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A weekend of jazz

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Greg Banaszak Trio Genre : Jazz  Details : Experimental Theatre, August 22 Rating: **** 1/2 Joe Alvares with Gino Banks & Friends Genre : Vocal jazz Details : Prithvi Theatre, August 23 Rating : **** Two venues hosting jazz concerts in Mumbai had contrasting types of audiences over the weekend. Senior citizens were prominent at the Experimental Theatre, NCPA, where saxophonist Greg Banaszak played with his trio on Saturday evening. The following morning, a sizeable number of youngsters were seen at the Prithvi Theatre, where veteran singer Joe Alvares performed with musicians much younger than him. On the one hand, it was a good sign to indicate that jazz appeals to different generations, at least in Mumbai. Both the shows were dominated by standards and older jazz tunes, with a few originals thrown in. But what one observed is a marked difference in the way the audience responded. The older crowd at the Experimental applauded spontaneously after every ...
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Concert review/ Resonances by Ronojit Bhuyan & Giacomo Tora

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Ronojit Bhuyan & Giacomo Tora/ Resonances Genre : Western classical piano Details : The Cube, NMACC, August 20 Rating : **** Pianists Ronojit Bhuyan and Giacomo Tora (on left in picture) met while studying at London's Trinity Labon Conservatory of Music & Dance. After becoming friends, they decided to form a musical partnership. One thing led to another, and on Thursday, they performed several pieces individually before coming together on a fresh arrangement involving four hands. The show was called Resonances and the venue was the Cube theatre of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre, Mumbai. The repertoire comprised a good mix of baroque music, Romantic Era pieces, a waltz and French impressionist compositions. And the audience was in for a surprise when Giacomo played a piano version of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy's Hindi film song 'Kal Ho Naa Ho'. And for the four-hand finale، the young Italian pianist had composed a piano arrangement of A.R. Ra...
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Naren's indie round-up/ Aug 2026, Ep 2

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR   Farak/ Taare Language & genre: Hindi, Sufi-pop Label: Mashooriya, Mass Appeal Rating: *** 1/2 Lucknow-based artiste Farak is out with his three-song EP Duniya Ke Uss Paar.  His sound uses many traditional elements including qawwali, but he also displays flavours of hip-hop and desi rap. 'Taare' is the video song from the EP. It begins, "Hamara thokro se kuch purana khaas naata, hai jisne ishq hi dekha na, woh rab ka dulara hai". There's a brief poetry interlude, and Saswat Balan provides backing vocals. 10A's production uses harmonium effectively, and there are sounds of clapping and applause to give a live effect. The video, by Sahil Akhtar, uses a simple narrative, with Rupali Mishra as the female lead. It's an average video but the tune's hook and lilt make up. Anvaya/ Churaya  Language & genre: Hindi, electronic dance Label: Indo Warehouse  Rating: *** 1/2 DJ-producer duo Anvaya comprises US-bred Kaushal and Sonia, who ...
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Various artistes/ Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience / Various artistes Genre ; Blues Label : Ground Zero Blues Club Media/ Universal Music  Rating : ***** Though he's primarily known as an actor, Morgan Freeman is also recognised for his passion for the blues. In 2001, he started the Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and in his latest project, he brings together some stellar artistes from the genre to present blues anthems with a symphonic touch. As a performer, Freeman hardly appears in Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience , a 12-track album running into a brisk 43 minutes. He recites a short introduction to the history and role of the blues in the opening track 'Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground' before singer Keith Johnson takes over. Then on, we hear a wonderful line-up of artistes, with accompaniment by the Ground Zero Blues Club Band and the Chineke! Orchestra conducted by Martin Gellner. In the Indian context, wh...
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Naren's indie round-up/ Aug 2026, Ep 1

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR  Runway Historia/ Like No Tomorrow Language & genre: English, fusion rock Label: Self-released  Rating: *** 1/2 I recently heard Pune hard rock band Runway Historia play Guns N' Roses and AC/ DC covers at Mumbai's AntiSocial, opening for Teemeer Chimulkar's Sceptr3. They also did their original 'Like No Tomorrow'. The song was released in June, and what's interesting is that a sitar has been added to the hard rock sound. Vocalist Rons Thakur sings, "And we go, we go, we go at it like no tomorrow". The band has composer-lyricist Varun Singh on guitars and bass and Anshuman Walia on guitars, besides guests Stavya on sitar and Deep Menon on drums. The video shows them live in.a studio with Aarum on bass and Ranveer Singh on drums. The 'sitar aur guitar' jam lends some variety to this burst of energy. Peep Peep & Akash/ Tipsy Topsy Tears Language & genre: English, ballad Label: Self-released  Rating: **** Preeti Kuber...
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OTT music review/ Musafir Café

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Musafir Café/ OTT soundtrack  Music : Garvit-Priyansh, Raghav Kaushik, Neel Adhikari  Genre : Hindi OTT Label : Netflix Music/ T-Series  Rating : *** 1/2 Did Sudha (Vedika Pinto) do the right thing? Should Chander (Vikrant Massey) have gone to the hills? Poor Preeti (Mahima Makwana). The storyline and cast of Ruchir Arun's Netflix series Musafir Café seems to be the hot discussion these days - till something else comes up. What many people are not talking about is the music. And that's what this blog will focus on. After a while, here's an OTT soundtrack with some meat. What's interesting is that besides the original songs, the producers have released an album of Unplugged versions. Given the series theme, the songs deal with love or heartbreak. The lyrics, divided between Aniket Shukla and Amrita Saluja, are particularly impressive, matching the moods and situations in the narrative. They are backed by simple compositions, with well-layered harmonie...
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Naren's indie round-up/ July 2026, Ep 3

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BY NARENDRA KUSNUR Vernon D'Souza/ Lay Down With Me  Language & genre: English, pop-rock Label: Self-released  Rating: **** 1/2 Singer Vernon D'Souza has been a regular performer on Mumbai's live circuit. He has earlier released the song 'Gypsy On The Run' and now comes out with the anti-war number 'Lay Down With Me'. Interestingly, the self-directed video begins with a short clip of boxing legend Muhammad Ali. The opening words are, "I can see them tearing at the night sky, they're slowly painting all our cities red, they pit you and I against each other, knowing that we both will end up dead". Hard-hitting! The video uses symbolic motifs like a masked man (played by Tuhin), a chess board and scenes depicting destruction. Produced by Paul Indian, the song falls in the pop-rock space, with some wonderful guitar parts. Overall, an excellent and timely piece. Noush!/ Snakes & Ladders Language & genre: English, Latino-pop/ dance Label:...
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