Gig review/:Perfect Strangers

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR

An Evening With Perfect Strangers

Genre: Indie/ rock-fusion

Details; NMACC Cube, May 24

Rating: ****

With Bengaluru band Perfect Strangers, one can never tell when jazz blends with rock, and funk mingles with pop. The music seamlessly moves from one style to another, as two vocalists are accompanied by electric guitar, keyboards, saxophone, bass and a hyperactive set of drums.

In a departure from their regular practice of playing to a talkative standing crowd at alcohol-drenched nightclubs, they performed for a disciplined and focussed sit-down bunch at the NMACC Cube on Sunday. And they seemed to enjoy every bit of the 90-minute set. 

Vocalists Ananya Raja and Pranav DM coordinated perfectly, with the former having more of the singing share. The group's founder, guitarist Debjeet Basu, played some smooth solos, and keyboardists Joshua Costa and saxophonist Pranay Gulvady chipped in with neat inputs. Bassist Vishal Varier and drummer Preran Gulvady firmed up the rhythm section. The current line-up has settled down after a few changes over the years. 

Barring the cover of Michael Jackson's 'Human Nature', it was a set filled with originals. The group began with 'Breaking Away' and 'Selfie' from the 2018 album A Strange Connection,  before getting into later singles like the crowd favourite 'On The Wild Side' and 'City Of Heartache'. 

They moved back to the older album with 'Blow Up Doll' and 'Valerie', with vocalist Pranav dominant on the latter, and then got into the newer songs 'Honey Words' and 'Sandcastles'. Debjeet then referred to the stickers placed on each chair, and described how they could purchase the new EP Honey Words through the printed QR code. 

'Just For Gigs' had some nimble work on the keys and drums. For the last two tracks 'Eyes Up' and 'Shout!', Ananya had the crowd singing along. She also displayed a good sense.of humour, besides thanking everyone for being an attentive audience.

In Mumbai, Perfect Strangers have earlier performed at the Stables, Andheri East, and G5A, Mahalaxmi. Each venue has had a different ambience, but the change didn't sound perfectly strange to them, as they took a walk on the wild side.




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