AMOGH RAO
INDIE REVIEWS
We’ve seen a whole new wave of musicians coming up in the music scene this year. Here’s a
quick review of a couple of very fascinating EPs and tracks that have come together in the past
few months featuring some prominent and some relatively new artists from the indie scene.
Mixtaped Monk and Cousin
Silas
Indian music producer Arka
Sengupta aka Mixtaped Monk and
British ambient music legend Cousin
Silas have put together a 9 track full-
length concept album called Urban
Lonesome that has been critically
acclaimed. This work is probably
some of the best in the genre this year, with every track
masterfully creating a post-rock atmosphere that is very
hard to get right. The best thing about it being a split album
is that there’s a whole spectrum of sounds covered within
the ambient and experimental environment with two
unique yet very similar perspectives.
Rainburn
Another band from Bangalore that
has made a significant impact on
the progressive scene this year is
Rainburn. They released their debut
EP Canvas of Silence in 2015 that
created a pretty big stir in the global
prog scene. Merchant of Dreams is
their first release since going through
some line-up changes. According to the band, “The song
embodies the spirit of a dreamer as he puts forth his mind’s
fruits for the world to reap, (it is about) his hope and desire
to rise and grow beyond. The shackles of reality as he takes
on the larger-than- life persona of the Merchant of Dreams.”
The song is available for download on iTunes, cdbaby and
SoundCloud
Parvaaz
You’ve probably heard of this
Bangalore-based contemporary rock
group before, with their fascinating
blend of psychedelic and progressive
elements coupled with Kashmiri and
Urdu vocals. In 2012 the band released
an EP called Behosh, followed by the
full length, critically acclaimed album
Baran in 2014 and a live DVD called Transitions in 2016.
Their latest release is “Colour White”, a single that depicts
emotional turmoil and human struggle, aptly exemplified
through an intense composition. A brilliant video was shot
for it and we highly recommend checking it out.
Tanya Nambiar
New Delhi-based singer-songwriter
who left a corporate job in sales to
pursue her passion has taken the
indie scene by storm, steadily leaving
her mark with simple, powerful and
relatable music. An icon for women
across the country, her determination
to make it big and strength to manage
not just her singing career but also a host of other jobs has
created quite an impression. Experimenting and working
with all sorts of music styles and genres from jazz and pop to
soul and RnB, she has infused her own uniqueness into each
of them. She is now out with her EP titled "Good Girls Gone"
which she dedicates to all the women around the world. "If
doing things my way makes me a bad girl, I rather be a bad
girl for life”, she says.
The
Score Magazine
highonscore.com
23