For electronic music pioneers MIDIval Punditz, giving their audience the time of their lives is their ultimate goal. And when it is songs from their newest album, Light, Gaurav Raina and Tapan Raj take it a notch higher with a holistic Indian electronica experience.
In Bengaluru as part of their four-city pre-album launch tour, the DJ duo got the audience grooving at the Humming Tree recently. The gig also had the winner of The Step Up Challenge, performing live with the MIDIval Punditz.
Showcasing songs from Light , the Delhi duo established why they are one of the frontrunners in the electronic music wave in India blending a heady dose of Indian folk and classical elements in their signature electronica soundscape.
What makes this fourth studio album for MIDIval Punditz so special is that it is their first performance-based, concept production all recorded live. The record features a range of musicians from flautist Ajay Prasanna, Rajasthani folk stalwart Kutle Khan, Hindustani classical singer Malini Awasthi to American producer Todd Michaelsen and artistes Papon, Karan Sharma and more. The album is also backed by specially-developed visuals to complement each song.
Sharing his thoughts before the gig, Tapan says they love the Bengaluru weather and always have a great vibe when they visit the music capital. “This pre-album release tour is to get our fans excited and create a little buzz around the album. This is something that is really close to our hearts and we want to share that with Bangalore.”
On what inspired the name, he says: “We liked the word since it has a positive connotation. It’s a heavy album so Light contrasts it. We also wanted it to be simple as we are always conscious about simplicity even in our music.”
Outlining their musical journey since they launched their debut album Midival Punditz in 2002, Tapan says: “Gaurav and I have been really lucky in the early part of our career to be signed up by an international record label. As a result, we were able to handle our own production.
“We play a niche music genre. Our audiences are not as big as that for pop acts like A. R. Rehman or Honey Singh. The audience for our Indian electronic music is limited. But the journey so far has been good. We’ve done a lot of learning on the way and there have not been any big struggles. We also got to work with so many senior artistes. Our dream and our passion have stayed with us and we will continue to strive and make our signature music.”
Always having a range of collaborations in their kitty, Tapan says now that they’ve been doing it for years, it’s relatively easier. “Initially, we found it hard to believe people of repute like Ustad Zakir Hussain, Anoushka Shankar, Shankar Ehsaan Loy or Karsh Kale wanted to play with us. It reaffirmed our realisation that we are doing something good with our music.”
He adds that it is collaborations like this that makes their music exciting. “We are organic in our song-writing and go where it takes us.”
Fusing Indian elements in their music is always close to their heart, explains Tapan. “It’s not something that we chose. Initially, when we started off, we wanted to find a sound for ourselves. It took us a little while to see what comes naturally. This is what came.
“We liked this twist to electronica and it makes us cohesive in our comfort zone. Looking forward, we will continue to do the same. We may, of course, modify the style as you will hear in the album. There’s more to our music. We need to explore its various possibilities. We’ve just touched the surface.”
