Fancy hearing ancient Sanskrit shlokas in contemporary style? That’s exactly what Chennai-based band Yodhakaa does! The band, which features Darbuka Shiva (on drums and percussion), Pradeep (on vocals and acoustic guitar) and Susha (on vocals), is all set to present its repertoire to the music lovers of Bangalore.
Yodhakaa, meaning warriors, is the brainchild of Shiva who was the one who first starting getting the musicians together. Initially, they were into creating music from different parts of the world. But of late, the band describes their music as being rooted. “We wanted to bring in a different sound to Carnatic music and that’s when Pradeep suggested we use shlokas,” explains Susha.
“While you may think that basing our music on the shlokas may have strong reference to the stories of Hindu gods, we are not trying to propagate religion at all. Instead, this is more about celebrating our land and Indian history, as Sankskrit is the first language of our country. The album features eight songs, two of which are radio edits,” explains Susha.
Incidentally, it was Bangalorean Pranava who helped this band source the shlokas. We even have shlokas from Adi Shankara, which is said to have been composed by Ravana himself,” reveals Susha.
The band recently launched their first album (titled Yodhakaa) and is currently on a nation-wide tour to promote the same. “The album was launched on December 10, by director Gautham Menon. Purple Note of Sathyam Cinemas decided to produce our album and we had the privilege of recording it at the Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai,” says an excited Susha. Friday’s performance at Bflat, will also see guest musicians Keba Jeremiah (bass) and Donnen Murray (electric guitar) playing with Yodhakaa.
Be at Bflat, 776, II Floor, 100 Feet Road, Indiranagar, on January 14, 8pm onwards, call 42414000
