The first half of the 20th century in America was a glorious time for music. It brought the world the jazz era and then the even more tremendous age of rock 'n' roll. High-octane, virtuostic, free-thinking musicians brought their incomparable acts to their adorinf audiences, from the Stones to Elvis. That's when a young woman, Vashti Bunyan, made her way to a recording studio, with a voice, a guitar and plenty of soul. She was determined to show that all great music needed was heart. The story of Cinema of Excess strikes a similar chord, their stripped down, soulful sound is a rare find in today's world of tech-enhanced music.
That they sound like the 1980s folk band Bread, recognise the name and appreciate the compliment, sets Cinema of Excess apart from their peers. In the age where acoustic sounds and unplugged gigs are more or less limited to either the candy-sweetness of a Lucy Rose, the melancholy of Iron and Wine or the high drama of the Fleet Foxes-chamber pop clan, the sparse complexity of Cinema of Excess is a rarity indeed. Comprising Anirudh Ravi, Bharat Kashyap and Abheet Anand in a vocals-guitars-bass line-up, their debut album, Bring Back the Sound has the rare charm that makes you want to give them another listen in the quiet of your home, away from the excitement of the venue space.
Abheet Anand, the band's bassist, agrees with this; it's part of the subtext in the outfit's name, Cinema of Excess. "I was watching a video in which I came across the term being used to describe something larger than life. That's what music is, these days, what's presented is a lot larger than what's actually going on."
Indie artists, perhaps due to the vagaries of making a living through art, navigate their way from contradicting the demands of Bollywood, to hoping they do so well enough to be noticed. "As far as we're concerned, this isn't just about conforming to a popular sound. We do the music we love. Our influences are Iron and Wine, John Mayer and Jack Johnson!"
Much of this rests on the songwriting talents of Anirudh Ravi, the band's vocalist and guitarist. "He does it all, the songs,the lyrics - they all come from him. He also has a very distinct voice," says Abheet, who appears largely content with singing his bandmate's praises.
The trio go back a long way, with Anirudh and Bharat playing together back in school. "They're different from me in that sense, they're very serious musicians who eat, sleep and breathe music." Anirudh and Abheet were old friends and when the latter was asked to play bass for the band, he agreed at once. "We all have our own projects and do this one together. It isn't our main source of livelihood, which allows us to stick with the sound that appeals to us, too."
The band is often teased for the romanticism of their lyrics, which come from Anirudh. "He laughs it off, saying he isn't cheesy enough to write about actual girls," Abheet chuckles. "It's about the emotion involved, though. That's the point, to strike a chord in our audience. And we do, because so far, they have been wonderful!"
What: Cinema of Excess
When: June 28, 8 pm
Where: The Humming Tree, 1st Floor, 12th Main Road, Indiranagar
