.

Winter Is Here

2011-12-20T16:13:00.000+04:00

I came up with some winter themed illustrations and I'm very pleased with the way they turned out. The first one 'Snow Flakes' is a play on the concept of eating cereal or "Corn Flakes", a friend helped me out with this concept and I just gave it my own personal twist. The second one titled 'Cold Peak' is just my way of creating a world that's based on an 'ice cream' and I suppose this is one of my favorite illustrations of the year. I hope you enjoy them.

I hope everyone's having a lovely holiday season.

Misc Illustrations November-December

2011-12-01T15:38:00.000+04:00

Here are some random illustrations I've worked on during the past month, some are humorous, some tackle social issues and some are inspired by favorite things/games (The Super Mario One) or special events going on in my life (Family Portrait) all in all, it's just me rationalizing any concept that pops in my head and adding my own personal twist to it. I hope you enjoy them.

Loved Bug

Bottled Up

Family Portrait

Fear

LOL-lipop

Listen

Public Humiliation

And as always, click on the thumbnails for a larger view and to download the wallpaper versions. Enjoy.

Juice

2011-11-29T14:59:00.000+04:00

I worked on a series of illustrations titled 'Juice' which basically plays on the concept of 'where juice comes from' and so I chose three fruits that best represent this idea. Some called if vulgar, some called it funny, some called it genius, well I guess It's subjective and depends on the way you see it, I personally enjoyed illustrating them very much especially the usage of halftones. I hope you enjoy them and as always, click on the thumbnails for full view and wallpaper versions can be downloaded from the links.

Halloween Ilustrations

2011-10-30T16:55:00.000+04:00

Wanted to illustrate something related to Halloween as I usually do every year for my international fans and this is what I was able to come up with after weeks of thinking and bugging my wife to help me figure out a concept and just one day out of the blue these ideas popped in my head and I am quite pleased with the way they turned out. I hope you enjoy them.

A Different Approach

Super Treats

October Illustrations

2011-10-15T16:27:00.000+04:00

Finally getting around to update this blog. Here are some of the illustrations I've worked on in October, I've been enjoying this doodling with humor style that I just wanted to come up with as many concepts as I possibly could and feel like i've done a decent job in doing so judging by the overwhelming response many of the pieces have gotten on Deviantart. Hope you enjoy them as well. Click on the thumbnails to get a larger preview and for wallpaper versions available on Deviantart.

Hot Stuff

Protective

Transparency

Mood Swings

Nerd

Overpowering

New: 'Idol' & 'Daredevil'

2011-10-04T21:22:00.003+04:00

Worked on two new illustrations yesterday and the day before, both of them turned out to be better than I expected. I pretty much wanted to strip down the colors a bit on these pieces which is why you'll notice one man dominant color and then a subtle but sudden red to bring out some of the important elements and make the concept stand out more. I hope you like them and so far 'idol' seems to be generating some really strong interest in my work thanks to someone blogging about it HERE (50,000 likes and counting) so yeah that's an amazing bonus, it's always great when you work on something and it reaches a large mass who end up appreciating it and enjoying it. The other illustration 'Daredevil' is another concept revolving around a paper boat, I had two concepts that were each suitable for a different style(love it when that happens) and so I worked on both of them, the other one can be seen in my previous 'vector painting' update and is titled 'temporary bliss'.

So anyways, here are the illustrations, I hope you enjoy them.

Idol

Daredevil

September Conceptual Illustrations

2011-09-30T21:01:00.000+04:00

I've been quite busy in September, the most I've been in at least a couple of years now, these ideas just kept on popping in my head and I just had to illustrate them and make them come to life. I'm quite happy with the way most of them turned out and hopefully there will be many more to come cause I've been really enjoying building concepts and then visualizing them.

A good day

Negativity

On a leash

Bad Mood

Spoiled

Self Destruction

Some New Vector Paintings

2011-09-29T20:33:00.000+04:00

Here are some vector paintings I've illustrated during the month of September, I'm quite happy with these cause I didn't vector paint in quite some time now and I thought I'd be a little rusty but they turned out better than I even hoped for, and the response to them were quite excellent on deviantart so that's a bonus. Hopefully I'll get to vector paint some more concepts during October but for now I'm really enjoying the conceptual illustrations style. Enjoy, and don't forget to click on the thumbnails for better previews and if you click 'download' on the deviantart page of each of them you can get a nice wallpaper size for your desktop.

Illustrations Update

2011-09-04T18:54:00.005+04:00

I've really been enjoying coming up with some very quirky concept for my latest illustrations and I feel like I still have a lot more that I can offer. Here are some of the latest conceptual illustrations I've come up with during the past month (click on thumbnails for larger previews, descriptions and comments):

Schizophrenia

Hard Candy

Full Moon

Incomplete

Guide

------

I hope you enjoyed them and hopefully there are more to come.

Player

2011-07-31T11:23:00.001+04:00

'Nobody wants a player'

-----

New illustration with a play on the 'play' and 'stop' symbols. Hope you like it. Click on the thumbnail above for a larger preview.

Done using: Adobe Illustrator

Bullies

2011-07-28T00:17:00.002+04:00

I wonder what happens when they all get together? x_x

===

Quite happy with this illustration and the overall concept I hope you like it. I also submitted it for a t.shirt, who knows maybe one of my designs would get printed one day. :P

I was here..

2011-06-22T19:01:00.002+04:00

A new vector illustration from me, wanted this piece to have a very strong watercolor feel to it even more than my previous ones and I quite like the way it turned out, plus it's always a joy for me to vector paint scenery, it's very relaxing.

Hope you likey.

Real To Me - Mug Design

2011-06-10T13:23:00.004+04:00

I decided to convert one of my latest illustrations to a mug design and I believe it turned out quite nice. If anyone is interested in purchasing one you can do so for the amount of 3.5 rials (Oman only).

Save Me

2011-06-06T19:33:00.003+04:00

My latest vector painting about emotionally drowning and wanting to be saved by that super special someone you hope will notice you. I've had the idea written down in my iPhone notes for several months now but only felt like I wanted to execute it today and I am quite pleased with the way it turned out. Hope you like it.

Jelly Fish - Wallpaper

2011-06-03T00:32:00.003+04:00

I normally don't showcase my photography as part of my general art gallery but I loved some shots I took in Malaysia's aquarium 'Under Water World' of jelly fish and complied some of them into a wallpaper after polishing them a bit in photoshop and I quite love the end result and felt it makes a beautiful minimalistic wallpaper for your computers desktop. Enjoy and click on the preview above to download the full version at deviantart.

Real to me

2011-05-30T22:49:00.006+04:00

This one is about being in denial.

Had this idea in my head for quite some time and initially I wanted to illustrate it in my other (vector painting) style but felt that a more simple approach would suit it much better and keeping it rather minimal because I feel that the message is already strong and speaks for itself without much elaboration. Hope you like it.

I illustrated this using adobe illustrator and had the texture and background done using photoshop.

It's also up for voting on threadless so your votes will surely be helpful.

Stars and Midnight Blue

2011-05-29T15:35:00.004+04:00

I was listening to some Enya last night and felt the sudden urge to illustrate one of her songs and this one seemed like a beautiful one to portray, there's something about her music that makes me feel that it fits my 'Vector Painting' style perfectly well. It's been a while since I illustrated in this style but I quite like the final outcome. Enjoy and I leave you with the lyric that inspired this piece:

"You have lost yourself in dreaming, I have lost myself in you. Now we lie beneath the sky, stars and midnight blue."

Friendship

2011-05-18T16:35:00.002+04:00

I'm so relieved to finally illustrate something new, been meaning to do so but just couldn't get myself to sit though an illustration session especially after marriage (and before that preparing for marriage/wedding) so it's my pleasure to finally post something new and hopefully this will mark the beginning of being an active illustrator once again. This one is about friendship so obviously I chose the dog as the subject matter (Friendship is loyalty, and the dog is known to be a loyal animal). I wanted to go back to one of my earlier styles of illustrating cute animals within a semi abstract environment so I hope you like it.

Never Give Up

2011-01-09T16:03:00.000+04:00

Starting the new year on a positive note. This piece is an inspirational piece for me about never giving up on your dreams, and a reminder that I should always strive to find a way and a solution to any given problem. The penguin is a bird that can't fly so it was the perfect symbol of 'a dream that seems impossible'. The balloons represent the 'will power' and 'never taking no for an answer', so with determination what once seemed like an impossible dream eventually becomes reality. Hope you like it.

Illustration was done using Adobe illustrator CS4, and took around 2 hours.

Mug Design

2010-10-17T19:01:00.003+04:00

Made my first mug design last week, it was for my brothers daughters birthday but It turned out really well that I decided to post it here. I think I might make more of these. For those of you whom are interested you can purchase one with a design of mine for 3.5 rials (available in Oman only). Please contact me for cost details when it comes to custom designs on mugs.

Trapped

2010-08-15T17:49:00.003+04:00

It's been a while since I really experimented, this time I wanted to do something a little more graphical, still an illustration but I wanted it to be very flat and I designed this so that it can fit a t.shirt print as opposed to being mainly just an artwork which is the case with most of my work. I am very pleased with the way it turned out and I am hoping I can come up with a few more ideas that would fit this style. I hope you like it and please vote for the t.shirt version on threadless if you have the time.

Time

2010-08-08T16:09:00.000+04:00

An illustration that portrays 'fear of time', fear of it passing us by, the fear of not knowing where we are headed to and not accomplishing all our goals at the time we hope to accomplish them.

Took me a while to get this done, I actually started it over a month ago but for some reason I couldn't get myself to finish it off till tonight but I am happy with it. It's definitely one of my favs of the year mainly because I can really relate to it.

Click on the thumbnail above to view the full sized version and you can also download a wallpaper size.

This is a vector artwork done using Adobe illustrator.

Bubble

2010-05-11T16:45:00.000+04:00

This is one of my fav illustrations of the year because I feel like alot of people can relate to it, it's about being trapped in your little world, or a bubble of psychological fears, unable to move on with your life because you don't know what's ahead. I used my little character because I felt that he would best represent this situation. Hope you like it.

Loved Up

2010-04-19T21:36:00.003+04:00

My latest illustration, I wanted to draw something that revolved around Jealousy and Envy and I think this turned out quite nice. I'm hoping to come up with enough of these for a mini book or calendar and print them by the end of the year so will see how that goes. Hope you like this new one. You can get the wallpaper by clicking on the thumbnail above and going to the download (left menu) section from the deviantart page.

Latest T.Shirt Designs @ Threadless

2010-04-17T21:35:00.000+04:00

For those of you whom are interested to vote for my designs here are the ones that are currently up for scoring. I appreciate everyone's help and thank you in advance.

More T.Shirt Designs @ Threadless

2010-04-09T16:39:00.003+04:00

Hello Everyone, so yeah still submitting art to threadless in hopes to see some of them get printed sometime in the future. Here are the latest ones that are up for scoring, my highest average is 3.1 so far for 'Chosen One' not bad at all. Your votes on these would certainly be helpful and I thank you in advance.

====

More coming soon.

Lucky One

2010-04-03T00:01:00.002+04:00

This is my latest illustration, I didn't have a clear idea on where I wanted to go with this but the ideas kept rolling as I went along with it, at first I wanted to illustrate the 4 leaf clove's roots wrapped around a heart to make the viewer realize why that clove specifically is lucky, but then the idea of lady bugs suddenly popped in and the outcome is what you see, it sort of works both ways now, the bugs are in love thanks to the lucky clove, or the clove is lucky because it feeds off the love bugs so yeah whichever way you want to see it would be just fine. I hope you like it, I feel like my illustration skill is improving and becoming cleaner with every piece so I'm quite content with my progress. I have a pending idea which involves 'cup cakes' for my next illustration under the theme 'Jealousy' so will see how that one comes along but I have a good feeling about it.

My T.Shirt Designs @ Threadless

2010-04-02T17:06:00.005+04:00

So I decided to finally try my luck with t.shirt designs and submitted a few at threadless in hopes to see at least one get printed, the first one didn't come through but I'm going to keep on submitting till one does. Here are the ones currently up for scoring:

--------

Your votes would certainly help.

Burnt

2010-03-01T23:58:00.002+04:00

As I mentioned previously, here's my illustration that revolves around a toaster and some toast. The concept is a twist on 'love' (well duh, 90% my illustrations are somehow revolved around love) but yeah this one is about the negativity of love and how it sometimes 'burns' or basically hurts. I hope you like it, it was not as easy as I thought it would be mainly because giving the toast the characteristics that are appropriate for the situation wasn't as smooth going as I thought it would be but all in all I guess it turned out well.

Click download from the deviantart page to get the wallpaper version.

2010-02-05T03:17:00.004+04:00

I went back to my original vector painting style for this particular piece because I felt it would convey the sentimentality of it in a much clearer and elegant way as opposed to my other cartoony illustrative style. I felt a little rusty while working on this because it has been a while since I worked on this style but as I progressed my confidence was restored and it just came along nicely I believe. I think that this piece would work nicely as a card or post card..hmm.

Hope you like it.

Odd

2010-01-15T20:48:00.002+04:00

My latest vector illustration. I wanted to illustrate something about feeling 'different' and 'left out' and well, after 10 days of tossing the idea around in my head the final visualization appeared to me. I'm quite happy with how it turned out and feel that it's one of my finer illustrations to date in terms of how clean the execution is, not a bad start for the new year although I wish I could be more productive and pump out more illustrations as I used to back in 2007, but then again my circumstances have changed since then and I'm lucky now if I have time to illustrate even one piece a month. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to use all of these illustrations in the future, do I want to make T.Shirts, Greeting cards? or Wall Graphics? Not sure yet but I know it's going to be a fun ride once it starts.

I have another illustration in the works, something that involves toast and a toaster, will see how that turns out and if I am able to materialize it from the way it looks in my head.

On a side note, Dashboard Confessional's latest album 'Alter The Ending' is fantastic, I can't stop listening to several tracks on it. Check it out and don't forget to purchase albums, no matter what, downloading is still considered stealing.

Update: 05/02/2010

I made a wallpaper version of this artwork which I happen to just love and have been using ever since, I think it fits nicely on the desktop without interfering with the icons which is exactly what I look for in a wallpaper, and the dark background is easy on the eyes. I hope all of you enjoy using it.

Career Advancement in 2009

2009-12-28T11:41:00.004+04:00

I don't feel like writing up a general entry of my highlights in 2009 because not much would be different than other years seeing that I certainly won't expose too many personal details about my life which lets face it would pretty much make the entry useless, so I'm going to talk about a career advancement which is working on the 'renna' account for most of the year. It's an amazing opportunity, especially here in Oman to work on a project that feels just right for you and this account was just perfect for me. I was able to use my illustrative style and showcase it to the masses and thanks the the many months of illustrating for them my skills have improved so much since I started illustrating, in fact when i look back at some of the illustrations from back in January or February I definitely feel that they're not as great as they could've been but what the heck it's a learning process and I'm glad I got to learn it this way.

I look forward to what's in store next year, who knows? maybe a physical gallery? a small business on the side? All I can say now is thank you god for this beautiful and amazing gift, thank you 'realitycg' and 'renna' for the incredible opportunity and thanks to everyone who supported and encouraged me through the years, I am eternally grateful for it.

Chosen One

2009-12-28T11:18:00.002+04:00

This is my latest artwork which I'm very pleased with the result, I wanted to illustrate something for the winter and thought that it would be fun to do something cheeky that revolves around hot chocolate. I hope you like it. Also exclusive to my blog is a wallpaper version of it for anyone who wants to place it on their desktop, the wallpaper has various textures on it which were added in photoshop. Enjoy.

Wallpaper Version:

A Surprising Discovery

2009-12-19T02:24:00.003+04:00

So I was in Dubai a couple of weeks ago and while walking through virgin records in Emirates mall, I came across a section that does iPhone skin covers and they had an album of patterns and artwork that you can choose from and as I flipped through it I was shocked to find one of my old designs (and looking back at it now I don't think it's all that great lol), but yeah it was quite surprising to find it there, but I wasn't pissed (even though they are actually making money off my work)I actually found myself smiling about it and some contentment filled me to know that my art was good enough for them to feature there amongst their collection. The person in charge their asked me if I wanted to have it on my phone and I told her with a cheeky smile that I'm not going to pay for something that I made and plus the resolution wasn't great seeing that they ripped it off my deviantart account.

The image in their album:

The Original Version:

Warmth

2009-11-17T02:49:00.003+04:00

One of my favorite pieces of the year and easily my most popular one this year in deviantart, the idea came to me out of frustration of being alone and finding so many cold people around me who don't 'get' that frustration so it translated into this piece where two 'people'(portrayed by penguins) find each other and rely on each others care and love to keep them warm despite being surrounded by people who will never get them (the ice-cubes). I hope you like it as much as I do. I'm still trying to find another idea to top this one but it looks like it's going to be difficult, will see how long it takes to get 'inspired' again.

Pumpkin Soup

2009-10-26T11:35:00.004+04:00

Ever wondered what pumpkin soup was really made of?

It's been a while since I illustrated anything for myself, I got this idea while drinking soup and well obviously it's inspired by the halloween season and I mainly illustrated it for deviantart because I have many western followers there. I think I'm happy with the way it turned out. I spent a little over 6 hours, mainly because I didn't have a clear vision in my head, just the concept so all the elements pretty much came in while I was working on it. I believe my skills in illustrating especially when it comes to this style have improved alot during the past year mainly due to the face that i've been illustrating for work alot (Renna mobile account). I've always prefered this style of illustrations over my more 'painted' ones which I also enjoy but this happens to be more 'Me' than the other because the subject matter is usually darker with a twisted sense of humor which well pretty much how I am most of the time anyway.

Enjoy.

Do we complain too much?

2009-10-24T20:55:00.002+04:00

I have noticed that we as Omanis tend to complain about every little thing that happens here in the country, What's available, what isn't, what we want, what we don't. I must confess that I myself tend to fall into that hole every now and then, but thinking about it, I believe that we are simply not content, mainly the citizens of Muscat because we are starting to see what is out there in other countries, what we are lacking in and the fact that the country, despite it actually growing which is something no one can deny, but it is indeed growing very very slowly. Our eyes are open now that the internet is at the access of practically everyone and we can actually see and witness what's happening in the world, how people are actually living life and dare I say even enjoying it which is probably a foreign concept to most Omanis unfortunately because we don't really have much access to alot of entertainment be it a proper sport center? sport events? musical events? a proper theme park? Having said that I do believe that we do complain way too much and that perhaps sometimes it's necessary to take a step back and think about how much work gets put into everything, it might not be as perfect as we would hope for it to be, it might not reach our expectations but it's still a step forward. I am sure that eventually we will reach our goals and we will witness a lot more changes which will hopefully only be for the best (well maybe not much change in my life time - lol, yes I had to say that). I guess what I'm trying to say is that a little more positivity wont hurt and perhaps some patience should also be thrown in the mix because despite everything we do have a lot of opportunities in this country and we are for the most part living rather comfortably.

Expensive Audio CD's

2009-10-19T20:26:00.003+04:00

You'd think that with the state of record sales they'd finally reduce the prices especially here in Oman when it comes to International releases. I don't have a problem with paying around 5 rials for an album which is what it used to be priced at, but the problem now is that they bring in these cheap Thailand manufactured albums which sell at around 3 to 4 rials over there and price them at 6.5 to 7.5 Rials which in my opinion is a complete rip off, the quality of the print and the material they use for the inlay paper, CD and the jewel case differs greatly from those that come in straight from Europe or the U.S.A. I care about the quality because I buy these album for collective purposes only, seeing that I can already get all the music I need online now, so the quality is the only thing that drives me to continue buying music. I've been waiting for the new Madonna greatest hits album 'Celebration' to finally arrive only for me to find that it's brought in from Thailand and is also extremely over priced. Looks like I'm going to get my copy from the U.A.E when I go there this weekend, at least it will be a European print and it will also be cheaper there at around 6 Rials.

What have we come to?

2009-10-16T01:00:00.002+04:00

So I just got back from a so called 'night out' with the guys and I couldn't help but feel annoyed all night, not because the company wasn't great (err yes I have to say that cause they might be reading this lol, nah kidding, it really was great) but because there is absolutely nowhere to go in this country. Cinema is fully booked because we have ONE so called proper cinema in the whole of Muscat with 3 screens playing over 6 movies with the crappiest timings you could possibly imagine, restaurants have become a routine stop that we've grown bored of (we picked Nandos today who have increased their prices btw) and then we cruised around the usual locations of Shatti and Qurum and that was our night. We don't smoke sheesha, we don't club, we don't want to park the car and display it for the world to see and we certainly don't want to stand around at some pathetic location just to watch people come and go which lets face it is what most of the single Omani youth opt for as a hangout concept.

There is just absolutely nothing to do, all I can say is thank god for the internet, thank god for torrents and thank god that I can escape my reality through my art.

New Look

2009-10-15T20:00:00.002+04:00

Yeps, haven't blogged in a long time mainly due to the fact that I absolutely hated the way that it looked before, and being the extremely picky Graphic designer (or mainly illustrator as my boss likes to call me) that really was a turn off. The new layout is nothing too complex in it's nature but it's more me with it's illustrative background.

Anyways, I hope this will get me in the mood to post here more often, I certainly have alot of things to talk about it's just a matter of finding the time to talk about it.

ITA introduces it's new character (Mascot)

2009-06-09T12:04:00.003+04:00

Yep, meet 'Arif':

What a horrible choice they made, it shows no sophistication, no relation whatsoever to I.T and it's just not memorable enough to be a mascot with it's bland features and poor execution. I can't say that I'm surprised to be honest at the choice they made, it's just another example of how they take the power of design for granted. It's just so disappointing that this level of work gets approved all the time in this country, the decision makers should be people who are actually experts in the field and not the heads of the companies or organizations (with all due respect to them and the work they do of course) whom obviously don't really have any substantial knowledge when it comes to design or illustration.

If they thought that this would make their awareness campaign more catchy or attractive then maybe they should think again.

Billboard Ad

2009-04-25T15:19:00.005+04:00

Yeps, Finally things are starting to happen and a billboard that we designed for renna at reality is finally up. Looking forward to everything else to come out as I've been working on this account for a year now, but it's been super fun, stressful, but still fun.

My first newspaper ad

2009-03-15T17:03:00.002+04:00

Yeps, my very first one. The ad is part of the renna brand that I've been working on for almost a year now.

Special thanks to RealityCG for bringing me this amazing opportunity.

Academy Awards 2009

2009-01-23T20:43:00.003+04:00

I'm really excited about this years academy awards, there are so many big and well known names that are nominated and most if not all have delivered some really excellent performances. I am especially excited for 'Kate Winslet' as it seems to be her year after winning 2 Golden Globes. This is her 6th Oscar nomination so I'm hoping she's going to finally win. I watched 'Revolutionary Road' which she was just excellent in, and I hope I'm going to watch 'The reader' sometime within the next day or so (yes you figured it, I'm downloading a DVD screener rip of the movie because I don't want to watch the censored version nor do I want to wait for months for the original DVD copy to come out).

I am also hoping that Brad Pitt wins, this is his 2nd nomination only (his first being way back in 95 for '12 Monkeys') so it would be great if he gets it this time, though I highly doubt that's going to happen. But the Nomination most people are talking about is 'Heath Ledgers' Supporting actor role in 'The Dark Knight' which is without a doubt well deserved and the favorite to win this year, but Part of me is hoping that 'Robert Downy JNr' gets it for his excellent portrayal of a wannabe black guy in 'Tropic Thunder'.

To read about the rest of the nominations you can check out the list Here.

One last note, I'm going to watch 'The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button' tonight, I couldn't wait for it to arrive in theaters here especially after being nominated for 13 oscars. I want to see what all the fuss is about.

Muscat Festival 2009

2009-01-23T19:32:00.003+04:00

So apparently the Muscat festival has begun, I wasn't here for the past 4 festivals (or was it 5?) but I've been to the Qurum park location this year only to find myself bored with the lack of interesting activities in it. I don't want to sound like many other ungrateful Omanis who always complain about everything without making a change, but it really was a snooze fest! The same old 'Traditional Omani Village' that we've been seeing every year, same tacky little shops and the advertisement artwork and over all festival brand is beyond horrible which just sends out a very poor image of the Omani standard especially since it's being advertised for on an international level and not just locally.

I appreciate the efforts that the Omani government makes to handle such events, but it's time to up their game, it's time they do something that is worth being proud of, it's time they shocked us with some mind blowing events and rides that compensates for the lack of activities and events throughout the rest of the year, and I hope they find a better creative agency to handle the festivals artwork in the future and let people who actually understand what needs to be done take charge.

You can check out their incredibly tacky website HERE.

Life is so much better with a Mac

2009-01-09T16:08:00.003+04:00

After using a mac at work for almost a year now, I decided to ditch my old PC for the new 13" Macbook, and I have to say that everything about it makes my digital experience so much sweeter. I don't have to deal with any anti virus crap, I don't have to wait a zillion years for it to start up or shut down and it's just so beautiful to look at. I'm not going to go into the specification details cause you can just go to the apple site for that.

All I can say is that I have no idea how I survived before it, and have no idea why other people just don't switch to the mac. People complain that the operating system is so different than that of windows, but it's actually a much better and much smoother operating system without 99% of the bugs you get with your copy of windows.

Gulf Cup Traffic

2009-01-07T23:59:00.004+04:00

Okay, so I just spend nearly one whole hour stuck in the car due to the traffic that is caused by the parading omanis whom are celebrating Oman's victory in the match today against Iraq. Alright, so I understand their happiness, I understand that there are very little events in the country that people just want a reason to blow off some steam, but COME ON! This is just absolutely ridiculous, guys and girls dancing like idiots in the middle of the streets waving flags in their cars that are covered in the most tacky stickers I've ever seen, forcing the rest of us who just want to get back home or get by our lives to get stuck in that horrific crowd.

The shatti areas were a complete mess today, It normally takes me around 5 minutes to get home (I was having dinner there with friends) but getting out of that disaster of a crowd was just nerve wrecking. It even extended to the high road, and the khuwair traffic light intersection looked like it was hit by an atomic bomb, luckily I didn't have to get into that and just took a U turn on my way to M.Q, and yeah the only reason I had to take the high road was because the police blocked the bridge that takes you to M.Q from shatti.

I personally don't condone such behavior that just puts a halt to everyone's life whether they want to be a part of it or not and I think that the R.O.P are doing a horrible job in controlling it.

Following Brand Guidelines

2009-01-06T12:57:00.005+04:00

Apparently it's difficult for many arthouses (if you can call them that) to follow brand guidelines. RealityCG, the company I work for, have been assigned to come up with a supergraphic for the 19th Gulf Cup and we came up with a pretty decent little design to compliment an otherwise very mediocre logo (god knows how they accepted it in the first place). Unfortunately the people who've been handling it just don't understand the concept of following the guidelines we clearly laid out for them so that they don't end up butchering the supergraphic or the logo, but of course, being in Oman, it's almost a certainty that it does get messed up. it is frustrating to see the supergraphic being completely butchered, chopped, squeezed, you just name it in many applications other than the ones we clearly defined for them. It just surprises me that work like that gets approved, and sent out to the real world. Just comes to show you how much people here care about quality, actually strike that, just shows you much they KNOW about quality.

Anyways, to make things clearer, here's what the supergraphic is supposed to look like:

and here's one of the applications on an omanoil pylon:

The supergraphic over there is obviously skewed (squeezed) and it wasn't even cropped the way it was intended to be cropped.

Thankfully, they changed those though after we made it clear to them that the application was completely wrong, although there are still some weird interpertations of the supergraphic all over town (the little light boxes near the lulu roundabout, and a billboard on Bareeq Al Shatti).

Oh well.

My Favorite Music Albums Of 2008

2008-12-27T14:38:00.003+04:00

As I always do, I felt it would be a good idea to talk about some of my favorite albums of the year. Even though I feel that music is seriously lacking in substance nowadays and that real artists don't really have a shot anymore unless they conform to popular trends, I think that there have been some decent offerings by some artists which I managed to enjoy.

Alanis Morissette - Flavors Of Entanglement

By far my favorite album of the year thanks to the amazing production by one of my favorite producers 'Guy Sigsworth' (whom I'm going to blog about later on). I went as far as ordering the deluxe 2 disk edition of the album, something that I rarely do nowadays seeing that I rarely purchase any music unless it's really good, but this one was definitely worth the money. It's a shame though that it is her most underperforming album to date, and didn't manage to keep up in terms of sales. I hope that people eventually discover the album someday and realize what a masterpiece it is.

---

Madonna - Hard Candy

I probably listened to this as much as I have this year because I am a fan of Madonna's music, but truth to be told, I felt that it was her least inspired effort to date and the lack of promotion (despite the massive tour) has put me off the album a bit and made me grow tired of it a bit sooner than usual. That said, there are some excellent tracks on the album like the massive club track 'Give It To Me' and the emotional 'Miles Away' not to forget my personal favorite 'Devil Wouldn't Recognize You'. Not her best, but still an enjoyable affair. I look forward to what direction she decides on for her first 'Live Nation' release.

---

Lady Gaga - The Fame

I think that this album is lyrically ridiculous but the music on it and her vocals are insanely catchy that you forgive the writers for inflicting this rubbish upon us. It's probably the most 'fun' record of the year thanks to the production skills of producer 'Redone' who produced the massive hit 'Lets Dance' as well as new hit 'Pokerface' for her. I think that she'll be around for a while thanks to a very interesting image and stage presence, which is pretty much what you need nowadays to be recognized by the public.

---

Britney Spears - Circus

Dubbed as Britney's official comeback thanks to the massive success of first and second singles on the charts, even though she actually "came back" last year with the rather decent album 'Blackout'. This is a much more fun side to her, as 'Blackout' felt rather dark, or maybe it was the mood of the phase she was in at the time, and now that we see her back on her game, we feel that it's a little more sunny now in britney-ville, hmm, psychology is interesting. Anyways, I have enjoyed this new album very much, there are so many highlights that it would be easier to copy and paste the track listing of the album. I hope that continues to do well. I didn't enjoy the downslide and despite so many people hating her, I actually think she's an important icon and symbol in pop culture.

---

Brandy - Human

Another extremely underrated talented singer. Difficult to believe how this ones multiplatinum artists struggles now to achieve gold status in sales and her singles barely get the airplay and sales they actually deserve. I've been looking forward to this album ever since she dropped her last one 4 years ago, because I simply can't get enough of her voice. She is undoubtedly one of the most unique and beautiful voices in RnB. The album was everything I expected from her and I am positive that I'll be listening to it for a long time to come, I just hope that people give her another chance so that she can be once again on 'top of the world'.

I have missed blogging

2008-12-27T04:49:00.003+04:00

Hello everyone,

Yes yes, I know that I've been out of the blog community for way too long that I don't even expect people to read this. I've been busy with work and life in general, well maybe not busy to the extent it may sound, but I suppose I just lost interest in blogging or couldn't get myself around it. I am glad however to see other omanis still maintaining their blogs, specifically Muscati and Blue-chi, whom I must say are doing a great job in keeping it interesting and well worth the visit.

So much has happened during 2008, and I think I'll share some of the highlights in my next post. Hopefully you'll see much more of me around from now on.

Nabs

Indiana Jones

2008-05-20T16:53:00.004+04:00

I'm so excited about the new Indiana Jones movie that should be out tomorrow in Oman. I grew up watching the Indiana movies and I still love them just as much as I did back in the day. Luckily I watched all 3 of them very recently to refresh my memory and I had so much fun watching his hilarious stunts as if I was watching it for the first time all over again. The new Indiana Jones seems to be generating positive reviews and looks set to kick some major box office ass.

Don't forget to catch the movie this weekend in shatti cinema.

Mario Karts Wii

2008-05-19T16:36:00.000+04:00

I've been playing Mario Karts since 1997 I believe when I got the N64 version and I have loved it ever since, It's just so much fun to play especially with friends and family and the new Wii version is just as fun and fantastic with a bunch of new characters and levels to play and the actual game play (thanks to the amazing Wii remote) being different, it just became alot more exhilarating and enchanting to play. I'd highly recommend the game to anyone who has the wii, and if you don't have one yet, then you should get one and get this game with it. I've been playing it with my family for the past week or so and it's just hilarious to watch everyone crash and burn, especially my brother in law whom for some reason believes he's invincible. lol

Rating: 9/10

Madonna - Hard Candy

2008-05-19T16:11:00.000+04:00

I've been wanting to blog about this album for quite some time now but never got around it, I mean how can I not review a new Madonna record? So many people give me crap for liking her but I don't give a damn about it and all I can say to them is grow up and have some confidence in yourselves. Anyways, I've had it for nearly a month now, and I bought the physical release around 3 weeks ago and I'm still loving it. Yes it's not really ground breaking work, and it's not a typical Madonna sound and some might say that she jumped on the RnB/Hip/hop bandwagon but that's who Madonna actually is, going for what is hip and current and adding her personal twists to it and that's exactly what happened on this release and I'm enjoying the ride so far. 4 minutes is doing really well for her and there's major hype on the second single too so it's all good so far. I'm especially loving the timbaland produced tracks because those seem to have much more depth lyrically especially "Devil Wouldn't Recognize you' and 'Voices' as well as 'Miles Away' but the lighter and more fun tracks like 'Heartbeat' and 'Give it to me' are also really great and major fun to listen to really loud on your speakerphone or even in the car. All in all, I think it's a solid album and It should keep me happy for quite some time. Rumor has it that she's also coming to dubai next year for her world tour so if that happens then I should make an effort to try and catch the show and see her live for 'the very first time'.

My Rating: 9/10

Haters Everywhere And Hello To Everyone Else..

2008-05-18T15:58:00.000+04:00

Yes, It has been so long since I last updated this place, actually I haven't even checked it in a really long time but today I decided to check things out and if anyone left me any msgs especially in the shoutbox only to find a bunch of hate comments calling me certain names. I can pretty much guess where these people are coming from (mainly the E.Sabla) whom are not happy with the way I deal with them over there so they feel the need to trash my blog because lets face it, it's the only thing they can do seeing that they can hide behind a false name and say what they want. If that is not an act of intimidation and cowardliness then I don't know what else is and I just end up feeling sorry for their parents seeing that they absloutely failed in raising their kids the proper way.

Anyways, I'm doing great, working now and doing what I always wanted to do so life is good. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the blog and in what direction I want to take it, I might just use it as a promotional tool for my work especially since many people (including my current employer) seem to find me through it so I guess I better keep it even if I don't update it as often as I'd like to.

Hope everyone out there is doing great and thank you for your patience and most importantly your respect.

Change - Autumn Art

2007-11-12T02:00:00.000+04:00

Change by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

"Everyone deserves a second chance.."

Program Used: Adobe Illustrator CS
Time: Almost 5 hours
Outlines: Link

--------

This piece was inspired by the various autumn art I've been seeing around as well as the general atmosphere around me, I also had the thoughts of having second chances if one messes up so it just occurred to me to illustrate a tree that is changing it's leaves and eventually new fresh ones will grow for a new beginning, a second chance for it to shine once again.

This illustration is easily one of my favs of the year because I used a slightly different technique. the shading is based on various little shapes as well as my layers of vector brushing, and I'm really happy with the result. Hope you like it.

Celine Dion - Taking Chances

2007-11-11T01:52:00.000+04:00

The new Celine Dion is pretty interesting and a little different than what we're used to hearing from her. If you're expecting major piano power ballads then you'll be disappointed because the album leans more towards the rock genre than any of her other releases except two or three up tempo songs. All in all it took a little while to grow on me but in the end it's another solid release that's worthy of entering her amazing musical catalog.

The album features production by Ex-Evanescence member Ben Moody, Kirstin Lundin (BsB, N sync, Britney) and Linda Perry (Pink, Christina Aguilera).

Here are some of my fav tracks off the album, If you like what you hear then support the artist by buying a copy of the album.

Download:

Eyes On Me
Alone
This Time
My Love

Seal - System

2007-11-05T22:55:00.000+04:00

Seal is ready to release his new album 'System' on the 13th of November and this time around he goes back to his dance roots with the help of producer 'Stuart Price' who produced Madonna's LP 'Confessions on a dance floor'. He hasn't had much luck when it comes to chart success since his major hit 'Kiss from a rose' back in 1995 so hopefully this album does well for him because he's such an excellent and unique vocalist and this is a solid dance record with great lyrics and fantastic trancy and electronic beats.

Check out some of my favs from the links below, and if you like what you hear then grab yourself a copy. Support the artists you enjoy listening to.

Downloads:

If It's In My Mind, It's On My Face
The Right Life
Loaded
Just Like Before
Amazing

It's Been A While..

2007-11-03T00:22:00.000+04:00

It's been quite a while since my last update and I'm feeling a little guilty for neglecting my blog but I just can't seem to find much to talk about over here which isn't too personal to share. Since my last update I went back to Oman for holidays, went to Malaysia with my sister and now I'm back to Jordan for my final semester so things are pretty great.

so yeah, for now as an updated I'll show you some dark cartoony pieces I've illustrated during the past week which I'm really loving, a bit different from my usual digital paintings but still within my style. Enjoy. :)

Hung Up by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Demons by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

In Rainbows by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Trick Or Treat by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

--------

Thank you to all the people who keep visiting and dropping lovely msgs in my shoutbox.

M.I.A - Kala

2007-08-24T01:50:00.000+04:00

This album took a long time to grow on me but once it did it just got stuck in my head. The infectious beats of almost every single song on this release is what really makes this album work wonders. This is her second album by the British/Sirilankan singer after the Mercury prize nominated 'Arular' and just like that one was praised to death I'm sure that this one will not only be praised but received well and probably generate some hit singles for her judging by the already huge reception of it on the digital charts. The album is filled with club bangers that will make you just want to get up and move to the stomping beats, I particularly love the song 'Boyz' as well as the new single 'Jimmy' with it's disco flavored sound.

She's very original and unique, a bit tacky though and I think she might have really bad taste judging by the artwork of the album (which is one of the worst I've seen in years to be completely honest) and the very cheesy colorful music videos but who cares, at least the music is fantastic.

Rating: 8/10

Download:

Boyz
Jimmy
Bamboo Banger

What friends are for..

2007-08-23T08:29:00.000+04:00

Ever had a friend stab you in the back? well this is exactly what this drawing is about. Sometimes life hands you some cruel surprises and all one can do is learn from them and move on.

Madonna - The Beat Goes On

2007-08-22T23:11:00.000+04:00

This is the first song to leak from Madonna's new recording session for her new hip/hop or better yet American Mainstream sounding album. It's Produced by Pharrell Williams who produced a zillion songs over the years for artists like Justin Timberlake, Snoop Dogg, Gwen Stefani and Jay-Z. It's a decent sounding song, not really single material in my opinion but it's a fresh sound for her and the chorus is addictive. I'm not sure if I love it just yet but it's slowly growing on me. Hopefully the rest of the album which is produced by Timbaland will sound better.

Download:

Madonna - The Beat Goes On (Feat.Pharrell Williams)

All Is Full Of Love..

2007-08-22T02:47:00.000+04:00

I was in the mood to draw something colorful and cute and this is what came out. Adobe Illustrator Program was used as always to illustrate this piece. :)

All is full of love.. by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Britt Nicole - Say It

2007-08-21T05:48:00.000+04:00

This album has been released back in June but I only recently discovered her through my usual browsing in the iTunes store. I've been looking up some christian music artists because they're actually more like regular pop/rock singers but for some reason they're labled as christian, maybe it's because of the clean lyrics? or their influences? I don't really get it but anyways that doesn't really matter and all I care about is the music, and this album is a solid pop/rock effort that can actually be even compared to what Avril Lavigne and Kelly Clarkson offered us in the past. She has a great voice and the choruses of her songs are really addictive. If you're a pop music fan then you might actually enjoy this, I know I did.

My Rating: 8/10

---

Download:

You
Set The World On Fire

Cartooning is apparently wrong..

2007-08-20T23:04:00.000+04:00

I've had an interesting incident a couple of weeks ago on the EnglishSabla (the forum I manage) where a member started attacking me for doing my job which unfortunately ended up in a ban because that member didn't want to let things go. So after the ban I felt that I wanted to illustrate a little cartoon about the incident, or mainly my feelings towards this member and this was the result:

So I posted it in the forum like i've done several times before when I had conflicts with other members, but this time I was suddenly attacked and accused of using my art or my powers in the forum (if that even makes sense) in a wrong or inappropriate way and that I should be charged for it. Weird eh?

What happened to people's sense of humor? what happened to the freedom of expressing oneself? Do these people not read the papers and see the political cartoons, this is basically the very same thing except it's probably about someone they know which is why they decided to make all this fuss.

The problem is that this member whom I decided to illustrate (without knowing what she really looks like) is still bitter, weeks after the incident and keeps on talking about me in negative ways to complete strangers which ends up in them judging me in advance. The latest comment this member made was done just recently in a friends blog where she said:

"Art is indeed a unique type of beauty, but lots out there use their talents in attempt to harm others. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about"

All I have to say to this member is that she should learn to let things go before they take a toll on her life. It's JUST a cartoon, just a way to let out some steam, to express myself in a way that I couldn't have done in any other way, and hopefully she'll see the humor in it one day. :)

Darren Hayes - This Delicate Thing We've Made

2007-08-19T06:02:00.000+04:00

Darren Hayes in my opinion is one of the most underrated male singers out there at the moment, He has such a fantastic voice and yes even if he is in fact gay that shouldn't stop people from checking out his music because i know some people who stopped listening to him once they found out about his homosexuality but well to each his own.

This is his 3rd solo effort and his first to be released through his independent record label which means that this project is financed solely by himself, so hopefully it will do well for him. It tool a little while to grow on me because well it's a little more flamboyant sounding than the rest of his albums, maybe it's got to do with the fact that he's openly gay now and more comfortable in his own skin, but there are some really outstanding tracks on this double album that are on the same level if not higher with his earlier releases.

All in all it's a refreshing electronic ride that will surely transport you to a fascinating dimension filled with only the best electronic sound elements you can think of.

Rating : 8.5/10

--

Downloads:

The Sun Is Always Blinding Me
A Conversation With God
Casey

Sunshine

2007-08-18T05:28:00.000+04:00

This is one of my latest little illustrations. I wanted to do something that looked painted with oil colors and well not sure if this ended up looked like that, but I'm pleased with the outcome. It was done from scratch as in no references used in adobe illustrator as usual, and took me around 3 hours to create.

Sunshine by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

====

I also created a wallpaper of it in 1024 x 768 resolution. This piece is exclusive to my blog, so enjoy. :)

Transition

2007-07-18T19:55:00.000+04:00

Transition by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Yes, You turned my world upside down
And now I come to your place happy as a clown

I need no light now that you're with me
for you will shine for me ever so brightly

A beautiful star I finally found
and forever rest assured, I will be around

I know my treasure, make no mistake
And for you I offer now is this heart to take

---------

This is a little illustration and poem that kinda describes my current state of mind. I hope you like it. :o)

Colbie Caillat - Coco

2007-07-17T18:25:00.000+04:00

I noticed this singer in the iTunes store yesterday and was surprised to see it go to number one in the album downloads chart in just one day especially since it's an artist I never heard of before now, so I decided to give it a try and wow...she really has a fantastic voice. She's not a mainstream artist which is probably why I liked her so much (I'm getting sick of the mainstream sound). Apparently she falls under the 'New - Acoustic' genre, which I have to admit I've never heard of before now.

Colbie has been the #1 unsigned artist on MySpace for 4 months in a row (until she got signed) so that's probably why she already has a pretty decent fanbase (her page has been visited over 3 million times and generates more than 50k worth of hits a day).

I think that everyone should give her a try and who knows you might end up really loving her sound cause she certainly is a breath of fresh air in this music industry that's filled with songs that barely have a decent msg behind them. If you like artists such as KT Tunstall, Alanis Morissette then you'd probably enjoy this as well.

My Rating: 9/10

Colbie's MySpace Site

Downloads:

One Fine Wire
Oxygen
Feelings Show
The Little Things

I dream in black..

2007-06-14T08:02:00.000+04:00

I dream in black.. by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

I see the world as colorful as can be
But all those colors mean nothing to me
Where is my happiness where is my joy?
Will I forever be a lonely boy?

-------

This is a personal piece, hope you like it.

Illustrator CS, 3 hours

Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Trip The Light Fantastic

2007-05-25T10:06:00.000+04:00

I'm not sure many of my regular blog readers would enjoy this knowing how most of you don't really like electro pop records but I personally love her new album. This is her 3rd release and probably her best to date..it's very british, very electronic and very catchy. I am especially in love with the song 'Let you go' which is one of the best songs I've heard this year and I really hope it get released as a single in the future.

Here are a few of the best tracks on the CD for you to download:

If You Go
Catch You (1st single)
Today The Sun's On Us
Me And My Imagination (2nd single)

Rihanna - Good Girl Gone Bad

2007-05-22T06:30:00.000+04:00

Rihanna has come a long way since her debut album which was only 3 years ago (So far she released an album every year since her debut, busy girl eh?). This is without a doubt her most solid release to date, her first two albums in my opinion had way too many filler tracks and apart from the singles released from them the rest could easily be ditched and forgotten but that isn't the case with this album as almost every track on it is worthy of a listen and probably even single material, and how can that not be the case? she collaborated with so many hot producers (Timbaland, Ne-yo, Stargate) and others, and also samples a Michael Jackson song on the club banger 'Don't stop the music'. She's number one this week on the U.K singles charts and if she continues down this road then I'm pretty sure she'll have many more #1's.

My Rating: 8.5/10

------

Downloads:

Sell me candy
Breaking Dishes
Push up on me

Rehab (Produced by Timbaland)
Shut up and drive (2nd Single)
Don't stop the music (sample's MJ's Wanna be starting something)
Good girl gone bad (Produced by Ne-Yo)

University Project

2007-05-21T02:24:00.000+04:00

Here are some pictures of my 2nd presentation for my University graduation project. I am very happy with the way everything turned out and everyone at uni are loving it especially my professors alhamdulillah. I am very proud of my progress in the illustration department and all my professors are telling me that I should specialize in it.

Anyways..I chose a 'Card shop' project because I already had so much material which I can use for it and I also wanted to show my professors my illustrations (which they've never seen before this project).

Here are the pics, and excuse the quality, I used my mobile cam to take them.

The project consists of :

4 Posters
Letter Heads
Envelopes
Magazine Adds
Business Cards
Calendar
Brochure
Folder
Logo

------

I still have 10 posters to come up with, Banners, Greeting Cards, Book marks and others. But it's all so much fun so it doesn't matter how much work I have.

Hope you enjoyed my work.

Melanie C - This Time

2007-05-20T06:50:00.000+04:00

When I first got the album I can honestly say that I didn't care for it much and I felt that all the songs sounded too similar to each other and blended together as if they were one, but how wrong was I. The album suddenly played a few days back while my winamp was on random mode and I truly fell in love with each and every single track (okay well maybe not every track, there's one or two songs which I keep on skipping like the cheesy 'I want candy') but the rest of the songs on this record are truly beautiful thanks to the amazing lyrics and Mel's soft, calm and very beautiful voice. This is her 4th solo release and she is getting better and better with each album she puts out (except for 2002's 'Reason' which was a disappointment for me). This is her best effort since her mega successful 'Norther Star' and is probably even better than that album.

I would seriously recommend everyone to check it out especially if you're into Coldplay, U2 , Redhot Chilli Peppers because there are various and obvious influences of their style on this album and well that can't be a bad thing at all.

My Rating: 9.5/10

-----

Downloads:

Forever Again
Your Mistake
Immune
Understand
This Time
Carolyna

Bliss

2007-05-18T01:47:00.000+04:00

Bliss by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Another Illustration for my university Project. I'll be turning this one into a bookmark.

Linkin Park - Minutes To Midnight

2007-05-06T02:46:00.000+04:00

Linkin Park are releasing their 3rd studio album in two weeks and it seems that their hard core fans are finding a hard time adjusting to their new sound direction. Apparently they ditched their Nu Metal sound for a more alternative rock one which I personally am really loving. I've been a fan since their first album and I can still feel that this is a linking park album, perhaps not as aggressive as their other releases but it's just as fantastic if not better. There might not be many single material songs on the release but the album works beautifully as a whole package and I am just having a blast listening to it (already played it 4 times in a row since I got a copy of it). I am not sure if it's going to do well for them or sell as much as their previous albums but it's a risk they've taken and I applaud them for it.

My rating: 9/10

Here's the whole album for y'all to check out (because as I said it works best as a whole package) and don't forget to support the band by buying an original copy of it if you like it.

1. Wake
2. Given Up
3. Leave Out All The Rest
4. Bleed It Out
5. Shadow Of The Day
6. What I've Done
7. Hands Held High
8. No More Sorrow
9. Valentine's Day
10. In Between
11. In Pieces
12. The Little Things Give You Away

*songs in Bold are my favorites.

Siobhan Donaghy - Ghosts

2007-05-02T20:56:00.000+04:00

Wow, just wow. This in my opinion is By far the best album released this year. It's pure magic. Her voice, the music, the lyrics everything about it is just so well done especially that amazing voice of hers. For those of you who don't know Siobhan is one of the 3 whom originally founded the 'Sugababes' and only stayed with them for a year during their first album. Since then she has released 2 solo albums, this being the second one. I've been a fan of her voice ever since her Sugababes days but she has exceeded my expectations of what she can do with this release. It's a shame that she isn't as successful as she deserves to be, as first single off the album 'Don't give it up' completely flopped in the u.k managing only a #45 position or something to that effect, but then again that comes to show you that REAL MUSIC and real art is rarely appreciated these days. The critics seems to love her though but I guess that anything that is not mainstream or generic barely gets any recognition.

Anyways..I absolutely love the whole album from start to finish and it's very rare that I find myself playing an album non-stop without skipping tracks off it but this is one of those and I will surely be getting myself a copy of it once it gets released in stores around the world.

These are my fav tracks so far:

GoldFish

Madevac

Ghosts

There's A Place

Don't Give It Up

My rating : 9.5/10

Umbrella Art

2007-05-02T20:45:00.000+04:00

Umbrella by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

This is a little piece that was inspired by the umbrella song which i've been addicted to. Hope ya'll like it.

Rihanna - Umbrella

2007-04-28T03:04:00.000+04:00

I normally don't like her songs much and find her voice rather irritating but I've been so addicted to this song ever since I got my hands on it. The chorus of this fantastically produced track is just amazing and very very addictive, it's the type of chorus that sticks in your head from the first listen. This is probably her best song to date and if the rest of her new album is just as good then I'll probably be getting myself an original copy of it.

The video is just as fantastic, very dark yet sexy, I especially love the scene where she dances and the water moves along with her movement. very creative and original.

Download a high quality radio edit version of the song and play it loud in your car.

Rihanna - Umbrella

New Songs..

2007-04-27T10:37:00.000+04:00

Here are a bunch of songs I'm currently enjoying:

Avril Lavigne - I Will Be

This is a bonus track off her new album and is not included on the physical Release. I have no idea why they decided to keep it off the original album release because it is by far the best song to come out of her last recording session and way better than MANY tracks that made the final cut. Shame really..it could seriously make a fantastic single unlike the highly annoying 'girlfriend' which is currently #1 in the U.S.

Download

---

Mandy Moore - Extraordinary

I've always loved Mandy as both a singer and actress but mostly as a singer. She isn't what people would call a 'sell out' and has stayed true to her style despite the fact that she's not as successful as her peers who launched their career during the same year she came out. This new single is off her new album which should be out in June and it's just very beautifully arranged and sung. No heavy beats, no major production just simple string arrangements and live instruments along with her amazing voice. Love it.

Download

---

Tracey Thorn - By Piccadilly Station I Sat Down And Wept

I've been into her album ever since I got a copy of it. Tracey is mostly known as one half of the rather successful due 'Everything but the girl' who had a major hit in the mid 90's titled 'Missing'. This is off her second solo album which comes highly recommended by me and I guess this is my fav track off it. I love her beautiful and calm voice as well as the electronic sounds in the background especially at the beginning of the track, sort of takes you to a whole new dimension.

Download

---

Daughtry - Breakdown

I love love love this song. I've kinda been obsessed by it ever since I heard it off their fantastic debut album which is deservingly doing very well in terms of sales and chart performance. The song is slowly becoming one of my all time favorites and I very much doubt i'll ever really get bored of it. If you didn't listen to it yet then you should give it a shot.

Download

---

Blue October - Congratulations (Feat. Imogen Heap)

This is a Fantastic song. It basically decribes how his female best friend is getting married to another guy and he suddenly confesses that he has feelings for her but obviously it's too late (or something along those lines). I love the lead singers vocals, not to forget the amazing vocals of Imogen heap which is the main reason I got this song since I'm a huge fan of hers. Great song with a great story behind it.

Download

---

OneRepublic - Apologize

This is the original version of the otherwise remixed by timberland song that can be found on his 'Shock Value' album. I kind like this version better, it sounds more sincere and raw which is perfect for the mood of the song.

Download

-------

Hope you enjoyed this selection and don't forget to drop a comment if you download any of them. :)

So Alone

2007-04-25T20:33:00.000+04:00

So Alone by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

This is an illustration which pretty much sums up my current state of mind. I am not a person who likes to feel alone or be alone, I always feel the need to have at least ONE person to rely on to talk if I need to do so but lately i've been feeling pretty much alone. It's not like I don't have people to talk to it's just that there isn't someone who actually gets me or can relate to what I feel.

Oh well..at least the illustration turned out nice and it's exactly the way I pictured it to be.

Gay Omani rumors reaching Jordan?

2007-04-19T04:06:00.000+04:00

I basically had a pretty big shock today in my psychology class. The professor was talking about gay people and that it's a psychological problem (I don't agree but that's another story) and that in the west gay marriage is allowed and then suddenly this student mentions that it's also allowed in the Arab and Islamic world. Where exactly? surprise surprise..it's non other than our beloved Oman.

He basically went on and on about how gay couples from Kuwait or Saudi Arabia come to Oman to get married and that it's allowed over there and of course being the blunt person that I am I immediately raised my hand to correct this weird and rather disturbing rumor and I told the professor out loud that I am Omani and lived in Oman most of my life and that I have never heard of such a thing, Yes there are fags in our society and then again which society doesn't have them? but we absolutely do not allow gay marriage.

It was just rather disturbing and I hope that I made a difference by correcting him although I kinda got the feeling that whatever I said went through one ear and out the other but oh well, at least I did what I could, and I certainly hope that I was correct.

Bjork - Earth Intruders

2007-04-14T17:06:00.000+04:00

This is the new single from Bjork's new album 'Volta'. I don't expect many of you to really like it out there because Bjork's the sort of artist whom you either really love or really hate, but I've been addicted to this track ever since I got it. I love her originality and sense of style and yes she does sound insane most of the time but that's what's so great about her music.

This song is produced by Timbaland but sounds completely different than anything he's done before which just shows how diverse he can be in his sound. I really like that.

Download:

Bjork - Earth Intruders (Radio Edit)

Timbaland

2007-03-23T05:17:00.000+04:00

The hottest producer in the music industry is about to launch his new album next month and looks like it's going to be a surefire hit. He personally calls this a 'greatest hits' album due to the fact that the record features collaborations with so many hot singers such as Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado (whom he produced #1 hits for such as Sexyback and Say it right)as well as Elton John, Fall out boy and so many others.

I got to listen to a few tracks off the record as well as samples of the rest of his album and I am seriously loving what I heard so far especially this one track titled 'Time' which is a cross between hip/hop and Alternative and is just simply amazing. I've been listening to it non-stop ever since I got the file so here it is for ya'll to check out if you're interested.

And yeah..he is also going to be working on Madonna's new album (YES!)and produced some songs for Bjork's new record which is due in may I think..so that's even more music to look out for from him.

Download: Time(Feat.She Wants Revenge)

Snow Traveler

2007-03-18T02:16:00.000+04:00

Snow Traveler by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Okay so it's been really freezing here in Jordan all of a sudden after a few warm days last week and I am kinda irritated because of it. The snow fall on Thursday was amazing and I had a blast walking around town in it but now I just want to jump into boiling water because my whole body is starting to get numb!

Now it's just raining heavily all day and I'm stuck at home with not much to do really. Hopefully it won't rain as much tomorrow so that I don't get all wet on my way to uni and then the gym.

I really wanted to take pictures of the snow but my digital camera wasn't charged (I really didn't expect it to snow anymore this year, actually no one did!) so I couldn't do anything. Anyways this illustration is inspired by that and the thought of me wishing that my best friend was around to see it. Actually I wished that all my friends and family were around to enjoy it.

This illustration is dedicated to my best friend who sometimes uses the nick name 'snow traveler'.

Happy Now..

2007-03-15T01:43:00.000+04:00

Happy now.. by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

I illustrated this little piece when I was feeling a bit down last week when I came back to Jordan and every time I look at it I feel better and it puts a smile on my face. I was thinking what could be the best way for ME to illustrate the idea of 'going to a happy place' and I immediately got the image of a balloon flying away to an unknown place because as many of you know I have always been fascinated by balloons when I was a kid and they always made me REALLY happy so that's basically how this idea came to reality and I have to say that it's one of my favorite illustrations to date even though it took me less than an hour to complete.

On a side note, thanks to everyone who keeps visiting and commenting, I assure you even though I don't reply to your comments all the time, I surely read every single one.

Hope everyone out there is in a great and happy place in their lives.

Freedom

2007-03-11T02:27:00.000+04:00

Freedom by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Sometimes I wish I could just write down all my worries, stress issues and sad feelings on a piece of paper and send it away, release it somehow so that I don't feel nor experience them anymore. Sadly that can't be done and somehow I have to find a way to get over the things that bother me in life by just living my day the best way I can and being in this extremely boring country really doesn't help at all.

I guess you don't really need chains or walls to feel like you're in prison because I often feel like a prisoner of my own fears in life, and it's getting the better part of me. I don't like change that I am not in control of and so thinking about things changing often makes me feel really down.

Anyways, I officially decided to join the gym because I need to get in shape and besides I need something to look forward to everyday and not just come home to my sad computer and do the exact thing I keep on doing which is watch movies, surf the net and design. So lets hope that it does make a difference because I could desperately use it.

Treasure

2007-03-01T03:59:00.000+04:00

Treasure by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

Being in Oman makes me realize how much I cherish the people around me especially those who actually care about what I do with my life. This little piece is the only illustration I've done since I arrived here 3 weeks ago because I was really inspired by being surrounded by them.

I can't wait to finally finish with my studies, settle down and start a new chapter in my life that will hopefully include another person I would eventually treasure.

Yoshi's Island - Nintendo DS

2007-02-17T02:54:00.001+04:00

I finally got my hands on this baby and I'm seriously enjoying it. I've been looking for it ever since it was released and I was able to get a friend to buy it for me from Dubai (Oman and Jordan both suck when it comes to new releases!).

Anyways it's really fun, obviously not for hardcore gamers though who care about their graphics being super realisitic and the story being incredibly geeky and serious. This is a game for fun, to sit back relax and simply enjoy Yoshi's adventure. It's very similar to 'The new super mario bros' game so people who enjoyed that game on DS will surely love this one as well.

After playing it for a couple of days I'm not really surprised that it's one of the most popular and successful DS games to date.

My rating: 9/10

Katharine McPhee - Katharine McPhee

2007-01-30T21:00:00.000+04:00

I have to be honest and say that I'm a little dissapointed by her debut album because I had such high hopes that it would be smashingly good. It's not horrible or anything because Katharine's voice shines through the whole thing and makes some rather average songs sound quite good, it's just that the production on this record as well as the lyrics isn't really up there with what's hip and catchy in the current music scene.

Some songs really save this album from being a complete and utter bore such as the fantastic midtempo ballad ' Everywhere I go' and the extremely catchy dancefloor Crunk N B smash 'Open toes' which are without a doubt the highlights of this album. Other songs such as 'Not your girl' and the first single 'Over it' are also pretty good but the rest of the album just doesn't compliment her talents.

Lets hope that some chart topping hits will save this album from completely flopping and put her up there with the other successful Idol stars such as Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson.

My rating: 7/10

----

Download:

Everywhere I go: http://www.speedyshare.com/898754626.html

Open Toes: http://www.speedyshare.com/121429279.html

Not your girl : http://www.speedyshare.com/324770927.html

Over It : http://www.speedyshare.com/370267497.html

The Cardigans - Don't blame your daughter

2007-01-28T18:19:00.000+04:00

This is another song I really love especially with that superb gothic looking video. I feel that the cardigans are extremely underrated since they only had a couple of successful songs such as 'love fool' which was featured in the movie 'Romeo and Juliet' and their 1999 hits 'My favorite game' and 'Erase and rewind' but other than that they keep on releasing albums that just go under the radar and basically barely get any notice.

This single comes from their lovely album 'Super Extra Gravity' which also features the single 'I need some fine wine..', and the video is directed by the same guy who did madonna's 'Hung up' and 'Nothing really matters videos' as well as All Saints 'Black Coffee'.

Download the song: http://www.speedyshare.com/419641868.html

Fragile

2007-01-28T00:39:00.000+04:00

I was walking the other day with a friend on the side walk after lunch talking and enjoying the cold weather when suddenly we see this car hit a man who was right next to us crossing the road. It was a side road but the car was quite fast and it just knocked him over and practically crushed him. My friend and I just stood there in shock while the car that hit him just moved on and never even stopped to help the poor man out. Some locals then just picked him up and rushed him to the hospital as quick as they can.

I personally have never seen anything remotely like that in real life before so it was just shocking and something just struck inside and reminded me how tiny, incignificant and fragile we all are and that our time on this planet is so precious that we should make the most out of it. It's not like I'm making the most of my time now because there isn't really much I can do as a student over here but as soon as I graduate I am planning to make a name for myself especially as a graphic designer in Oman inshalah.

This artwork was inspired by that incident.

Little Children

2007-01-27T05:09:00.000+04:00

I watched the movie today and now I can understand all the buzz surrounding it and why both Kate Winslet and Jakie Earle Haley got oscar nominations for their role in this beautiful and moving picture. I was absolutely facsinated by the story of the movie from the very start and I loved the documentry styled narration in those weird silent moments where you usually just wonder what the characters are thinking about.

It's a very simple yet effective movie which basically tells us that deep down we are all 'little children', that we all make silly mistakes no matter how old we are and all we need to do is learn from those mistakes and try to move on.

I would definitely recomend it to anyone who's interested in a movie with hidden depth.

My rating: 9/10

India Arie - I am not my hair

2007-01-25T10:45:00.000+04:00

This is one song i've been completely obsessed with lately. I actually downloaded it a long time ago but only recently remembered that I did and decided to check it out again especially after seeing the video of the song.

The song is apparently about racism with lyrics such is 'Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?'. You'd think that with the success of the black community (chart toping music hits and movies and a gazillion awards) that they'd finally stop complaining but I guess that's not enough for them and perhaps their scars are deeper than we can imagine but hey if the result is something as amazing as this song (Muscially, lyrically and vocally) then let them complain and whine all they want. :p

Download: http://www.sendspace.com/file/kwsbfq

The song is also nominated for 2 Grammy awards in the 'Best Female R&B Vocal Performance' and 'Best RnB song' categories.

Oscar Nominations announced

2007-01-24T10:04:00.000+04:00

Go to www.oscar.com to view the full list.

------

Well it looks like I'm the only one who's remotely excited by this years award season. I can barely find anyone who actually gives a crap about it (Apparently the gulf cup is much more interesting to them) and whenever I talk about the Oscars to anyone they give me this vibe that I should just shut up about it and start talking about how great it's been for Oman to win all the matches it played in so far in the gulf cup lol (well it actually is great so big shout out goes to all Omanies and here's to us winning for the first time inshallah).

Anyways this is about the Oscars and well I have actually prediced most of the nominees but was rather dissapointed that Jack Nicholson didn't get a nomination for his amazing role in 'The departed' as well as Brad pitt being snubbed for his role in 'Babel' which seems to be nominated for everything else!

Two actresses whom I'm quite sure they'd win are Hellen Mirren for 'The Queen' (Which actually was quite a good movie and her performance was superb) but I am still hoping that the lovely Kate Winslet gets it because she bloody deserves it and this is her 5th nomination for heavens sake (she never won before). The other Actress I'm quite positive of her win is Jennifer Hudson who's been getting alot of rave lately for her role in 'Dream Girls' which I am yet to watch but I am hoping that the little girl Abigail Breslin from 'Little miss sunshine' would get it because I really enjoyed her performance in that excellent movie.

I also hope that Martin Scorsese gets his first Best director oscar because he as well really deserves it since he has never won the award before despite being nominated for 5 times already.

Those are pretty much the awards that I'm concerned about, I'm cool with whatever goes on in the rest of the Categories.

Anyways, here are the nominations in the major Categories:

Performance by an actor in a leading role
Leonardo DiCaprio - BLOOD DIAMOND
Ryan Gosling - HALF NELSON
Peter O'Toole - VENUS
Will Smith - THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS
Forest Whitaker - THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Alan Arkin - LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
Jackie Earle Haley - LITTLE CHILDREN
Djimon Hounsou - BLOOD DIAMOND
Eddie Murphy - DREAMGIRLS
Mark Wahlberg - THE DEPARTED

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Penélope Cruz - VOLVER
Judi Dench - NOTES ON A SCANDAL
Helen Mirren - THE QUEEN
Meryl Streep - THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
Kate Winslet - LITTLE CHILDREN

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Adriana Barraza - BABEL
Cate Blanchett - NOTES ON A SCANDAL
Abigail Breslin - LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
Jennifer Hudson - DREAMGIRLS
Rinko Kikuchi - BABEL

Achievement in directing
BABEL
THE DEPARTED
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
THE QUEEN
UNITED 93

Best motion picture of the year
BABEL
THE DEPARTED
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
THE QUEEN

Original screenplay
BABEL
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
PAN'S LABYRINTH
THE QUEEN

The oscars will air on the 25th of Feb.

The love bug? not really..

2007-01-23T09:38:00.000+04:00

I put a spell on you.. by *NaBHaN on deviant ART

I keep on getting comments that I must be in love because I've been illustrating love related subjects alot lately, and to make it clear I want to say that no I am not in love and I am not with anyone and I quite like it that way at the moment (at least till I graduate :p). The thing is I am probably in love with the idea of being in love and maybe I've been waiting for a long time to find that perfect someone for me (well not perfect, because I don't believe in perfection after my last relationship and that just sounds bloody naive anyways) but yeah the one who can get me and appreciate the fact that I am very different than most people around, that I am mostly level headed and that I hate taking sides.

It's either that or I'm watching way too many sappy movies and listening to alot of love songs for my own good. Maybe I should start renting some brainless Van Damme action flicks and listen to more explicit hip hop music so that I can relate more to the Arab mentality of most guys nowadays. lol

My top 5 of 2006

2006-12-31T08:12:00.000+04:00

As you all know I'm crazy about music , movies and art so it wouldn't feel right not to list my top 5 songs/albums, movies and of course my fav illustrations from my deviantart gallery so here it goes:

Songs:

Madonna - Get Together
Nelly Furtado - Promiscuous
Fergie - Won't let you fall
Chris Cornell - You know my name
Sarah Mclachlan - Winterson

Albums:

Nelly Furtado - Loose
Josh Groban - Awake
JoJo - The High road
Skye - Mind how you go
Plumb - Chaotic reslove

Movies

Casino Royale
The Departed
Superman Returns
The Illusionist
The Holiday

Artwork

Lost
Little house in the sky
Candyland
Eternal flame
Dear Diary

-------

Also:

purchases:

Nintendo DS
iPod Video
iMate sp5m
Deviantart subscribtion
The new supermario bros DS game

used words/phrases:

Good luck
Excellent
Oh really?
Duh
inzaiin (okay!)

Websites:

www.englishsabla.com
www.madonnatribe.com
www.billboard.com
www.torrentz.com
www.movies.theemiratesnetwork.com

Programs:

Adobe Illustrator CS
Adobe Photoshop 7.0 ME
iTunes
Winamp
Power DVD

Another year has gone by..

2006-12-31T07:43:00.000+04:00

Celebration by =NaBHaN on deviant ART

Seems like it was just yesterday that 2006 started, My god how the year passed us by so fast, or at least that's how it felt to me, and while i'm relieved that the year has come to an end because that means that im getting closer and closer to graduation, I can't help but also feel a bit sad and even worried of what the future holds, what the new year has in store for me and the people i'm closest to. We're all growing older and life is getting alot more serious and difficult and I can't help but wonder where we will be in a year, two or three from now and how different our lives would be.

2006 was alhamdullilah (thank god) an excellent year for me, I might have spent most of it in my room online but I certainly feel like I have accomplished so much artistically and that's really important for me, I have come along way in that field especially when it comes to using illustrator and I have to say that I am really proud of my progress, I sometimes even surprise myself on how much I have grown artistically and often feel like I can do anything once I set my mind on doing it.

The forum (englishsabla.com) however was a pain in the ass in all honesty and there were many times when I just wanted to drop it all and just stop being an admin there. Dealing with members is just not as cool or easy as it used to be. I found myself arguing alot with many people and I just don't get what they have against me, is it just because I'm an admin? is it my opinions? they never even bother explaining they just suddenly lash out and that really can be annoying sometimes because I just want to enjoy being in the forum instead of arguing and defending myself. Despite all that I found myself staying and facing the difficulties and I guess I have learned alot about online people this year thanks to those experiences.

Family.. hmm..nothing new there really, My nephew is an adorable addition to the family mashallah (he was born late 2005 but I got to know him this year only) but other than that things are pretty much the same as they used to, appart from loosing an aunt which really made me sad (may she rest in peace). same goes to friendship, Didn't really make any special friends this year (but I maintained my friendship with the ones I have) and I honestly don't mind it, I am happy with the group of friends I have but I plan to expand that group hopefully once I settle in oman and get my damn driving license because I really hate having to depend on people to drive me here and there, especially when someone asks me to go out and of course I can't do that unless I have someone to drive me around.

So yeah I guess that's pretty much all the highlights as I remember them. I just hope that 2007 will be as easy going and pleasant as this one, and of course I wish you all a very happy new year.

Scarlet

2006-11-23T03:35:00.000+04:00

Scarlet by =NaBHaN on deviant ART

Wouldn't it be nice to walk up a beautiful green hill during the sunset and suddenly find the girl of your dreams?

lol , okay this is so not what this is about. I actually got inspired to illustrate this while I was walking back from uni today. There's this hill which I climb daily and I saw this girl walking at the very top of it, her features weren't clear at all and almost looked like one of the silluets I usually illustrate so it suddenly came to mind to create this piece.

It's interesting how something very normal and ordinary can inspire so many thoughts. I'm quite pleased with this piece and especially like how the scarlet sky turned out.

Refresh , refreshed , refreshing..

2006-11-22T06:10:00.000+04:00

Refresh by =NaBHaN on deviant ART

I was feeling stressed today due to the fact that I have so many assignments to work on and I'm kinda running out of time so I went to the uni cafe and got myself a nice glass of lemonade. It did wonders for me and suddenly all the worries went away and I felt 'refreshed' and sort of reborn if you will. LoL, okay I'm being dramatic but seriously it made me feel better and that's what inspired this little vector painting I created using Adobe illustrator.

It's amazing how comforting food can be and it's no wonder that depressed people usually end up eating like pigs, I never understood it before because I'm not really an emotional eater, I don't even care about eating all that much (oh who am I kidding..I love good food)..but yeah I eat to survive mostly not because I love food, But I have to say today I understood how some people resolve to eating when they're down.

I hope you like this illustration. :)

Vesper

2006-11-17T07:47:00.000+04:00

Vesper is the character name of the new bond girl played by the stunning Eva Green (Kingdom of heaven). I watched the new bond movie 'Casino Royale' yesterday and even 12 hours later I'm still thinking about it and how good it was. I normally don't go crazy about bond movies because they usually aren't really memorable except for maybe a handful of them which at most I would say were decent, but this new one really had an effect on me and the story along with the casting was just so good, not to forget the amazing soundtrack (both the theme song and instrumental part of it) was just beautiful. The whole world were kinda worried if actor Daniel Craig was the right choice for the new bond, I personally never really cared much but now I can say that he's an excellent choice and a fantastic new darker version of bond which is just refreshing.

Anyways..There's this part where Vesper (Eva Green) and Bond (Craig) sit under the shower with their clothes on after a horrible incident which shook her up and this beautiful piano based instrumental music plays along while he comforts her. I found that very moving and truely beautiful especially since he portrayed himself as tough and uncaring..but that part just shows that even tough men can show some emotion especially towards people they care about (which of course is barely in arab men's dictionary). I really liked that...so below u'll find the instrumental that played along that scene to download..maybe once u've watched the movie u'll enjoy listening to it.

and yeah..according to yahoo movie news the new bond movie broke the record in england for the best opening day of a bond film. I guess it's going to do well which is excellent because it really deserves it.

my personal rating for the movie : 9.5/10

Download: Vesper