India Rock Weekend, Day 2: Pentagram + Sky Rabbit

Published by

April 12, 2012

Pentagram

India Rock Weekend: Day 2
Sky Rabbit and Pentagram, April 7th, Blue Frog, Mumbai

Sky Rabbit

Late Saturday evening, as Mumbai battled the increasingly muggy summer night, the lines outside the Blue Frog were conspicuous by their absence, odd for a place that’s usually as packed as a Virar local at peak hours. It was a quiet that didn’t last very long. The second day of India Rock Weekend, Blue Frog’s answer to the Sunburn festival happening over the same weekend, kicked off with a mellow set by local favorites Sky Rabbit. Sky Rabbit, formerly known as Medusa, eased their crowd into their set with gig staples “Anti-Coke Ganpati,” “I Become I” and “Hilltop.” Sky Rabbit’s sets are known for their absolutely laid-back vibe, but on their recently released self-titled album the band upped the ante with lush, dynamic reworkings of songs that they’ve essentially been playing for years. If there was any doubt about whether the band could pull off the same treatment live, this gig very pleasantly laid those doubts to rest. Here the songs were richer, with the synth strings adding lush depth to their hooky melodies, helped tremendously by vocalist Raxit Tiwari’s punchy delivery.

But as the evening wore on and the crowd really began pouring in, it was obvious that this was going to be Pentagram’s night. The band played Mumbai in December 2011, and it had been a whopping four years since they played at the Blue Frog, and the anticipation
was understandably high.

There was no easing into Pentagram’s setlist. The band exploded on stage with “Drive” and immediately laid into songs from their latest album Bloodywood before the crowd could draw a breath. The relentlessly percussive “Identify” and “Lovedrug Climbdown” got an uproarious reception but it was the quintessentially Mumbai beat of “Tomorrow’s Decided” that really kicked things off. While the band did play songs off their older records, interestingly it was their latest material that drew the loudest cheers. It was easily one of the band’s loudest gigs, one that could have rivaled most metal shows for their level of brutality.

Post a much-needed break the band broke out the jams. Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall” met the Chemical Brothers’ “Block Rockin Beats” while Pentagram fanboy and Scribe vocalist Vishwesh Krishnamoorthy joined the band for an interesting rendition of Rage Against the Machine’s “Bulls on Parade” and a slamming cover of the Prodigy’s “Smack My Bitch Up.” As the bruised, battered crowd made their way out of the Frog it was clear that Spud in the Box and Junkyard Groove would have to work impossibly hard to top Day Two of India Rock Weekend.

India Rock Weekend, Day 3: Junkyard Groove + Spud In The Box

Photos: India Rock Weekend

Deepti Unni