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We've
all witnessed the magic of music. We all have our favourite songs
and bands. And many of us harbour secret desires of becoming rock
stars! But very few of us really exhibit the commitment to go
that extra mile to live out our dreams. However, that is changing,
albeit very slowly, and some Indian bands, like Euphoria and Indian
Ocean, to name just two, have found moderate fame and a modicum
of financial success. And there are many more in the making. But
the question is: are we ready to accept and experiment with various
forms of music or do we rather have them play covers and get on
with their lives? More importantly, is the market big enough to
sustain these independent bands solely on the basis of their music?
In the past decade, the Indian music industry
has witnessed significant changes. Perhaps the most obvious is
the growth in comfort levels of the Indian public with various
genres of music. Gigs and live performances, which were earlier
restricted to college festivals, have marked out their presence
in pubs and during festivals like Durga Puja. Some bands, like
Thermal and a Quarter and Junkyard Groove, have even travelled
abroad and opened shows for big daddies like Deep Purple and Jethro
Tull. Events like Great Indian Rock (GIR) and the Hornbill Festival,
though recent, also did their bit to popularise live music bands.
All in all, the time is ripe for these independent bands to showcase
their own talent instead of singing songs written and composed
by their famous western counterparts. Today, there are over a
hundred Indie bands in the country playing their own music.
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| TAAQ: It claims that half of its fans
are from the US and the UK |
Thermal and a Quarter
This Bangalore-based band got together way
back in 1996 and, since then, has witnessed many changes in its
playing order. Today, it has four members-Bruce Lee Mani (guitar),
Rajiv Rajagopal (drums), Sunil Chandy (bass) and Ajit Abraham
(vocals). taaq, as it is popularly called, has performed in Glasgow
and London, and opened shows for Deep Purple in 2001 and Jethro
Tull in 2006. Today, it claims that half of its fans are from
the US and the UK, which is a great step for an Indian rock band.
Interestingly, taaq uses software like BitTorrents to distribute
its music free of cost.
Website: www.taaq.in
Soulmate
This band first came together in 2001 and
is based out of Shillong. The core team comprises Rudy Wallang
(guitar) and Tripriti Kharbamgar (vocals), Ferdy (bass) and Sam
Shullai (drums). One of its songs, I am, has been featured in
the international music channel, vh1, and the foursome has been
invited to compete in the 23rd International Blues Challenge scheduled
for February 2007 in Tennessee, us.
Website: www.soulmatemusic.net
Skinny Alley
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| Soulmate: The Shillong-based band is
certainly going places |
The name is a literal English translation
of Patli Galli. This is, arguably, the most versatile band in
the country and has never hesitated to experiment with genres
like rock, pop, funk, R&B, reggae and the blues. It started
off by playing covers but soon graduated to making its own music.
Based in Kolkata, Skinny Alley, which has spent many years touring
the country, comprises Jayashree Singh (vocals), Amit Datta (guitar),
Gyan Singh (vocals and guitar), Jeffrey Menezes (keyboards) and
Jeffrey Rikh (drums and vocals). One album strong, the band members
take great pride playing their own music.
Website: www.skinnyalley.com
Junkyard Groove
This Chennai-based band has four members-Ameeth
Thomas (vocals), Siddhartha Srinivasan (guitar), Craig Maxworth
(bass) and Jerry Abraham John (drums)-and was formed just two
years ago. It's a band of youngsters-Siddhartha is still in college-and
will be opening shows for international bands like Iron Maiden,
Incubus, Prodigy and Children of Bodom at the forthcoming Dubai
Desert Rock Festival sometime in March. Junkyard Groove has also
signed a three-year contract with Creative Kingdom Records (US)
which will produce and promote its first album for which it begins
recording next month in Dubai. Clearly, this is one band to watch
out for!
Webpage: www.myspace.com/junkyardgroove1.com
Them Clones
Formed in July 2000, band members Prithvish
(vocals), Gucci (guitar), Joseph (guitar), Romit (guitar) and
Dev (bass) have stuck it out for the past six years, and have
performed at several college fests, corporate events and rock
festivals. Their high point: playing at events like vh1 Rock Rulz
and JD Set International Festival in London in 2006. They are
in the process of releasing their second album, the recording
for which is being done at Empire Studios, Mumbai.
Website: www.themclones.com
Pin Drop Violence
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| Skinny Alley: Arguably, the most versatile
band in the country |
Based out of Mumbai, the band was formed in
November 2000 by Pradeep and Rohit, who had been in college together.
Today, Pin Drop Violence comprises Pradeep Miranda (vocals), Mithun
Pujari (guitar), Visti Honavazir (guitar), Rohit Perreira (bass)
and Virendra Kaith (sound engineer). The band is one album old
(Compose Oppose Dispose was released in July 2004) and was among
the top three Indie bands that were slated to open the Dubai Desert
Rock Festival. Its second album, Right II Riot, is scheduled for
release sometime next month. Says Perreira: "We'd love to
make a full-time living out of our band but as of now, that does
not seem to be an option."
Webpage: www.myspace.com/guttermint.com
There are several other bands that have great
talent and are making good music but money, or, rather, the lack
of it, often plays spoilsport and forces members to drift away
in search of other, more sustainable, professions. The cost of
instruments, recording studios, travelling, cutting an album,
sales and promotions are just some of the issues that cannot be
sorted out without money and institutional support. Festivals
like GIR and Strawberry Fields (NLSUI, Bangalore) that provide
platforms to over 50-60 Indian and other South Asian bands, are
just some examples of what needs to be done.
Besides mainstream rock, metal, blues and
jazz, there are several regional bands that play fusion-essentially
regional language lyrics set to tunes influenced by rock and jazz.
One such band, Avial, which is based out of Kerala, plays Malayalam
rock. Similarly, bands like Bhumi and Chandrabindu are very famous
in Bengal. These bands are quite popular even with the Indian
diaspora abroad, but in the absence of institutional sponsorships,
foreign tours are hard to come by and a lot depends on luck. Currently,
they distribute their music by uploading it on websites like MySpace.com,
or through e-mails or even BitTorrent. Several of these bands
have also been featured on internet radio services like Radio
Verve and Split Radio. Verve is run by Gaurav, Shreyas and Kaustabh
and is based out of Bangalore, while Split is based in Mumbai.
Adhiraj Mustafi, MD, Prospect Event Management
Company, says: "A lot is happening in the industry. There
are enough discerning listeners and fans of live music around,
and there are some great bands doing the rounds." Some of
the music tracks being produced by these bands are of international
quality so much so that it's hard to spot the difference, but
very few sponsors and record companies are willing to take the
risk of backing these mostly non-Hindi bands that don't cater
to the "pop" segment. Endorsements, sales, studio businesses,
commissioned work, performance and appearance fees are just some
of the other avenues that bands have to explore today. But given
the growing domestic and international interest in them, one hopes
to hear a lot more of these Indian bands in the days to come.
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