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De La Soul at Yoshi’s, San Francisco (7/3/2014)

16 Mar

De La Soul is one of those bands that could have defined hip-hop. Their debut album 3 Feet High and Rising, now 25 years old, was widely considered one of the best of its year and achieved commercial success. That album could have brought about the Daisy Age of hip-hop. For better or worse, that didn’t happen. Nevertheless, De La Soul is one of the pillars of old-school hip-hop and their live show more than justifies that respect.

This is the first old-school hip-hop concert that I’ve ever been to and I never realized how much space is in those old songs for audience participation. The choruses all seemed to have been designed for the audience to shout along with. You haven’t heard any of their music properly until you’ve been in a mob all singing it out together.

Their crowd skills were incredible. They talked and joked constantly and the audience response was intense. They brought a forest of hands up from the beginning of the concert and that forest was not felled until the concert finished. It was quite the intense performance and the crowd showed the energy that deserved. Also many points for the constant San Francisco shout-outs.

The show went over much of their stable of hits, including Me, Myself and I, Oodles of Os, Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey), A Roller Skating Jam Named “Saturdays” and Oooh. There were a few missteps in their performance, but that was just part of the charm. This was three guys who have been around since the beginning of hip-hop and never forgotten how much fun it is supposed to be. They wanted everyone to enjoy the show and delivered enough that anything else was impossible.

– @murthynikhil

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Wolfmother at BITS, Hyderabad (8/3/2014)

13 Mar

Wolfmother probably isn’t one of those bands that you can become a die-hard fan of, swear by, and get tattoos done on your forearms to show your unflinching support for. Unless you’re Australian. In which case, apologies, mate.

Because, let’s face it, as the generic rock lover in each of us progresses in age and taste, Wolfmother resides in but a tiny corner of our music collections – coming up now and then in rock mixes and playlists, giving us a substantial amount to headbang to while it lasts and then innocuously disappearing again until its next appearance. Even their Grammy winning single, for example, is largely unheard of in rock circles around and above the Equator.

But all said and done, it’s not every day that a band that can actually boast a Grammy to their name comes down to your town to do a gig. And when they do, you’d certainly be a fool to not give them a chance.

Wolfmother, live.

If you’ve correctly gauged my opinions about Wolfmother till now, you’d figure out that I wasn’t exactly slobbering over the thought of seeing them live, but the fact that I’ve listened to “Joker and the Thief” since my school days gave me enough reason to look forward to them. The fact that the venue was the sister campus of my own college only made things rosier.

When they kicked off on the fine Saturday evening, it was difficult to not observe the amount of energy the trio packed into their performance. Nevertheless, as the minutes rolled by, it was also difficult to not observe the dearth of variety in their songs. Sure, for the first half an hour or so, while they dished out singles from their two studio albums, they had everyone – from the rabid headbanger to the passive-aggressive bystander – tapping their feet and shaking their heads, but after a while, the music became a tad too repetitive for my taste. I did keep my head shaking and feet tapping though, lest I be booed at by the music connoisseurs around me, but the only reason I was still interested was the fact that they were yet to play “Joker and the Thief”. And that’s that.

But don’t let my biases and limited previous exposure to Wolfmother downplay the commendable workmanship of the band. Andrew Stockdale’s vocals, soaring and clean, fit in just fine to complement his heavy, down-tuned guitar riffs and the swanky occasional solo. However, Ian Peres, who divided his time between the bass and the keyboard, left a greater impression with his hairdo than he did with either instrument. (But that’s not because his music wasn’t any good, but because his dreadlocks and general enthusiasm on stage were.) To be fair though, he did his job pretty well. Lastly, Vin Steele, who was in charge of drums, was really the one who kept the energy in the music flowing right till the end, with his pounding beats and driving rhythm.

Wild.

Wild.

Their set list comprised of songs from both their studio albums: their eponymous debut from 2005 (which included songs like “Dimension”, “Apple Tree”, “Mind’s Eye” and “Love Train”) and Cosmic Egg from 2009 (“New Moon Rising”, “California Queen”). However, since both these albums largely fit into the hard rock/neo-psychedelia genre, it was difficult to find many stylistic differences during their live gig as well. Adding to this melee of heavy riffs and pummeling beats was their Grammy winning single “Woman”, which received a lot of cheer and got many a head oscillating with much rapidity. When, however, they left the stage without performing “Joker and the Thief”, the one song that the teeming majority of the throng had come to see them perform, the public cheer gave way to something that bordered on fury and mutiny. This turned out to be a rather cheap ruse, because they returned thirty seconds later, playing that instantly recognizable riff that elicited twice as much cheer and near-maddening popular excitement. Needless to say, their execution was spot on.

Wolfmother at BITS, Hyderabad

In hindsight, it was definitely a good gig. They had the right energy, the right talent, and the right set list as well. But, at a personal level, the band did leave a lot to be desired. They never really connected with me, nor, I would wager, with the average Joe who was present there as well. In fact, had they really walked off without performing “Joker and the Thief”, I wonder whether I would have rated them highly at all.

But yes, it was fun while it lasted. I shook my head, tapped my feet, and had a good time. But would I go for another gig if they come down to play again? I doubt it.

—

Words and pictures by @wrahool

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Janelle Monáe at the Justin Herman Plaza, San Francisco (7/3/2014)

10 Mar

As I have said multiple times before, I really like Janelle Monáe. She’s smart, imaginative and energetic. Her music is rarely short of excellent. Also, her live performances are incredible. So, when salesforce.com sponsored a free show of hers to celebrate their 15th anniversary and accompanying food drive, I jumped at the chance to see her live again.

This may have been a free show, but it was certainly treated like any other. It opened with an overture leading into her entrance onstage in a straightjacket to follow the Palace of the Dogs narrative that she’s spent the better part of the last decade setting up. From there, she jumped straight into a solo “Givin’ Em What They Want” that never seemed to miss Prince at all. Janelle Monáe was clearly able to supply everything anyone could need all by herself.

The show was a mixture of hits from all over her discography. “Dance Apocalyptic” led into “Sincerely, Jane” flawlessly. “Electric Lady” saw her moonwalk across the entire stage, and was followed with covers of the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” and “ABC”. “Q.U.E.E.N” saw her do both her own and Erykah Badu’s parts of the song, but sadly “Tightrope” did not include a stab at Big Boi’s rap. As ever, the show closed with a very extended “Come Alive” jam.

Janelle Monáe is one of my favorite people to see live. Her sincerity and enthusiasm are absolutely unparalleled. Her shows are meticulously produced and her stage presence is staggering. There are very few performers with her talent working today. She sets quite the high bar for her competition and shows like this one consistently do the impossible. They push that bar higher.

– @murthynikhil

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Agam at Hard Rock Cafe, Hyderabad (20/2/2014)

23 Feb

Harish Sivaramakrishnan

The Indian rock scene has, over the years, engendered numerous artists and acts – many of which have given us reason to feel proud of the music that our country produces today. From the pioneering works of Moheener Ghoraguli in the 1970s to the near-virtuosos like Baiju Dharmajan and Warren Mendonsa, Indian rock has indeed walked a long and meandering path. More importantly, they have established and re-established the fact that our musicians have often been able to step outside the mundane mediocrity of Bollywood and make refreshing music, by drawing heavily from Western rock while remaining faithful to their Indian roots.

Agam hail from Bangalore, and they call themselves a Carnatic-progressive rock band. Their music is thus a heady mix of Carnatic classical, set against an ambitious backdrop of technically challenging rock; this is not surprising, as they cite Indian Ocean, Dream Theater and Rush as their primary influences. The genesis of Agam goes back to the music club of BITS Pilani when vocalist Harish Sivaramakrishnan and drummer Ganesh Ram Nagarajan started jamming casually. They continued their shared passion after college and, after officially forming Agam, their first big breakthrough came when A R Rahman himself adjudged them winners of a band talent hunt on a Tamil TV channel. Since then, they’ve performed in gigs all over the country and have released a studio album in 2012. They have even featured in MTV’s prestigious Coke Studio in the same year.

Their recent gig at Hard Rock Cafe, Hyderabad was a wonderful demonstration of their talent – which they manage to nurture, in spite of all of them being full-time IT professionals today.

The first thing that hits you when you hear them live is the raw classical roots that Harish’s aalaps stem from. His voice reaches soaring crests and peaks, all the while remaining unflinchingly musical and melodic, reminding one that classical vocals continue to be the mainstay of any fusion band today.

But let that not downplay the inherent talents of the other members. T. Praveen Kumar’s guitar work and Ganesh’s pounding drums were also top notch, and while the keyboardist never did come into the limelight (much to my disappointment, as the keyboard forms a cornerstone of prog music, more so than the guitar), he kept the strings and the chords flowing just fine, making the overall experience wholly enjoyable. And the bassist – who was temporarily replacing their usual bassist, who couldn’t be present for the gig – did some splendid slapping on a five-string bass.

Agam

Agam performed a number of original compositions from their album The Inner Self Awakens. And much to the delight of the fans, they threw in a couple of A R Rahman covers as well – from Dil Se and Tu Hi Re. The covers were so beautifully rendered that even the most devout of Rahman or Hariharan fans would have appreciated them wholeheartedly. After nearly two long hours of beautiful music, when the show was reaching its unfortunate end, they succumbed to popular pressure and did an encore of two of their more popular songs, “Dhanashree Thillana” and “The Boat Song”, both of which were met with wild cheers from the crowd.

Most of their songs, I observed, demonstrated a high level of technical proficiency – be it with the guitar solos or the drums – and the evening reached its instrumental climax when Ganesh executed a wonderful Peart-inspired drum solo that left the entire HRC reeling. It was an absolute delight watching him wield those sticks with such dexterity; he exhibited infectious levels of enthusiasm coupled with such consummate ease that it was difficult to not admire his style of play. I also observed (given the rabid Rush fan that I am) their music is extremely inspired by Rush. A particular example is the beginning chord/drum progression in “Swans of Saraswati”, which seemed like a tribute to Rush’s iconic “YYZ”. (For the ones who are unaware, the introduction to “YYZ”, played in a time signature of 5/4, repeatedly renders “Y-Y-Z” in Morse Code using various musical arrangements, and it is one of Rush’s best known instrumental pieces.)

After the gig ended, my friend and I rushed over to meet Ganesh and Harish, and we chatted about an Alma Mater that we all shared. All in all, I enjoyed Agam thoroughly. I have heard their studio album a number of times, and while I wouldn’t blame the album per se, I must say, I liked them live far better. To the extent that, if you asked me whether I would go for another Agam gig any time soon, I would say yes. Without a second thought.

– Subhayan Mukerjee (@wrahool)

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Bacardi Weekender 2013, Bengaluru: Day 2

29 Nov

When we last saw the Weekender venue late on Saturday night, the ground was a wet sludge of mud and grass. The rain had started getting irritating, clothes were splattered with filth and everyone was generally miffed that they had to miss some great artists.

The atmosphere in the bus to the venue on Sunday was rather subdued. People kept glancing up at the menacing grey clouds seemingly speeding along with us to the venue. A couple of people behind us were grumbling that this wasn’t a cheap festival; washed out stages won’t get you your money back, whether you saw artists or not. And we were quite inclined to agree with them.

Dance music greeted us upon entry into the venue, but it wasn’t as enticing as Dakta Dub yesterday so we moved on to the Bacardi Arena area. To our pleasant surprise, we found that the Red Bull Tour Bus stage was functional, and protected with a thick tarpaulin roof to boot. The show, it seemed, will go on.

The first artist up was a dreamy post-rock band from Bangalore called Until We Last. More than a little reminiscent of God Is An Astronaut, the band filled the stage and our heads with deep, complex and emotive music. After the rather harrowing experience on Saturday, it felt great to lounge on the grass on a Sunday afternoon, listening to atmospheric, thoughtful music. Perfect!

Until We Last

Until We Last

Now, it’s important to note here that the Bacardi Area and the Red Bull Tour Bus stages faced each other; to get from one to the other, you only had to cross a small stretch of ground. This turned out to be a stroke of logistical genius, we soon realized.

Ten seconds after the beautiful dream of Until We Last faded away, classic rock started pouring out of the speakers at the Bacardi Arena, where The Fender Benders had just begun their set. With true Indian legends like Amyt Dutta and Sanjay Divecha mesmerizing us with their Fender fretwork, it seemed impossible for the jazzy blues jam to get any better – until, of course, Mr. Warren Mendonsa himself stepped on stage. Jayanta Dasgupta’s Clapton-like swagger, Jai Row Kavi’s immaculate drumming, and Mendonsa’s mindblowing solos added to an atmosphere at the Arena that is impossible to put into words.

The Fender Benders: Amyt Dutta

The Fender Benders: Amyt Dutta

In one fell swoop, everyone present felt that the Weekender already paid its dues for a washed-out Saturday, and then some. The most magical moment of the set by far was when the whole ensemble performed the blues standard “Let the Good Times Roll” even as rain clouds rolled in. Whether it was a heaven-sent sign, a spirited directive or just a plain coincidence, it does not matter; that one minute became the Weekender’s Moment to Beat.

Warren Mendonsa

The Fender Benders: Warren Mendonsa

Needless to say, it is not an easy task to follow an act like the Fender Benders. And few bands can live up to the challenge quite like Skrat, a spunky grunge/garage rock band from Chennai. Sriram TT and his boys wowed the crowd from atop the Red Bull Tour Bus with their wild songs and unstoppable energy. Favorites like “Tin Can Man” crazed old fans and created new fans, while newer songs like “Samurai Badass” left everyone in awe of the young band’s raw talent. Props to Skrat for rousing up an enthusiastic and wholly unpretentious crew, too!

Skrat

Skrat

The second Skrat ended their tight, killer set, it was time to run back across the lawns to the Bacardi Arena, where the Baiju Dharmajan Syndicate began their set. The ex-Motherjane guitarist, self-styled as a Carnatic Guitar Maestro, led the audience into a mystical light and sound extravaganza that seemed to end all too quickly. If there was a negative about the act, it was the presence of the Syndicate’s rather douchey singer who tended to overpower Baiju’s soaring, poignant guitar.

Baiju Dharmajan

Baiju Dharmajan Syndicate

Finally, at around 6 pm, we caught our breath at Maria’s Goan Kitchen, located right near the now-hallowed Bacardi Arena and the Tour Bus stages. And not a drop of rain so far! Papon & the East India Company, headed by the talented Papon, were already setting up at the Bacardi Arena, but I rushed to the Other Stage for a promising set by my new favorite singer-songwriter Nischay Parekh. The Calcutta lad shot to fame during the festival A Summer’s Day, helped along by his phenomenal love song, “I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll”. Nischay’s colorful stage presence and beautiful voice was the icing on the cake of the unforgettable three hours so far.

Nischay Parekh

Nischay Parekh

After Nischay’s short and sweet set, I headed back to the Bacardi Arena, where I found the crowd in a sort of frenzy. And for good reason – Papon was singing “Banao”, his famous ode to Ms. Mary Jane! He closed off his set with a spectacular Assamese folk song about the Baisakhi festival, managing to get everyone (and I mean everyone) on their feet. Papon really has it all: grace, humility, stage presence, and a killer voice. I felt almost honored to see such a great artist live!

Papon & the East India Company

Papon & the East India Company

After 5 busy – and completely dry – hours, the crowd seemed to be trying to get rid of the ‘dry’ness in a different sort of way. By the time Australian indie rockers Hey Geronimo took over the Red Bull Tour Bus, only a handful of people managed to stay on their feet. The rest were plopped on the grass, finishing the last drops in their Bacardi buckets, and stayed that way through most of Swarathma’s set too.

Swarathma

Swarathma

Hunger coupled with tiredness from hours of non-stop excitement kept me away for nearly all of Karsh Kale Collective + The NH7 All-Stars but I’d already got my money’s worth. And no, it didn’t rain a single drop on Sunday.

So there you have it. Day 2 certainly filled us with music-induced happiness, but also left us with a sort of wistfulness of what Saturday might’ve been, had the heavens not opened up. Overall, the Weekender was a great, if not grand, success, and I’m certainly going to be back next year.

A look back: Day 1 at the Bacardi Weekender 2013, Bengaluru

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Bacardi Weekender 2013, Bengaluru: Day 1

28 Nov

In any enjoyable event of considerable length, there are always a few moments that shine a bit brighter than others. It’s not always clear why these moments in particular make it into this mental photo album. Maybe it was the confluence of several senses hitting you simultaneously. Maybe your mind just chose the most colorful, the most shocking or the most fun parts. Or maybe it was the way that you were both suspended in a moment that seemed to go on forever even as it ended too quickly.

When I flip through my mental photo album of the Bacardi Weekender 2013, Bengaluru edition, I don’t see the rains that played spoilsport on Saturday. I don’t see people craning to catch a view of Lucky Ali or Manganiyar Seduction betwixt myriad umbrellas. I don’t even see the fuming mob when TessaracT got cancelled.

Okay, maybe I see the last one a bit. (They were pretty angry.)

Anyway, the rather convoluted point that I am trying to make here is that at this year’s Bengaluru edition of the Weekender, the show really did go on. A sizeable chunk of artists, cutting across all genres, were cancelled on Saturday, and people stood drenched to the bone for hours to watch the artists that were lucky enough to perform. But they didn’t seem to care. When we left on Sunday night, there was no doubt that we were indeed leaving the Happiest Music Festival, in spite of every hiccup.

Let’s start from the beginning. Day 1 started off with a bus ride (Red Bull included!) that foretold of the day to come, with rain sprinkling fitfully as we headed to the venue. Once we got in, we marveled at NH7’s kickass aesthetic sense for a few minutes before heading straight to the stages. Unfortunately, the rain followed us there.

NH7 Aesthetics

However, the spirit of the festival-goer is not daunted so easily. We headed to the Breezer Stage, where Dakta Dub was entertaining the fast-filling crowd with their reggae beats. An unfurled Jamaican flag graced the laptop table. Dreadlocked members of their entourage danced with abandonment. A light rain, buoyed by breeze (get it?), tempered the air, and the stage turned electric with magic. Oh, and then Dakta Dub started playing Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up”. First entry into the photo album!

Dakta Dub

However, the next couple of acts didn’t fare so well, in my opinion. I never have been a big fan of metal, especially mediocre metal, so Bevar Sea at the Bacardi Arena really wasn’t anything to write home about. Singer-songwriter Winit Tikoo was rather forgettable as well. However, his song “GDS” did have a few nice moments from the band – especially the wall-like fuzz of the guitars and the confident bass.

With the Other Stage and Red Bull Tour Bus closed on account of roof-less-ness, we wandered to the Eristoff Wolves Den, the only other open stage, where we found the excellent Big City Harmonics. This guy had it all – the visuals, the lights and oh my, the beats. Definitely a find! Here, too, I added to my photo album: the radial lasers hit the vertical sprinkle of rain to create millions of tiny stars in the daytime. However, I don’t possess nearly enough photography skillz to capture that in a real photo, so that moment shall remain in my mind only.

Passing cursorily by Inner Sanctum (as I said, I’m not a big metal fan), we headed back to the Dewarists Stage for Lucky Ali. A seasoned performer, the man wowed the crowd with his stardom and sheer stage presence, and proceeded to sing everyone into a frenzy.

Lucky Ali

By that time, the good folks at NH7 had made arrangements to temporarily open up the Other Stage, where they skipped past Sulk Station and the F16s (sadly) to Kate Miller-Heidke. Under the makeshift red umbrella that sprouted up like a mushroom in the rain, the Australian singer-songwriter belted out gifted pop while dressed as Alice in Wonderland. It was a great experience!

Kate Miller-Heidke

After a quick bite at Faaso’s, we headed to Eristoff again for Shaa’ir + Func, starring Randolph Correia, Monica Dogra, and Monica Dogra’s midriff. I’ve never been a big fan of the band – I’m guessing it has something to do with my gender and orientation – but I will allow the fact that Monica Dogra has matchless energy and stage presence. Visuals aside, however, their live performance failed to impress me for the same reason as their recorded ones: they don’t have memorable songs.

Shaa’ir + Func

Soon, we left Ms. Dogra gyrating on stage to rush to the Dewarists Stage for the evening’s pièce de résistance (for non-metal fans), Manganiyar Seduction with Roysten Abel. The magic box of lights was already set up, piquing interest with its obvious theatricality. However, the uninitiated were simply left unprepared for the performance to follow. The way your heart flies as a Manganiyar singer lilts notes with his whirling hands; the thumping of your heart along with the big drums; the ecstasy when the rows and columns of the box light up all at once at the end… The moments are too many and too intense to recollect all at once. Needless to say, everyone in the audience was thoroughly seduced by the end.

Manganiyar Seduction

And thus ended Day 1 of the Weekender. The rain was the villain of the day, but thankfully there were quite a few heroes. We left the venue hoping for less rain and more magic on Sunday… and we weren’t disappointed.

Read on: Day 2 at the Bacardi Weekender 2013, Bengaluru

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CHVRCHES at Fox Theater (17/11/2013)

18 Nov

You may recall that I was one of the many people who were very excited about the CHVRCHES album that released earlier this year. I was however disappointed by the album, which made the tickets I had bought earlier to see them live seem a bit foolish. Thankfully, their concert was highly enjoyable, proving that decisions made with limited information are the best kind of decisions.

I have a weakness for intelligent pop groups with a female singer and the CHVRCHES seemed right up my alley. Thoroughly anointed and highly hyped, they made a big splash before their album dropped and their singles were nothing short of glorious. It was just that the rest of their album could not match up to those high points. We all make mistakes and the world is littered with concert tickets of regret. Nevertheless, I didn’t dislike the album and I really liked some of the singles, so despite still feeling a little cheated, I made myself a little less unpresentable and stepped out.

The opening act Basecamp was a rather typical opening act. Their music was acceptable, but the crowd seemed more interested in their conversations than in the band. This was reasonable, as despite Basecamp actually sounding good, their set had nothing stand out. This is the kind of band you want playing at a pub when out with friends, something that sounds good when you want to listen to the music, but otherwise stays out of the way.

The CHVRCHES did not start out well. The beginning few songs were okay, but not quite up to the standard of their album. This culminated in a very sub-par version of “Lies“, by far my favorite of their songs. However, once their initial hiccups were out of the way and they fell into the flow of their music, the concert became quite good. I’m more than willing to forgive a few missteps from a jet-lagged and slightly sick band and the way they powered through the rest of their set made doing so trivial. “Science/Visions” was impossibly good and “The Mother We Share” was very strong.

There was also a very hammed-up “Under The Tide”, but these things happen and it was the only time Martin Doherty got the spotlight. There is a reason that Lauren Mayberry is the front of this band and for most of the show she had it. The band took plenty of time during their set to chat with the crowd, which incidentally was the most enthusiastic crowd I have ever seen. The teenagers at the Marina concert may have had more energy, but these fans made up for that in dedication. The talking was fun, if often inaudible, and honestly the band did need something to stretch out their performance a little. They only have so many songs to perform after all.

Maybe it was the concert setting, or maybe it was the intense light show that went on throughout the concert, but I think that it was just that they are a great live band. This was a highly enjoyable night for me and one that I will definitely repeat when they next come to the area.

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Janelle Monáe at The Warfield (1/11/2013)

4 Nov

I really like Janelle Monáe. She’s really smart, wildly imaginative and makes music that not only defies classification, but is just simply very good. Getting to see her live is something that I have been looking forward to for quite a while, and she did not disappoint.

The opening act was led by a man named Roman GianArthur, whom I had never heard of before. The loss there was entirely mine. He took a crowd impatient for Ms. Monáe and converted them to his cause in a heartbeat. Admittedly, his sound is not that far from that of the parent act, but that is in no way a slight. I wouldn’t have gone to the concert if I didn’t want to hear some funky R&B. Excellent stagecraft, excellent singing and just an excellent show. I will be sure to see him again when he next tours, by which time I’m sure he’ll be headlining. Until then, I’ll just have to be satisfied with the prospect of his upcoming album and his single I-69.

Janelle Monáe’s show started, as it must, with an overture, which was quite nice. The first couple of songs, Givin’ Them What They Want and Dance Apocalyptic were good, but had me a little worried. Albums as immaculately produced as The Electric Lady don’t always translate well to the roughness of a concert hall’s sound system and the rough edges on the first songs threw me at first. However, the energy of a live performance more than made up for an minor issues and the music smoothed itself out rapidly. Also, her stagecraft is to be highly commended here. Small skits did wonders to set the science fiction theme and the entire stage was active every moment of the performance.

Much though I liked her last album, I was very happy that she didn’t limit herself to just the Electric Lady but also treated us to her past hits including a very good Cold War and an intense solo Tightrope. Her solo work during this concert was highly impressive. She tends to be the star of every song she sings, but I’ll admit to being unsure of how well she could carry off some of her collaborations alone. Not only was Q.U.E.E.N. excellent with just her, but a very tender Primetime was probably the strongest moment of the show, although an extended Mushrooms and Roses as psychedelic as anything San Francisco has ever heard did come close.

The concert ended with a cover of Prince’s Let’s Go Crazy and the aforementioned Primetime followed by a very, very extended Come Alive that had Janelle Monáe motion the entire audience down to the ground, and while we were all crouching and craning to see what was going on, she told us that is what it is like to be short. This was a novel experience for me. As expected from Janelle Monáe, this was an imaginative, fun and high quality concert. I enjoyed every moment of it. She has shown us the future, and my God, it’s full of funk.

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Girish and the Chronicles at HRC, Hyderabad (5/9/2013)

18 Sep

“Love, peace… and rock n’ roll” reads the tag line on their Facebook page. After attending their recent gig at Hard Rock Cafe in Hyderabad, the writer is as unsure of the first two as he is certain of the third.

All photos from Girish and the Chronicles' Facebook page

All photos taken from Girish and the Chronicles’ Facebook page

Girish and the Chronicles (GnTC) are absolutely no-nonsense when it comes to making “good” rock music. They are among a fast disappearing group of musicians in India today: musicians who don’t scream profanities in the name of death metal, show fingers to all and sundry, or puke sloppy emo stuff for people whose intellectual bandwidth rarely betters that of the bovine.

In other words, they are pretty much perfect for lovers of true, classic hard rock.

But first, here’s some introduction. GnTC, hailing from Gangtok, Sikkim, are a four-member group fronted by the ebullient Girish Pradhan, son of Nepali singer Bimla Pradhan. Legend has it that, up there in the mountains, good ol’ rock n’ roll runs in the veins, with kids picking up guitars before pencils, and it certainly seems to be the case here. GnTC’s talent isn’t the type to be acquired over the years. It’s innate. Intuitive. Heartfelt.

The first thing I noticed about GnTC was Girish’s powerful vocal range. I had heard some of his cover songs before on YouTube, and yes, I was pretty darn impressed, but this was unlike anything I had heard in my life. It was staggering. His voice reached peaks and troughs that could have rivaled the very best in the world, and there we were, being given a taste of such talent in good old Hyderabad.

They did some OCs in the beginning – songs ranging from hard rock (“The Revolving Barrel”) to softer and more melodic stuff (“A New Beginning”) and then moved on to what they really do best – covers. As the handful of people who had gathered that evening watched on in awe and wonder, GnTC took almost every big name in the history of rock music by the scruff of its neck, and gave the crowd their own version of the classics in the most incredible way possible.

First up was AC/DC. “Highway to Hell” was sent flying over the boundary amid an ecstatic crowd., followed closely by “TNT”. One couldn’t help but admire the sheer power unleashed in Girish’s vocals. Any classic rock fan will vouch that Brian Johnson’s vocals are probably one of the most difficult to mimic in a live event – but here was Girish, pulling it off perfectly.

Next up was a well-executed cover of Pink Floyd‘s evergreen “Another Brick in the Wall”, followed by a dedication to all the happy couples in the crowd that prefaced Bon Jovi‘s “Always”. It was scarcely believable that the same person could shriek like Brian Johnson and Bon Scott and could do as much justice to a starkly-opposite song a half hour later!

Soon, GnTC went even back further back in time, treating us to a couple of behemoths from one of those genre-defining albums in the timeline of rock: Led Zeppelin IV. Their stunning execution of “Black Dog” and “Rock and Roll” was sublime enough to move even the staunchest Led Zep lovers to tears. And the fact that Suraz Karki – the chap on lead guitars – looked a lot like Jimmy Page only helped things.

All photos taken from Girish and the Chronicles' Facebook page

All photos taken from Girish and the Chronicles’ Facebook page

Now, “Rock and Roll” is a considered by many rock aficionados to be a “complete” song, because it lacks absolutely nothing on any front – be it drums, guitars, bass or vocals. The mere attempt to cover it is bold, but it was no surprise that GnTC nailed it, hook, line and sinker.

After an exceptional cover of the Doors’ “Roadhouse Blues”, Girish announced that they would now experiment a bit off their conventional classic rock act, and the band shifted effortlessly into Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. What blew our minds wasn’t their skilled execution of these classics; it wasn’t their flawless faithfulness to the originals. No, what blew our minds was the consummate ease with which they seemed to shift from AC/DC to Pink Floyd, from Bon Jovi to Skid Row, or from Led Zeppelin to Nirvana.

It had been over ninety minutes of GnTC belting out song after song, classic after classic, and the evening was nearing its tragic end. Girish then put his guitar aside and told a now-frenzied crowd that GnTC would give them two options for the closing song. And as a tribute to the greatest hard rock band of all time – Guns n Roses – it would either be “Welcome to the Jungle” or “Sweet Child O’ Mine”. With this announcement, the crowd went berserk; and with no clear winner by popular vote, GnTC decided to do both.

All photos taken from Girish and the Chronicles' Facebook page

All photos taken from Girish and the Chronicles’ Facebook page

In 2009, VH1 bestowed the honor of “greatest hard rock song of all time” to “Welcome to the Jungle”, and there’s a clear reason why. The song embodies the soul of hard rock, and GnR’s 80s-era swagger itself. It was a truly fitting addition to GnTC’s hard rock night. Girish’s vocals reached new heights of brilliance in the song, as he brought in Axl’s throaty screams in a manner that would have made old Axl ring his lawyers. For the final song of the evening, they embarked on “Sweet Child o’ Mine”, arguably the world’s most loved power-ballad; and Hard Rock Cafe has never lived up to its name as it did during that song. Girish’s vocals reached meteoric heights for one last time that evening, and Suraz did complete justice to the solo that, even after a million listens, never fails to amaze the listener.

Girish cemented a lasting mark in the minds of every person who was present there that evening. This gig wasn’t just a tribute to the names and the bands that had shaped a genre we all love. It was proof that in an age of musical blasphemy – when Justin Beiber and Lady Gaga manage to garner more Twitter followers than all the bands of the yesteryears put together – there is still hope that somewhere out there, someone, with a guitar, still plays good ol’ rock music.

– Subhayan Mukerjee (@wrahool)

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AlterEgoz at Hard Rock Cafe, Hyderabad (29/8/2013)

4 Sep

alteregoz

AlterEgoz call themselves a “purely classic rock band”.

They started off in 2001 in Hyderabad – citing an all-encompassing list of influences ranging from the Beatles, through to the Police via Rush – and in their decade long career, they’ve played hither and thither around the country; at times sharing the stage with biggies like Parikrama and Mrigya.

Not surprisingly, they’ve done quite a few gigs at the Hard Rock Cafe in Hyderabad, and August 29th was probably just another one in their list. For the writer however, it was his first taste of the famous HRC, and when he left the place after the gig was over, he was – to put it bluntly – far from satisfied.

The gig was dubbed “a tribute to Pink Floyd”, and there was nothing, absolutely nothing wrong with the band’s performance, or their execution of the songs. They had the energy, the talent and the required eye candy to keep every classic rock lover hooked till the end – but the main reason we remained till the end, as I realised later was that – everyone was waiting to hear and sing along to – some songs that actually come to your mind when you hear the name Pink Floyd.

Thus, what was missing was a proper setlist. I can only wonder how insane the evening would have been, had the band put their talent to cover songs like “Wish you were here”, “Coming back to life”, “High Hopes”, “Time”, “Money”, “A Great Gig in the Sky”, “Brain Damage”, “Shine on you Crazy Diamond” and an infinite other songs which actually made Pink Floyd the milestone in rock music that they were.

Instead, what we were treated to, was Pink Floyd’s most exhausting and … must I say… dull double album in their entire discography – the Wall.

AlterEgoz live at HRC, Hyderabad

AlterEgoz live at HRC, Hyderabad

They started out the evening with their cover of the opening track from The Wall (Disc 1) – In the Flesh – and what struck me at first, was their style of play. It was brilliant: the guitars, the vocals, the drums – oozing with technical proficiency. I’ve heard Dream Theater cover In the Flesh in one of their albums. so my expectations were set high. But AlterEgoz reached that bar, and maybe even bettered it. After all, DT’s Pink Floyd covers lack the inherent “soul” – mostly because they really cannot do justice to the vocals. This was, however, spot on.

After this initial peak however, it was downhill all the way. Yes, The Wall is a brilliant album; In fact, it is one of the most critically acclaimed progressive albums of all time – but it isn’t something you do at an evening gig. Pink Floyd did do several Wall concerts in their career, but those were concerts which involved elaborate theatrics, animations and pyro effects – which is how a true progressive music concert is generally supposed to be. The moment you take the “grandeur” and associated magnificence out of a “prog” music concert, a concept album doesn’t fit the bill at all. With this limitation, and given that the crowd in a cafe at 10 PM aren’t really in a mood to understand the subtleties of such an album, they should have used their talent better to choose more relevant songs. Instead what continued was the rest of the Wall – the Thin Ice, Another Brick in the Wall, The Happiest Days of our Lives, Mother and so on. Technically and execution wise, there was nothing wrong. But it still resulted in the crowd getting more and more jittery for songs that everybody could sing to. Another Brick in the Wall Part 2 was one such rare instance that got the entire cafe singing along, and later, Hey You and Comfortably Numb (from The Wall Disc 2) elicited a lot of cheering. (Comfortably Numb, in fact was done so exquisitely well that it’d probably have made David Gilmour shed a tear of joy, in the extreme case that he had heard this.)

To be honest, it was a good gig. If you are one of those, who worship Pink Floyd and bow down in front of an effigy of Roger Waters before going to bed, you’d have loved it. They even had an old guy who played the harmonica, and a young girl who played the oboe to get as close to Floyd as possible.

But then, when I hear “Pink Floyd”, I’m looking for certain songs. Unfortunately enough, none of those were heard that evening.

– Subhayan Mukerjee

Subhayan is the quintessential Bengali who likes maach-bhaat and porashona. He has a big thing for cars, and an acquired and somewhat esoteric taste in many things – including, but not limited to music.

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