This Summer, Kozhikode Gets a Brand New Music Festival

With a generous dose of live music already pumped into the first quarter of the year, 2018 looks like a promising start for the scene in Kerala.

Last month, Kozhikode hosted the Flea Market Music Festival, while further north, Kochi saw reggae artist Ky-Mani Marley headline the two-day Mojo Rising festival. Next weekend, music fans in Calicut can gear up for Summertide Music Fest, which will take place on April 1st, featuring performances by eight bands from the south.

It’s hard to miss the flex and posters dotting the city announcing the arrival of this one-day music festival. “If all goes well, we plan to make this an annual event with bigger line-ups,” says Daya Sankar, a session drummer who currently plays for folk-rock outfit Masala Coffee. Formed in 2014, the band, which headlines the festival, is fronted by state award-winning playback singer Sooraj Santhosh.

With a fair amount of hits in their pool, including film songs and an active presence in the domestic and international gigging scene, the band has managed to reign in a fervent following with their festive radio-friendly numbers.

Other popular bands on the Summertide Music Fest roster include Bengaluru-based alternative rock trio All The Fat Children, channeling their own hefty, grungy sound called “fat rock.”

With Kochi-based James Thakara’s eponymous band Thakara, known for hits like “Puttu Pattu” as well as popular playback singer (and founder member of indie rock band Udaan) Suchith Suresan on the billing, the organizers hope to instill the diversity characterizing the festival. Says Sankar, who also runs his music school Sticks & Strings in Kozhikode, “Being a musician, I thought it is my duty to give something back to the scene.” Sankar is helming this charity festival, where all the proceeds from the ticket sales will be given to Prasanthi School, a special school catering to children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Also performing at the festival are singer-songwriter, Bennet Gideon, and Thiruvananthapuram-based multilingual, multi-genre band Cut-A-Vibe, who broke into the scene in 2014 following their performance on performance series Music Mojo on Kappa TV. The line-up is completed by homegrown acts such as the Carnatic flavored post-rock psychedelic act Fluorescent Forest and progressive rock trio The Harbingers.

Summertide Music Fest takes place on April 1st at Swapnanagiri, Kozhikode. Entry: Rs 250. Event details here.