Blog post of a duffer fan & wellwisher of Bassbaba

I saw him first at an open-air concert at RAOWA Club, New DOHS in 1992. He was playing bass guitar with the band Feelings. In one of the songs he started playing the bass above his head. For a regular school going kid like me, it was too much to absorb. I knew then and there that this man is something. Later, the existence of melodic and extreme heavy metal songs in a single album got me blown away when Aurthohin released their ‘Trimatric’ album in 1999. I was moved by all the songs of that album.

Social networking then meant meeting in person. Virtual networking meant emailing. The band provided an email id at the cover of Trimatric. I mailed them expressing my likings for the songs and admiration for the band. To my surprise, I got reply that very night. Being beset, I exchanged few emails. In one of the emails, the bassist and vocal of the band, Sumon, also known as Bassbaba, invited me to one of their gigs. The gig however got cancelled but Bassbaba, trough a friend who was active in the underground music scene, invited me to his house. I never got along with any of the other members of Aurthohin, but Bassbaba somehow liked my company. The feeling was mutual and I became a regular member of the evening adda at his practice pad. We became so close that when he needed a voice over of a radio news presenter for one of the songs in 2002 album ‘Notun Diner Michile’, he asked me to do it. That was in fact my first and only voice over in an album.

Work, family commitments and other things got better hold of me from 2004-05, so attachment with Bassbaba faded radically. At this moment I do not have any contacts with him apart than the one way communication of liking photos and statuses on his public Facebook profile.

Now that I think of those days, I was more mesmerized and awestruck by his attitude towards life and human qualities than his musical talents. He has got an ocean heart. I say this in full conscious and without any prejudice that he is one of the nicest and most caring human being I came across in life.

I see that he is going through some serious health issues since 2005. I feel guilty that I haven’t dropped by at his place in all these years and say hi. I feel ashamed that I was there with him only during his good times. But I know mentally how strong this person is, so he actually does not need duffers like me to take care of him. He is an ‘one man army’ altogether and he knows how to kick away garbage that come in front of his way.

I sincerely wish that Allah gives him a good health in the years to come and gives him the strength to fight all evils and rascals that are surrounding him and trying to deflate him at the moment.

...“ছোট্ট বেলায় মেঘের সাথে খেলতে তুমি,
সবুজ বন কেন আজ মরুভূমি ?
হয়তোবা কেউ ডাকে তোমায় পিছন থেকে,
তোমার সব ব্যাথা মুছে দিতে!

সেতো কেঁদে যাবে বুকে নিয়ে শোক
তাই বলে অশ্রুসিক্ত কেন তোমার এ চোখ?
তোমার মনেতো এখনো দুখেরই গান,
তাইতো আমি গেয়ে যাই মেঘেরই গান।”