In tune with each other
About 15 artistes, popular names in the city’s live music scene, will come together to celebrate the second anniversary of local band Perfect Strangers
It’s not often that topmusicians in the city come together to celebrate the success of their colleagues. But on Saturday that’s exactly what will happen at Humming Tree when Perfect Strangers, a Bengaluru-based classic rock band, will celebrate their second year of coming together. The line-up of artists for the two-and-half-hour gig includes veterans in the live music scene such as Suraj Mani of Mother Jane, Naveen Thomas of Galeej Gurus, Ananth Menon of Hoodoo Gas, Carlton Braganza from Opus, CJ Bramha and nine other artists who will take to the stage and not only perform their own compositions but also perform popular covers by international artists and sing along songs’.
“It’s a heavy roster!”Michael Anthony Dias of Mad Orange Fireworks says. “And I’m happy and excited to be part of it. It must have been really hard to get everyone to agree, schedule it and put it together according to everyone’s convenience and availability,” he says.
“Each of the star artists will perform two numbers and then we (Perfect Strangers) will be singing 15 songs. The idea is to have a lot of fun,” says lead singer Shaapla Sen (27), also a project admin with Dell.
The first time Perfect Strangers ever performed was back on September 5, 2013, at Take Five in Indiranagar. The response was overwhelming and there was no looking back for the band. “We are a local band but none of us is from Bengaluru,” Basu (36), lead guitarist of Perfect Strangers says. Nevertheless, their love for the city and its love for live shows has kept them going.
“That’s why we thought of celebrating our anniversary with other musicians in Bengaluru who have contributed to the scene here.”
How they got together is an interesting story in itself. In July 2013, Basu, aka Jeet, was scouting for a bassist, vocalist, drummer and a keyboard player to form a band. He had moved to Bengaluru from Hyderabad to pursue a career in the corporate world and was already familiar with now-lead-singer Sen, as a freelance singer in Kolkata. Sen had moved to Bengaluru to pursue her masters’ degree when she reconnected with Basu.
To find the rest of the members they started posting on social media. “So eventually the people who ended up forming the band had never known each other or met each other and hence the name Perfect Strangers came about,” Basu explains. But on Saturday they will all be one big family performing together and having a ball with about 500 people joining the party.
It’s not often that top
“It’s a heavy roster!”
For Mani, the opportunity to play alongside so many local outfits is a rare treat, a “pleasure trip” they will be taking together. “It is not always that all of us come together to perform but that’s also because no one really asks,” he says. “Debjeet (Basu) the lead guitarist of Perfect Strangers worked his charm, put out a call and people said yes.” Mani will perform his own composition – a sing along song called Mahabali and Distant Turnout, which was written after the Nepal Earthquake.
“Each of the star artists will perform two numbers and then we (Perfect Strangers) will be singing 15 songs. The idea is to have a lot of fun,” says lead singer Shaapla Sen (27), also a project admin with Dell.
The first time Perfect Strangers ever performed was back on September 5, 2013, at Take Five in Indiranagar. The response was overwhelming and there was no looking back for the band. “We are a local band but none of us is from Bengaluru,” Basu (36), lead guitarist of Perfect Strangers says. Nevertheless, their love for the city and its love for live shows has kept them going.
“That’s why we thought of celebrating our anniversary with other musicians in Bengaluru who have contributed to the scene here.”
How they got together is an interesting story in itself. In July 2013, Basu, aka Jeet, was scouting for a bassist, vocalist, drummer and a keyboard player to form a band. He had moved to Bengaluru from Hyderabad to pursue a career in the corporate world and was already familiar with now-lead-singer Sen, as a freelance singer in Kolkata. Sen had moved to Bengaluru to pursue her masters’ degree when she reconnected with Basu.
To find the rest of the members they started posting on social media. “So eventually the people who ended up forming the band had never known each other or met each other and hence the name Perfect Strangers came about,” Basu explains. But on Saturday they will all be one big family performing together and having a ball with about 500 people joining the party.
