The Converse Original Band Hunt saw a battle-of-the-bands competition at the Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai on Sunday, Feb 20. Summerpint Junkie, Seher, Bombay Bassment, Blind Ritual and The Riot Peddlers competed. The gig was headlined by Zygnema and Split. We were there.
You’ve gotta love a totally free gig. No, not one of those collect-free-passes-from-Furtados affairs. Just free; enter, get felt up a bit by overzealous, metal detector-wielding security guard, sit, watch. This Bandra amphi affair was so free, it had signs that said “Free Gig” pasted all around the entrance. A chilled out, well organised, five hour-long, free gig on Sunday evening with some fresh talent on offer made for a packed venue – and they didn’t even call it a “festival”. Sadly, a majority of the acts on the bill failed to match up to the quality of the event.
Summerpint Junkie
There’s something very right and something very wrong about social media-based band competition-always-contenders Summerpint Junkie. On the one hand their music, while still in need of much polish, has an angular zing to it that’s easy to take to; like an upbeat Tool. On the other hand, the whole performance comes off almost entirely unnatural, so much so that on completion of songs successfully the vocalist thumped his fists, as if mentally high-fiving himself for pulling off something outlandish. It’s hard to pinpoint a particular anomaly; from the way the band dressed (as if getting ready to take an engineering exam), to the fidgetiness of the members, to the almost mechanical delivery of their post prog tracks, something’s awry with Summerpint Junkie.
Indiecision: C
Setlist (partial)
‘Placebo Rising’
‘Hallucination’
‘Restless’
Seher
Hindi rock act Seher is an act weighed down by the language and a vocalist who can’t stay on key. Unlike bands like Airport and Ankur and The Ghalat Family, Hindi is a crutch for Seher, one that isn’t very strong forcing a faux-intensity that’s overly wordy and almost wholly unremarkable. Antecedent of bands like Strings and Jal, Seher’s music is the same, ’90s alt rock-inspired vanilla rock that’s peddled regularly at suburban college festivals. It didn’t help that the band’s vocalist was unable to stay on key for the entirety of the cringeworthy set. This sextet needs a lot of work.
Indiecision: D+
Setlist (partial)
‘Beera’
‘Ganga’
‘Seher’
Bombay Bassment
Bombay Bassment is quickly emerging as one of the most exciting new bands in the Mumbai indie scene. With a unique hip-hop-meets-electro-rock sound, a very tight stage act and a frontman with pro MC chops, the quartet have the potential to be Shaa’ir + Func-esque club heroes. While there’s still some work needed in the lyrics department, the band’s music – upbeat melodies, clever samples, et al – is imminently enjoyable. Currently riding a wave of popularity and good vibes, the band was on top form on Sunday, dispatching its material to much crowd appreciation. Bombay Bassment were deserving winners.
Indiecision: B-
Setlist
‘Never Be The Same’
‘Represent’
‘Nothin’ But Love For This City’
‘Show Them What You Got’
Blind Ritual
And then there’s the band built for competitions. Blind Ritual calls itself “metalcore” but it’s essentially the same, Razz-pedigree thrash metal peddled by scores of college bands. In 2001. While the band’s energy is frenetic, driven largely by an enthusiastic frontman, the music is quintessential engineering-college-battle-of-the-bands-chorus-heavy thrash. The music was louder than the previous three bands, and the Zygnema fans that’d turned up for the gig (more on that later) started the first mosh of the evening. It was uncertain though whether the audience was behind the band or not; their persistent MC/BC chants unfailingly between every song started off as fun but was a bit scary by the end of the set. A successful stagedive at the close was the highlight of the performance.
Indiecision: C
Setlist
‘The Ritual’
‘Reflection’
‘The Things We’ve Lost’
‘The Pillar Of Salt’
‘The Bridge Too Far’
The Riot Peddlers
Punk trio The Riot Peddlers get better with every gig. Their 2-minute hardcore punk blasts about delayed trains and crooked cops are some of the most refreshing sounds to come out of Mumbai rock in the last few years. However, the nervous threesome still have a long way to go mastering the art of stagecraft. While frontman Arun S Ravi is getting more comfortable interacting with the audience, his delivery of verbal aggression against modern society’s deviants is easy to misinterpret as angst against the crowd. Drummer Ashwin Dutt looks ill at ease behind the kit, and while bassist Animesh Das isn’t nearly as fidgety there is a notable lack of confidence in his body language. Still, the trio played their best set yet and hopefully can iron out these issues soon.
Indiecision: C+
Setlist
‘Where’s The System?’
‘Unnamed’
‘Bollywood Songs’
‘United We Stand’
‘Chai Paani’
‘Inconvenience Is Regretted’
‘Sau Rupiya’
‘Platform #3′
Zygnema
It was clear that about 50% of the audience present at the venue was there for one band alone. Mumbai thrash metal quartet Zygnema brought out the biggest roar of the evening – the band was the first headliner of the night. Having recently performed in Germany, the band threw down some major thrash chops, orchestrating what could perhaps be the first wall of death at the usually serene Bandra Fort amphitheatre. It was sad though that their set at the “original” band hunt closed with a cover of Pantera’s ‘Slaughtered’.
Indiecision: B-
Split
There was an unusually long wait in the changeover between Zygnema and the night’s second headliners, Split. During this almost 20-minute long gap, the aforementioned 50% Zygnema fans made a casual exit from the venue, leaving a sparse audience for the Mumbai alt rockers. The band too looked tired, as if a day spent judging (they were the judges of the competition) largely average music wasn’t really their idea of a fun Sunday. Battling sound problems through the set, the quintet played a weary set comprising material off their EP P Is For Pig, and some new material as well. While frontman Garreth D’Mello tried his best to get the remaining crowd enthused, his attempts at singalongs and crowd interaction were accepted by only a small portion of the audiece at the front. This was clearly an off day for an otherwise exciting band.
Indiecision: C+
Photos by Samira Kanwar, Misha Ghose and Arjun S Ravi.
Summerpint Junkie @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
Anchal Seraik of Seher @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
Ruell Barreto of Bombay Bassment @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
Blind Ritual @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
Arun S Ravi of The Riot Peddlers @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
Jimmy Bhore of Zygnema @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
Garreth D'Mello of Split @ Bandra Amphitheatre, Mumbai
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