Causing a dhamaal in Mumbai

It’s a mish-mash of sounds but hear them spin some edgy, classical violin notes which they insist includes West Caribbean, Jamaican influences. “Bhangra and drum ‘n’ bass was happening all over the UK and we didn’t want to be labelled as desi,” says Maneesh, the twister of Dhamaal SoundSystem.

Maneesh and Dhruv, hail from San Francisco and are in town to promote their self-titled debut album. The Dhamaal sound reminds you of Asian underground. “We performed with the Asian Dub Foundation and Dr Das, the bassist of the group, often jams with us,” explains Maneesh. They’ve also mixed a few tracks for Asian Dub Foundation’s latest album ‘Tank’.

Dhamaal was born when a few friends got together and hosted a house party seven years ago. “We’re a 20 strong group and we do the whole live experience with the DJs, video, artistry, etc,” says Dhruv.

Their debut album is a compilation of their work over the years. “It has been a natural evolution for us,” adds Maneesh. The duo believe,“There is a lot of potential in the Indian market for different kinds of sounds, it’s only a matter of exposure,” says Maneesh.

The future for the band is making music for a few films they have been offered.
k_shridevi@dnaindia.net