Gig review/ Namo Fusion

 

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR

Namo Fusion

Genre: Fusion

Details: Indus Club BKC, December 3

Rating: ***

In August 2019, the group Namo Fusion released its debut album Namo. Started by violinist Narayan Raman with guitarist Sarosh Izedyar, it has been one of the better releases in the genre over the past five years, despite being an extension of the L. Subramaniam and early Shakti sound.

To promote the release, Namo Fusion had shows at Stables (Andheri East), Press Club (Azad Maidan) and Indus Club (BKC). The album, containing five tracks and a reprise of the title tune, was appreciated by critics, though it got lost in the clutter of streaming platform content. With the lockdown from March 2020, the chance to do more shows in other cities was lost too.

The group returned to Indus Club last week, though Izedyar is no longer in the line-up. Accompanying Raman (wearing blazer in above picture) were vocalists Vidya Harikrishna, Siva Prasad N.N. and Priyanshi Shah, guitarist Abhishek S., keyboardist George Joseph, bassist Schubert Fernandes, drummer Ramesh Krishnamurthy, tabla exponent Bhushan Parchure and mridangam Sriraam Subbaraman.

From the line-up, with three vocalists included, it would be evident that the band would deviate from the sound one heard in the album. But then, this show was held to flag off the venue's Skye Studio series, which will feature different acts performing Sufi, Bollywood, rock, jazz, anything under the sun... oops moon.

On a starless, starless night, the Namo Fusion set list was a mix of experimental and popular, though one hoped they would play more tunes from their album. But it was a small crowd of invitees and club members, and Bollywood becomes a necessity at such places.

The originals thus included 'Namo', based on raag Saramati, 'Freedom', set in raag Karnaranjni, and 'Air Waves', inspired by the old All India Radio signature tune, but with fresh passages. The last-mentioned track will be used in the group's second album.

There were some gimmicky surprises too - fun for the general listener. The intro of Pink Floyd's 'Shine On' segued into 'Raghupati Raghav'. One suddenly heard ABBA and Boney M mash up in the middle of R.D. Burman and A.R. Rahman. However, the sound was erratic, even snapping off somewhere in the middle.

On the positive side, the percussion jam and a couple of L. Subramaniam compositions 'Indian Express' and 'Motherland' were fabulously rendered. One, of course, wished they played the unique 'Happy Kalimba' from their debut album.

Come to think of it, the 2019 record would be worth exploring or re-exploring. And just in case you're wondering, the name 'Namo' is inspired by the Sanskrit word for greeting. Any resemblance to any person is purely coincidental.