Tails On Fire Perform At Purple Fest

Tails on Fire

On stage, Chennai alt rockers Tails On Fire seem to live upto their name. The band is known to power through high energy as they switch from rock to blues to alt rock. It may not seem very different from the sound that Chennai trio Skrat has popularized, since Skrat guitarist Sriram TT also plays guitar for Tails on Fire, but Sriram admits that Tails on Fire gives him a chance to break loose. “It’s a more homegrown kind of sound, like when we can get back to the roots and not worry about anything else,” says Sriram about playing with Tails On Fire. 

The Chennai quartet came together after an impromptu jam in 2011 and started off strong, winning the Chennai Band Hunt that year. Featuring a collective of musicians, the band comprises Karan Nair (from Substandard) on vocals, Sriram (Skrat) on guitar and siblings Jitesh Dharmaraj (Afterburn) and Ritesh Dharmaraj (from Chennai prog metal band NerveRek) on bass and drums respectively.  “In Skrat, we were always around other guys (musicians), and so it (forming this band) felt natural because of all the time we had spent jamming together already,” adds Sriram. The guitarist has found a unique way to juggle his two projects. Last month, as part of World Music Week, Sriram was seen playing for both Skrat and Tails On Fire as part of the lineup at Alliance Française of Madras. “I love this cross playing. It gets more people to come out to the gigs, even though I die in the process. The music attracts the same audience because it is high energy music, and the crowd seems to have fun and enjoy both so why not,” he adds.

The band members have found a way to balance music with day jobs. While Sriram handles marketing for Skore condoms, Nair works at an ad agency. Adds Sriram, “Jitesh is a furniture salesman in Chennai. Karan works in advertising and media while Ritesh was until recently working for the Indian Navy,” says Sriram. “The band functions as a sort of non-profit organization, where all the members contribute money from their day jobs in order to pay for the band’s requirements.”  

What can their audience expect from the gig? Sriram says, “The way we would describe our sound is madness, if you see us there is always a slight hint of madness. With Tails on Fire, the crowd is always jumping around like idiots.” The guitarist describes their track “Monkey Messiah” as “an alien monkey who comes to earth and is better than the human beings and basically says, ”˜don’t try to mess with me’.”  The track is one of the songs that will feature on their setlist at Purplefest, where they perform this Thursday. “We will do about 11 original tracks such as ”˜Superglue’, ”˜Move’ as well as ”˜Monkey Messiah,’ besides a few funny surprises in the form of covers,” says Sriram, adding that a Limp Bizkit cover may make it into their setlist.

With a collection of singles ready, the band is currently working on their debut EP, which they plan to release around September this year. “It will feature five songs plus a bonus track,” says Sriram, adding that the band also hopes to release a music video along with the EP this year.

Tails on Fire perform at The Purplefest at Ramada Egmore, Chennai on July 18th. Entry Free. For details, click here