Where is TAAQ headed?
Music, as singer Cee Lo famously said, is a marriage between the singer and the song. And Thermal And A Quarter, a top-rated Indie rock band, have been enjoying this marital bliss for the past 14 years! The band comprising Bruce Lee Mani (vocals/guitar), Rajeev Rajagopal (drums) and Prakash K.N. (bass), left for an international tour that will conclude on March 29.
TAAQ’s first album was cut in 2000 at a cost of just `1,000. Their fourth album, launched at the International Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta in 2009, cost 700 times that much. The band also has four studio albums supporting the likes of Deep Purple and Jethro Tull, among numerous other concerts across India and the UK, under their belt.
Their current tour is the result of an invitation by the La Bella Strings, one of America’s oldest and largest manufacturers of fine strings. “The tour is a big deal for us because we will be playing for an American audience, and not an Indian audience abroad. Moreover, it’s usually Bollywood music that is played abroad. Therefore, our gig certainly opens venues for other artistes too,” says Bruce.
Are they apprehensive about people’s reactions? “Actually, it’s being on time for our flights that we are worried about. There are so many to catch,” he laughs.
TAAQ describes its music as “Bengaluru Rock”, a sound as unique as the city itself. It’s been a long journey for a band that started out from the jam room of Christ College. “I have known Rajeev for 16 years. We started together in college. Prakash, on the other hand, is the baby of the family. He’s been a band member for the past two years,” says Bruce.
Titled 3 Wheels and 9 Lives, Bruce explains the reason behind the theme of the tour, “If you look at the poster, you’ll see three men atop an auto… something very synonymous with the Bengaluru culture. Also, 3 Wheels and 9 Lives is a line from our new song,” concludes Bruce Lee.
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