New Music: From Tamil Pop to Fusion and Funk from Mumbai

“Picnic at the Hanging Rock” by Braja Jana

Mumbai-based sound engineer and multi-instrumentalist Krishna Purohit started playing keyboard and experimenting with a few rough demos in 2014, when he was in film school. Although a hard disk crash caused him to lose all final files for his funk project Braja Jana [Sanskrit for “people of Vrindavan”], Purohit uploaded three demos as part of his first EP I love you. Where am I? Check out the multi-hued second track “Picnic at the Hanging Rock,” a jolly tune that has the slightest tinge of yesteryear Bollywood and a bit of Beatles-esque pop.

“Faasle” by Anand Bhaskar Collective

It’s been a while since we’ve heard any new studio material from the Mumbai fusion band, who released their debut album Samsara in 2014. They recorded a live performance of new material such as “Malhar” for music TV show Music Mojo, but their first new studio material ”“ “Faasle” ”“ is a softer, calmer effort compared to their vibrant debut album. Recorded as part of short film anthology Love Shots as an accompanying music video and on the soundtrack, Bhaskar joins the likes of singer-songwriters such as Ankur Tewari, Nischay Parekh, Gaurav Dagaonkar and Shaan’s new band Superbia on the Love Shots soundtrack.

Eunoia by Harshad Shetty

The Mumbai-based post-rock artist is finally ready with his debut release Eunoia. The six-track EP follows the cinematic, trippy acoustic guitar-driven [for the most part] mood of Shetty’s first single “No Return.” Recorded by Mumbai-based producer Ayan De, the EP was mixed and mastered by Vishal J Singh, who also adds some fascinating lead sections on the second track “We Only Have What We Remember.”

“Naughty Sweetie” by Harsha Iyer

After spending nearly three years working on and off on material, Chennai-based pop artist Harsha Iyer finally took the leap and released a new single, “Style Mannanae,” last month. Luckily, there’s more where that came from, with a second single called “Naughty Sweetie” that was sent out on Iyer’s 24th birthday last week. Like “Style Mannanae,” Iyer’s new material is a marked move away only in terms of the singer trading in English for Tamil lyrics, with his serenading, dreamy pop music elements still intact.

“Make Your Stand” by GingerFeet

Still riding on high from their performance at rock and adventure sports festival MTV Indies Xtreme in Mumbai last November, Kolkata/Mumbai-based funk rockers GingerFeet are back in the game with a peppy new motivational track called “Make Your Stand.” Released as a music video as part of MTV Indies’ Unbox artist highlight series, the song shows off vocalist Abhishek Gurung’s signature highs.

Trap Machi by Ezzyland

Sidharth Ezhilan aka Ezzlyand, hip hop producer from Chennai/Dubai, continues his prolific streak, following up his 2015 EP Comfort Zone with Trap Machi. Ezzyland has got his hands on everything from future pop to ambient hip hop and, as the title suggests, trap music. Plus, he also released a split mixtape Not For Resale with Pune-based producer Dreamhour last month. If you like sliced-up beats you can move to, Ezzyland is a good bet.