Live: The Pulp Society @ Zenzi Mills

New multi-instrumental act The Pulp Society played Zenzi Mills, Mumbai on Friday, January 22. We were there.

Imaad Shah is no stranger to the live music scene in Mumbai. He’s played several acoustic-y, solo singer-songwriter gigs in the past, making the rookie mistakes his new act The Pulp Society made this Friday night seem pretty sophomoric.

Zenzi Mills is a small, intimate venue where, if your sound isn’t set up right, you’ll be severly punished. With six members (including a violinist and a djembe player) occupying the cramped makeshift stage, The Pulp Society had an uphill task on their hands right from the word go. Unfortunately for them, the sound was simply awful. The clanky din of too many incongruous things happening at the same time was, for the most bit, unendurable.

Musically, The Pulp Society find themselves facing the same dilemma as early-Something Relevant – a bunch of decent ideas, being executed simultaneously in an attempt to fill up the songs. The result is a sound that’s overthought and underwhelming. Coupled with that was the fact that Shah looked exceedingly nervous on stage; fidgety and uncomfortable he often mumbled lyrics and ran through songs.

The Pulp Society seem to have their heads in the right places when it comes to the music itself. But as a live act, they’ve still got miles to go.

Indiecision: C

We took a bunch of pictures at the gig. Here are a few.