Photos by Abhimanyu Ghoshal

Sulk Station, TL Mazumdar and Jivraj Singh @ Counter Culture, Bangalore

Sulk Station, TL Mazumdar and Jivraj Singh @ Counter Culture, Bangalore

Sulk Station, TL Mazumdar and Jivraj Singh @ Counter Culture, Bangalore

Sulk Station, TL Mazumdar and Jivraj Singh @ Counter Culture, Bangalore

Advertised as “3 Days. 3 Stages. Over 200 Artists,” the Escape Festival’s claims were much larger than reality. The festival wasn’t exactly a multi-stage festival, but instead, each stage ran for a part of the day before all programming moved to another stage. The total number of artists performing was approximately 30, a sum total of not even 200 individuals, if that’s what their artist count was based on. Other false advertisements included “adventure sports” – unless a nearby paddle boat rental counts, and a “tattoo convention” that was reduced to a PA announcement saying, ”Look for the guy with a lot of tattoos and feel free to ask him questions!” The photography and guitar workshops never happened either.

Among the various cancelled (but not announced to the public in advance) artists were lineup highlights like HFT, Ranjit Barot, Dualist Inquiry, Alisha Batth, and Adil & Vasundhara. Opening day one at the Soul Garden was Tonuj, a forgettable cover artist who’s setlist included Chris Isaak’s ’Wicked Game’. Tonuj was followed by a U2-”inspired” Hindi rock band called Astitva. Singer-songwriter Arjun Verman from Delhi played a short set next, joined by Brian who provided textures on an electric guitar. Verman set was one of the highlights of the event; he played a beautiful original set closed by a cover of Radiohead’s ‘Creep’.

Next up was the Magic Forest stage, the setting was unappealing after the beautiful vibe of the lake-view Soul Garden. The stage and crowd were divided by a large ditch in the ground. Emo rockers from Kolkata, Turf played to a small but enthusiastic audience that demanded an encore. A music trivia contest followed giving away free drinks to winners, while the next band on stage waited patiently to begin. Barefaced Liar had planned to play a two-part set including their slower/acoustic songs followed by their riff-heavy rock tunes. Before the second part of their set could begin it began raining heavily, pausing all proceedings immediately. After the rain had calmed down, the night moved on to the Rabbit Hole where all musicians present were invited to an open jam.

On day two, the festival was reduced to one stage since the Magic Forest was washed away by the rains the previous night. Performing on the day were artists like Big Bang Blues playing a classic rock “best of” covers setlist, Phobia – the lone metal band at Escape (a band member was overheard saying, “We don’t make music for Indian audiences”), Five8, Voodoo Child, and an “in-house” band called A Boat that had debuted at Escape last year playing some cheesy Hindi and English tunes. A personal favourite discovery on the second day was Antoine, a Delhi-based French singer-songwriter and funnyman. Manoushka, a beautiful firedancer from Kolkata performed on the stage-side while the artists performed.

New Delhi garage punksters Indigo Children made their live comeback at Escape. Their set included a few new tunes along with regulars ‘Four Times and Once After’, a redone version of ‘Sing To Me’, a cover of Black Sabbath’s ‘Sweet Leaf’, and a The Beatles medley of ‘Tomorrow Never Knows/Within You Without You’. A welcome comeback, but lacking the identity they once had.

menwhopause‘s set was clearly a favourite for most. As original vocalist Sarabjeet was unwell, bassist Randeep filled in on vocals. They were joined by Antoine and a fan providing backing vocals for two songs. A chilly breeze blew through their set followed by a slight rain – which meant the next act Half Step Down would go back home with no performance, as the stage was once again shut down early.

Day three started with a few movie screenings while some of the bands soundchecked. A packed room saw various short films including a documentary on the Bishnupur Gharana, followed by a screening of Gandu, the story of a Bengali rapper growing up in a poor household with a mother who is a prostitute.

The day’s lineup included performances by Peter Cat Recording Co, PINKNOISE, and Space. Five Little Indians aka The Gandu Circus, the band who scored the soundtrack to the film Gandu were reduced to performing as a two-piece with Neel and film director Q, since the band recently announced their split. Performances went on till 5am, with sets by Reggae Rajahs, a live set by Teddy Boy Kill experimenting with live drums, Kohra, and Ashvin of Jalebee Cartel.

Photos by Shiv Ahuja

Indigo Children @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

menwhopause @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Gandu Circus @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Manouhska @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Teddy Boy Kill @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Inclement weather meant that the seven-hour journey from New Delhi to Naukuchiatal took us 15 hours. It also meant that the first day of the festival was rained out completely, and the event was reduced to one stage down from three.

The setting was picture-perfect; the lake, mountains and great weather (for the remainder of the event) making for a particularly idyllic background to the event. It seemed as though the festival organizers had paid attention to every organisational detail, with the exception of the lineup. Perhaps due to travel budget constraints, a majority of the acts on the bill were too young and inexperienced to be featured in prime slots at a festival of this nature. Listening to new acts and giving opportunities to upcoming bands is great, but not at a venue that people have spent a significant amount of time and money to get to.

One big positive for Escape was the profile of the average attendee this year. Largely restricted to musicians and indie scenesters in previous years, this year’s festival managed to attract a broader audience. A lot of people that attended weren’t friends of the bands or regulars at gigs, but were attending the festival purely for the experience.

Personal highlights: Brian and Arjun, Antoine, menwhopause, PINKNOISE, Teddy Boy Kill and Ashvin Mani Sharma. The vibe this year was absolutely fantastic. Escape is truly one of the best festivals in the country and I’d go back next year without hesitation.

Photos by Shiv Ahuja

For a full gallery of photos, check out the NH7 Facebook page.

Avelon Vaz of Five8 @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Sanchal Malhar Thakur of Indigo Children @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

The Soul Garden Stage @ Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

Escape Festival, Naukuchiatal

To purchase tickets for the Escape Festival on NH7, click here.

Schedule

Day 1 – May 20

Soul Garden
2.00 – 3.15 pm: Dhruv Sangari
3.30 – 4.30 pm: Vedanta
4.45 – 5.45 pm: Astitva

Magic Forest
6.00 – 7.00 pm: Phobia
7.15 – 8.15 pm: Five8 (pictured)
8.30 – 9.45 pm: The Gandu Set
10.00 – 11.00 pm: Indigo Children
11.15 – 12.15 am: Voodoo Child

Rabbit Hole
12.30 – 1.15 am: Tonuj
1.30 – 2.15 am: Alisha Bhatt
2.15 onwards: Free Jam

Day 2 – May 21

Soul Garden
2.00 – 3.00 pm: A Boat
3.15 – 4.15 pm: Adil & Vasundara
4.30 – 5.30 pm: Ranjit Barot

Magic Forest
6.15 pm – 7.15 pm: Stella
7.30 – 8.30 pm: Albatross
8.45 – 9.45 pm: Big Bang Blues
10.00 pm – 11.15 pm: menwhopause
11.30pm – 12.30 am: Half Step Down

Rabbit Hole
12.45 – 1.15 am: Rajneesh Kapoor
1.15 am onwards: Free Jam

Day 3 – May 22

Soul Garden
12.00 – 1.00 pm 97 West
1.15 – 2.15 pm Rishi Inc
2.30 – 3:30 pm HFT

Magic Forest
4.15 – 5.00 pm Turf
5.15 – 6.15 pm Space
6.30 – 8.00 pm PINKNOISE
8.15 – 9.45 pm Reggae Rajahs
9.45 – 11.45 pm Teddy Boy Kill
11.45pm – 12.45am Ashvin Mani Sharma

Rabbit Hole
12.45 – 1.45 am Tritha & Nitesh
1.45 – 2.45 am Hari Om Project

Festival tickets are priced at Rs 2,000 and Rs 2,500 for two and three days respectively. Premium packages that include camp accommodation are also available. The Escape Festival is one of the first few camping festivals in the country. It’s also one of the few to successfully integrate a social/eco-friendly agenda, unlike the ill-fated Ujaan festival that had to be postponed earlier this year. For more details, including a complete lineup and ticketing, check out the Escape website.

More from Escape as we hear it.

Photo by Prateek Biswas