Something Relevant or or ‘STR’ as they are called by most fans and indie music hounds, are one of the class acts to have walked the indian rock road with a unique, original and mature sound which does not resemble or emulate any identity except its own. The band’s formation goes back to 2004 and in their years of hardwork and percevierence to find this identity of theirs, they have come a long way as musicians and as a performing act. The last 2-3 years have landed them big gigs and an even bigger fan following which does tend to catch them up and fill up most of their venues wherever they go. The one thing that goes down well with the band’s self proclaimed genre classification of ‘jamband’ is the time they have taken to get into studio. Phish, Grateful Dead, Moe and other American jam monsters have all had a history been happy to be rocking it live until producers literally pushed them to putting down their stuff on tape. In that respect, it is quite ironic that STR’s debut is called ‘Feels Good To Be Live’.

The band took their time to record this album, as various sources say. From initially self producing the album to completely working with a commercial producer like Shantanu Hudlikar (of Yash Raj Studios), the album has undoubtedly undergone many many sonic and creative changes to reach the disc that you might find at your local music store today(FYI, by producer we dont mean treasurer/money bank but one who executes and guides a band in a direction which makes the studio release a musically and commercially viable effort). Having said that, the album sounds very much in a secular, analogueish zone that does not necessarily conform to commercial pop/rock music benchmarks of today (Which honestly,is a good thing). The songs are well structured and provide good entertainment to the listeners bringing the bands live fun vibe into the recording in a very simple and familiar motif of sounds.

The best part about the album according to us was the fact that no idea or tune seemed forced into song or any such situation. That being very apparent through the second track, Horn Ok Please which is one of the top tracks on the album speaking of the chaos on the streets of India. Grooves sit in easy to make STR’s compositions work in a nicely directed process. Aha is the radio-friendly hit track of the band which is not only immensely popular amongst the fans being a previously circulated single but is still the most stand-out track on the album with its surprise latin break which is just pure class. Tommorrow, with its Hendrixesque groove and riffage comes through slamming with its head held high. City In a Situation is the other groove laden track which in a way is quite characteristic of STR’s sound with its odd time reiterating breaks which get you moving to its new groove in no time. Unlike many other bands in our scene who are scared of putting out ‘slow’ tracks on their debuts, STR go headstrong with their soulful almost ballad like groovy tracks like  Eddy On A Roll which only cements the bands integrity as musicians staying true to their ideas. As far as individual performances go, every member delivers but more like a module to the unit that is STR’s sound which makes all 7(or of them totally invaluable. That is again something that has finally started happening with our bands unlike every member trying to be a solo superstar like it used to be till a few years back.

For those who have not seen the band or heard the album yet, all we have to say is go watch them or get the CD as soon as you can. Like most good artistes, their music does more talking than we could about them. STR is worth the wait, hype and anything else that you might have heard about them. The band delivers on all fronts on tape and live with their fun, jam filled performances which leave every audience member craving for more. These boys seem like they are feeling good in their skins indeed and intend to take their music forward with every passing song, gig or jam. We sure hope they keep at it!

Sample the album at their website.

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No. 5.  The Bicycle Days

The Bicycle Days

We’re usually skeptical when we hear about alternative rock coming out of Bangalore/Chennai – it’s usually riff-based, plod-along, more-of-the-same, not-really-alternative stuff that’s simply not exciting. With the release of The Bicycle Days‘ EP, 42, we now have a reason to snap out of our cynical mindset. TBD presents psychedelic rock in a contemporary sonic context, with tracks that draw you in with a strength and untamed energy rarely encountered in the music scene today. Swirling samples, big guitars, trippy vocals and tasteful rhythm section all shine through. Its hard to draw comparisons, but echoes of Prodigy, A Perfect Circle and even Deftones can be heard in The Bicycle Days’ sea of sounds flowing through their songs. Individual songs are hard to point out and describe as we usually do, as 42 is more of an album experience. The band does a great live show too – they’re able to create a mood you can just feel under your skin, and they’re tight to boot. TBD shows tremendous promise, and we’re sure they’ll go far in the months to come.

No.4.  The Mavyns

The Mavyns

It was not too long ago that we did an ‘Off The Radar’ on The Mavyns (read here) – That’s how quickly this band has grown. We haven’t met too many people who have disliked this band, on first listen or otherwise. Be it their raw sound, their healthy original material based on Beatles-era progressions, or their totally honest stage act, these guys seem to be getting it just right. From playing amateur clubs a few months ago, to releasing their debut album featuring songs from a live gig, it’s been quite a ride for The Mavyns. The album showcases their collective gift for creating interesting compositions and decidedly indie song structures, and is a must-hear for any music lover.

No.3.   Five Little Indians

Five Little Indians

FLI are amongst Kolkata’s top rock bands to break through into the national circuit this past year. Being a city swarming with musical talent, that’s a major achievement. Their solid performances across the country have been widely acclaimed by critics and fans alike, and their evolving sound seems to have found its purpose. Having done strictly average demo track recordings untill now, it is evident that they seem to be gearing up for their debut recording effort – definitely good news for FLI fans and Indian rock lovers at large. We say this as FLI is amongst the tightest sounding bands right now with sorted sonic attributes. Their live performances themselves have enough crunch to get their messages through to their audiences and it seems that their recording will righteously be in overdrive seeing the kind of progress they have been making over the past year-and-a-half with their music and gigs. Here’s to their continued success in the months ahead.

No.2.  Parachute XVI

Parachute XVI

This band is amongst the most exciting sounds that you’ll have heard over the past couple of years from India, even though it’s essentially a classic rock sound. Consisting of experienced musicians from various hard rock outfits (as is the case with most original Bangalore bands), this trio is burning up stages across the country with their blues-psychedelic vibe which immediately transports an avid listener to the late 70s but throws in a pinch of modern fusion ingredients here and there to keep today’s listeners enthralled. The band kicked off proceedings last year with the launch of their debut EP ‘Sodium Trail’ and have been playing several unique gigs since then. Their set list has been rapidly increasing over their one-year-plus existence which tells us a hot album is on the cards. Whatever it is, we’re waiting for it with bated breath.

No.1.   PinkNoise

PinkNoise

PinkNoise is the late night alter-ego of Kolkata-based blues act Skinny Alley, and has created a sonic palette quite different from those of their peers – they deal in psychedelic jazz-rock. It feels like a secret project that the members have been brewing underground through their decades of existence, that they’ve decided is ready to unleash among today’s audiences. Alongside one of the most gifted drummers in the country (Jivraj Singh) and one of the most hard-working guitar players ever (Amyt Dutta), Jay and Gyan Singh join forces in delivering ground-breaking performances that are unmatched by other bands on the scene today. They’ve recently launched a live album ‘Dance of Diaspora’, which has some great compositions and performances. Find out what all the noise is about by heading to their next gig.

WHO: Spook

WHERE: Mumbai

WHAT: This 5-piece alternative rock outfit has been rocking small Mumbai venues in the second half of 2009 and have been steadily moving their following northward. Their songs can either leave you totally floored(definitely if you’re female) or utterly disappointed(if you’re a bit early to judge music and like more involving arrangements). The latter is what happened to us when we heard them first. But a few more listens to their songs and you can see the genuineness in their songwriting which shows real potential. They have a unique setting with a violinist sitting in and shredding like Malmsteen(speed, not music wise) with a full-on rock band along with a mellow keyboard player providing a nice base for the songs to sit on. Considering the band is not even a year old, their pop-rock/grunge/alternative sounds shows a lot of promise and we’re to hoping to hear lots more from them in the rest of this year. Some sample tracks are online but the songs and arrangements seem have come quite a long way from when those were recorded as any of their fans would say. The band played the Blue Frog in Mumbai a couple of months ago and also headlined at Hard Rock Cafe last month. They are currently working towards their debut EP which they plan to put out in a couple of months.

Listen to spook here

The indie scene is finally looking at making a breakthrough into the listeners’ narrow mindsets in our country with the aid of social networking, online publishing and availability of better recording facilities over the past few years. It is now that we have three to four gigs happening every week in most metros and an album or EP releasing almost every other week. Quite frankly, if we were to ask any rocker or indie music lover about the situation and whether its encouraging for more people to step into, they would all respond in positive. Major labels are also getting into ‘band’ compilations to see sales rise and indie acts are making their way up the local radio charts. What more could we ask for?

That being said, most true artistes realise the importance of appealing to the ‘common’ crowd. Indie genre loyalists might call us fools but we don’t talk of genres but an independent music scenario instead, as always. Whether a common crowd who like good music (Not the hardcore Punjabi-hiphop lovers which is in no way bad, but different music) would be able to appreciate any of India’s  quality bands is the question that has been raised by many journalists off late. If you ask us, it is pretty obvious for questions like this to be raised about what the band scenario is actually like. This is because the easiest way to report a story and prove a point in the world is to compare. Simply compare a Junkyard Groove to a Switchfoot in terms of earnings per show and albums sold and reach a conclusion that Indian bands are nothing but a joke and survival for bands is difficult in our country. What everyone fails to asses is the background and the road which the indie scene has taken to reach where it is right now. Comparison is just, no doubt but on fair fields. If you were to give a Steely Dan lover a copy of Thermal And A Quarter’s album and check back for feedback after a couple of weeks, we take guarantee that he/she is playing the songs amongst their most played to and from work everyday. Similarly, when a BlackstratBlues track jumps out amongst a guitar geek’s random playlist, one doesn’t seem to notice any disparities in performance or production qualities, not to mention that its sonic impact is of a similar level. The point being that the standard of rendition and production is constantly on the rise making the songs acceptable to any audience here in India or abroad. Survival is definitely important but making music of a high standard which appeals to their audience is the ultimate aim for any artiste or band, whether in India or abroad.

It is common for our indie artistes to get moved by such reports which compare them with other artistes from entirely different genres, backgrounds and scenarios(like the talented Backstreet Boys) and pick on petty issues like survival. Art as such is a field wherein people are driven to succeed and break through in some way rather than just survive. What people and most importantly listeners in our country have started growing up to is the fact that the music is what matters. The media has to report numbers and CD’s sold and concert attendance will always take the cake but even if that number increases by a maximum 50 people a month for indie acts, the sales of bollywood music is going to get a run for their money.  Nevertheless, there are artistes who are solely worried about their survival as performers and they pretty obviously do not last for more than a year or two at most because music cannot be made to serve a specific purpose. The fact that there are albums being brought to the table is a huge positive for the secular music scene in our country and worldwide. Importantly, Indian classical/folk and indie music are the only two forms of non-film music which are currently being released in India and staying on the shelves to some extent so if the press doesn’t give attention to us, who else would they be looking at? We should actually be looking at representing India’s post modern culture in the next few years alongside traditional music and bollywood.

Hence, the media attention(both positive and negative) is a big boon for the indie industry in our opinion. What journalists report is 99% going to be the truth but listeners will hopefully also weight the light in which the events and scenarios are being reported. On the brighter side, the scene gets exposure which eventually adds up to curious listeners hitting up band webpages and listening to Indian indie. As artistes, what we need to do is entertain and be bloody good at that to ensure that no questions can ever be raised about standards or other such quality issues. In that respect, all is well, and is only going to get better.

Gone are the days when bands sorted their outfits before sorting their sound. Today’s rock junkies are all about writing great music and putting it out for the world to listen to. It’s not about the pretty anymore and our indie acts have been getting their act together in the right areas lately. Eastern bands, especially have been churning out great melodies and working hard to produce original tunes which their fans deserve. Owing to the world wide web, we can now access all these acts and their music. Summit Attempt is one such band who we had honestly not heard of before they released their full length album for free download recently. All the above given factors plus the fact that we are an indie portal meant we HAD to check them out.

Having heard about their genre being classified into Jam rock, blues, soft rock etc, ‘Blue Bugyal’ comes across as a genuine attempt at original music with finely varying genres. The album opens up with a freshly swaying blues mood on ‘Changes’ and one is left wanting to pick up that old rusty acoustic and jam along. However, things dont stay as fresh beyond that. ‘Journey Within’ is an 80’s feel instrumental with acoustic-fusion elements stuffed in at places that takes the track into a very indi-pop realm. ‘Farewell’ is a spacey zone with shiny effects and old-school wet guitar layers while ‘Trancemigrational SD blues’ can still get you hooked with its drone inspired repetitive riff and neat bass work. ‘Happiness Is Latin’ returns to the band’s acoustic vibe with the Jobim-like melody and rhythm patterns which make it a clean, peaceful track but not quite the standard on the album. On ‘Whiff Of Home’ the band again pushes their boundaries into a slightly heavier, progressive punk laced jam that does not really seem to settle anywhere and leaves one pretty much lost in its two minute existence. ‘End Song’ is another peaceful instrumental which sounds like it could provide background score to a short film. The standout on the album has to be ‘Some People’ as it perfectly fits into the bands sound which is stuck amidst the way music has evolved so far and is continously evolving every day. Each member moves into the slow-blues vibe almost naturally and Sumit’s vocals sit commandingly over the rest of the setting to lead himself and Sayantan(guitars) sliding into the song’s ranting monologue through neatly crafted chord changes.

Though Summit Attempt have to be applauded for staying true to the music and trying to always bring something new to their sound with every song, one is left feeling the void of a thrill that a new band and a new record brings to the table. Most of the songs are well thought of but produced and arranged in a fairly average manner. The album does have it high points but an untamed mix of genres displays a kind of lack of experience in the artist and ends up making the album sound like a thing of the past. However, for the effort, shining moments and contribution to the original Indie scene, ‘Blue Bugyal’ is a must hear for fans of all kinds of music.

Listen and download here.

Who: 4-piece indie-rockers

Where: Mumbai, with inspiration from Goa

What: The Beatles wrote music that worked for their generation and continued to enthrall listeners decades later. The past couple of years have seen The Mavyns attempt to walk down a similar path. Their music could be described as ’suitable for all ages’, with a sound reminiscent of the world’s favourite mop-tops. It’s like taking a walk down Abbey Road all over again. This is good ol’ Brit-Indie-flavoured rock just like they serve at Bangalore pubs. The tracks you can currently hear on their Reverbnation and Myspace pages are from Socegado Sessions – a set of songs they recorded while in Goa on a basic 4-track mixer. So while the recordings are less than fantastic, the songs are simple and fun, and remind you why you sometimes reach for your parents’ audio cassette collection.

The Mavyns define and maintain a signature old-school sound across their repertoire, while still showcasing a variety of moods. There’s the happy-go-lucky ‘My Downtown Baby‘; ‘So You Think You Got A Life‘ would be right at home in a Wes Anderson film; ‘Try‘, with its jazz leanings and
guitar and piano solos is a delightful whisky-bar melody, and the more recent ‘Freedomslinger‘ (more professionally recorded and part of the awesome free compilation Stupid Stupid Stupid has much more of a blues-rock feel.

Vivek Nair’s vocals are raw and sometimes miss the mark, but there are good intentions behind them. There are plenty of clever, quirky parts to be enjoyed on each track. The lyrics manage to hit home most of the time – check out ‘Glassy Stare’ and ‘Try’. The Mavyns have hit upon an interesting
 formula, but it needs some polish, or grit, as the case may be. Whichever way they choose to swing, these boys are having a blast and you should definitely join in.

Check out The Mavyns on Reverbnation (http://www.reverbnation.com/themavyns) and Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/themavyns).

‘The Big Thaw’ defrosts genre defined auditory senses

Creative liberties are tricky tricky subjective risks artists like to take every now and then. Of course if it’s a Salman Rushdie crafting plots around his visual characters its poetic. Musicians, unfortunately, are privy to a more impatient audience(so we like to think). Having said that, if the illustrious Jimi Hendrix or Van Halen earned licenses to their previously unheard of magical strums, so must Bliss Logic – Mumbai’s shamans of experimental rock. Lima Yanger’s songwriting and Lindsay D Mello’s percussive beat sensibilities met Sanjay Joseph on guitar and JD Thirumalai’s bass thump to put their years of rock and roll experience to some use. The definition called Bliss Logic was coined in 2002. After five years of jamming, boozing, smoking, spliffing and insipid inspirational studio sessions they finally cracked the glass ceiling, rather ice ceiling. The Big Thaw, a 10 track compilation of their five years together slates a journey through everything that could possibly define the band. Coherent and quirky, colloquial yet queer, culturally rock yet quaintly electronic – the collective seems to have bridged the alternative and conventional worlds blissfully.

But alliterations aside, The Big Thaw is the bands initiative to let out all their musical angst onto record. Yanger’s cohesive songwriting and experimental vocals almost seem to set the tone of the album. Their opening track – More Soft Vibes that they’ve lovingly accronymed MSV, tunes you into the flow of what is to follow. For a genre defining listener, it’s a mixed bag. Ambient pop, wholly electronic, vibrant guitar playing and harmony patterns – there is something for every average indie listener. The album has a special treat in store for guitar lovers in praticular with amongst the best guitar talent in the country featured on the tracks. Clearly their biggest pimping song, MSV’s whinny guitar solos(Paresh Kamath) thrown in to D’Mello’s loud drum sections open out to Yanger’s repetitive chant of ‘Imagery you have‘. The lasso is set. You suddenly want to hear more. There is an attempt at gospel hymn preaching without being choir in Wednesday with an insertion of words by the Mahatma himself. Dramatic, orchestration and symphonic in scale, The Big Thaw is already making for a brilliant background score while this reviewer cruisers on a nearly empty afternoon highway. Mellow keys, repetitive vocal recitations, ballad orchestrations and mocking Hans Zimmer-like background score effects thrown in amidst acidic jazz and blues cover New Message, Window and Tryin. For any reason whatsoever, whenever there is a need for that variety of rock ballad, trust a love song hovering on the horizon. Just that Everyday, is not your everyday romantic rendition. It’s not scented in pretty notes and soulful solos, but plainly sings out acoustic riffs onto keys and drum n bass in an almost 80s realm. The title track(Dhruv Ghanekar and Randolph Correia on guitars) comes in near the end of the album and that’s when the underground electronic loops and guitar supersonics really spin out of the vinyl cabinet. Defrosting senses and magical transportation. Sheera rides further with smooth opera styled chants softly woven into its surface while Ride is a stoner’s song about making love.(and we’ll even look beyond the very excusable Jenna Jameson reference) The record finally melts on Spill, which is the first track, the collective apparently wrote, and it beautifully closes the album. An amalgamation of all their styles finally dripping into a melting pot of distorted solos(Paresh Kamath back on lead guitar), heavy vocal and keys textures, drum n bass making it spill over the seeds of your own sub conscious.

The Thaw has happened. It’s raised the temperature. ‘But its so not global warming yet’.

You can sample some of these tracks over at http://www.myspace.com/blisslogic

Who: Five Little Indians (FLI) – 5-piece rock outfit featuring two vocalists

If youre wondering where to do all this, we’re alive on twitter and facebook.

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Who: Electronica vocal project by Rahul Giri and Tanvi Rao

Where: currently based in Chennai.

What: Seems an odd trend to crop up – boy-girl trip-hop duos across the country playing with blips, bleeps and vocal cords. Who’d have thought? Sulk Station is one of the new kids on the block after forerunners like Sridhar-Thayil and Tempo Tantrick, and as such only have two tracks for previewing. Influences of Massive Attack and Karsh Kale are apparent, but that’s probably because they’re dealing in similar fare.

‘Bindya‘ is a moody, atmospheric piece featuring a tasteful drums/synths/pads arrangement. It’s let down, if only slightly, by the vocals that simply lack depth. There’s nothing very new here if you’ve been following the Indian pop/trip-hop scene – this track is mostly about Sulk Station establishing their sonic grammar.

It’s nice to hear some grit on ‘Wait‘. A haunting bass line, distressed keys and Rao’s expressive singing on this make for a track more memorable than the last. Don’t be surprised if you catch yourself humming the reprise ‘Till you appear…‘ over and over.

Sulk Station seems to have a solid foundation in songwriting, but the production is less than stellar. It feels like they’re playing it safe, with the vocals and the arrangements. With Indian artists reaching for the stars in an effort to sound as good any international act, there’s no reason why they should hold back. All in time, we guess.

Keep your ears open for more Sulk Station over at http://soundcloud.com/sulkstation.