MinUs+2
By Alvi Ahmed
Band Name - When asked about the band name, the band gave me an answer, which I did not expect. They realised each of them had an age difference of about two years, So that is why they named the band MinUs+2 (where the positive sign is silent).
Band Line Up
Drums - Tihan Shah.
Guitars - Tawkir Ul Islam a.k.a Bishoo a.k.a Mr. Gold.
Guitars - Tajwar Ul Islam a.k. Wildchild Tazz.
Bass - Maheyan Hasan.
Vocals - Rezwanul Rahman.
Turntables and samples - Riasat Razi Ullah a.k.a EFX.
Genre - When it comes to their genre, MinUs+2 tries to do something new and innovative. They mainly focus on Nu' metal, Rap metal, and hardcore punk. This type of music is almost non-existent in our underground scene and MinUs+2 thrives to popularise this genre and making it their own.
Band History - The two guitarists and the bassist live in the same building, Ratul on the other hand lives quite far from the other members. Basically they met each other through friends and other connections. The band likes to think of themselves as a family, and they are all good friends and meet up frequently. The band officially kicked off in June 2009.
Major Influences - The band likes to think of themselves as their influences (frankly I don't know what that means). But basically, their list of influences are unending so they don't want to start.
Performances and Singles - The band performed in a number of shows throughout Dhaka. The band also came in second at ISD battle of the bands 2010, where their drummer received the Best Drummer award. Their original song "Un-Understandable" is performed at a lot of gigs and managed to bring in positive responses from the crowd. The band has a Facebook page and you can check out their live performances at YouTube.
Future Plans - For the future the band plans on sticking together till the very end and this is what they had to say to their fans, "We shall keep rocking as long as you keep rocking."
Best Bangladeshi Guitar Solos
By Alvi Ahmed
VER since the beginning of Rock/Metal music, guitar solos have always managed to escalate a song from good to pure classic. Almost all of us have found ourselves subconsciously playing "air guitar" and making complete and utter fools of ourselves. Anyways, our underground scene has a number of talented guitarists and this is a list of some of the best "deshi" guitar solos.
Artcell (Bangladesh Sriti O Amar) - An amazing song with an equally amazing guitar solo. The song starts off slowly but instantly picks up the pace with hard-core riffs and thunderous drumming. The solo starts off with Ershad (guitarist) shredding his guitar with lightning fast, Malmsteen like, fingering. The solo cools down a bit after the initial phase and then Ershad delivers a beautiful and catchy tune with his Fender, which will stick to your head like dandruff. Although the solo is a bit too short, this is one of the best solos Artcell has to offer.
Black (Roud) - This song is an underground classic and is probably the best song Black has ever produced. However, the highlight of the song is the guitar solo, which was played using the "wah-tone". Apart from the awesome and innovative tone, the solo is also famous for Jahan's (guitarist) excellent creativity and fingering.
Nemesis (Obocheton) - Obocheton is perhaps the most iconic song the BD underground scene has to offer. What makes the song even better, is Maher's (guitarist) signature guitar solo. The solo starts off with a classic high pitched, sharp tone that has made guitarists like Gilmour famous. Maher then delivers a series of brilliant guitar licks and a few "screams" in between. The solo comes to an end with some insane free styling and three very awesome "screams".
Shade (Dhoar Majhe) - The band just released this one song and took the underground scene by storm. Dhoar Majhe is famous solely for its guitar works. The song kicks off with a mind numbing guitar solo and then at the end of the song the fans are treated to a mammoth two-minute solo, which never fails to disappoint.
Guti (the finale), Chile kothar Sepai, Joidhoni are just a few other songs with very good guitar solos.
feel bad
movies
By Orin
With time, the world (and the entertainment world, for that matter) is becoming very clichéd. There are not many movies that can stand out among all of this escapist entertainment. In the age of reality shows and mind numbing serials that have crossed their hundred-thousandth episode, in some way feel-bad entertainment makes a statement.
Idiocy has no place here, these are sharp and snappy films that aren't afraid to express anything and explore. These are for the times when you want to curl up in the corner of the room and start weeping (and trust me, you need moments like that to complete your life). An everyday horror movie doesn't stand a chance against them. What's worse (or better) is that these make you question everything. So, this isn't exactly 'feel bad', these are 'feel emotions that you've never felt before' movies.
We at RS are branding movies lately. First was the feel better ones, then the mind bending ones and now this:
Se7en(1995): A serial killer on the loose is not particularly a great thing in real life, but in movies, that's a treat. Sadly, most of the movies with serial killers go around the same boring track. What makes this one different? A. It's got Brad Pitt, B. The victims are perpetrators for the 7 deadly sins and C. It's directed by David Fincher (Fight Club).
Fincher did not hold back any blood and gore here. The brilliant cinematography was matched only by the good ol' fashioned storytelling creating one of the most memorable climaxes in cinema.
Leon (The Professional) (1994): In terms of movies, things cannot get any better than this. It has assassination, random killings and Gary Oldman. This tells the tale of Leon (played by Jean Reno), a professional hitman with Italian connections and how his life gets tangled with Mathilda (played by then newcomer 12 year old Natalie Portman). Leon takes pity on Mathilda when her whole family is killed by Gary Oldman and takes her in as his 'cleaner'. It has got the best of both French and American cinema and all I can say is don't watch the American version (it has a lot of things censored), grab the international one.
Memento (2000): Memento falls more into the mind-freak category, really. Leonard (Guy Pearce) is a guy who has short-term memory loss and he does not know who killed his wife. He tattoos the things he needs to know, makes notes and lives by those. His life turns around when he meets Natalie (Carrie-Anne Moss) who has also lost someone. There is also a suspicious guy called Teddy who claims that he's a friend of Leonard's. If you're watching this, be assured that you're in for a treat because this one, ironically, is one of the most memorable films made.
The Departed(2006): Martin Scorsese with Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Wahlberg, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson is the best cast and director that a movie could have, right? It might not have turned out to be another overrated guy-drama because Scorsese was there, but if it wasn't for the theme, the story and the director's use of all those superb actors, this would've been just another movie with lots of guys.
There are two main characters in this movie. One is Collin Sullivan (Matt Damon) who is a gangster made a cop to infiltrate the police force and another is Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) who is a cop working undercover as a gangster. The lies that they are telling are only known to a few. They have to lie and play their roles and while doing that both can identify with the roles they are supposed to play. Guilt is the emotion that wraps it up.
Requiem for a Dream (2000): And now guys, we have an ultimate winner. There aren't many movies that can come close to this one in terms of making you feel bad, let alone make you feel worse. What does it not have? Crushed dreams, drugs and sex coming together in a fashion rarely seen in cinema. All the major roles are nearly played to perfection. It has huge emotional and educational value, and this is one movie that will leave your head reeling and stomach churning. But trust me; you will not regret watching it; you might end up hating the fact that this is so brutal, but that's it. It is really the Feel bad movie.
Feel bad movies are tough to watch and even tougher to forget. Have an unforgettable time everyone!
