Name : Riju Dasgupta

Band : Albatross, Workshop

City : Mumbai .

How was 2009 for you and your band? What do you think has been the best thing to happen for the Indian Rock scenario in 2009?
Was an awesome year for me as a musician. Workshop kicked off in 2008, but we truly folked up everyone’s jazz in 2009. It also marked the release of our album Khooni Murga, which did reasonably well. We gigged around the place, made a lot of people laugh without tickling them, and even participated in a goddam reality show(after which I even started working for them). Apart from that, Albatross released our second single ‘The Dining Table’ and it released to really rave reviews, in fact from some musicians I’ve grown up idolizing. It’s been a dream year, and I just hope I don’t wake up in 2010. (errr…no I don’t want to die, I mean the dream thing…you figure it out)

The best thing about the 2009 rock scene has been the elimination of boundaries. Like Sam Dunn said metal (and rock by the same logic) is one global family. We have huge acts from all across the globe coming down to India these days. 2009 also marks the beginning of Indian bands going out. Eventually I don’t wan’t Indian rock/metal bands to be referred as Indian bands, but simply as kickass bands. When we listen to Iron Maiden, the last thing on our minds is that they’re British, isn’t it?

What are your Favorite song / album from 2009?
Album- Being the huge fan that I am of this genre- Slain- Beyond Before. But to be a little more objective Inner Sanctum- Provenance. I think I should shift to Bangalore .

Song- JP Rebellion by the Circus. We shared the stage with these guys during Launchpad, they know how to have fun and make the crowd enjoy with them.

Please share an instance on/offstage that you can’t forget from 2009.
I guess it’s coming face to face with Vishal Dadhlani on day 1 of Launchpad. We didn’t know what to say to him, and the first thing he says is ‘HO GAYA SANDAS HO GAYA SANDAS’. That was a LMAO moment.

The most priceless moment for me at least was when I had a chance to send the Albatross track- The Dining Table to guitar legend Michael Denner himself. When he told me that he likes the track, I was speechless and then just spammed everyone I know .

Albatross the solo project of yours with two songs already released this year for free what next can we expect from you regarding this project?
Well the first thing I want to do is to not let it remain a solo project anymore. I’m putting together a live lineup, which consists of actors as well. So when we play Gigi, you’re actually gonna be seeing Gigi onstage. I wanna take the stage in the first half of the year itself. We’re also releasing an EP called ‘Dinner is You’, which has collaborations from some insane musicians. The art has been done by my Old Monks bandmate Ameya Chavan himself, and he’s done a wonderful job. So yes, we’re going to scare you in 2010. And just so you know…Dinner is you!

What are your / bands plans for year 2010?
Well, with Workshop we’ve already realized the mistakes which we made with our first record. So the next one is gonna be ROFLness taken to a whole new level. We’ve already played 2 songs from it live- Blues Motion and Made Love to the Dragon. So if you have weird fetishes, you’re gonna love this next album. And yes, it ‘cums’ out in 2010. We’re also gonna be playing a lot of shows outside Mumbai. Yes the kombdi of comedy is travelling.

With Albatross, like I said we’re gonna release the EP and eventually go live as well.

There are talks of an Old Monks reunion sometime in the future as well. If we ever find Ameya(vox) and Jared(guitars) in the country at the same time, it’ll be Daru time yet again onstage J.

How do you think the Indian rock scene will change from 2010 onwards?
Well everything’s working towards a better scene. No, rock won’t become mainstream…unless you count Strings and Jal as rock. But on an underground level, labels like DSR and G&S will push the scene to a whole new paradigm. So the underground will just become bigger. We might need a brand new basement.

[ Interview questions compiled by Ashwin Sharma ]

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