Big Scary To Perform In Mumbai

Photo: Monisha Ajgaonkar

Rock duos have been trendy ever since The White Stripes hit it big in the late Nineties, but the American blues rockers never really hit the spot on stage. Outside the studio without Auto-Tune at hand, a performance can be a daunting task. American garage rock band, The Black Keys, opt for a backing band when they perform and although they aren’t in the same league, indie rock duo Big Scary that got together in Melbourne in 2006 manages to make the guitar/keyboard-drums combination a compelling sight at their gigs.

Big Scary’s Tom Iansek [guitars, vocals, piano] and Joanna Syme [drums, backing vocals] perform on November 7th at Hard Rock Café in Mumbai as part of the Oz Fest, the music diplomacy event of the year organized by Australia International Cultural Council. The duo gigs in Mumbai soon after their performance at Bacardi NH7 Weekender in Pune. What became evident at their Weekender show was their energy, and Iansek’s ability to make one guitar sound like two with songs such as “Gladiator,” from their 2011 album Vacation. The soulful, quiet song from 2010’s The Big Scary Four Seasons “Thinking About You” became the perfect soundtrack for the rapt crowd that lounged around as they watched the band perform. Syme’s machine gun-drumming on songs such as “Autumn” and the eerie “Got It, Lost It” was moody and vigorous, yet complemented the band’s dreamy compositions.

 At Hard Rock Café, Big Scary are likely to play a shorter, modified set, since they are sharing the stage at HRC with other Aussie artists such as prog rockers Karnivool, house DJs the Aston Shuffle, afrobeat stars Jinja Safari and indie pop band Sheppard.

 Big Scary perform with The Aston Shuffle, Sheppard, Jinja Safari and Karnivool as part of Aussie BBQ, Oz Fest at Hard Rock Café, Mumbai. Entry: Rs 500

 Big Scary also perform at Shroom in Delhi on November 10th, and at CounterCulture Bengaluru on November 11th. Details here.

Watch them perform “Falling Away” here