India may not still have its version of Greenday, but the country’s rock bands have steadily being making an attempt to make political statements and are exploring political issues somewhere in the background.
Living up to their first big hit song way back in 1997 Don’t Cut Me Down which spoke of deforestation, Parikrama will soon release their latest song One. The band wrote the song after the 26/11 terror attacks, appealing to the people of the country to come together as one and speak against the politicians who play caste politics.
“It asks people to come together or otherwise the same old shit will keep happening. The attacks shook everyone. And everyone is tired of the politicians and the dirty caste politics. We postponed releasing it because at that time everyone was talking about the same thing,” says Parikrama keyboardist, Subir Malik. Their most popular song in fact is But It Rained which was inspired by the kidnappings in the Kashmir valley.
Pentagram’s soon-to-be-released album Political Dance Party might be significant at a point when the country’s political consciousness is increasing. The recent terror attacks and the economic slowdown have affected everybody and people are more receptive to it.
“It’s a reflection of what’s happening in the world — and also what’s happening in India. It’s like political parties are showcasing their moves,” says Pentagram’s Vishal Dadlani. Pentagram has done it before too. Price of Bullets (a comment on the Kargil war) and hit single Voice were very political.
Last month Thermal And A Quarter did a concert encouraging the youth to come out and cast their vote. They composed the song Shut Up and Vote especially for the campaign. Previously, Indian Ocean has gone the whole hog with their album Black Friday. Though the band doesn’t like being referred to as a political band, many of their songs have made political statements.
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Remo Fernandes has been sort of a pioneer as far as independent artists making political comments go. His music has always reflected the socio-political happenings in India. His first album Pack That Smack was an anti-drugs themed album. Later, there was Bombay City and Politicians Don’t Know Rock N Roll which released during communally violent events such as the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi and the destruction of the Babri Masjid.
