We all have our pick of favourite rock stars and bands in Bengaluru that we love to follow and head bang to. What if you could listen to all of them play your favourite song together on one stage at one time? Only in my dreams, you would say. That’s why the blueFROG All Stars showcase promises to make those dreams come true.
With a handpicked line-up of super talented artistes coming together from various bands across India to jam and perform live once every month at blueFROG, the All Stars set-up hopes to take collaboration to the next level.
Along with Retrospect, a Saturday dedicated to retro music, comes Tribute Nights, a music property lined up once every month, to pay tribute to inspiring artistes from across the globe and to shape the future of live music.
This weekend, the Tribute band pays homage to one of the world’s biggest heavy metal legends Metallica, and will see a spectacular line-up of artistes rendering crowd favourites for an all-out night of metal mania.
Narayan Shrouthy, who is at the forefront of this weekend’s gig, given his special connection with Metallica, says he can’t want to get on stage and rock the night away. “The fact that we’re playing tribute to Metallica means a lot to me personally since they hold a special place in my heart. I was lucky enough to open for them as part of Inner Sanctum when Metallica came to Bengaluru.” What makes the tribute even more special is that “it features a lot of musicians whom I haven’t jammed with before and artistes who hold top-notch reputation. It’s going to be an exciting gig and a learning experience for all of us.”
Narayan is a veteran in the Bengaluru music scene and has played in almost every major stage and metal concert across the country over the years. He currently plays bass for bands like Inner Sanctum, Lucidreams, Neolithic Science and Bajaow.
Narayan points out that these are the kind of gigs that an audience comes to listen to their favourites. “This is music that you know, enjoy, head bang to and sing along and go back home with great memories.”
Hosting this in Bengaluru is the biggest boon, he affirms. “I play pretty much all over the country, but I must say Bangalore has one of the most educated audiences when compared to the rest of the country. The people here really know their music and in this concert, they’re in for a treat.”
Of course, the band will be adding their own signature style to the setlist, he reveals. “We wouldn’t like everything to sound the exact same. That wouldn’t be possible too. There will be a little bit of our own flavour to it.”
While collaborations have always been happening between artistes, Narayan concludes: “I think this is a great way to encourage it.”
Both Tribute Nights and Retrospect are the brainchild and curation of Kishan Balaji, who played with a range of Bengaluru bands like Galeej Gurus and Masala Coffee and did studio work with Raghu Dixit and Swarathma, and recently took over as one of the business development managers at blueFROG, Bengaluru.
“I realised we could do a lot more for the music community if we actually form bands involving different musicians from across genres, bands and inspirations, to come together and pay tribute to artistes who inspired them,” says Kishan. He points out that the primary concept was to build a community around this act without a fixed setup. “The blueFROG all-stars band is the coming together of a great line-up of musicians that changes with every gig.” For the audience, it’s a variety in terms of the musicians and the music. “The artistes bring their whole performance experience and talent to the stage. The usual single setup with a band becomes monotonous over time. Here, we reinvent every single time since each musician brings something unique to the platform,” says the thrilled curator.
While bringing together nine plus musicians every time is no easy task, Kishan says: “However, curating it is a lot of fun. These are musicians who haven’t played together in the past. I usually choose artistes who are close to the music itself – in terms of the tribute.”
In the next few months, blueFROG will be curating similar tribute nights for artists and bands like Aerosmith (June) and Linkin Park (July).
Catch the blueFROG All Stars raise a toast to Metallica live at blueFROG, Church Street, on May 26, 9.30 pm onwards. Call 7411099549.
