Bon Jovi “take a stand because we can!” for the fifteenth time in two days (and I adore Jovi), I wanted to run someone over to demonstrate my right to freedom of expression! But I didn’t because I can’t.
*deep breath*
So, not much luck there; apart from the occasional Adele. My quest then took me to a concert. I’d been listening to Shehzad Roy since I was in school on account of him being one of the 2.5 stars in our then comatose music industry (him being the 0.5). I admit I’m not a fan but when you’re living oceans away from your native culture and as desperate for a playlist as I am – you buy a ticket to any fundraiser that promises musical entertainment. You gladly welcome a severely jet lagged singer from back home who looks nothing like the dolled up icon you see on TV but you think what the hey, he’ll sound better.
And he did. I realized he had a very nice voice and listened intently as he talked (not sang) about his NGO Zindagi Trust, ran 2-minute clips on the screen that was inconveniently blocked by a bejeweled column of a floral centerpiece at the VVIP table in front of us, and had his singing performance interrupted, sorry - refreshingly paused, by the rigorous hand-me-your-wallet fundraising tactics of the admin. Twice.
So...Pffffffffffft! And moving on.
Mr. Roy’s melodic bass voice did inspire me seriously to donate. And I’m pretty sure I would’ve found a tune that inspired me to write too if only he’d sung enough. Hence, several hours, a spicy dinner and four songs later all I could think of was I gotta go home and pay my babysitter. I scrambled out of there an hour before midnight while the singer was still warming up. Well, if nothing else I learnt how nobly he was dedicating his songs and life to his cause. I like that. Good boy Roy!
But then…I still need a song. And The Blend is free and still plays to the hilt in my car. And here’s a slice of Roy for you –
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