BAND OF THE MONTH
What's the story behind the name The Fanculos?
RAMON: Our made-up band name is derived from "vaffancul"
which is a very rude expression in Italian (just google it!) My
mother is Italian and she hated the name when I first told her,
I still don’t think she is very keen on it, but she does like the music!
What got you to playing music in these particular genres?
RAMON: Our main style is SKA or the slower reggae, but we
play any Caribbean influenced music mixed in with funk and
punk. SKA and reggae just feel so good to play and to dance
to. They're very organic and infectious - people can’t help
grooving to that skank (the off-beat accent that make ska and
reggae distinctive). I love the energy of punk or hard rock and
when you put live horns on top of that with hi speed guitar
skanking, it’s going to sound just brilliant. Also, my father was
from Guyana in the Caribbean and we grew up with music like
calypso and soca being played in the house, there was also Jim
Reeves, Verdi and Abba (maybe all on the same day!) but that’s
another story...
SAURABH: I am naturally inclined towards music that makes
me move and is groovy. I spend a lot of time listening to RnB
and soul music which makes your body move a certain way
and then when you listen to reggae you tend to move your
body in another way .You listen to Ska, you might want to
start jumping. I love the effect each genre has on us. What I
feel is that as a band we want people to live these different
experiences and shake a leg in many different ways through
the gig. We want them to celebrate.
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At your live performances, you don't fail to keep the
audience on their toes. Which has been your best and
most exciting live performance till date and why?
RAMON: I'd say it was our first gig in Pune back in 2016. I'd
been writing the songs and living with them for a while, and
although we had rehearsed them, it was the first time I got to
hear ourselves play the set properly to a live audience, and
that was extremely satisfying for me! Quite unforgettable! The
gig we did on Reunion Island in August this year was fantastic
too, the whole week was magical.
SAURABH: I have had the most fun at a performance we did
in a place called “The Electric Room”. It was exciting for me
because there was a moment where while playing a solo I was
jumping up and down and at the same time the whole crowd
decided to do the same with me , we all jumped together to the
music, it was a lot of fun .
What do you think needs to change in the current scheme
of things in the Indie scene?
SAURABH: The indie scene is getting better and better every
year, more indie artists are coming up, more music festivals
are coming up. I am actually quite happy with the way it is
functioning currently.
RAMON: Good question! I came to Mumbai 7 years ago and I'm
now seeing a lot of things that I had wanted to happen actually
happening now. For example, proper music festivals are here
to stay which is amazing for Indie musicians. There are also
many more places to perform locally which gives new talent
a chance to hone their skills, and established bands a chance
to get in front of their fans more often. I'd like to see bigger
sponsors getting behind bands and artists. As an Indie band,
we put most of our profits (if any!) back into the band for studio
and rehearsal time, artwork, outfits, etc. Basically, the more