Kolkata enjoyed a musical evening this sunday at Forever Poetry, as the venue hosted the city’s very own homegrown indie music series: Parklife. Forever Poetry, the tattoo studio run by Anirban Roy Choudhury has become a hotspot for musicians, artists, poets, art curators and enthusiasts alike.
The lineup saw a few familiar faces from the music scene, including Annie & Ator, River Julia, Shireen Ghosh, and Biki & His Buddies. The evening started off with heartfelt poetry by the evening’s host, Ishita. Performing her poem ‘Shondhey’ she took us on a nostalgic journey as she paid her respect to loved ones on the other side of life.
Annie & Ator – Singer-Songwriter / Pop
Trained in Hindustani classical, the duo seemed proficient in belting out numbers that kept the audience hooked. The first song, ‘Bondhu Hobar Gaan’ was an ode to friendship and presented a beautiful blend of bengali contemporary pop with the usual Annie & Ator charm. The sisters made brilliant use of vocal harmonies to accentuate certain sections of their performance, and finally set the mood with ‘Butterfly Fly Away.’ A song that was inspired by Miley Cyrus’s Hannah Montanna as the character struggled with life on her path to self discovery. The song ended with the crowd singing along in a memorable crescendo.
A sheer demonstration of vocal proficiency, the performance was a blend of poetry and music and indeed became a moving and emotionally enthralling act. ‘Jot Badhar Gaan,’ an upbeat anthem displayed daring and progressive songwriting. This multilingual number was an example of musical brilliance as the stereo field was studded with distorted guitars, groovy basslines, tabla and even a killer guitar solo. The duo sealed their set with a medley rendition of Farewell Angelina by Bob Dylan and Bidaye Porichito by Kabir Suman.
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River Julia – Dream Pop / Shoegaze
River Julia is the ambient electronica project by Prajna and Spandan that is characterized by endless delays, reverberating vocal textures and dreamlike soundscapes. The duo kicked off their set with ‘Something Blue’ off their debut record of the same name. Their sophomore live performance was adorned with a hilarious mic drop moment along with an array of technical glitches. But that did not stop River Julia from pulling of a tight set for the evening. Something Blue’s ambient soundscape and haunting vocals set the tone for the rest of the performance. Spandan’s minimalist guitar playing perfectly complimented Pragna’s subtle vocal modulations, making River Julia a force to be reckoned with.
Next came ‘Whisper,’ a song with self-proclaimed ‘feel good vibes.’ The song reminded me of acts like Death Cab for Cutie and Massive Attack. The dream-pop/ shoegaze outfit did not shy away from venturing into realms of psychedelia and post rock. The last song ‘Butterfly’ was inspired by heartbreak and was a slow sailing track that touches your soul with a sense of distant longing.
“All artists want some sort of validation,” said Pragna while explaining the band’s songwriting approach to the audience. “People liked our tracks but we were like… we don’t know if we like it. So we decided to make songs which we liked,” continued the singer, “we should be true to ourselves. We shouldn’t forget that we are doing this because we like doing this”
Shireen – Experimental
One quarter of the Alternative Folk band Whale in the Pond, Shireen Ghosh played an experimental set at Forever Poetry. The producer/multi-instrumentalist played after a hiatus and left the audience mesmerized with her performance. Her set included a rather educative section as she demonstrated the use of contact microphones and also explained how a musician’s static pitch shall change his or her perception of the harmonic bed of the composition.
For the second segment of her set, she was accompanied by violinist Bharat. Bharat’s gorgeous violin melody was brought to life as Shireen juggled the Kalimba, Guitarlele, and Melodica. “I currently reside in a world that’s extremely charted. But something I didn’t have the chance to do is to not know what you’re doing – this was an exercise in that,” stated the artist.
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Biki & His Buddies – Folk / Alternative
The singer-songwriter and arts practice researcher from the city of joy, Sarbik Guha took the stage with his buddy Aritro Ghosh on guitars. Starting the set with ‘Hibernate,’ Biki elucidated how the track’s origin can be traced back to his school days. The song was a dark alternative rock number that set the tone for the rest of the show. This was followed by ‘Catharsis’ which was written as an ode to changing seasons at the onset of spring, and it brought a sense of respite to the set.
Biki chose Parkife at Forever Poetry to be the venue where he played his unreleased tracks to a close-knit audience, and to much critical acclaim. “Music is a means to expose unjustice,” declared Biki as he moved on to his next track ‘Cease Fire Now’. The track was written in solidarity with Palestine and has already won countless hearts, when he performed it at various protest rallies in Limerick, Ireland.
Other tracks by Biki & His Buddies included ‘Lighthouse’ inspired by difficult times while staying abroad as his family struggled with illness. The sheer sense of helplessness to not have the money to go back home when something went wrong made him feel like “a lonely lighthouse on a stormy sea,” he said. Sarbik closed his set with ‘Gloomy Sunday Mornings’ for which he was joined on stage by his sister Aishwari on vocals, leading to a wholesome closing act.
In conclusion, the final leg of Parklife witnessed a successful turnover and is expected to return with more exciting news and new independent acts from the Kolkata scene. Follow Parklife on Instagram for the latest updates.
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An entity of flesh and bones in pursuit of becoming a higher being. A connoisseur of the mystic arts and everything musical. His origins are unknown, and so are his true motives.
