Author Archives: Priyanka Shetty
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Thermal and a Quarter is a band based in Bangalore, notable for their focus on original music at a time when the nascent Indian rock music industry focused on cover songs, and their innovative use of the Internet to reach out to new audiences. Thermal and a Quarter (TAAQ to the impatient) is: Bruce Lee Mani (guitars & vocals), Rajeev Rajagopal (drums) and Prakash K.N (bass). WTS had an hour-long chat with the band and famous flautist Ravichandra Kulur at Hard Rock Café, Bangalore and here’s what they had to say… WTS: Your music is truly Bangalorean, yet it appeals to people from other cities as well as other parts of the world. What do you…
Karsh Kale is an Indian American producer, composer and musician, known for melding Indian music with the modern electronic club music of his American upbringing. Kale often creates a unique blend of Indian percussion with techno music and drum & bass. WTS got talking to him about his style of music, collaborations and more… WTS: You grew up in New York but you showed promise as an Indian percussionist from an early age, how did that happen? Karsh: Well I was first introduced to Indian music by my father who’s a great lover of Indian classical music and of course old film music. That’s the environment I grew up in. So the tabla and mridangam, the…
Bourbon Street is primarily a jam band with a vision to play and write music unbounded by genre or style. With Jerome Mascarenhas on vocals and harmonica, Bharath Kumar on the keyboards and synthesizer, Fidel D’Souza on the bass guitar and vocals, Chester Pereira on the guitar, Sudhakar Prabhu on drums and percussion and Ian Castelino on the djembe, Bourbon Street encompasses a variety of genres such as jazz, funk, blues, reggae, and good old classic rock. WTS got in touch the band and got them talking about their journey so far, the music they make and more… WTS: When did you guys start off and how has the Bourbon Street journey been so far? Fidel: We…
  Avial is a Malayali rock band formed in 2003. Similar to the popular Kerala cuisine that goes by the same name, the band is a mix of members belonging to different genres of music. The overwhelming response to their video single ‘Nada, nada’ in 2003 inspired them to form the band and they later released their first full-length album ‘Avial â The Debut’ in 2008. WTS caught up with band members Rex Vijayan, Tony John, Benny Isaac and Mithun Puthenveetil and band manager Jithu during their recent visit to Bangalore, and got talking to them about their music, hometown, fans and their new album and hereâs what they had to say…  WTS: You guys…
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Indian Ocean is a contemporary fusion music band from Delhi. Some music critics describe its music as “Indo-rock fusion with jazz-spiced rhythms that integrates shlokas, sufism, environmentalism, mythology and revolution!” WTS had the chance to have an in depth conversation with the band and here’s what they had to say… WTS: Your first album sold over 40,000 copies within a year of its release at that time, the highest selling record by any Indian band ever. Did success come too early? How did it feel to know that your songs were a rage soon after their release? Amit: The truth is success didnt come at all! (loud laughter) Susmit: We were very happy but we really…
The Scratch Card Winners was formed on a lazy afternoon in 2009 with the sole intention of creating noise and waking up the neighbourhood and is one of the only active punk bands in Bangalore city. The Scratch Card Winners is Zoe(vox, lead guitars), Noel(rhythm guitars), Mike(drums) and Aamir (bass). WTS got in touch with them and spoke to them about punk music in Bangalore and more… WTS: Tell us about how The Scratch Card Winners came into being. Zoe: Before we started this band, I won a lottery. I won quite a lot of things including my current guitar which was given by Opeth when they were touring India in 2008. Around the same…
Advaita is an eclectic music group from New Delhi who borrow their name from an ancient Indian philosophy, which translates to mean Non-Duality. Since the group was formed, in 2004, Advaita has steadily grown to become one of the most respected acts in the Indian music scene. Their sound is a mélange of styles, moods and textures taken in from different cultures and music systems around the world. WTS got in touch with Abhishek Mathur, guitarist of Advaita, and hereâs what he had to say about the band and the music that they make… WTS: Advaita has been playing since 2004. How has the Indian music scene evolved from what…
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Galeej Gurus is a band of talented guys, all fluent in the same universal language – music. The fresh sound of such a union has, naturally, made many people sit up and take notice; and has resulted in widespread recognition and a string of awards from across the country. WTS got talking to band members Nathan Lee Harris (vocals), Naveen Thomas (guitars), Matthew Harris (bass) , Ananth Menon (guitars) and Kishan Balaji (drums) and here’s what they had to say about the band, their music and more… WTS: How long have you guys been playing together and how has the journey been so far? Ananth: It has been ten years; Mathew Nathan and I started…
Para Vayu, a new form that evolved from the rock band Vayu, around since 1997, has been founded by Ravi Iyer. After the release of Vayu’s album titled Wings of a Dream in June 2009, Ravi Iyer and bassist Crosby Fernandes reformed Vayu to Para Vayu, thus exploring a wide range in various genres of music. Para Vayu’s music spans over a wide range of genres including classic rock, alternative, progressive, blues, funk and jazz rock. WTS got talking with the founding member, Ravi Iyer, about the band’s journey so far, their music, and more… WTS: Why did you feel the need to rename the band to Para Vayu when Vayu had already gained popularity?…
