The Early Set – Sid and Arman
Siddharth Basrur (of Goddess Gagged and Bones for Bertie) performed alongside his fellow Gagged member Arman on guitars, with their new duo, Things That Fly. Basrur shed his usual prog-metal avatar to croon/scream acoustic covers of Adele’s ‘Rolling in the Deep’, Fink’s ‘Pretty Little Things’, along with a stripped-down version of a Goddess Gagged’s song ‘Visionary’. He hits those high-pitched hollers with determined strain (he’s not much for falsettos). Basrur does remind me of Brad Arnold of 3 Doors Down fame at times. Arman sang a song too. It was like listening to The Edge do vocals on ‘Numb’.
Siddharth Basrur of Goddess Gagged @ Blue Frog, Mumbai
Adam & The Fish Eyed Poets
There was significant build up, and hype to this Chennai band’s debut gig in Mumbai and it was evident in the fairly largish crowd that turned up (on a Tuesday night I might add), that people were curious and very much looking forward to Kishore Krishna and his slightly nervous men. They definitely did not disappoint. A majority of his songs were from his third album which will be out in February, along with songs from his 2011 album Dead Loops (review here). The Fish Eyed Poets have revived post-punk in India with a shot of adrenaline. Highlights were Krishna’s butter milk-curdling screeches, and Abhinav Krishnaswamy aka Booby’s guitar-choking, high-energy shredding.
Kishore Krishna of Adam & The Fish Eyed Poets @ Blue Frog, Mumbai
Nischinth Murari of Adam & The Fish Eyed Poets @ Blue Frog, Mumbai
Blackstratblues
Warren Mendonsa would never need to speak again, just so long as he played his guitar. He plucks, strums and fingers his Stratocaster, making it squeal, shriek and moan like a B-grade porn star. Mendonsa channels his charm and seduction through his Fender and you are helplessly wrapped around his little fingers. Clubbed with Sidd Coutto (of Zero, Tough on Tobacco) on drums and Johan Pais (of the same, and Helga’s Fun Castle) on bass, Blackstratblues channeled the inner power-ballad vibe and performed songs mainly from his 2009 The New Album. The loverboy even dedicated a song to his fiance. Awww. What can I say, the highlight was purely witnessing the power of Mendonsa.
Warren Mendonsa of Blackstratblues @ Blue Frog, Mumbai
Photos by Naman Saraiya
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