 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . (Learn how and when to remove these template messages) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
|
Menwhopause | |
|---|---|
 menwhopause Live at Hard Rock Cafe, Pune | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Delhi, India |
| Genres | Alternative rock Acoustic rock |
| Years active | 2001 – 2018 |
| Labels | EMI-Virgin |
| Website | www.menwhopause.co |
| Members | Sarabjit Singh Anup Kutty Shiv Ankit Ahuja Randeep Singh |
Guitarist Anup Kutty with an original lineup of singer/songwriter Sarabjit Chadha and acoustic guitarist Inder Pal Singh (IP) formed the band in 2001. The trio became a full-fledged band after recruiting bassist Randeep Singh and drummer Rahul Chatterjee. In a country where popular music was dominated with commercial Bollywood music and the live rock music scene was generally full of cover bands, menwhopause stuck to playing original compositions and were one of the first bands in India to distribute their music for free over the Internet. Their first EP called ‘The story begins...’ was released online as a free download in 2003. Ever since its formation, the band has gone through a few line-up changes - the first with original drummer Rahul Chatterjee being replaced by Hemendra Nath "Hemzi" in 2008 and later with French drummer Paul Schneiter till 2012 and then with Bhanu Thakur in 2014. Guitarist IP Singh left the band in 2016.
The band has released four albums since 2001 and has been instrumental in shaping the independent music scene in India primarily through their DIY ethic. [1]
In 2006, they released their first full-length album Home on their own record label, "The Middle Earth Company". The album gained the band international recognition, making them the first Indian rock band to be invited to perform at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. The band's tour was sponsored by the Indian Centre for Cultural Relations (ICCR), which made them the first ever rock band to be supported by the cultural arm of the Government of India. The band also did a month long tour of the southwestern United States playing in around 10 cities in and around Texas. In February 2008, the band won an online poll for the Best Band of the Year 2007 conducted by Jack Daniel's in India. In April 2008 the band flew to Lynchburg, Tennessee where they performed at the Legendary Mash Festival and worked with R.E.M.'s producer David Barbe. The band signed a major record deal with EMI-Virgin Records (India) in 2008 to release their second full-length album Easy. Instead of conventional studio recording, the band began work on the album by recording the tracks in a makeshift studio set up by them in a village in Uttaranchal, nestled in the Himalayas, during September 2006. The album took four years to be produced with the band bringing in mixing engineer and co-producer Miti Adhikari (BBC London) and Grammy Award-winning mastering engineer, Richard Dodd. The album was initially released on digital format through iTunes and Amazon.com in early-January 2011 followed by physical CD format on 26 January 2011. The album immediately received favorable reviews by critics with The Times of India calling it "by far, one of the most brilliant works from an Indian rock act." Easy has been No.1 on music stores sales charts in Mumbai, Delhi- March 2011.[ citation needed ]
In 2012, the band conducted a 15-day music workshop in Tihar Jail - the largest prison complex in South Asia. The workshop culminated with a group of inmates forming a band called The Flying Souls and performing with menwhopause at a special concert held inside the prison premises exclusively for the other inmates. [2]
As pioneers of the independent music scene of India, menwhopause has been at the forefront of artistic innovation. This shows in the passion that they have put behind supporting the independent artists. In 2011, they founded the Ziro Festival of Music in Ziro Valley of Arunachal Pradesh, which is one of India's premier outdoor music festival and has hosted acclaimed artists such as Steve Shelley and Lee Ronaldo (Sonic Youth) and Shye-Ben Tzur. The festival focuses on the rich cultural heritage of the whole North-East and has put Ziro in the global map.
The band recorded their third album Neon Delhi between 2013 and 2016, releasing it independently on January 4, 2017. [3] Neon Delhi features collaborations with various musicians across genres like GFD - a Rajasthani khamancha trio, jazz pianist Grant Richards, YouTube sensation Faadu Rapper and poet/musician Jeet Thayil. [4]
The name Menwhopause was borrowed from Anup's quiz team in college that went by the same name. The band has always maintained that the pun was actually unintentional and they were more interested in the word pause being part of the band's name. In recent interviews, the band has been quoted giving different origins of the name. Some of them include a tyre company in Brazil, tattooed fans and an attribution to Randeep's mother.[ citation needed ]
Indian Ocean is an Indian rock band formed in New Delhi in 1990, who are widely recognized as the pioneers of the fusion rock genre in India. Susmit Sen, Asheem Chakravarty, Rahul Ram and Amit Kilam were band members till Chakravarty's demise on 25 December 2009, after which Tuheen Chakravorty and Himanshu Joshi were officially inducted into the band as replacements. After the departure of Susmit Sen in 2013, Rahul Ram is the only founding member who appeared on the band's debut album Indian Ocean. Sanjeev Sharma has collaborated with them as lyricist on many Albums.
Susmit Sen is an Indian guitarist formerly part of Indian Ocean, an Indian fusion rock band, which he co-founded with lead vocalist Asheem Chakravarty in 1990. Sen released his first solo album, Depths of the Ocean in 2011, in the following year, he also started touring with his separate band, The Susmit Sen Chronicles, and eventually left Indian Ocean in 2013 to pursue a solo career.
Indian rock is a music genre in India that incorporates elements of Indian music with rock music, and is often topically India-centric. While India is more often known for its classical music, filmi, Bollywood music, Indi-pop, and Bhangra, the Indian rock scene has also produced numerous bands and artists.
Pentagram is a four-piece Indian rock/electronica band started in 1994 in Mumbai, India. Regarded as one of the pioneers of original Indian independent music, the band has received major recognition.
Motherjane is an Indian rock band from Kochi, India, formed in 1996. The band consists of John Thomas, Clyde Rozario, Niranj Suresh (vocals) and Anubhav Langthasa (guitars). They have released a total of two studio albums, and five singles. Since their formation, genres like progressive rock and Carnatic music have influenced their music.
Warrior is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 1982. Best known for their 1985 debut album, Fighting for the Earth, the band has released a total of four studio albums. Guitarist and co-founder Joe Floyd is the only Warrior member to appear on every album.
Mekaal Hasan Band is an international sufi rock band formed in Lahore, Pakistan in 2000 by composer, singer-songwriter and guitarist Meekal Hasan.
Bhayanak Maut is an Indian metal band from Mumbai. The band's name was inspired by a B-Grade Hindi horror movie of the same name, which translates to "Horrific Death".
Sachin Gupta is an Indian music director, composer, guitarist, record producer and a Singer. His work has spanned everything from playing live shows with his previous band 'Mrigya' to composing indie pop albums for artists like Atif Aslam, Alisha Chinoy, Jal, Ahmed Jahanzeb, Apache Indian and Mika among others. Termed by international media as the 'Flying Finger Melodies', his music, as he says, is inspired by real life instances, while his guitar playing has been heavily influenced by Yngwie Malmsteen.
Demonic Resurrection was a blackened death metal band from Mumbai, India formed in the year 2000. Their current line-up consists of Sahil "The Demonstealer" Makhija on vocals and rhythm guitar and Virendra "Viru" Kaith on drums. Since its formation, the band has released four studio albums and one EP. The band has enjoyed National TV (India) airing of their video The Unrelenting Surge of Vengeance. The band's 4th full-length album, The Demon King, was released on 13 July 2014 in India, 14 July in Europe, and 15 July in the USA by Candlelight Records and distributed in India by Universal Music.
Cassini's Division are an Alternative Rock band from Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Formed in 2001, they are named after the Cassini Division, the largest gap in the Rings of Saturn.
Amyt Datta is a guitarist, and producer from Kolkata. He is also a popular music composer, teacher and mentor. Datta, who commands a sort of demigod status with guitar fans across the country, is widely acknowledged to be one of the most innovative guitarists around today. He toured extensively with the rock band Shiva from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. He now plays and composes for experimental band Pinknoise, pop/rock band Skinny Alley, and his own solo work, often in collaboration with Jivraj Singh.
Advaita are an Indian fusion band based in New Delhi, India that was formed in 2004.
Skyharbor is an Indian/American progressive metal band with members from New Delhi and Mumbai, India; and Cleveland, Ohio, US.
The Vinyl Records, is a four-piece all-female band based in New Delhi that came together in February 2010. The band has been featured in articles in that of; 'Times of India,' 'Rolling Stone India,' RSJ, Tehelka, NH7, Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire magazine editors in the process.
Randeep Guleria is an Indian pulmonologist and the Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, credited with the establishment of India's first centre for pulmonary medicines and sleep disorders at AIIMS. He was honoured by the Government of India in 2015 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award. He is an alumnus of St. Columba's School, Delhi.
The Ska Vengers is a New Delhi based band that blends Ska, Dub, Punk, Jazz and Rap in their music. The core band consists of Stefan Kaye, Delhi Sultanate, Begum X, The Late Nikhil Vasudevan, Chaitanya Bhalla 'Chaz' (Guitars) and Tony Guinard.
Ziro Festival of Music is an outdoor music festival held in the Ziro valley in the northeast Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. It showcases the independent music scene in India. The festival was founded in 2012 by Bobby Hano and Menwhopause guitarist Anup Kutty, and has featured artists like Lee Ranaldo, Steve Shelley, Damo Suzuki, Shye Ben Tzur, MONO, Divine, Louw Majaw, Sha'air n Func, Indus Creed, Peter Cat Recording Co, Menwhopause, Guru Rewben Mashangva, and Barmer Boys among others. The festival is spread over four days and is hosted by members of the Apatani people in Ziro.
Peter Cat Recording Co. is a Delhi-based indie band that was founded in 2009. The band consists of five members: Suryakant Sawhney, the lead singer and guitarist; Karan Singh, the drummer; Dhruv Bhola, who plays bass and samples; Rohit Gupta on Keys and Trumpet; and Kartik Sundareshan Pillai, who plays keyboards, guitar, electronics and trumpet. They released their first album, Sinema, in 2011. In 2012, the band released Wall of Want, a collection of songs. They then released their second album, Climax, in 2015. In June 2019, they released Bismillah.
Parvaaz is an Indian rock band formed in 2010 in Bangalore. The present line up features Khalid Ahamed (vocals), Mir Kashif Iqbal (guitar), Fidel Dsouza (bass) and Sachin Banandur.
http://rollingstoneindia.com/studio-menwhopause/
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-metroplus/Never-a-pause/article15380590.ece
http://rollingstoneindia.com/menwhopause-within-city-limits/
