HYDERABAD: After a long wait of exactly 544 days, Kerala-based multi-genre band Thaikkudam Bridge recently performed at Hyderabad’s Prism Club. Fans swarmed the venue to catch their first live act since they last visited the city in January last year.
Getting back on stage after such a long gap evoked mixed feelings, says bassist Vian Fernandes. “We are excited and tense too, as we have been out of practice for a while,” he says. Despite the fear of a possible Covid third wave looming over them, the band says they need to start getting used to the new world. “How long can we continue to play no gigs” asks lead guitarist Mithun Raj.
Thursday’s (September 2) performance of the band saw a jam-packed venue, with ardent fans head-banging and dancing to their hits such as Navrasa, Urumb, Chekkele, Saalaikal and Fish Rock. The band also performed their rendition of Teri Deewani. They surprised the audience with a medley of Metallica and Illayaraja songs. They also played Kanne, Saalaikal and Thekkini from their second studio album Namah, which was released in November 2019. The album features stalwarts such as Chris Adler and Cranatic mridanga maestro Umayalpuram K Sivaraman, Niladri Kumar, Guthrie Govan, Marco Minneman and Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, among others.
Following the release of their second studio album in November 2019, the band had planned to promote it through a tour. They were also supposed to tour Canada. But with the Covid-19 pandemic, their plans took a backseat and they instead focused on working on new covers and composing fresh material. “During that time, we were also preparing content for our YouTube channel. We started our Backyard Sessions. Now, we have plenty of content that has got us covered for the next six months,” says Mithun Raj, lead guitarist.
The 15-member band has been working remotely during the lockdowns, a practice that the band followed even before the outbreak of the pandemic. “From the beginning, Thaikkudam Bridge has been practising through Whatsapp. We would meet a day before the gig, jam and then play the show,” says Vian.
Despite being primarily a rock and metal band, Thaikkuddam Bridge manages to incorporate elements of Hindustani and Carnatic classical. “You say we are a guitar-driven band. I am mostly playing metal music, except for the softer songs. But our singers (which are close to five) bring the fusion elements to our muisc,” says Mithun.
The band, however, performed with only four singers last week — Anish Gopalkrishnan, Christin Hanna Jos, Krishna Bongane and Nila Madhab Mohapatra — who drove the show with their powerful voices. Accompanying them were violinist and vocalist Govind P Menon, keyboardist Ruthin Thej and drummer Anish TN.
Much like other artistes, the band too faced financial issues during the Covid-19 pandemic. “A lot of our crew members started finding alternative sources of income. Luckily, we had money saved for shooting our music videos that we used as a pension to tide over the lockdown,” says rhythm guitarist Ashok Nelson.
Asked about who they want to collaborate with next, Mithun says, “Thom Yorke! You will be surprised to know how many Radiohead fans there are in the band!”Their performance was part of the Revive Concert Series, which is organised by Eleven Point Two and Metalloid Productions, and will see performances by Indian Idol winners as well as other popular acts such as Masala Coffee, Avial and Hyderabad-based band Capricio.
What’s in the name?
The band is named after a bridge named Thaikuddam in Kochi. Before their first Music Mojo session, they got together at a hotel that was near the bridge. They didn’t have a name for their band, so they just went with Thaikuddam Bridge