The Score Magazine July 2013

ISSN 0974 – 9128

Vol 06 Issue 07 - July 2013

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India's National Pan-Genre Music MagazinE

aat powers QUIRKS n queries

VasundhAra Das All charged up!

audiophilic

MUZIK LOUNGE

Chief Sound Engineer of Muzik Lounge Studios, Renjith Rajan gives us the bytes

sTRINGS COVER STORY

Beats the Solomon Grundy of the music industry with their awesomeness

BAND OF THE MONTH

Parikrama

Scores 22 a perfect tale of an incredible rock band.

Star of the Month: Badtameez dil ki sahi aawaz: Benny Dayal 101!

the edit PAD A Strategy and Planning Ajay Prabhakar Director, Business Development Pragash VM Editor-in-Chief Nikila Srinivasan Associate Editor Supriya Talupuru Marketing Manager Sneha Ramesh Regional Marketing Manager, BLR Anu Pahalajani Creative Director George Vedamanickam Lead Designer Nipun Garodia Content Support Shresht Pod dar

t a recent conference, I learnt that music is a cottage industry in India employing no more than a 100,000 people. Stunning, given the amount of culture this country demonstrates at every instant.

And yet, given its minuscule size, it’s surprising to see the various aspects of it not working together in tandem to build a better ground-level ecosystem. Or perhaps it is because of this size, competition gets preference over cooperation.

I have personally seen venues, medias, artists and the new age music web technology companies being totally out of sync with each others aspiration.

It would be anybodys dream to integrate all these currently disconnected elements into one beautiful system.

The irony continues: In this already minuscule eco-system, where one does not know where the next big pay-off is coming from, there is an intrinsic need to be in control and the need for not wanting to cooperate.

We at Score, have created the first ever music magazine from India. We’ve seen none like us, and we are proud.We’ve made it respectable and beautiful.

We feature without prejudice or bias. We believe, a music magazine is a vital element of this eco-system. We hope to fulfil our role breaking through the disconnection and become the counter-point of all the various elements of this vibrant industry.

ajay prabhakar Strategy and Planning

subscribe to us at http://scorem.ag/buy-subscribe

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DISCLAIMER: Reproduction in whole or part of any text, photography or illustrations without written permission from the publisher is prohibited. The publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs and illustrations. Views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publication and accordingly no liability is assumed by the publisher thereof. Advertising copy and artworks are the sole responsibility of the advertisers. http://www.motherteresafoundation.org.in

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Registered Office: 38/23, Venkatesa Agraharam, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004.

i nside

cover story: Strings

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Desi takes a new meaning with this famous Pakistani band

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Band of the Month

Parikrama : The story of a band who stayed explosive for 22 years and counting

Audiophilic

Indination

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36

From a humble background to the fast lane of entertainment: The Chief Audio Engineer tells us all

Quirks & Queries POWERED BY AaT

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Vasundhara Das at her charming best. We melted and how

Music and the Psyche

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Is Music a product of our cultural evolution or a seeking that binds us to purpose? We explore the subtle aspects of Music hoping to find amusement while at it

Carnatic segment

India, a nation of the hook. How so? We bring you upcoming artist worthy your memory space.

People: we present Amrit Rao to you!

star of the month: Benny Dayal 22

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Ever wondered what it takes to be true to music?

We run you down with the to-dos

INDIE reviews

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Oh boy, oh boy. We review albums as our fancy caught. Way too many shiny, brilliant artists scene happening this month!

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A whole lot of Benny Dayal and his zest.

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cover story

Strings

The internationally acclaimed Pakistani Pop Rock band.

Two notes closer, two sounds higher.

Strings. The internationally acclaimed Pakistani Pop/ Rock band. Girls turn scarlet, boys look on in wonder. What makes this band of two so identifiable? Is it the introspective lyrics, the simplicity of songs or the way the artists themselves engage their audience? Two birds, one stone.

Duur se koi aaye, kaheen chupke se woh dil me samaa jaaye The band Strings is back on their feet with two new singles Sajni and Jeevan- not to forget, an album in works. We get talking to Faisal Kapadia about the band’s popularity, their easy listening groove and brilliant lyrical logic. The basic sense of music with the band is as clear as unmuddled water. One can see the liberal (pseudo maybe) streak of Benazir Bhutto’s political climate (who was in power during the band’s uprising) gave the band its air of globetrotting latitude. These guys can do magic: their ability to bring the alleged west and east into one identity is impeccable..

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Unlike India where films exert so much influence, Pakistan does not have much of a film industry. Indi-Pop is the only big entertainment market there.

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Ab aakash ki aankhain hum say kuch kehti hein, umeedon ki girti kirnay ab nazron main rehti hein

1988

The college formed band initially had four college students. ‘twas Bilal Maqsood on vocals and guitars, Faisal Kapadia on vocals, Rafiq Wazir Ali on synthesizer and Kareem Bashir Bhoy on the bass guitars.

1990

Got signed by EMI Records and released their self-titled debut album Strings.

1992

The four parted disbanded. Same year as Kurt Corbin (Nirvana) & Courtney Love (Hole) got married. But not before coming out with their second album 2 (conveniently named, we’d say).

2000

Bilal and Faisal make a comeback with Duur. From a new wave of Pakistani pop music, all the way till leading the Pakistani music industry to the world.

2003

The band then went on to record and released the fourth album Dhaani .

Remember their soundtrack for SpiderMan 2? Also, they have hit India by now.

And how!

2008

This year brings out their fifth studio album Koi Aanay Wala Hai that was coproduced by John Abraham. Not sure why the connection but who are we to ask.

Supriya Talupuru

Jabse tumko maine dekha, hai mujhe pyar ka matlab aa gaya. Jabse tumko maine chaha hai, Mera jeena aasan ho gaya We had brilliant inspiration. In Pakistan, it is relatively easy for independent music artists and bands. This is because there is a big vacancy that should technically be filled by film music.

This gave rise to many genres being extensively developed.

Pakistan has ghazals with people like Ustad Ghulam Ali of the Patiala gharana. Pakistan has had the pop explosion with people like Runa Laila, Nazia and Zoheb Hassan who inspired a trend for generations to come. Then there is Qawwali which was immensely popularized by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, The Sabri Brothers and Aziz Mian. Even if you look at the Sufiana kalaam, there are people like Abida Parveen who have each contributed in some way. This gave definition to genres. In its own way, this made it easier to start a band considering the prevalence of a non film ideology. In India, there were people like Shrin Phrabakar, Gary Lawyer and Alisha Shenoy. Later on, Sunitha Roa, Swetha Shetty, Baba Segal and Daler Mahedi, established the scene in 92. When we came to India we got our due appreciation. Right timing, perhaps.

Hum say bada kaheen dekha? Hum say bada nahi dekha!

We travel extensively. That is the case with people who do what we do. We are usually in (apart from Pakistan and India, of course) UAE, UK, USA and parts of Europe. If you look at it 6 months to a year is spent in the studio. From the first stages of composing, notching the vocals, figuring out lyrics, getting the right feel overall till the final mix, coming up with the video itself for the song and meeting directors for the same: all of this keeps us occupied. To make up for the loss, we tour for the next two- three years! There are times when we do get tired of our own music. Keep playing anything for a long period of time, that’s bound to happen. What we do is try to arrange or set up the song in a different manner. When we get tired and run out of creativity, that’s when we know it: it’s time to change! That is what gives us the push for the next album.

Mil Gaya Woh Jo Churake Meree Aankho Se Nindiya Ley Gaya Tha The past ten years has given us so much more than we had expected. I mean, obviously so many events have taken place.

For us personally, the drive is to be better at what we’re doing. Come what may, interesting encounter or otherwise.

There are two kinds of musicians when it comes to assessing originality and commercial success. One kind is the sort who gives you what is required. The other like most pop and rock bands, have their own philosophy. One expects to change in a band’s genre for this reason primarily. Exploring it is one thing but changing a genre is very unlikely. You hear great bands like Raghu Dixit Project who bring new sounds. Now that’s exploring, not changing.

Some Pics by Romel Dutta

Dhaani ray dhaani chunariya…

It has been almost 24 years that we have been doing this. The day we stopped learning: That’s the end for us. Be it arts or sports, one does need practice. This is absolutely essential.

You need to keep up with it, you need to make time and ensure that you’re on top of your game. One word upcoming musicians should incorporate in their behavior? Being a musician, you travel so much and meet so many people. At times one may tend to lose focus.Sukh ban gaye sapne, sab kho gaye apne, dil bhujh gaya, ghar jal gayaLabel companies aren’t interested on pop music from a very definitive reason.

When it comes to recording, these companies give more weight age to film music. This form of venture gets them assured profits. There is already budget chalked up for this in films; they don’t have to go searching for budget per se. When it comes to musicians like us, we have only got self promotion through social media platforms. That’s the most viable option for us right now. Songs like “Why this Kolaveri di?” got famous only through social media platforms. For an upcoming band this is a great boom.

Main chal para un raston per jo jaatay thay tere ghar. Wo rastay tere aur mere, humsafar We don’t promote alcohol or smokes. As a brand ambassador, we think it is our social responsibility to not promote such things. When it comes to music festivals, the game becomes slightly different. For upcoming bands it’s very difficult to survive without live music shows. Coke Studio and Pepsi Smash have two entirely different thought processes. Coke Studio is a way of revisiting the past. It tends to be folksier.

With Pepsi smash, the idea is to maintain originality. This provides a good platform for creative expression. Evidently, it is a great initiative from Pepsi. The dynamics have changed when one considers the music industry. No longer are CD’s in demand and how long has it been since we’ve seen a cassette?

The only form that currently seems sustainable is the digital audio format. In fact, we’re considering releasing the new CD digitally itself.

Jazbe se, himmat se, mehnat se, mohabbat se, aazamnyenge hum hausalo ko apne har kadam par It is really important that one stays humble. We have had shows in which people were getting out of a helicopter in a stadium at Dhaka for our show. We have also had shows in which we have had fifty people in front of us. It makes us seem like we’ve seen it all. We have done lots of back to back touring. You get to see that there is lot of good and bad things happening side by side. In fact one needs to stay humble, be it any profession.

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At the age of 19, Shyam Edwankar was introduced to his first Conga, which opened up a whole New World for him. The highlight of his career was when he was honored with “Balgandharva Parivaar Puraskaar” award in Pune, which was very well deserved. He is affectionately known as Shyam Bhai among the masses. His goal has always been to experiment and create breath taking rhythms. Here we get to know the man behind the beats. Over to Shyam.

When did you get introduced to Percussion and how did your journey begin?

It was an inter-school competition for music and I participated.

The win at this competition gave me an enthusiasm to carry on and there was no turning back.

Throughout your career you have been a self taught musician with no formal training. What has been your driving force?

With no formal training, all I did was to keep my goal in front of me which was to master my skills. I habitually listened to the western masters like Osibisa, Santana and Manu Dibango who were my idols. Listening to these masters, the urge to excel in percussion grew inside of me. It increased to such an extent that music was the only force that kept me motivated to do better.

Your work with Rahul Sharma & Kersi Lord on the album “Zen” won the (Immies) Music Award for Best Classical/Fusion Album in 2003. Tell us about the entire experience?

I was introduced to Rahul Sharma in the year 2000.We got introduced at the same time while he was working on creating this album. It was a perfect blend of the Santoor with keyboard and percussion. We worked together along with Kersi Lord on this album ZEN which had a fabulous outcome.

MEINL percussions imported by Bhargava’s Musik.

Available in all leading stores across the country.

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How did you get introduced to Meinl Percussion and how does it feel to be a part of the elite Meinl Artists family?

I have been very frequent at the Bhargavas Musik store and they have been responsible for many opportunities that I have received to perform at different gigs. During one of such visits Benny Greb, a drummer from Meinl, was visiting the city for a performance and Bhargavas got us acquainted. That was when I realized that he was one of the ambassadors for Meinl cymbals.

During his visit at Bhargava’s Musik, we played percussion and drums for a while and really enjoyed the session. Later,the same evening he invited me to his show and we had a great time on stage. Post his India tour when he returned to Germany, he mentioned to Meinl about the music sessions with me in India. That’s when Meinl got in touch with Bhargavas Musik.

After that things happened very quickly. I am very grateful to Bhargavas Musik especially Brijesh for being a pillar of strength behind me and to make this happen.

It’s a privilege to be a part of such an elite brand. It’s not only a renowned brand but also has fantastic and varied products, that it is very difficult for any musician true to his music to resist. I am honored to be associated with this brand and will do all my best to live up to its name. It’s an opportunity that has presented itself and is not less than a dream come true and I will surely thank Meinl for giving me this break.

What is your advice to upcoming percussionists?

My advice would be to focus on their goal, to be the best player and work hard towards it. The music world has different kinds of teachers and you could learn something different from everyone. Meinl introduced me to high quality and clear sounding percussion that I would personally recommend all upcoming players to use. Such instruments will not only give the correct sense of sound but also make the learning a simpler process.

/meinlpercussionsfanpage /bhargavasmusikltd

Sai Adit ya

Fat Gold Chain ‘‘

Fat Gold Chain represents whatever you are aiming for in life. It’s a goal. Like: “Im going to get my Fat Gold Chain!” It’s not necessarily materialistic it can be any goal that you set yourself to achieve.

Drums, Culture & Collaboration: discover Fat Gold Chain. We get talking to this Sri Lakan- Oz band about them drumming the music into people.

Hello, Fat Gold Chain. Why are you called Fat Gold Chain?

Fat Gold Chain represents whatever you are aiming for in life. It’s a goal. Like: “Im going to get my Fat Gold Chain!” It’s not necessarily materialistic it can be any goal that you set yourself to achieve.

What do you define your genre as?

Indie/Electronic *Cliched question alert* Who are you inspired by?

Oh this is always a tough one! Definitely West African and Sri Lankan traditional music. Synth pop and also the story telling styles of Hip hop.

Tell us about the two of you. How and when did you meet and when did you start making music?

We met in Ghana, West Africa. We were both travelling to study West African traditional music, drumming in particular. We started making music as Fat Gold Chain in 2010.

How many albums have you released?

So far we’ve release a self titled EP (2010) and a new single in 2013.

We are working on another EP for release later in 2013.

Other artists you like?

There is a pretty wide range between the two of us…Michael Jackson, Prince, Stevie Wonder, Devo, David Bowie, Notorious BIG, Judas Priest, Manowar, MIA, Dilpo, PSquare, Bob Marley.

You guys seem to hipster to be asked questions. What are the “Captain Obvious” questions people ask you?

We always get asked this question…”Why don’t you guys play more drum solos?”

Tell us a few mind-blowing fact about FGC. Every show we have ever done has been directly above the centre of the earth. (Fo’ shizzles) Has anyone ever said “You guys look good together”?

Yeah, they also say we bicker like an old married couple!

If you could go back in time and show your work to a few musicians, who would that be?

Bob Marley, Michael Jackson- it would just be amazing to even talk to these guys. Then again, would probably be too nervous to actually speak!

Any plans of performing in the subcontinent?

No plans to perform, at the moment. But would love to perform in the subcontinent!

Kanchana, do you watch cricket? If yes, Sri Lanka or Australia?

Haha Sri Lanka for sure!

What are you guys doing currently?

We are working on a new track called Take the Ride which is a collaboration with Ash Grunwald.

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When did Neolithic Silence get started?

Jayanth Sridhar,

the vocalist and guitarist of Neolithic Silence, gives us a thorough layout about Orange amps, music and his aspirations.

I’ve been using an entire analog setup for a while now. I was longing to upgrade to a setup where I can find an extremely versatile amplifier.

While searching for that very amp, I came across Orange through Bhargava’s Musik. I’ve not looked back ever since.

Neolithic Silence started out as a college band back in 2004. At the end of college, all the band mates went their own way and started playing different styles of music. I continued to write music and always had a Neolithic Silence reunion in mind. A few of our earlier members moved back to Bangalore and we re-wrote some of the tracks without Keyboards. Now we have a distinct sound.

Primarily, our music can be classified under Heavy Metal. We have a lot of different influences in our current setlist. The new material is all “in your face” thrash metal with major influences from Exodus, Testament, Death, Anthrax, Slayer, Kreator and so on.

Tell us about your early influences as a musician?

I have been a huge fan of Progressive Rock for the longest time. My early influences include Rush, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Steve Vai, Whitesnake, Dream Theater, Death, Testament.

How did you get introduced to Orange Amplifiers and how does it feel to be part of the legendary Orange Amplifiers family?

I’ve been using a completely analog setup for a while now and I was longing to upgrade to a setup where I can find an extremely versatile amplifier and build a new setup around it. While searching for that very amp, I came across Orange through Bhargava’s Musik. I’ve not looked back ever since.

Well, to be part of the legendary Orange Amplifiers family is a huge deal. I have to come to terms with it fully. In a nutshell, it’s an honor and I’m looking forward to a lot as part of this family.

Tell us about your set up Rockerverb MK II 100 head with a 4x12 cabinet?

The Rockerverb MKII 100 is a High Gain power house. The tones I currently have explored have turned out to be clear, crisp and heavy.

At the same time, the gain structure allows me to really get some amazing tones for Blues, Classic Rock. It is simply versatile. The cabinet needs no introduction. It houses 4x 12 inch Vintage Celestion 30 speakers and delivers a punch.

There are not many venues for metal acts across the country. How do you keep yourself motivated and focused?

The lack of venues and shows has been common to us. Especially the form of music we play is sometimes looked down upon. The only way to keep motivated is to write more and more, improve as a band, get tighter and when the opportunity does come, show what we are capable of. The moment you lose hope, the band will cease to exist.

Play every day, practice more, write music and the focus will never go.

What are your plans for the rest of the year with your projects?

With Sirius, I’m in the process of adding a couple of musicians. This will basically mean that there will be new music out very soon and will have some more added layers of chaos. We are also exploring the vocal aspect as we are currently only playing Instrumental music. With Neolithic Silence, the EP is just about down. We are in the process of planning a small tour to promote the EP, while means a lot of gigs coming up. We will do one round of pre-production in October/December and hit the studios in December for a full length release.

Orange Amps imported by Bhargava’s Musik.

Available in all leading stores across the country.

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Music and the Psyche Music has always had a profound effect on the psyche. I’ve always used music to help me, whether it is for motivation to complete some work or clean up my room or wash the dishes or… you get the picture, right?

There’s just something about music that moves us, that helps us, that complements our being in any given situation or mood.

It’s a universal way of communicating to one another or within. Like Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl stated in a speech “Kurt (Cobain) and I were speaking to each other without words. Verbal communication was never Nirvana’s forte, so we just spoke to each other with our instruments”.

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Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.

-- Victor Hugo

Christina Stephenson There have been quite a few studies that delved into this bittersweet courtship between music and the psyche.According to a recent paper by Nidhya Logeswaran and Joydeep Bhattacharya that was published in the Neuroscience Letters, music even affects how we see visual images. In the experiment, 30 subjects were presented with a series of happy or sad musical excerpts. After listening to the snippets, the subjects were shown a photograph of a face. The researchers found that music powerfully influenced the emotional ratings of the faces. Happy music made happy faces seem even happier while sad music exaggerated the melancholy of a frown.

Another study done on effect of music of clinically depressed patients’ sleep habits proved that music primarily enables a state of relaxation by reducing anxiety, which could have contributed to improvement of quality of sleep. The calming effects of music were seen through neurobiological studies. Frontal electroencephalographic asymmetry and lower serum cortisol levels associated with depression have been observed to normalize with music.

It’s not just research that tells us what music does to us.

We can explain that ourselves. Here are a few thoughts on music and the hold it has on our very being from the guys next door.

‘‘

If music has such a deep impact on even the tiniest of human characteristics, then surely there is no limit on the impact it has on every single aspect of behavior and communication as well as other abstract allotments of life.

A popular form of using this potent device that has recently cropped up is Music Therapy. Part of the expressive art therapies (along with art and dance), it is an interpersonal process in which a certified music therapist uses music and all of its facets. This would include those like physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual aspects. It seeks to help clients improve or maintain their health across various domains (e.g., cognitive functioning, motor skills, emotional and affective development, behavior and social skills, and quality of life) by using music experiences (e.g., free improvisation, singing, songwriting, listening to and discussing music, moving to music) to achieve treatment goals and objectives.

According to Dr. M. Hari Haaren, “Hearing is physical and listening is psychological. Both are vital for communication skills, establishing good relationships, etc. Out of the 12 cranial nerves, 10 are linked to the ear, indicating the importance of the musical sounds to our nervous system.”

I was able to get in touch with the student advisor at the Chennai School of Music Therapy, Dr. Baishali Mukherjee. She explained to me the background of the school and how she has seen promising progress at the clinic. The school was started due to the manifestation of the awareness of a group of musically skilled individuals that music indeed heals. They are in collaboration with IMC University of Applied Sciences, Krems, Austria. Their main purpose is to advocate music therapy as an allied health profession through professional training, consultancy services and clinical care. When asked Dr. Mukherjee on why music was so effective in treating her patients, she replied that the freedom felt while listening to music was conducive to patients dealing with their anxiety and internal chaos. Even students with Autistic Spectrum Disorder and neurological deficits showed much improvement in cognitive functioning after sessions of music therapy, she said.

In short, there is no debate whether music can master the psyche. It does. The way we let the gift of music be used is the most enthralling.

A soldier dealing with post traumatic disorder, a child with a mental disability who was given up on, a fetus struggling for comfort and someone dealing with a stressful day at work can all be put at ease and refreshed with just a bit of…music.

Music is not about a funny lyric or an impressive chord, it’s not about a great producer or a great singer, it’s not about a Gibson guitar or a Washburn, it’s not about the tempo, it’s not about anythingbut you. Every note connects and every line leaves a print on your head. It may not always be this intense, but even when it’s not, it helps your mind get to a safer, better place. Better may not always mean quiet, and that’s where metal and rock comes in. Better may not always be happy, and that’s where Blues comes in.

Better means the place you WANT to be in and not have to be in. Music helps you understand your own mind, it helps you become yourself, whoever you are.”

-- Ram Kumar, Singer, Delhi

‘‘

Music is that constant in my life that I can rely on, that one thing that balances everything out. It takes me to a peaceful place when I’m upset or worried or to a place where I can jump up and down when I’m hyper.

-- Jason Jolly, Musician, college student.

‘‘

I think that music has a very unique and personal effect on each one of us. The way I use music is to channel everything that I think can’t be said with words, and music was my only form of therapy throughout my life. It was my escape and it was everything I ever wanted and needed.

-- Apurv Isaac, Musician, The Family Cheese.

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Vasundhara Das

She is a woman of multiple talents - a singer, a songwriter, an actor & an environmentalist. One can almost hear her ebullience that is her voice in some very famous songs like Shakalaka Baby, It’s The Time To Disco & Salaam Namaste.

Interviewing her was just a cover up to hear her infectious laughter.

I can sing in English, Hindi, Spanish, French, Punjabi, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu & Malayalam.

The biggest turn off in a man would be narcissism.

I hate it when men keep boasting about themselves.

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3 words that best describe me - happy singing with my head in the clouds (oops, 8 words!)

I am a Tamil Brahmin from Bangalore and I have always been surrounded by music. My first guru was my grandmother who ran a music school from out of her house. When she heard me sing for the first time at the age of 5, she decided to teach me about music. When she realized that a grandmother should be a grandmother, she pushed me onto other proficient gurus who made me fall in love with music.

I studied at Cluny Convent High School, Bangalore and then on at Mount Carmel College, Bangalore.

My broad-minded teachers helped me become the person I am today since they firmly believed in the fact that a student’s personality came from what they did outside the classroom and they were extremely supportive of me.

One of my best childhood memories involve being a part of the Scouts and Guides Jamboree where I met a lot of children from all over India and getting to know so many people. I am in touch with some of them till date.

When I was 11 years old, I discovered Elvis Presley thanks to my mom and my grandmother. His ‘Jailhouse Rock’ drove me crazy. That is when I developed the want to discover music.

My first salary was for Rs. 5000 for a live show I had done in Bangalore.

I paid my college fees with it. My first big break was in Madras when I auditioned for a record label and immediately after hearing my demo, they signed me to do an album.

3 people I religiously follow on Twitter - Peter Gabriel, Joi Barua & Gulzar Sahab.

shresht poddar

“

Music is extremely subjective. What is music to my ears could be noise to yours. That is why I don’t usually follow critics. Fact remains it’s very easy to judge and very difficult to create.

My musical influences are Aziza Mustafa Zadeh, Celia Cruz, Shubha Mudgal, Arati Ankalikar & of course, Roberto Narain.

My husband, Roberto and I got married last year. Before that, we have been friends for a very, very long time and we know each other in and out.

Both, Roberto & I are trained Drum Circle facilitators. A drum circle is any group of people playing (usually) hand-drums and percussion in a circle. Roberto’s company, Drumjam, has introduced over 450,000 people to the joys of group drumming and we have the largest inventory comprising over 20000 instruments in Asia.

The most romantic thing that Roberto has ever done for me was marrying me. He proposed to me on a beach in Hawaii and before I could say yes, I was knocked over by a huge wave.

Mir came on board with a completely open mind. Considering he wasn’t used to the band instruments that we use in metropolises (drum, guitar, keyboard etc.), he did find it a bit of a challenge initially but he was more than eager to grasp the finer nuances. We had a ball of a time working together.

My OCDs - I cannot deal with undone beds and a dirty kitchen counter.

I am terrified of darkness.

My musical journey has been a beautiful roller coaster ride. It started off quite unexpectedly and it took me to places I had never imagined in my life. My biggest achievements are the incredible collaborations that I have done with some of the most gifted artistes from all over the world.

My scariest moment would be a near fatal accident in a friend’s car when we were driving back from Goa. He dozed off on the wheel.

The Shah Hussain Project began 2 years ago when I was looking for musical inspiration.

I came across a set of documentaries called The Kabir Projects which spoke about the century old work of Kabir which has been kept alive by certain musicians of rural & semi-urban India. Amongst these people, Mir Mukhtiyar Ali (a singer from Pugal, Rajasthan) interested me the most. I met him at his concert in Bangalore and we connected immediately. Around the same time, I had gone to Delhi to research about Sufi poetry and I came across the work of Hazrat Shah Hussain who used to write in Punjabi, Saraiki & Sindhi. I found that his work was as relevant as that of Kabir. That is when Mukhtiyar Ali & I decided to create a project around Shah Hussain’s work.

My best friends from the music fraternity are Mahalakshmi Iyer, Prasoon Joshi & Joi Barua.

Roberto was the music producer of this project. He came on board with certain important visions and for us, he was our mala (Punjabi for boatsman) who steered the project towards a common goal.

3 things that I am yet to achieve from my bucket list - go to Brazil, build my home in Bangalore & watch Peter Gabriel live in concert among many more of my musical idols.

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Indinate with

AMRIT

RAO

We were always told by the older generation that it never helps to wear too many hats. But what happens when you not only wear many hats but also coloured wigs?

Well, winning awards, making really cool videos and singing macha type songs is on the list. We put it with the quirky singer who tells us about this full scene music

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Amrita D G Tell us about the hard work that has gone behind this fun video.

It took us about two to three weeks to complete the storyboard, though it was not a continuous process. We worked on it over a period of time and finally decided to shoot it. We started shooting the video towards the end of 2011, and then we had to take a break for some time because we had a lot of shows happening.

We commenced shooting around March 2012 and finally released it in April that year.

Fortunately, the lyrics are quite ‘video-friendly’ which helped us visualise the video better. We wanted to keep it very different and unpredictable, while not ignoring the actual situations when hiring an auto! So we sat down and chalked out a proper screenplay to avoid shooting random things and maintaining a low budget for the video. I also think when the storyboard is strong, it greatly helps in editing. A lot of credit needs to be given to Prashant Varadarajan for editing the video so well.

As a band, our originals need to be versatile and they are usually on socially relevant issues. Since these can get quite serious, we try and avoid it and take a dig at it in a funny way which I think is our forte. Having said that, we shot The Auto Tune in a fresh and quirky style giving out the relevant message across to the audience.

Do you think that awards and recognition help shape your music’s reach?

I definitely think so. Since the win at the awards, we are more confident of the video’s reach. The popularity of the video is spreading by word of mouth amongst other independent artists, across magazines and media houses and also people around the country especially in places like Bombay and Delhi. Since independent artists do not get this kind of recognition, the award is helping and will help in the future.

First Reaction on winning the award

Are we expecting to see more satirical videos by LIVE Banned?

The next video that we’re going to work on is called ‘Death Dance’. It is going to be about a death procession which will be put satirically and will be shot predominantly in Chennai. Since this will be a bigger production with more people in the cast, we will need to plan the storyboard well and ensure that the production cost is in control.

I was a little blank really, the nominations were on the screen and I was just really tensed.

But at the same time I was confident as well. When I heard the name ‘Live Banned’, I went running to stage and the first thing I said was ‘put it’.

If not

music?

Your debut album, Nirangal, which released earlier this year after three years since its first recording. How different is it to work with a band as oppose to working on a solo project (with Dheeru of course)?

The band happened because of my solo project. After I recorded my first song of Nirangal, I decided to focus on the band.

Working with a band is totally different as compared to working on a solo project. When we are on the road, travelling for shows we have a lot of fun. It helps that we spend so much time together, which consequentially helps in coming up with new ideas and music creations.

Whereas when it is just me working, I know what I want and I approach things accordingly. I always want my music to be interesting and entertaining which is why I came up with a video like Sappa Matter Da. It has a developed sense of quirkiness, more colours and fun choreography.

Tell us about your deal with Universal Music India?

When I started working on my album again after the break of three years and wrote the remaining seven songs to near completion, I sensed that the album has a lot of commercial value. It was mainstream music but very fresh and multi-genre at the same time. So I thought that tying up with a music label would help the overall value. Also, if an album is marketed by a label it tends to reach more audience as compared to an independent release. That is how I decided to meet Universal with the complete content of the album. Once it worked out for both the parties, we signed a distribution and marketing deal.

So it is still an independent album in terms of the production.

But Universal has the rights to distribute and market it. And in terms of the access to music, I am happy with what Universal has done. The album is available on iTunes, Flipkart and all the digital platforms, apart from the fact that physical copies are also being sold.

So which hat is Amrit Rao wearing next?

Well, my Tamil project will go live soon. I think it is important to play album songs live as well as keep adding new material.

Tentatively titled, Amrit Rao and The Madras Experience, will be a mix of some songs from the album and a set of new creations. It will be performed by a new band but will also have members from LIVE Banned. I am also planning to add a lot more traditional musicians, perhaps a flautist or violinist. The music that the project will make is going to be a combination of Tamil music mixed with western song. It will be serious music with a lot of original Tamil flavour in it. I am not limiting myself to anything just now. It will be more like a multi-genre experiment and a lot of serious music but there will be fun on stage!

Just drinking banana milkshakes and trying to put on weight.

In one word, how would you

describe yourself?

Awesome.

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Practices of

the Highly Effective

Musicians

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Ananya Ashok

How did a generation, with less than half of the resources that we have today, achieve such greatness and authenticity? Mindful learning/practice is the key.

Mridangist, Trivandrum Balaji once pointed out to me, “If you look back on a recording of any of the great maestros of the past, you’ll never find yourself saying that this was a bad recording. They were all pristine.” There is a reason why we look to the previous generation for musical growth.” It made me wonder what made them that way.

First let’s analyze what mindless practice consists of. Take a piece. Any piece you know. Practice it a billion times, like rote method and don’t pay any attention to detail or accuracy.

Never truly be present in your practice. After all why be mentally there when you’ve practiced it so many times, right?

Wrong. Many are often under the false opinion that repetition alone is enough for practice and that this type of practice cultivates expertise. The fact is that it doesn’t. This only leads to mundane mediocrity.

First off this way of practicing is a total waste of time. You can practice a piece for hours, days, or weeks, and still not feel that we’ve improved all that much. Even worse, you are actually digging yourself a hole by practicing this way, because what this model of practicing does do is strengthen undesirable habits and errors, literally making it more likely that you will screw up more consistently in the future.

Secondly, it makes you less confident as there is a part of you that realizes you don’t really know how to consistently produce the results you are looking for. Even if you establish a fairly high success rate in the most difficult passages via mindless practice, and find that you can nail it 3 or 4 out of every 5 attempts, your confidence won’t grow much from this.

Real on-stage confidence comes from (a) being able to nail it 10 out of 10 tries, (b) knowing that this isn’t a coincidence but that you can do it the correct way on demand, because most importantly (c) you know precisely why you nail it or miss it – i.e. you know exactly what you need to do from a technique standpoint in order to play the passage perfectly every time.

If these aren’t enough reasons, here is a major issue. We tend to practice unconsciously, and then end up trying to perform consciously – not a great formula for success. Each person has a tendency to shift over into hyper-analytical left-brain mode when you get on stage. So, if you have done most of your practicing unconsciously, you really don’t know how to perform flawlessly on demand. When your brain suddenly goes into full-conscious mode, you end up freaking out, because you don’t know what instructions to give your brain.

So, how does one practice like an effective musician? Such people simply take notice. They pay attention to the quality of their music, analyze where they are weak, and closely observe their colleagues performances. Instead of judging themselves, they perceive their music during practice. This helps in opening their mind to new possibilities in their practice. Deliberate practice allows an individual to approach their practice in a scientific way. Instead of mindless trial and error, it is an active and thoughtful process of experimentation with clear goals and hypotheses. Lalgudi G.J.R. Krishnan demonstrated this at a workshop on his father, violinist, Lalgudi Sri Jayaraman. In 2012 He played a recording of

Lalgudi sir exploring a raga by creating and practicing new phrases. After each try, there was a pause followed by another beautiful phrase.

This type of practice is often slow, and involves repetition of small and very specific sections of your repertoire. It involves monitoring one’s performance and continually looking for new ways to improve. This means really listening to what happens, so that you can tell yourself exactly what went wrong. For instance, you sit down to practice a song. Analyze what the intent of the composer could have been in that piece.

If it’s pathos, ask yourself, “Am I really giving that feel? If not, which notes or words do I emphasize on?” Few musicians take the time to stop, analyze what they messed up on, why it happened, and how they can correct the error permanently.

With consistent deliberate practice, you’ll realize that it is actually quite draining, given the tremendous amount of energy required to keep one’s full attention. Even the most dedicated individuals will find it difficult to practice more than four hours a day. Instead, practicing in intervals and strategically finding times of the day when you have the most energy is a better approach to practicing effectively than practicing for numerous hours in a day. More than draining, practicing for more than one hour at a time is likely to be unproductive and in all honesty, probably not even mentally or emotionally possible.

Consider a strategy like this: the problem (what do I want this 1 Define piece/raga/note to sound like?) the problem (what is causing it to 2 Analyze sound like this?) potential solutions (what can I 3 Identify tweak to make it sound more like I want?) the potential solutions to select the 4 Test most effective one (what tweaks seem to work best?)

the best solution (make these 5 Implement changes permanent) implementation (do these 6 Monitor changes continue to produce the results I’m looking for?)

It doesn’t matter if we are talking about perfecting technique, or experimenting with different musical ideas. Any model which encourages smarter, more systematic, active thought, and clearly articulated goals will help cut down on wasted, ineffective practice time. After all, who wants to spend all day practicing? Get in, get stuff done, and get out!

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Star of the month

Benny Dayal

With the success of the song Badtameez Dil, it sure has been a Benny bonanza in Bollywood this summer. Our Star Of The Month enlightens us about his fan base with some handy philosophy.

HITTY BITTIES

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Four tracks where Benny really brings down the house

Vaaranam Aayiram Yethi Yethi (2008) This song became the ‘Oorvasi’ for gen ‘08.

Sandhya Ramachandran

DAYAL D

FOR D’AWWWWW! All Time Favourite Animated Movies: How to Train Your Dragon, The Incredibles (because the artwork is so different), Despicable Me, Madagascar (literally had him LMAO-ing), Shrek and Polar Express

Talent On The Rise: Shaktishree Gopalan. She’s a very close friend of mine and I always knew she was amazing. Now is her time.

Most popular excuse for being late: I tend to sleep off! (Sure…)

Indie Indulgence: I really like Skrat, Franks Got The Funk, F16s – I happened to hear them recently, Blackstratblues, and so many more!

Take note ladies; rumour has it that Benny Dayal is debuting a new lean, mean look! Not long before you ditch the cuddles & welcome the giggles! <3

Benny Dayal is a pretty famous guy. He doesn’t act like it, neither do we but a glance at his repertoire and you can’t help but go whoa! Behind the spunky sound and onstage bravado is a - somewhat predictably - rather calm guy. Perhaps because we’ve caught him now at a point where he has humbly come to terms with his fame. I realized this after asking him if he ever temporarily forgets what he wants to say upon hearing his voice on the caller tune (It apparently doesn’t happen and there was all round nodding for the good ol’ beep beep). I mean it’s about time. 2007 was when Azhagiya Tamizh Magan came out and no college fest in Chennai was complete without a Benny Dayal performance. When he took to the stage, he was in his element like these songs were born for him to perform it in front of shrieking youngsters. Clearly, he had something that few playback singerssuccessfully carve out – a persona. “College performances are a preference because my songs are almost always targeted towards youngsters and kids,” explains Benny. “I like to give back to the college crowd because they are the ones who make my songs hits!”

Surely the view from top, of hordes of adoring eyes, should be satisfying.

“Well, people don’t clap anymore! They’re either holding up a camera or their phones. For YouTube uploading,” he reflects “Arenas like Wembley used to attract a certain kind of crowd. It’s just not there anymore. But, I guess it’s the new age with social media and it’s all a good thing.”

Are singers not bringing in the goods or are songs just not engrossing anymore? Benny has a point but visibility must go on! Be it a strategy or the perfect definition of down-to-earth, Benny Dayal along with his discography headed north, west and east - gigs galore and no-holds-barredwith a look back every now and then.

Bowling over Bollywood in entirety, happened quite recently. While ARR heralded his entry, it was the baffling Pritam da whose tunes really did the trick. It has been a back-to-back hit parade for Benny with Cocktail’s Daaru Desi, Race 2’s Lat Lat Gayi and finally, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’s Badtameez Dil. Benny affirms that Ranbir’s pelvic thrusts and nifty footwork are already being cited in concerts – by the crowd more than him! It was about time that 2013 got itself a youth anthem! “I was at rehearsal with Karsh Kale one night around October/November and after getting back home I got a call from Pritam’s studio,” recollects Benny. “This tune had been around for a while and they both (Karsh Kale &Pritam) felt I could pull it off”. He wrote down the lyrics and gave it a whirl and sure enough, the reggaeton beat with his rambunctious vocals turned out to be a winning recipe!“Yes, there are inflictions of Kishore Kumar,” says Benny “He has been my inspiration since childhood -the funky, gimmicky stuff with his voice… Like in Padosan!”

This living dream must surely have had its share of nightmares. Aspiring musicians will agree that it is a murky scene out there. Right from payment to plagiarism, the immorality stresses out the best of the lot.

“That’s exactly how it starts,” asserts Benny “Sometimes, the composer would have loved your work but the decision depends on higher authorities.

Definitely, we (musicians) will all feel down. It is a disheartening feeling but pick yourself up. All musicians know that we are most happy when we do this. You will only get better the more you sing.”

Student Of The Year The Disco Song(2012)

It got official. Benny Dayal – rockin’ (or in this case groovin’) teenage ragers since 2006.

Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na Pappu Can’t Dance Saala (2006)

His first big hit remains his best.

Sincerely, crazed perennially teenage audience.

Band Bajaa Baraat Dum Dum Mast Hain (2010)

It’s larger than life and high on stage energy. Even in the movie!

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Band of the Month

Parikrama

Made in India 22 years back: Check. Conquering people with music one hundred a time: Check. Passionate: Like hell, yes. Subir Malik , who wields the organ and synthesizers talks to us about this legend called

Parikrama

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Vishal Shah Rock musicians hardly ever tread the straight path. We don’t have a crazy rock story by an indian band yet, like the ‘Ozzy Osbourne eating a live bat’s head off on stage’ incident. Not for rockstars eating live animals myself, but what’s the craziest, most bizarre thing you have done? Stuff that can go down in indian rock legends.

Well, we do have some stories. I still remember that one of our first gigs was in Gujarat and we had no clue it was a dry state. After the gig when we ordered a few beers in the hotel, we got to know. In protest, I wore a full ghagra choli with a blouse, opened my hair, had a beard that time as well and ran all over the lobby. As you can imagine, I had the hotel staff chasing me for 20 minutes. In the end, we had 7 band members who just could not control their laughter and about 100 others shocked out of their wits.Well, loads of other such instances. All fun times basically.

Parikrama Indian Rock

To be called the founders of Indian rock must be special in itself.

If you were to sit down and gauge the impact Parikrama has on the indian ‘scene’, the influences would be more in terms of ideologies more than your music. Your thoughts?

Thank you for the kind words, but for us the pioneers of Indian Rock will always be Rock Machine/Indus Creed with many great bands of the 80’s, the 90’s and even before that actually. Ideologies are very important but in the end, it’s the music that counts. So, guess it’s a mix of both.

Tell us of a vision-clearing moment from the past which assured you that what you were doing was indeed special. That the whole idea of Parikrama was the right thing to have done in the first place.

Parikrama was actually just a 4 month project. The whole idea was to play classic rock, to play the bands we worshiped. I guess the moment was always the reaction of the crowd: from the very first gig we played on 15th September 1991 to our first ever outstation gig on 18th of March 1992. Every gig we played, the crowd would go beserk. It was signal enough to carry on doing what we loved.

Your music still sells for free, a concept that was understandable two decades ago. You have even urged fans to put together your songs in their own way and ‘make an album of their own’.

Commercialization was never part of the Parikrama plot, is it?

Back in the early 90’s, music used to actually sell. There were CDs that were priced INR 495 and even higher. Even bygone genres like Indipop used to sell lakhs of copies. We made the decision to give our music for free, actually against the tide. It was not that we did not consider all the options. We did but back then our fans were mainly college kids. There were no credit cards or paypal back then. So, how do the kids pay us for our songs? We even kept a price at 10 bucks way back in 1995. But eventually we decided to give the songs out for free. The concept was that people will listen to our music. Slowly as the internet came in, people downloaded it for free. In fact, today millions around the world are doing the what we (kinda) did 18 years ago. And yes, from the day #1 we decided that the band will not be an earning source for anyone, and that all people have to do their stuff separately. When the lack of shows result in lack of revenue, we did not want to get into Indipop or Bollywood. We made this pact way back in 1991, even before Indipop was born, but I guess we had that vision from the beginning.

Apart from the fun and excitement of playing to thousands of fans, touring itself must be such a fantastic learning experience intellectually. Tell us how a band learns by touring that they can never learn sitting in a studio.

It’s not that we do not do studio recordings; we have always preferred to play live over sitting in a studio and recording stuff. There is no bigger high for us. We have very few studio recordings and have released more of live versions. We actually have so many originals that are still unreleased. We prefer doing them live. Also, playing live teaches you loads of things. Like how to control a crowd and the interaction with your audience. It’s important that you make the audience a part of your show. They should go home happy. That’s the best reward.

22 Years of Royalism in

The fact that till today, Parikrama fans can as easily access their music as they could two decades ago says a lot about the band in an age where commercialization and reach are tough to balance.

Packed, full energy live concerts. Be it a small cafe, or a playground, Parikrama owns the space when they’re plugged in.

Mainly driven by rock, Parikrama seamlessly fleets through fusion and Indian classical. At such times, the dynamics of the band change completely.

The result? A very rich, cultured sound.

Showmanship. It’s not just about taking control of your instrument. When you’re playing live, each band member is in charge of the entire arena that’s come to watch. Parikrama is one of very few Indian bands that handle its crowd delightfully, interacting, joking and sometimes even performing with them. You would have a great time just ‘being’ at the concert.

About 3000 concerts worldwide, playing alongside legendary bands, and the official opening band for Iron Maiden for all Asian concerts. All of this without a single album release.

Need we say more?

But It Rained

Rhythm & Blues

Am I Dreaming?

Open Skies

The Self Help Guide to the Top 5 Parikrama

Kashmir (Led Zeppelin) cover

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It’s the most exciting time of the year at Furtados Music for all music enthusiasts. It’s the time for the biggest ongoing Annual Monsoon Sale ‘The Red Tag deals’, the Furtados Finance Advantage and the Ultimate guitarist. Great financing options with Furtados finance Advantage & the biggest competition for guitarist across the nation with The Ultimate Guitarist Video Contest.

Red Tag Deals : Get up to 35% Discount on a vast range of Electric and Bass guitars, Keyboards, Pedals & Processors and Amplifiers. We boast of brands such as Greg Bennett, Laney, ESP, PRS, TC Electronics, VPX, Warwick, Yamaha, Blade, Alhambra and the likes. All you have to do is walk in our select stores (Bangalore Chandigarh, Pune, Delhi & Mumbai) across India; or log on to http://www.furtadosonline.com/ discount_s_products.php for more details.

Furtados

Finance

Advantage With Furtadis Finance Advantage, we offer a range of Finance Options, including 0% interest and zero down payments, on our musical instruments & equipments. Loans can be taken out over 12 to 18 months and are very easy to apply for. So whether you are looking for a guitar, keyboard, piano, drum kit, or any other instrument; we have a finance option for you! This is how it works

PAY THROUGH EMI Tenure Option:Product

: Tenure

Musical Instruments : 12 months Musical Instruments : 18 months

PAY THROUGH CREDIT CARD Zero Down Payment 3, 6, 9 and 12 months options *These finance options cannot be clubbed with any other offers running at the stores.

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ULTIMATE Guitarist VIDEO CONTEST The Furtados Ultimate Guitarist Video Contest is a 3 month long Battle in search for the best guitarist in India. The Battle will go through a series of public voting rounds and not to forget selection by prestigious Judges.

The Crowned Winner of the Final battle as per Jury will win a Gibson Les Paul 60’s Tribute Guitar. So what if you were not the judge’s favorite? Not to worry! For the most popular guitarist with the Highest votes will win a PRS SE Dave Navarro Signature Electric Guitar or ESP Alexi 600 Electric Guitar (as per choice). We present to you the crème de la crème of the Music industry with stalwarts like Mahesh Tinaikar, Dhruv Ghanekar, Sonam Sherpa, Ravi Iyer, Baiju Dharmarajan as the Final round Jury. We also have a first round with aces like Sahil “Demonstealer” Makhija, Daniel Kenneth Rego, Bryden Lewis, Reinhardt Dias as the First round Jury.

Furtados believes in providing life-changing opportunities for the musically creative community. Ultimate Guitarist is a place to portray your work, gain recognition and virally grow your audience.

Furtados Ultimate Guitarist embraces artists at every level of their career, as well as all supporters of the arts. Ultimate Guitarist Contest is a small effort form Furtados Music’s side to engage in a dialogue with their audience in a targeted, relevant and credible context as well as give something back to the community we’ve been serving for the past 150 years.

Watch out this space for More ULTIMATE MUSICIAN CONTESTS!!!

Feel like getting in touch with us?

Call us at 080-41104304/05/06 or Drop a line at our website (www.furtadosonline.com)

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Reflections: Palm Expo 2013 The Palm Expo took off on the 30th of May, 2013 in the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Goregaon (East), Mumbai. Its subordinate, Musician Expo had its 13th edition attracting a crowd of almost 10 thousand people. Many old and new faces were seen this year for the biggest pro audio, lights and music exhibition. Palm Expo has been displaying many of the leading brands, for trial and purchase. It is impossible to mark the minutes of the event, because there were so many things going on at a time!

The Palm Expo is always an exciting experience for us.

Beyond meeting people in our field, it gives us at The Score Magazine to see how the music scene has grown.

Apart from booming lights and dreamy sound systems, there were a number of live gigs.

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One stall that simmered with sound was that of Bhargavas Musik. Some of the best gigs happened there. But that’s not all: The stall itself was divided into two sections. One side dedicated to Orange Amplifiers (UK) and Meinl Cymbals & Percussion (Germany).Orange amplifier section had a massive display of eight 4x12 Orange Cabinets along with all the flagship tube heads like Rockerverb MK ii 100 , Thunderverb 200 , OR 100 , TH 100 , OR 50 and Thunderverb 50. CR 60C , CR 120 H and CR 120C were the new arrivals for 2013 from Orange. The stall also featured Orange endorsees Shricharan (Blind Image) and Jayanth (Neolithic Silence) speaking to fans about their choice of amplification and why. The stall was frequented by several musicians and visitors alike. A spontaneous “Lamb Of God” mini-tribute was conducted by guitarist Shricharan and drummer Shrikrishna Natesan at the stall itself which was well received by all the metalheads at the expo.

As for Meinl, the stall featured the percussion tree that celebrated a plethora of percussions such as doumbeks, djembes and turkish darbukas. Not only this, the Meinl cymbal wall featured their highly respected series such as byzance, soundcaster, MB8, Candela, generation X, HCS, MCS and M-series cymbals.

Rahul Gopal was found jamming to his very own backing tracks at the stall exploiting his Meinl cymbal set-up.

The Orange endorsees in this stall were Shricharan (Blind Image) and Jayanth (Neolithic Silence) speaking to fans about their choice of amplification and why. Meinl was represented by Shyam Edwankar (Percussion), Monojit Datta (Percussion), Rahul Gopal (Cymbals) and Srikrishna Natesan (Cymbals).

The live arena was witness to a stellar performance by Blind Image on the 30th of May much to the joy of Mumbai Metal community. Louis Banks conducted a performance marking the launch of the Yamaha CVP-605 on the 31st at the Bhargava’s Musik piano section. Art of percussion with Shyam Edwankar and Monojit Datta was percussion based performance also at the live arena on the 1st of June which left the audience craving for more. An impromptu performance at the stall was conducted by Shyam, Monojit and Rahul Gopal much to the crowds delight.

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Further on we had shows in the Harman Live Arena that we dream about. Here are some interviews with a few artists who played there: Agnelo Aggi Fernandes of Nine Lives talks to us about his musical journey from Sound to Music Who’s your greatest inspiration?

I am inspired by anything that sounds good , subjectively. Anything fresh with a soul is an inspiration.

When and how did your musical career start off ?

My dad is a professional musician and worked as a Music Arranger/ Violinist in the Bombay Film Industry in the 70’s .He taught me the violin in my formative years and later on I started playing the trumpet and French horn in the Bombay Chamber Orchestra. Sometime later I started playing the piano and then a gradual shiftover to programming and music production.

What was it like when you first performed on stage and has that changed?

I actually don’t remember my first time onstage. In fact, every time I step on stage , I feel like it’s the first time !”Memento Moment”. But yes a lot of things have changed in terms of the variety of sounds that are accessible to musicians.

Tell us about your association with Harman.

Harman has been a game changer in the professional sound business. My association with Harman can only be and nothing short of gratifying.

Niladri Kumar, Indian classical and fusion musician. Not to mention makes the most phenomenal sounds with the Sitar.

Who’s your greatest inspiration?

Although I have had and continue to have many people and many achievements of people as my inspiration, if I had to name just one it would be my father Pandit Kartick Kumar .

When and how did your musical career start off ?

My father started teaching me since I was around 4 years old and I played my first at the age of 6 at Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry. Since then every time I go on stage I always feel that I am starting now.

What was it like when you first performed on stage and has that changed?

I don’t remember how and what I felt since I was just 6 years old but have many photos of that day and I guess it portrays I was nervous but calm and ultimately happy with all the adulation .

Tell us about your association with Harman.

It’s a very special association for it’s a meeting of minds, heart and goals which is somewhere entwined with each other at some level. Each and every brand under Harman is top of the line in that sphere of work and has inspirational value for others to come close to that .

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Sheldon D’Silva hopes to change the way bass players are generally seen in the background and bring to the forefront the actual importance and the real sound of the Bass guitar.

Who’s your greatest inspiration?

My greatest Inspiration would have to be my parents. They have given me more than anyone could have asked for. My dad was the one who introduced me to music, taught me to play the guitar and bass and in time bought me a cassette of Weather Report’s Heavy Weather, where I heard the amazing Jaco Pastorius for the first time on the track Teen Town, ever since that I’ve wanted to be a Bass Player.

When and how did your musical career start off ?

I never realized the shift from playing my instrument as a hobby to earning a living from it. I remember sitting in on jam sessions at a very early age of 11 to 12 years, I would just love playing the guitar, did many gigs and studio sessions for free. Eventually, I got my first payment for a studio session which was about 500Rs. I was still in school when I had the opportunity to work with Leslie Lewis and play with Colonial Cousins. At age 13 I had the fortune of meeting Louiz Banks who eventually became a mentor and

godfather to me in my professional career. Through Louiz Banks I met his son Gino, with whom I started the band Nexus, along with Sangeet Haldipur and Shahdaab Bhartiya.

What was it like when you first performed on stage and has that changed?

Performing on stage for the first ime was nerve-racking, feelings of judgment, rejection and criticism passed through my mind. At a tender age you don’t want to embarrass yourself in front of your friends, but school performances and competitions gave me the opportunity to overcome those fears. Overtime the stage became the place where people learnt who I really am, the real me, a place where I felt at home. The bigger the audience the more I enjoyed being there.

Tell us about your association with Harman.

Harman has become like family to me. They have created amazing platforms for a lot of musicians and I feel fortunate that I’m one of them. They have given me a platform on a global market to spread my music to everyone. Their support through marketing, advertising, music equipment and friendship is one to cherish and I’m extremely grateful.

Furtados Music held many events lasting for 3 days of the Expo.

Drum Auctions, Shows and clinics of the most talented musicians handpicked by their staff. Andy James of Sacred Mother Tongue was present to suffice the needs of a power factor to the crowd. Nishith Hegde of Furtados Music went on shredding with Andy James. Beautiful Grand and Digital Pianos at the venue were a significant display, really. The Sivamani Trio was on stage with their fused melodies and complicated drum rolls of Sivamani pulling more people. Sivamani has been endorsed by Zildjian Cymbals, a leading brand in the world of drummers and has his own series of drum sticks. Gino Banks, Jai Row Kavi and Darshan Doshi presented assorted techniques for the drummers of the future. They were performances featuring our very own Louiz Banks, Niladri Kumar, Dhruv Ghanekar and Sheldon D’Silva as well.

Brands like Gibson, ESP Guitars, Laney, Walden, Pearl, Zildjian, Evans, LP, PRS Guitars, TC Electronic, D’Addario, Warwick, Korg, Hofner, Hohner, VOX, Digitech, etc. were displayed with their best models. A variety of books which surely help the musicians to become better day by day in every aspect held a rack. Whoever missed the Expo, and the Furtados Music Booth missed a lot of fun, learning, experience and moreover the BIGGEST DISCOUNT OFFERS!

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Indie Reviews The times maybe a changin’ but good music is set to follow. Here is our grind about recent releases in the Indian music scene. Dig in! «««««

Dying Embrace - Era Of Tribulation (Doom/Old school Death Metal)

Before starting my review on them, I have to mention one thing that Dying Embrace should be considered as the pioneers of Indian underground extreme metal since. The band has been active since from 1991 and has been spreading their relentless fury of Doom/Death metal in the underground circuit. The band was formed as ‘Misanthrope’ in 1991 when the term metal was only referred to machine making materials in India! ‘Era of Tribulation’ is a collection of their songs from early formation years i.e. from 1991-2000. It includes songs from their two early ep’s, one mini album and one demo. The band’s music is purely an amalgamation of heavy rock from the 70’s era and early old school death metal. Songs like ‘The passing by’ and ‘Grotesque entity’ reminds me of the early work of bands like ‘Autopsy’ and ‘Paradise Lost’. The songs are slow, grimy with crunching guitar riffs and groovy drum beats. The lyrical themes are based on satan, blasphemy and other co related terms. It is purely old school in each and every essence.

I have personally seen them live a couple of times and each of the time I felt like devoting the rest of life in worshipping ‘the goatlord’! True evil, true essence! My personal picks would be: ‘Blood Rites’, ‘Grotesque Entity’ and ‘Oremus Diabolum’. If you are an old school devotee then it would be a sin to miss this album! So go ahead grab it and turn your sunny afternoons into the dark era of tribulation! If you are a follower of finely produced modern metal sound then you would probably find it little hard to digest the sound but if you are a soul like me who has been growing up on albums like Severed Survival (Autopsy) and Slowly we rot (Obituary),this one could be your holy book of metal!

Available in CD and Vinyl.

«««««

Blues Conscience - Down and Dirty (Blues)

I don’t know how many of you feel this but sometime I get irritated by all of the younger musician’s effort to become hard screaming ‘brootal’ musicians. There had times when I almost get bugged by the live music scene when each and every band tried to implement shredding and growl into their music! And music has been constantly losing its touch upon clear notes and happy vibes! When constant rebellion against your society, system and religion becomes a bit overdone, bands like Blues Conscience come as a rescuer! This Chennai based Blues outfit is truly amazing in every essence! You can actually grab a beer , hold the palm of your sweetheart and enjoy the sun going down while listening to them. Their 14-track debutant could be an eye opener or the younger musicians to remind them about the glory days of blues and a few clearer notes! There are a few guest musicians who have helped them in building their sound in this album. Charismatic classical vocalist Ujjayinee Roy and Dj Dean are two amongst them! Well a DJ in a blues band? Yes, it is quite recommendable as well! Personally I feel none of the tracks are disappointing but if I have to choose then I would like to choose ‘Blues Santa’, ‘Closer’ and ‘No life without the blues’. There is an video going viral in youtube for the song ‘Blues santa’, go check it out. And yes at Rs. 150 bucks this album comes at quite handy as well. Don’t think twice go ahead buy it!

http://www.oklisten.com/album/down_dirty

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Sibarshis Dutta

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Reptilian Death The Dawn of Consummation and Emergence (Psychedelic Art/Space Rock)

Reptilian Death - The one man side project of Demonstealer aka Sahil Makhija of Demonic Resurrection fame finally sees the dawn of pure emergence with their final full length. There were two earlier releases as ep’s and a couple of live shows as well but the band could not find a prominent place in the metal circuit may be due to the constant lineup changes and not able to gear up as a constant full entity. With the release of ‘The Dawn of Consummation and Emergence’, the band has proved one fact that they are an entity to be taken seriously! The band has slightly changed their sound from Grind/Death to Brutal Death Metal and I have to mention about this fact that they have successfully implemented a signature sound of their own! Sahil Makhija’s drummer boy avatar is quite astonishing and according to my opinion vocalist Vinay Venkatesh has done a better job than his earlier offerings with Bhayanak Maut.

The album is a concept album as a whole! The concept of a pathetic and helpless human being is slowly turning into a serpentine demigod! Each song has the continuous lyrical themes of how he turns from a pathetic soul to a blood sucking reptile and how does he aim to dominate the world by sodomy and atrocity! My personal picks would be ‘Simulate,hike,impel,tear’, ‘Emerge,hatred,emerge’ and ‘emergence-the world your playground’. Brilliant effort I say!

The band has already made a mark with their thearitical live shows; I am eagerly waiting to see them live!

Available in CD format

«««««

The Bicycle days - Calamitunes (Electro ambient/ Alternative Rock)

I believe since from the past 5-6 years, there has been a constant evolution of Alternative Rock in India. Personally I am not a big follower of the genre as I feel like a few of the bands just want to play only for the sake of going Psychedelic and fails to draw your attention. On the contrary ‘the Bicycle Days’ from Bangalore has been proving it wrong since from the very early days of their formation. Their music is very much original and highly appreciable in terms of technicality. Out of the world drumming and very much time signature oriented bass lines.

‘Calamitunes’ is their debutant LP from these psychic lads and currently available only in digital format. Their lyrical themes are based on their perception towards reflection of human mind towards the contemporary issues in daily life. A big high five goes to the production team for the sound! My personal picks would be ‘Circles (Information=experience)’, and ‘Crawl (The Human Experience)’.Go ahead and grab it fellas, it will surely make your shot of ‘bong’ in those insomniac nights feel worthy!

http://www.oklisten.com/album/calamitunes https://itunes.apple.com/in/album/calamitunes/id655204736

«««««

Tritha - Live at Zorba (Fusion/Ethno Punk)

It’s my bad that I have decided to focus towards ‘Tritha’ which is already a well known figure in the Indie music circle and who has been already representing India in various music festivals around the world. ‘Live at Zobra’ is Tritha’s first album comprises of 10 live tracks. Her music is described as ‘ethno punk’ which is a completely new genre to me. I personally find various Indian classical influences infused with Rock. Probably the meaning of ‘punk’ is hidden within the lyrical contempt and her attitude to portray the liberty and sexuality of women. The whole album signifies the purity of world music. She mesmerized me with her magical voice and her own fusion of Indian and western instruments. She has successfully portrayed her as the face of women liberalization. Songs like ‘Sajaan’ and ‘Duur’ signifies her tremendous capabilities as a trained classical singer! I became an ardent fan and will not stop following her music ever after. Her sets are known for cinematic representation. A total win for her! At Rs.200 , this album is an steal!

http://www.musicfellas.com/tritha

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AUDIOPHILIC The quotient of success is not determined by the quantity of opportunity. In fact, any opportunity is equally giving: it is upon the person to make sure it’s so. This time, we have Mr. Renjith Rajan, the Chief Sound Engineer at the Muzik Lounge Studios. From his initial humble village surroundings to the busy life of the entertainment industry, Mr. Rajan weaves his story with sounds.

Mr Ranjith Menon, General Manager, Muzik Lounge

Renjith Rajan Why did you choose Sound Engineering?

Initially for Sunday Church, I used to do the basic sound related work for the devotional orchestra. This was the initial spark that gave me impetus enough to take a degree in Sound Engineering. With that, started my journey to sound and the city of Chennai.

Considering all the projects that you have dealt with in your field, which proved to be most challenging and why?

The big budget movie Pranyam which had Mohan Lal and Anupam Kher along with music director Blessy and music direction provided by M. Jayachandran would definitely be it. These are such big stalwarts and artists. I had to match up and see to that my department was up to the mark.

During the process itself, there was a lot of attention placed on the movie and it had the works worthy of a national award.

If you were to share some advice with upcoming sound engineers, what would it be?

You should be very focused. You need to approach this with passion. There are two more things here: one needs to keep themselves updated and the other side of it is being sincere in what you do. It’s irrespective of how long or important the task is. You have to be taking the initiative.

“

Language per se is not the primary factor to watch out for when mixing. At the end of the day, the quality should be of a professional class.

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Have you received any award?

I received the Radio Mirchi Award for best mixing engineer (Malayalam) for the movie Pranayam. I feel that this award is a gift from God for all the hard work I’ve put in. Coming from a simple village, and shifting to the busy life entertainment has definitely been an interesting journey. For this, I deeply thank God, family and of course Muzik Lounge for providing me the environment to flourish.

What is the turning point in your life?

I joined ML in 2007 as an assistant engineer to Sam Devassy and got the opportunity to work with one of the busiest music producers in the industry: Stephen Devassy. I got the opportunity to work for projects with Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Mandolin U Srinivas, Ranjit Barot, Hariharan, M Jayachandran, Sivamani, Leslie Lewis, and Selva Ganesh to name a few.

Right now, I’m the chief audio engineer at the Muzik Lounge studios.

You have worked in over 60 movies across various languages. What are your experiences in that regard?

Most of my projects are in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu. I have also worked on few projects in Kannada, Hindi and Arabic. You need to act according to the situation and give first preference to the genre of music involved.

Language per se is not the primary factor to watch out for when mixing. At the end of the day, the quality should be of a professional class.

What type of music do you listen to and how does it help you in your professional arena?

Yes, I do listen to various types of music. This helps me to understand the different flavors of world music. It also gives me a basic reference as to how a music track is to be treated in a pleasant way.

Being a successful musician in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s world calls for technical as well as musical competence in equal measure.

The very idea of MLSAT was born from a deep desire to spot, inspire, train and develop the millions of hidden talents across our country. The ambience, infrastructure and the course structures at MLSAT are specifically designed to develop technical brilliance and bring out the hidden talents of the students in all aspects of their personalities. More than just technical training, MLSAT endeavors to instill in the student a razor sharp clarity about his career. MLSAT aims to convert passionate musicians into seasoned professional.

Student Testimonials Student : Vishwajyothish Balakrishnan Course : Diploma In Audio Engineering The field of audio is a journey and it is from Muzik Lounge that I started mine from. It changed me a lot both professionally and personality wise. The campus life moulded me from a common man to a person who want to explore more technically. Most importantly, I developed the habit of researching and there by keeping myself up to date with the industry. ML has guided me as how I need to be in the industry, and how to be in a group. This has helped me a lot in my work. The exposure we get is something unique. We have the opportunity to assist film projects works while studying itself. Thank you ML for all what you had done for me in my career.

Student : Ragesh Swaminathan Course : Diploma in Audio Engineering I used to be a Graphic Designer by profession and a singer by passion. When Stephen Devassy started Muzik Lounge School of Audio Technology, it waved my interest towards sound engineering. I was not aware of the world behind the music I hear everyday. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s when I joined ML. ML taught me the technical side of music production with guidance from great personalities in the industry. I was lucky enough to meet several senior professionals from music and audio industry. The time I spent with them made me understand that hardwork is the only stepping stone to success.

The atmosphere at ML was always filled with music. As a recording engineer, I am lucky enough to work with many leading music directors and brilliant playback singers.

Student : Krishna Prasad Course : Diploma in Audio Engineering Muzik Lounge is my first and best step towards the world of sound! I had a lot of trouble finding and joining an Institute which can teach only engineering and does not compel you to be a musician to join for the same!

Muzik Lounge was my answer to all the questions I had regarding a sound engineering course and college.

The technical side of music/sound is well taught and proper guidance provided by the faculties and also the entire family of muzik lounge. The guest lectures are the people who are best in the industry and the entire muzik lounge team have thorough knowledge and experience regarding best of both the worlds, music and engineering! The moment you step inside MLSAT, you have a feeling in that you are in the right place.

Kudos to the entire team and wishing them all success!

Admissions OPEN Batch for Diploma in Music Technology(18 months) & Diploma in Audio Engineering (18 months).

You can download the application form from www.muzikloungeindia.com. /MLSAT

/muziklounge

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Keerthi Sagathia Satyamev Jayate singer Keerthi Sagathia hates being the center of attention and prefers his work to do the talking - except this one time when we grilled him to dash out some lesser known facts about him.

Discography

I Hate You, Switty Tera,

Nakkaddwaley Disco

Delhi Belly 38

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Shresht Poddar One Helluva Journey!

Under my family’s guidance, I started singing at the age of 3. My father, Karsan Sagathia, is a renowned Indian Folk singer. I was the apple of my family’s eye. They always encouraged me to follow my chosen musical path. By the age of 7, I was able to perfectly tune a Tanpura. Despite failing thrice in the 6th standard, my principal, Mishra ji (of Cowasjee Jehangir High School, Mumbai), believed that I was born to be in music and he requested my dad to get me trained further. My dad used to sing the folksy bits in many commercial songs - e.g. Dholi Taro from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam - but I realized that he used to generally sing only a few lines. Did I want to end up being typecast as a folk singer? No! That is when I started to explore world music, as well as, other genres to increase my musical knowledge and find my own space.

The Fame Gurukul Experience Surprisingly, having participated in Fame Gurukul did not help my career in any way. My co-contestants were highly insecure of me and plotted to get me evicted and when that happened, the judges (Shankar Mahadevan, K.K. & Javed Akhtar) got into a fight which lasted for quite some time since they thought that I was a very promising singer. In fact, they always believed that the ultimate fight would be between Arijit Singh & I. Recently, when Arijit’s Tum Hi Ho (from Aashiqui 2) released, I smsed him saying, “Bro, the fight is still on!”. Anyway, I believe that everything happens for the best since it was a game and I took all of it in my stride. Fame Gurukul will remain special for me because of what Javed ji told me at the end of it “You are amongst those dedicated singers who know where their ultimate goal is. Even if you have been eliminated, no one will be able to stop you in life from fulfilling your dreams.”

BLURBS

1 2 3

Jingle Bells!

Between 2003 and 2007, I was the most sought after playback singer for jingles since I had a very fresh voice. I have lost the count of jingles for which I have done the playback (more than 700 for sure!). Thanks to the advertisement world, I got a chance to meet some of the most esteemed present-day musicians like Pritam, Vishal - Shekhar & Ram Sampath.

4

My life changed when..

I started working with Ram Sampath & Sona Mohapatra - these 2 people changed my career since they gave me some of my biggest hits - Delhi Belly & Satyamev Jayate. If I am even remotely famous today, it is thanks to them. As a fellow Indian, I am really proud to have sung the title track of Satyamev Jayate! After Delhi Belly, I have always been associated in some way with their projects. Also, I consider my father Karsan Sagathia, A.R. Rahman and Ranjit Barot to be my mentors. Without their expertise, I wouldn’t be the musician that I am today.

5

From the age of 3 itself, I started doing stage shows like cultural programs in Gujarat with my father.

I am very happy and satisfied with the way my career has shaped up. I have no regrets in life since I have been carving my own path all this while.

My most difficult singing assignment? I have yet to come across it since none of my songs have been challenging.

My voice keeps getting mistaken for Kailash Kher.

Thankfully, this doesn’t affect me.

My forthcoming Bollywood projects include Prakash Jha’s Satyagraha, Manish Tiwari’s Issak & Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ram Leela.

My life - my family!

Years ago, I met my now-wife Rakhi at a singing class. Initially, we never spoke but over time, we became very friendly. She has seen me when I was a nobody but has stood by my side like a rock. Without her support, I would have never managed to come this far. There used to be days when we had almost no money and we would share one chappati between the two of us.

Rakhi & I have 2 adorable kids - Nysa & Elchan - and as much as I would love them to get into music, I will let them do whatever pleases them.

Karle Jugaad, Rabba Fukrey

Beera Raavan

Tum Tak

Satyamev Jayate, Kabir Vani

Raanjhanaa

Satyamev Jayate The

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ScoreNight EVERY FRIDAY!

only at BAK BAK BAR (Bangalore) Star Rock (Chennai)

EVENTS Galore

For more bleh, blah, boo on gigs and all things sound bound: knock on www.highonscore.com.

We’re watching you.

What’s been buzzing you ask? Some here, some there. We pick up bits of this chatter in the hope of telling you an untold story. Or whatever sails your boat.

Pink Floyd tribute show by Secondhand Syd Barrett once said “I think it’s good if a song has more than one meaning. Maybe that kind of song can reach far more people.” Don’t hate us for saying, yes that happened. The band is made up of Sujay Harthi on Vocals, Tony Das on Guitars and Vocals, Jason Zachariah on Keyboard and Vocals and Praveen B V on Bass & Vocals with Kishan Balaji on Drums.

Pushing Tin One may contest that all rock these days are metro but we’re talking about some shaking and stirring of Modern & Retro. Or should we say pushing? *sheepish smile prevails*T he band consists of Vikshut Mundkur on Vocals, Ashley Joseph on Bass/Guitars/Backing Vox, Mark Escotee on Guitars/Backing Vox with Moses Naveen Kumar on Drums/Percussion.

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Credits : Nikhil Unnikrishnan (Myriad Hues) for his fo sizzle work at ScoreNight at Bak Bak Bar, Bangalore.

Amrita D G

Sonic Doom (May 2013, Bangalore) Sonic doom- a gig solely organized by Mahesh Raju( VocalistShephard) with a little help from a few of his good friends was turned out to be a quite head turner! And the gig was actually started in time. ION - bar and kitchen has been turning out to be a quite unholy gathering for the metalheads in Bangalore since from the past few months. The lineup was quite interesting indeed. Mahesh had successfully put together the best of both the worlds! So there was no room for complaints over here. The lineup was as 1.Crypted (Modern technical death metal) 2. Witchgoat (Blackened Thrash) 3. Orchid (Progressive metal)

Credits : CreditsUdayshanker Acharya for his exceptional photos at Sonic Doom.Sibarshis dutta for the meteculios reviewing.

4.Djinn and Miskatonic (Stoner Doom) 5.Escherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Knot ( Progressive Metal) 6.Shephard (Sludge/Hardcore/Drone)

Pralayh T his ScoreNight with Pralayh is dedicated to a simple, smart and straight-as-your-gay-cousin Rock n Roll gig.

For the uninitiated, Pralayh is a tricycle. In fact, so rad are they that Pralayh is spelt with an H. The band consists of Jaskaran on Vocals, Nikhil and Shahid on Guitars, Abhay on Bass with Arnab on Drums.

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Jamie D’Silva, a sync-sound recordist who worked in the film Mere Haule Dost breaks it down to the bytes.

The classic: How did it start?

I have a diploma in Mechanical Engineering and I have been working for four years in that industry. It’s a proper 9-5 job that didn’t interest me ; I didn’t want to do a desk job. In the back of my mind there was always an interest for sound engineering. That’s when I heard about this course in AAT-SAE. Looking back, the seeds were possibly planted by my dad when I was young. He had a lot of mics and other such audio equipment. I spent a lot of my childhood playing with these things.

Where did this affinity towards sound grow and how did it change over the course of action?

My folks were always into music; I grew up with a lot of different genres.

However, my focus really changed into the technical aspect of the process.

I got into studio engineering and I did a lot of recording and editing work.

Though I was learning a lot, it was still within the studio walls. I wanted to consciously break this as I didn’t want to be confined. It was the same situation as when I was previously working. I moved into location sound (or sync sound). It’s been a journey from there onwards.

Tell us about this journey.

It’s like this: A lot of audio engineers have been coming up over the past decade and there is a lot of competition. In contrast, there are very few studios that do big work and pay all right. I started by calling all the studios in Chennai and Bangalore. This was primarily because compared to Bollywood, these industries are relatively smaller. Soon after, a corporate film maker from Bangalore got in touch with me to work as a freelancer on an assignment. I was and am fascinated about catching sound in a location. For Mere Haule Dost, the director got in touch and said he wanted to see some of my works. At that point of time, all my other work was still being processed.

He called some of the directors I have worked with and found out about me. Apparently, it worked out considering I’m here.

‘‘

Over the time, I have seen that when there is work there is a lot of it and when there is no work you just need to marvel at the times when you were really busy.

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Mere Haule Dost was entirely shot in Hyderabad. Now here, the location was very noisy. There were dogs barking, people moving and there were rickshaws everywhere. All in all, it was very noisy. But, this has a charm of its own.

When you look at most of the Indian films, they are dubbed badly. For an example, a couple sitting in the restaurant: this is a very popular scene in most films. There is so much activity happening in the background but you hear only the actor and actress. Fail.

I like the challenge of Location Sound. As mentioned before, I’m drawn to the technical aspect of sound. I want to move into that line and bring sound in that’s more authentic.

Considering that even machines are only human at times, you must have had some odd ball experiences with your equipment, right? Share one such incidence.

There was this very tense situation in Mere Haule Dost: it was a party scene in a farm house. (Editor’s note: We’re wondering how this has the makes for a “very” tense situation, but we go with the flow.)

The actor had to deliver a dialogue which takes up to 3 minutes. But we had to take the scene 8 times to get it right because in the middle there would be some sound or the other which would disturb the entire recording. You can imagine how vexed everyone on floor was.

Sometimes things like this happen.

Mere Haule Dost. Tell us about that.

Mere Haule Dost is a very big break. But I think it probably came a little soon.

Prey, tell why?

Because I just started my career. I was hoping to be learning about Location Sound, tricks and ways around to it. Anything I know at the moment is only based on what I learned at college. I wanted to absorb more before taking on such big projects.

Advice for aspiring

Sound Engineers

There are going to be time when you don’t have anything to do. Use that time wisely.

You should have no ego: yes, easier said than done. But this is for your good.

All the students should know what exactly they should be doing. Let there be no misgivings about the course.

It’s all about your creativity and how you deal with pressure. Your work should reflect this to your clients.

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Siddharth Venkat

The Intricate Subtleties on

MatH Rock

Math rock is a relatively new species, but over the last few years has gained some widespread recognition. My favorite math rock band, This Town Needs Guns, is still releasing some killer music even today. Usually guitar based, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s experimental, progressive and yet indie sound is one that many bands have been going for of late.

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“

Math rock to me is just a smarter form of music, something that pushes at the normal 4/4 and actually makes you use your brain a little. Still, it’s not just about adding an extra beat here and there to confuse people. For me anyway, it’s about finding the right balance of having all these guitars in different times to make them sound like one whole.

Early influences start from King Crimson’s progressive sound and lead on from Rush to Yes to JethroTull.

All who shared odd time signatures, light vocals and Counterpoint in their dynamics. Counterpoint is the concept of two independent and individual harmonies riding over the same melody. This is another technique oft used in math rock. With either layers of singing or guitars, these Counterpointed sounds are there in some of the best post rock and math rock bands today like Tera Melos and Dilute. Guitar Arpeggios, light treble, high capos and soft voices usually accompany these sounds perfectly too.With many similarities to post rock, this sub-genre is one that several post rock bands have ventured into at some point or the other.

Dissonance as a sound is also a noted element, with post rock bands like Toe incorporating it into their songs too and mellowing into the sub-genre of math rock as a result. Dissonance was carried in ontoheavier genres like math core, with bands like beneath the buried and me coming out with loud, but precise and altered songs. A lot of the concepts around dissonance are now present in today’s mathcore, a much louder, yet still related sub-genre of metal.

the local scene

“

I think that most people don’t really connect with it because it’s not something that you can listen to in the background- which is what a lot of people want. When something doesn’t stick to your verse-chorus 4/4 format a lot of people say “Oh, that’s different- I don’t like it”. But I do hear more and more bands recently kind of pushing at the boundaries of conventional music and getting a little more experimental with their music.

So hopefully it’s something that’ll be appreciated a little more in time.

~ Nihal Anand, Stuck In November

The Malayali band Kaav has some math rock elements in their recent album Rhapsody of Rains. Mixed by Baiju Dharmarajan and with some heavy folk element, in way, they are a metaphor for how some bands have tried to vary their sound.

Lyrics and vocals are also not at the forefront of an average math rock bands’ sound. Although many of them are instrumental, the ones with a singer usually emphasize less on the words. Even the volume and tone of the vocals are in a style that is not overpowering the rest of the instruments. The start/stop dynamic of math rock is also evident in bands like The Foals and Dilute.

Nomeansno and avant-garde group, Massacre, with some influence from the rapid-fire energy of punk, are said to be very early progenitors of this very dynamic.Black Moth Super Rainbow’s drummer has avidly promoted a math rock sound too. When recent composer like Steve Reich started incorporating these ideas into his own sound, many more people became aware of this new style and this has helped smaller bands to understand and emulate these same ideas.

Similarly, even local acts from around the country have stated their math rock influence, with some acts trying to go for the exact same sound.

The Bangalore based post metal act Orchid have often used samples in their tracks. Ideas behind many styles of music are also evident in their music, despite being based in metal.

Off-time variants, slow breakdowns and Counterpoint have all been incorporated by this band quite nicely.

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TAKE 2

Or more. We look out for siblings in various genres of music and catch up on the rivalry (or the lack of it). This time up are the brothers who make

Designer Hippies Romeo & Deepesh Sharma Yes, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re rad like that. Formed in 1999, these brothers have successfully collaborated with top artists with foot stomping tracks to their credit. So, read up!

WHO? WHAT? WHERE? 46

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Supriya Talupuru Who are your influences musically and what aspects do you seek to imbibe from them?

There are a lot of people who believe EDM artists are not real musicians. To them, what do you have to say? Give us page 3 material!

We have had many influences. With time, new sounds, new artists, old artist’s legends, basically good music has always inspired us to create better music. Each country we visit influences us in different ways. There is so much of music in this world, so many amazing musicians, so many talented artists, DJs & singers: some who have made it big. I think it will not be fair to take one or few names so all I can say is life on this planet, this planet and my soul itself has always inspired me to do more, learn more and create more.

Well, we are not real musicians. We are realistic musicians (interject a really sly smile). I believe anyone who can create a track or create a journey of it: that’s it. It should grow on you; force you to listen to it again and again. It makes you dance & forget that there exists another world. That my friend, is a real musician. Genre is irrelevant.

There is so much music out there and it’s all to be appreciated.

What is the great continuing pleasure about being in the music industry?

The pleasure of loving and hearing your own sounds being modified and growing each and every time.

What according to you are the highlights of your EP? “Designer Hippies & Family part 1” EP itself was a highlight since it was our 1st. But having collaborated with such famous and talented artist like GMS, Mad Max & Pixel was a real pleasure.

As the EP name says, we wanted to record and have only our extended music family involved.

Share with us some funny experiences while getting it all together?

Ahh…there were quite a few. When all the boys are sitting in one room even the most serious work turns out to be funny.

What message do you seek to send out with this EP? Message is simple: bring this world together with music & make this planet a better dance floor

We read somewhere a line from y’all: “Playing at an international destination is like entering a science lab”. That quote deserves a LOL. Tell us about your live acts.

Deepesh: (Laughs) Well, it’s true. That was my line. The result is instant. Either you have created something unique or else BOOM. The crowd is the biggest critic. There is no 2nd chance once when you are out there performing.

A psychedelic trance turning duo.

From the movie ‘Heroes’ and the legendary Hit track ‘Mast Mast Nain’ from ‘Dabangg’, which earned them the “Rashtriya Rajiv Gandhi Achievers Award” for the Best Bollywood Remix in December of 2010.

Personally, how do you gauge your success?

Is it by the number of awards you collect or if it the satisfaction of doing what you want to do?

Well we have got only one award till now “Rashtriya Rajiv Gandhi Achievers Award”.

Then again, awards mean nothing. The real deal is when the dance floor is bouncing. The real award is someone coming up to you and telling u “dude you made our night” or “you sorted my new year”.

Satisfaction comes when your work is appreciated with applause, love, hugs and smiles. Because in the end, that’s what you will take places. Not steal or metal awards!

What kind of people do you guys definitely not get along with?

I see you’re looking to get us into a controversy, huh? But I shall still answer this: the people who we don’t get along with, are the kind of people who we don’t get along with! Haha!

In all your tours, what are some of the strangest things that have been said to you?

1. You’re the shit (how does one ever think? It could mean you rock!)

2. After finishing our 2 hour set, we were once requested to keep playing for another 2 or 3 hours: which definitely didn’t happen.

What’s your word of advice for those interested in this field?

Clean your ears, wash your eyes, tune your brain and believe in your sound.

What are some of the things that you like about your brother. Also, what are the things about him the drives you up the wall?

Deepesh: Romeo is a brother who I have always looked up to. It would be hard to point out on what I don’t like about him.. This is so because he is the most supportive and understanding. He is also someone who can have control over me when it is much needed.

They garnered numerous accolades for their performance at Sunburn Festival, Goa in 2007. They have been regularly performing at the sunburn after parties.

Australia, UK, Mauritius, Thailand (Koh-Phangan at the Full Moon festival for 60 thousand people & Half Moon Festival recently in 2011) Portugal (at the Visions Festival, Lisbon 2011).

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