Gig Review: Unohu, Blek and The Riot Peddlers at Todi Mill Social, Mumbai

College alt-rockers Unohu, who kicked off the show, have earned a lot of indie cred in the past few months.

At a time when most gigs in Mumbai are dominated by electronic dance music, last night witnessed an all-punk/indie-rock gig at the city’s hippest new venue, Todi Mill Social. Called #SocialIndie, the show’s lineup consisted of alt-rock trio Unohu and punk bands Blek and The Riot Peddlers.

Although they’re still largely a ”˜college band,’ Unohu have earned a lot of indie cred in the past few months thanks to their punchy sound. This gig saw the band — comprising self-taught siblings Sarthak Karkare and Shashwat Karkare on vocals/guitars and drums respectively and Yohann Coutinho on bass ”“ performing a vehement set. Never mind the unfunny and banal introduction, Unohu managed to send the mostly under-age [and sober] college crowd into a tizzy with their tight set. The band skipped tracks from their first EP, giving even their hit “Parachutes” a miss, and switched between mellow and faced-paced new numbers such as “Inferno” and “Nowhere to Go.”

Punk-rockers Blek upped the energy, causing mini mosh pits to break out in the tiny standing area.

Blek delivered a terrific set [Good job replacing the laptop with pedals] and managed to get the audience to their feet with “MDMA,” their hit sing-along track that vocalist Rishi Bradoo nailed that evening. The energy on stage was infectious, causing a mini mosh pit to break out in the tiny standing area. Apart from playing tracks from their first EP, the band tested waters with new songs from their sophomore offering that is due next month. Ever the quirky act on stage, Blek also treated everyone to good humor [“How many folks here are under twenty one?” asked bassist Jared Juan Creado] and a brand new track titled “Composure”, which the band plans to release as a single. Apart from Bradoo and Creado, Blek features Linford D’souza on drums, along with Siddharth Shankar, who played session guitars for the gig.

The Riot Peddlers returned to stage after almost two years of inactivity.

The final act for the evening, The Riot Peddlers stole the show with their brash set, despite having been off the gig circuit for almost two years. Considered too heavy for alternative rock and too mellow for metal, the punk-rock trio of Arun S Ravi on vocals, Ashwin Dutt on drums and Animesh Das on bass were in best form as they played crowd favorites such as “Sarkasm” and “Platform No. 3.” The mini mosh pit got rowdier on “Sau Rupaiya” and “Chai Paani.”

With good acoustics and inexpensive food and drinks on offer, Todi Mill Social makes for a good venue. The warehouse-inspired décor only adds to the underground ”˜vibe.’ Here’s looking forward to more punk gigs there.

All photographs by Swati Parwani