I just got back from an amazing concert. An army of bare-chested, lunghi-clad musicians from Kerala, with their drums, cymbals and circular trumpets, enthralled its audience into a trance. One observer, a slightly built, greying man was in the throes of ecstasy as the music reached one of its many climaxes. He gestured commandingly at the audience, encouraging them to move their bodies to the music, while occasionally throwing his white handkerchief into the air and then deftly catching it. The people around him didn't mind too much, and just smiled at him. I was quite surprised by the audience's tolerance; I expected someone to nudge at him or make a rude comment.
It's been a while since I've had a "perfect" experience. This was definitely one such rare occasion. The music was devoid of melody, and comprised the pounding of various instruments at unimaginable speeds and intensities, resulting in a mind-bogling cacophony of noise. The rhythms were new to my ears, and the feeling of listening to something completely alien, was exhilarating. The music often seemed martial, like an introduction to war, especially when the cymbal players went berserk. It was a very physical form of music, loud and dominating and therefore reminded me of hard psychedelic trance.
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