Mizraab

Sufi rock has always had that magnetic and attractive sound to it. It finds the perfect balance between the rock sound and “rootsy” vocals and lyrics. The beauty of it is that nobody can really complain about the music. The sound is good. The vocals are pleasing and it does have that feel-good sound to it.

This brings me to my next band. Mizraab are tagged as a “Heavy Metal” band out of Pakistan. Some of their songs do indeed have some heavy riffs and double bass kicks but the sound just seems, for the lack of a better word, aspirant. What it sounds like is a bunch of clichéd heavy metal ingredients put together and even though the music is tight and has its moments, there is that special something that is missing.

This takes nothing away from some of their pretty awesome songs, when they take the freedom to have some fun with the songs. My favorites are Ujalon Main, Who Aur Main, Insaan and Kitni Saadiyan.

Check them out on their myspace page HERE. There’s a weird add that keeps making an irritating sound on the site, so I suggest clicking on the pop-out option for the player.

Take a look at these as well… I think these videos are stellar!!
Ujalon Main - Mizraab


Kitni Saadian - Mizraab

Get Junkyard Groove's bootleg - 11:11 for FREE!!!

I know I haven't done a Junkyard Groove review yet, but if you know me at all, you will know that I think these guys are the next big thing, not only in India, but internationally. I can't say much more than that.

click HERE to go to their site, or just check out my JYG widget on the right -->

I'm not sure for how long its going to be up for free... so go right NOW and get their 14 song album entirely for FREE

click on the link below to go to the download page

http://www.gimmesound.com/JunkyardGroove/

all you have to do is sign up with the site, which takes less than a minute, and then just download away. The band gets paid for every song you download, so it is completely legit!

Lionnel Mascarenhas

Ok. These guys are seriously GOOD!!!! Lionnel Mascarenhas seems to be an already well established artist and I have never heard of him untill today. I'm liking this blog more day by day. I hope I'm going to go somewhere with it.


Anyway... here is Lionnel Mascarenhas. You can listen to his songs HERE. You can also buy his album, Wonderland, on his site (click on his name). I think its a must listen!

The songs have a brilliant balance instrumentally. The guitarist is good. The drummer is good. The vocalist is brilliant. And I generally dont like electronic sounds in a rock song, but these guys make it fun. Love it!

This is an article i found on www.dancewithshadows.com. Just thought I'd post it straight on here. It is long, but interesting. Give it a read.

Indian Rock: Dark side of the tune?

Rock music in India has few takers. If it’s in English, it’s a death sentence. As rock aficionados growing up in guitar starved hinterlands of the country, we wonder why we can’t kick ass when it comes to those feral frets.

BY KSHITIJ BISEN

20 August, 2007:

“To yeh thé ab tak ke samachar, ab prastut hai pashchatya sangeet ka karyakram…” was the closest one ever got to ‘western music’ growing up in a small town in India in the late 70s and early 80s. As Karen Carpenters crooned Top of the World on Akashvani, we turned up the faltering volume of our radio, adjusting the Short Wave frequency a tad to get clearer, beeeep-byoooo free sound. The LP shops had limited supply of Elvises, Abba, Boney M, Osibisa, and the likes that cashed in on the Disco Fever then, but rarely did one find something close to Led Zeppelin, or the Doors. Rock, as a form of music, was literally unknown to the ears of us village people.

Cassettes made a foray into the Indian music market, and companies like T-series caught on big time, selling pirated compilations of popular music in the West. We were growing up, and growing out of our minds. Synth sounds were soon losing their appeal to the bursting hormones of soon to be teens like us. They called it rock, we learned to stone ourselves to it. We’d found something that made sense to our against-the-odds grain.

Rock Goes Mainstream

That was a long time ago, but things changed soon. The gulf war of 1991 opened the floodgates to media in India. MTV was one of the channels that was beamed, along with CNN. Like a godsend, it brought to us what we had been missing all these years. Pop music apart, it was rock we lapped up like hungry dogs. However, as an audience, our numbers were critically minimal. Something that stays almost the same compared to music that does well in India today - Justin Timberlake and Shakira.

It was only bands like Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, and U2 that caught the fancy of those who preferred Spice Girls over Santana. To a large majority, rock began and ended with Deep Purple’s Highway Star – their love for rock only amounting to name-dropping and wanting to sound fashionably rebellious and with it.

Hindustani Western Music

While all this came to pass, India has not been devoid of its own share of ‘western musicians’. We had Usha Uthup’s powerful vocals dishing out almost every genre of songs that played offshore as long back as the late 60s and 70s. Classical musicians like Ustad Zakir Hussain collaborated on fusion-jazz projects. Gary Lawyer blended country music sensibilities with a touch of rock in the 80’s. But it was only in the 90s we dared enough to dabble in pure rock music Indus Creed even came out with videos that MTV was quick to promote.

Pentagram, Parikrama soon became synonymous with college fest gigs. With them, we finally had our own rock bands – and they inspired others to step ahead with their devilled guitars. But one fact remained – not many found commercial success in India, let alone outside of it. Indian rock usually suffers from lack of funding, because it is largely considered non-marketable by the industry big-wigs. Whatever efforts one sees are mostly driven out of passion – reflected through magazines such as the Allahabad based Rock Street Journal, dedicated to rock and metal.

Change is Blowin' in the Wind

Indian rock music has steadily held on, slowly morphing its sounds to reach out to its audiences, no matter how niche they are. Millennium, India’s very own heavy metal band from Bangalore, opened up the floor for heavier sounds on the Indian rock circuit. Motherjane, a prog-rock band from Cochin followed suit, bringing Indian rock to international audiences. Orange Street gave rap-rock a distinctive Indian face. Them Clones fused a variety of genres, from grunge to techno and even Punjabi.

Pentagram took off from where Indus Creed had left off. It was the first fastest selling Indian rock band, enjoyed wide airplay on music channels, and being noticed internationally. The band’s success is chiefly because of the band’s openness to experimentation. Plus, the band has sound financial backing, which allows it considerable freedom in terms of the kind of music it will like to produce. Their sound now encompasses motley of influences in what the band calls as progressive alternative pop. In a clever and novel attempt to promote their single My Voice in 2007, the band invited people to send in films shot on their mobile phones, to be used as the video for the song.

A seemingly dull Chennai burst into a loud riot of sound through Moksha. Born out of music competitions at various college fests, Moksha brought their interpretation of music by bands like Iron Maiden and Metallica, and Extreme. Like Moksha, many bands found college fests and competitions their cradle. Antaragni, a fusion band from Chennai, made waves with its simplistic, yet strong folk and fusion inclinations.

Bands like Euphoria have infused their music with local flavors from north India. And they sang in Hindi. Indian Ocean’s Kandisa is another brilliant example of how rock fuses well with Indian folk sounds. A new breed of underground rock music needs to be mentioned here as well. The Sutta song, and its ilk – India’s answer to indie music abroad – go a step further. Their nonchalant use of Hindi expletives ensured instant stardom among campus youths, and those long out of it but not yet the geriatric generation.

When I first heard the sound of Lionnel Mascarenhas’ Wonderland, I sat up and listened to it over and over again. I’d not heard a voice like this for the longest time. I could not believe this was an Indian band. Lionnel’s soft yet strong vocals, with a remarkably melodic music arrangement raised instant hope in me – of a band that could certainly compete with the best of imported sounds in India. I decided to meet the band, one of the most rewarding decisions I have taken of late. So, on a rainy Sunday evening, I joined the gang on their rehearsals. Watching the bunch practice for their upcoming concert was pure fun. Their camaraderie, their jibes at each other, and their sync with each reflected in the band’s music.

According to the band, Wonderland is “a rich mix of styles and soundscapes”. True to the claim, Wonderland comes as a pleasant prelude to what could follow. The songs are easy on the ears, and Lionnel’s songwriting skills bear testimony to the band’s immense talent. The band members agree that they would love to experiment with different genres of music, their inspirations from people as different as Gary Barlow and Cat Stevens to bands like Coldplay.

Aatur, the band’s drummer, eased me with the questions I had in mind about the state of rock music in India. He stated, in his matter-of-fact wit, that audiences for rock in India contribute zilch worldwide. Add to it the fact that English is mostly lingua-non-franca for music listeners in India.

Lionnel and his band have had their share of playing rock. The band still does it, but, as Aatur puts it – they do not wish to restrict their music. They have no qualms advocating experimentation, while still sticking to their good old rock roots. The band has also beefed up its online presence with a well-detailed site, which has helped them get publicity and gig bookings.

Rock Sounds Richer

The Indian rock scene seems to have become a melting pot of influences, and comes across as more open to experimentation than bands outside of the country. Add to it the plethora of options to experiment with, the rich and diverse Indian classical and folk music. This is where Indian rock bands have an edge, and a chance of creating sounds quite distinct from mainstream rock elsewhere.

The rising popularity of western music competitions and college gigs that attracted fresh talent in India caught the attention of music channels. Channel V launched its new look with focus on youth, and came out props with its obvious support for Indian pop and rock bands. Unlike MTV, Channel V focused more on the underground music scene, and not on Hindi film music. It made sure that other forms of music earned their fare share of limelight among the dhik-chick sounds of Anu Malik compositions and the love-handled babes of remix videos.

College fests at IITs, IIMs, and other premier institutes, and independent events such as Great Indian Rock, Campus Rock Idols, Independence Rock (iRock) found sponsors, helping boost the quality of participant bands, and opening the stage for newcomers all over India. Rock had finally made inroads into cities apart from metropolises.

Of Comfort Zones and Derring-Do

Many bands still continue to produce music in English – purely out of their passion. With hardly any takers for such music, often the bands manage on their own, shelling out funds from their own pockets, and taking on legal and marketing hassles.

Rock bands from India stand lesser chances of success abroad. This could be attributed to the fact that rock is essentially considered ‘white music’; the idea of Indian rock may just be as bizarre as a white man rapping. Perhaps, calling it rock music would be a misnomer for Indian bands, who would do well to broaden their scope and experiment with Alternative.

As the band Parikrama describes it, singing in English in India is equivalent to being untouchable to music labels. If you are a rock band, you’re as good as non-existent to them. Parikrama, like many other bands, is not deterred, but all the more determined to not compromise on their music. If the labels don’t want them, they will promote their music through free downloads, and of course, concerts. That’s the band’s way of showing the finger to commerce as far as music industry is concerned. We aren’t complaining. And yes, as the cliché everyone seems to sport as their ticket to cooldom goes – rock on.

Cheese

Ok... ive decided not to udpate everyday, not because i'm lazy... which i am either way, but I like to spend a couple of days listening to each band... find what I like... these bands are my new music library, but I do want to get a chance to listen to each one as I go along.


View cheese
at My Band - Indian Music Bands

Anyway... this post is for a band named Cheese... you can check out their songs HERE, or just click on the picture above. The songs take a bit of time to load, so give it a minute or two.

Thanks for the link Harry. The site is awesome. I have linked it on the right hand side-bar.

OK!! so lets take a look at Cheese! These guys seem to be a fresh band. I think they have an album out. They do have a site which you can get to over HERE. I don't know what i really think about the band quite yet. First impression is that they are quite cliched, with songs titled Josh, Azaadi, and Meri Zindagi. Their english songs, Wasted Years and Please Tell Me That You Love Me have nothing much to offer lyrically... mostly the same stuff you hear in any generic pop/rock song.

BUT! Even though these guys are what I would call "safe" music, they have a good sound. There are hints of brilliance in the Keyboards, and they fuse well as a band. Their riffs are good head-bobbing material (although again, nothing very original).

My verdict - Worth a listen, atleast once. Good sing-along music, catchy choruses and fun vibes. I would probably buy their album for a casual listen once in a while.

Khadki Junction Blues

This is a brief post, because I'm tired and also because I can. This band is called Khadki Junction Blues, and not only do they have a catchy name, they have some pretty cool songs too. I'm still figuring out how to post songs over here.

Click HERE to go to their MySpace page. You can hear a few of their songs there.

These guys have a great chilled out sound that is honest, humorous and appealing. Quite experimental at times, you might need to tune your ears to come around to liking them. I like them and I think that they are worth a listen. Check em out!!

The Indian Reverb is born!!!

ITS ALIIIIVE!!!!!!!

Well this is my very new and shiny second blog that I am going to run in conjunction with my current blog which, if you are reading this, you have probably already been to. If not, click HERE. *shows off mad hyperlinking skills*

What to expect from this blog:

This blog is going to focus primarily on the AWESOME Indian Rock/Jazz/Blues/Metal/and anything that i like, music. I am going to try and update as often as possible, hopefully every day, with new songs and new bands that not many people might have heard of, outside of India. I know its not as big a deal as some other like THIS ONE - which is fan-frekin-tastic for Indian music, but I'm going to do it anyway.

As much as it is possible, I am making this a community space, which means that I need YOUR help to run it. I need you to bombard me with emails of old/new and upcoming Indian musicians, so that I can put them up here.

Even if I can gather a small bunch of readers, my goal will be accomplished! So spread the word people!! The Indian Reverb is born!!!!!!!