Bassist Rohit Pereira is the band hunter for the first edition of Road to Converse Rubber Tracks in India. He told Iknoor Kaur what disappointed him during the auditions here
In the past few years, there has been an upsurge of platforms for indie music. From gigs and television shows to an entire channel dedicated to artistes, musicians have finally found a base in the industry. Thus, what better a time to present them with an international daisIJ The ongoing Road to Converse Rubber Studio in India is a golden opportunity to most bands that are looking for a breakthrough. “It is not just a regular band competition. It’s one of those where the band is the focus,” says bassist Rohit Pereira who is the band hunter for this event. “I went to all the cities for the initial round where bands got selected. I selected some bands and the rest went through the voting process online. Now each city has an elimination round followed by the finals where only one band wins and gets a chance to go to the state-of-the-art Converse Rubber Tracks studio to record an album for free. All the finalists will go through band workshops and professional crash courses on how the business of music works,” he explains.
The elimination rounds for the Capital will take place today. Headlining the event will be the metal band Undying Inc and the bands participating in the event will be Eclectica, Against Gravity, The Urban Earlymen, Alien Sky Cult and Frisky Pints. While this is expected to be a stiff competition, when Rohit came to see the bands in Delhi, he was disappointed. He says, “I didn’t get to see many bands. I had expected people to be more excited which they weren’t. However, one thing I noticed was that there was a lot of fusion music. It seems as though every band wants to be another Advaita.”
So far the eliminations have taken place in Mumbai and Kolkata. Rohit was a part of the jury for the Mumbai gig where Spud In The Box won. He feels that the bands were way beyond his expectations. “We never expected such high standards. If this is the level that every city is going to be at, the finals will be one hell of a battle,” he shares.
According to Rohit, the best band is in Bengaluru. “There is a band in Bengaluru called Space Behind the Yellow Room. One of the people in the band is a first year college student and it is amazing how energetic and in sync they are. There is also You Know Who in Mumbai and a blues band called Serenade in Kolkata,” he elaborates.
Among the genres, alternative rock is the most popular, says Rohit. “Majority of the bands are alternative rock bands, but a lot of bands in Kolkata are blues, rock and roll and metal bands,” he informs.Rohit feels that such platforms work as support systems for indie artistes. “It puts a spotlight on the band. It pushes them in the right direction and more people up their game to prove themselves,” he adds.