Music Malt | culture, festivals and more

ChaiTunes presents Xaare Aasu featuring Queen Hazarika & Jim Ankan Deka Are you among those who are fascinated by the tea drinking culture in India? From the Masala Chai kettles of street vendors in Varanasi to sipping black tea in grandma's courtyards in Assam, from the aroma of Darjeeling’s orthodox tea to political debates and clay cups in Kolkata – the culture of drinking tea has an almost sacred status in India. It is perhaps as deep rooted as the culture of music in our beautiful country. In the farthest corners of India, no occasion is complete without music; lullabies, weddings, festivals, simple merriment and even mourning – a few symphonic notes are bound to linger around. With that in mind, we, the Music Malt team (a part of Eastern Fare Music Foundation by the way) wondered what if we could club the two cultures and create something amazing for the tea and music lovers. “It’s been done before”, we told each other. So what was it that we could bring to the

Recently, Songdew in association with Renault presented the ' Free The Music Award 201 5' to some of the bands and musicians from Karnataka in recognition of their outstanding contribution to indie music. The event was held at Hard Rock Cafe, Bangalore on April 23, 2015. Bands and musicians which include Lagori, Solder, Aabha Hanjura-Sufistication, Aathma, Until We Last, Spaghettify, Space Behind The Yellow Room, Clown WiTh a Frown, Jim Ankan Deka, Brodha V, Gubbi, Agam, Onenightstand, Among The Signs, Thermal and a Quarter and Inner Sanctum, received the awards from renowned artist Baiju Dharmajan who was also the chief guest of the event. Prior to the award ceremony, performances by Big Deal, Soul Inclination, Mahesh Raghunandan and Baiju Dharmajan took the audience in Hard Rock Cafe by storm. Here are few moments from the event. Courtesy - Songdew on Facebook . Aabha Hanjura receiving the Free The Music Award Space Behind The Yellow Room receiving the Free The M

Alt-J Alternate rock sensation, Alt- J took the music enthusiasts by storm on their first visit to India in  February 2015. Fans have been spell bound by the charm and beats of Alt- J ever since. Their live- set performance at Emerge Music Festival in Bangalore got sold out within minutes of the tickets going on air with more than xxx music lovers attending the event. On popular demand, Viacom 18 is delighted to announce a welcome return of Alt- J to India this summer as part of the Emerge festival. Viacom 18 has always gone that extra mile to introduce and connect music enthusiasts and art lovers with their interests by providing the right platform. They are committed to provide an experience that is memorable as well as entertaining. Viacom 18 values and understands the fans that missed out on ALT-J in Gurgaon last month due to the rains. Thus, ensuring that they get another chance to experience the alt rock sensation, Viacom 18 brings Alt – J to Gurgaon on 21 st  of May 2015 an

North-East India is very rich in music, dance, tradition and culture. All the eight states of North-East India have something to offer for rock music lovers. Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, is also known as 'Rock Capital of India'. Some of the festivals promoting rock music of the region like Hornbill Festival of Nagaland and Ziro Festival of Music in Arunachal Pradesh are quite famous among music lovers. The region gave birth to many well known and respected Rock bands since the 60's. We have compiled a list of 16 (sixteen) comparatively new bands we love listening to all the time. Of course, there are various other bands apart from these sixteen bands who have made their mark on the Rock music scenario of India. We will post about those bands in our next segment. The Vinyl Records (Arunachal Pradesh) | photo: Facebook The Vinyl Records (Arunachal Pradesh) - Formed in February 2010, The Vinyl Records is an All-girl Rock band. They have performed in well

 Litmus Festival 2015 | April 18-19, 2015 Event - Litmus Festival 2015  WHEN April 18-19, 2015 WHERE Bangalore The Humming Tree, Indira Nagar | Bricklane Grill, Indira Nagar | Kitschdii, Indira Nagar | For more info Click Here Entry Free (Limited seats) CONTACT Phone : (+91) 022 2648 3164 | 022 2648 3165 Email : litmus15@foryoungindia.com MORE INFO AT www.litmusfestival.com INFORMATION Akash Anand and his literature artwork (Litmus 2014) Organized by FYI (For Young India), Litmus presents a combination of panel discussions, performances and workshops for its audience. The overarching aim of this lit-fest is to celebrate the ‘Word’ in all its forms, with sessions on varied topics, such as graphic storytelling, censorship, feminist literature, new-age authors, etc. HIGHLIGHTS Bombay Jazz - a semi–autobiographical musical play at The Humming Tree on 18th April, 7:15 pm to 8:30 pm. Lavs - a dance performance at The Humming Tree on 19th April, 6:10 pm to 6:20 pm. Still

Composed by Bangalore based Assamese musician Jim Ankan Deka, 'Xaare Aasu' is an Assamese song based on poems by late Bhabananda Deka and late Nalini Prava Deka. The love themed song will be sung by renowned singer from Assam, Queen Hazarika. The music video is directed by Parmita Borah, a Bangalore based flash fiction writer. The song will be released as a tribute to the Assamese couple Bhabananda Deka and Nalini Prava Deka. The lyrics of Xaare Aasu is taken from two separate poems written by the couple and edited by Jim. Queen Hazarika, known for her timeless earthy voice, had worked with Jim previously on a song - Aawaz - based on the infamous 'Delhi gang rape' incident. The song created quite a buzz and was able to pick multiple national and international awards at different music and film festivals. Singing for more than three decades, Queen's soulful and beautiful voice has been adored by many. This will be Jim's third Assamese song and music vid