A Guide To Blue Frog’s Singer-Songwriter Night

Ayush Shrestha. Photo: Siddharth Vishwanath.

If, like us, you’re usually stuck at work or driving back from the office at 7.30pm on most week days, then, like us, you’ve probably never made it to Blue Frog to catch one of their “early sets”, comprising hour-long performances by upcoming singer-songwriters. This Wednesday, April 4, you will get a chance to finally watch some of those musicians at the Lower Parel club’s special singer-songwriter night, which is scheduled to go on until 11.30pm. We spoke to each of the seven guys and two girls who will take the stage to find out what we can expect:

RACHIT LAKHMANI
Age: 20.
Day job: Student at Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune.
Influenced by: The Beatles and Bob Dylan.
How would you describe your sound? “I play the harmonica and acoustic guitar in addition to singing. [My sound] is contemporary but it’s got a feel of the ’60s and ’70s, it’s folkish with a bit of country.”
What do your songs tend to be about?
“They’re about society and what we see around us. For instance, ‘Oh Politics’ is about corruption and references the Anna Hazare movement.”
Listen to him here: YouTube.

JARED DIAS
Age: 33.
Day job: Music teacher at Holy Family School, Andheri (East), and resident musician at Bistro Grill in Juhu and at Flavours restaurant at [the Grand] Hometel in Malad.
Influenced by: Everyone from Elvis Presley and Jim Reeves to Enrique Iglesias and Maroon 5.
How would you describe your sound?
“I don’t write my own songs, I improvise on existing songs by mouth trumpeting [imitating the sound of the trumpet from my mouth]. I also perform medleys of English and Hindi songs that have a similar rhythm. For example, I combine ‘Te Amo’ [from Dum Maaro Dum] with ‘Stand By Me’, and ‘Aint No Sunshine’ with ‘Dil Kya Kare’.”

SAVERA MEHTA
Age: 22.
Day job: Full-time musician, in the middle of recording his debut album, which should be out in the next five or six weeks.
Influenced by: Feist, Kings of Convenience, Bjork, Frank Sinatra and Ray Charles.
How would you describe your sound?
“Most people say it’s soulful, I don’t know what to call it. They say there’s lot of influence of Bon Iver.”
What do your songs tend to be about?
“Almost all the time, I end up writing about experiences that I’ve had, my travel experiences, my friends and family.”
Listen to him here: Myspace.com/saveramehta

NAYANTARA BHATKAL
Age: 22.
Day job: Student at G. J. Advani Law College in Bandra.
Influenced by: Etta James and Nina Simone.
How would you describe your sound?
“I suppose you could call it indie. It’s sort of like a simple, acoustic sound which focuses on the voice more than anything else.”
What do your songs tend to be about?
“So far, I’m still in the emotions/my life space. Eventually I want to write the way Ani DiFranco does. She sings about worker’s issues and the political economy of America.”
Listen to her here: YouTube.

AYUSH SHRESTHA
Age: 27.
Day job: Music teacher at the BMC schools run by the NGO Muktangan.
Influenced by: “I listen to a vast variety of artists, currently it’s Raul Midon, John Mayer and Scottish singer-songwriter Karine Pollwart. A lot of people say some of my songs sound like Jack Johnson’s.”
How would you describe your sound?
“It’s very basic, minimal, and melodic, just guitar and voice. It’s got an eclectic mix of pop, ballads, folk and blues.”
What do your songs tend to be about?
“Mostly about things that you get to see in your day-to-day life, [like] a strange person you meet at the station or an incident on the street. Recently I wrote a song about a pigeon living outside my window.”
Listen to him here: Reverbnation.com/ayushlive.

ALISHA PAIS
Age: 19
Day job: Music teacher at The Big Umbrella pre-school. Also studying for a BA in literature through correspondence.
Influenced by: Folk, rock, alternative and electronic acts, from Ani DiFranco and Melissa Etheridge, to Goldfrapp, Florence + The Machine, and Morcheeba.
How would you describe your sound?
“It’s contemporary, slightly mellow.”
What do your songs tend to be about?
“The main thing about most of my songs is that they are very conversational. I’m singing to somebody as opposed to singing about things.”
Listen to her here: YouTube.

ROHAN RAJADHYAKSHA, ANKIT DAYAL AND VIVAAN KAPOOR
Ages: Rajadhyaksha, 18; Dayal, 20; Kapoor, 19.
Day job: B. A. students at Jai Hind College.
Influenced by: The Beatles, The Eagles, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Dave Matthews Band, Radiohead, Coldplay, Keane, Kishori Amonkar, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Damien Rice, Leonard Cohen, Mumford and Sons.
How would you describe your sound?
“The songs Rohan and I write and perform in our acoustic sets are more subtle and personal than the songs we perform in our band,” said Dayal who along with Rajadhyaksha and Kapoor forms half of the pop-rock group Spud In The Box. At Blue Frog tonight, Rajadhyaksha and Dayal, who both sing, will play the keyboards and acoustic guitar respectively, while Kapoor, who is Spud In The Box’s drummer, will play the djembe.
What are your songs about?
“The [acoustic] songs tend to be about personal events in our lives, almost like storytelling to a crowd. For instance, ‘Ordinary Day’ is about not being appreciative of sympathy and being sick of sympathy from a certain person [whereas] one of our band songs, ‘Use Your Words’ is more general, [it’s] about frustration and how people can’t seem to say what’s on their mind to other people’s faces.”
Listen to them here: soundcloud.com/spudinthebox

Blue Frog

LocationMathuradas Mills Compound
Opposite Kamala Mills
Tulsi Pipe Road
Lower Parel

Phone6158 6158

Relevant DatesWednesday, April 4

Hours7.30pm onwards

Ticketing & Price InfoRs300 (after 9pm)

Websitewww.bluefrog.co.in