Delhi-based duo Rusha & Blizza’s music is not meant for the faint-hearted. It’s one of the most ‘in your face’, chest-rattling music you will ever come across; but here’s the catch. In their explosive abilities lies an expressive narrative that they have utterly bossed since their debut, and we are stoked to have them as our ‘Artist Of The Month’ for March.
‘Experimental Future Bass’ is how they like to describe their music, but in our opinion, it goes way beyond the realms of a confined definition. Bringing influences from hip-hop, trap, dubstep and drum & bass, Rusha & Blizza fuse them with Indian ethnic elements to create an experience that is fresh, powerful and evocative.
BEGINNINGS
It all started in 2010 when the pair met in a gym in Delhi and exchanged some workout playlists with each other. What followed was a common thread of their musical influences and that is when the Rusha & Blizza journey began. The duo started with playing gigs before going into a complete hiatus to hone their craft and spent time in the studio to create music.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/700931586″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”300″ iframe=”true” /]The result of the hiatus was spectacular; the duo released their first collaborative material in 2017 with ‘Alpha Centuari’ on I AM SO HIGH Records for a hybrid Lo-Fi club-driven track. As they kept making more music, their sound grew in stature and transformed from delicate Lo-Fi inspired music to crunching trap-infused big room anthems.
THE BIG SHIFT
2020 was the year when Rusha & Blizza decided to turn the heat up and for their first release of the year, they delivered an EP after signing exclusively to Alfa Records, which raised some serious eyebrows. The 6-track ‘Mudra’ EP was a result of their persistent search of a sound that complimented by their hip-hop, trap, dubstep and drum & bass schematics, and it was done by blending Indian elements that were raw, ethnic, and twitchy.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1090091767″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”300″ iframe=”true” /]The ‘Mudra’ EP begins with ‘Atpati Tarang’, a track that kickstarts with a quirky vocal sample before rolling into a seismic peak time banger. The next tracks, ‘PashuGudwan’ and ‘Kaka’ take the same route as the opening track but lean towards a more folksy vibe with ethnic notes that ooze a dark funk swagger and a musical mood that is almost sentient.
‘Hunter Wala’ and ‘Adhunik Tandav’ bring out their love for magnetic bass fringes, while the final and title track ‘Mudra’ takes us back to the early Rusha & Blizza sound, when mellow yet profound music was their forte. The EP opened up a new sphere for Rusha & Blizza and they were keen to follow it up with a piece that would compliment their first release on Alfa Records.
In came the ‘Sutra’ EP in the same year, which was another example of the duo’s refusal to accept the notion of style boundaries. The result was 6 tracks that were directed to the club and couch at the same time, but with a musical directive that is remarkably unique.
THE NEXT CHAPTER
By now, Rusha & Blizza had built themselves a loyal fanbase that was obsessed with their unorthodox brutalist rhythms, but the duo had their route fully mapped out; a route that was a step above their previous releases and a path of soundscape storytelling which they had fully mastered.
While their previous work was an exploration of ethno-tinged and progressive music, the ‘Mudra 2’ EP which was their first release of 2021, was a more pensive work of art that had its intricate rhythmic sensibility whilst reaching the most outlandish sources of inspiration. 6 tracks with a constant mix of light and dark cloaked with futuristic yet primitive atmospheres, the EP is the duo’s best release in our opinion.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1267363330″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”300″ iframe=”true” /]The ‘Mudra 2’ EP was immediately followed up by Rusha & Blizza on Alfa Records which once again was an elevation from their previous work that resonated with the dancefloor, but at the same time, struck a resonant chord in the heart of the more thoughtful music collector.
To sum it up, Rusha & Blizza’s music is an intersection of moments of incontestable beauty which is finely honed with polyrhythmic patterns, dynamism, rhythm and textures that deliver on the promise of being fresh, cutting-edge, and swelling with bass frequencies.
This is just the beginning of the raw power and energy driven world of Rusha & Blizza. Stay tuned until we bring our next piece of this imperious duo.
