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Midival Punditz, one of the most respected names in the Indian electronic scene, are gearing up for the Bangalore launch of their third album at Kyra Theatre this evening. Expresso had a chat with the dynamic duo — Gaurav Raina and Tapan Raj.
What can your fans look forward to in your new album, Hello Hello?
Hello Hello is our new musical expression which documents some of our experiences and inspirations over the past few years. Its got influences from many different genres like breakbeat, house, electro, chill etc with a predominant influence of India folk and classical.
How was the whole experience of collaborating with people like Karsh Kale, J Viewz, Pandit Ajay Prasanna and Shankar Mahadevan?
We have always collaborated with people on a very personal level. People who have over the years understood what our sound is about and what we are trying to say. Karsh has been an old friend and working partner for many years, so it was really easy to get along and work fluently. Shankar Mahadevan, who we have worked with in the past also, brought in an amazing direction to ‘Desolate’ while J Viewz gave an epic feel to ‘Four Sticks’.
Any contemporaries in the still nascent electronic scene in India whose music you respect?
We are extremely excited about the way electronica is on the rise, in India. Many new electronica acts have emerged in the recent past.
It goes to show how younger and upcoming musicians are seriously taking to this fairly new genre. Bands like Shair ‘n Func, Jayant, Jalebee Cartel, Bandish Projekt are some of the bands who are making quite an impact in the scene.
Major influences?
Our influences are from the many years we have evolved as musicians. Ranging from our earlier rock ‘n roll years to recently, the alternative music scene — Led Zeppelin, The Who, Underworld, Pink Floyd, BT and many more.
Where do you enjoy playing the most?
I think Delhi and Mumbai have recently been our favourites when it comes to playing live. The crowds have seen us perform for many years and we get the best response in these cities.
How did you guys start out in this particular genre?
We have actually been friends from our school years and always had a keen interest in music, which led us to becoming drummers for our respective college bands. We started our careers as DJs, mixing up different genres of music and experimenting with different sounds.
This soon evolved into making tracks on the computer and playing them out. We formed the band in 1998 and took out our first single, which was appreciated by many, hence giving us a lot of encouragement to go forward. We went on to sign a deal with Six Degrees Records in San Francisco in 2001.
What would be the turning point for you guys?
I think the turning point in our career was when we played with Tabla Beat Science in San Francisco. We played live with Ustad Zakir Hussain, Ustad Sultan Khan and Karsh Kale. This concert led to our recoring deal and soon we were also on the background score for ‘Monsoon Wedding’. This period defined the many years we subsequently spent, making and playing music all over the world.
What difference do you see in people’s attitude towards your kind of music when you started and now?
People have now learnt to accept electronica and other alternative genres, which were never a part of the scene earlier. Indian electronica was always considered a thing of the ‘Underground’ scene, but now it has emerged as an alternative genre, which people understand and relate to.
What do you think of the Indian music scene?
The music scene in India is at the threshhold of a musical renaissance of sorts. Many new genres are emerging and people are going out and supporting upoming and experimental acts. People are expanding their musical horizons in a big way. The next few years shall reflect a huge change in the Indian music scene.
Future plans?
We are currently finishing a remix CD of our album and also working on a few Bollywood movie scores.
