Indie music rose in India during the pandemic. It is thanks to artists like Karsh Kale, Midival Punditz, Arjun Vagale, Ram Sampath, Nucleya, etc that electronic music has finally become more popular than ever.
OAFF
OAFF is leading the way when it comes to electronic music in India at the moment.
Kabeer Kathpalia, aka OAFF, composes music for the subtler moments in life. As OAFF, he produces and composes vocal and instrumental music that straddles the line between ambient electronica and feel-good pop.
Spotify India has featured his single, “So Good” as part of its Radar India initiative, which promotes the country’s most exciting undiscovered talent.
Along with his independent releases, Kathpalia has created immersive audio installations in Asia, Europe, and the US. He has composed music for more than 500 advertising campaigns, including H&M, Airbnb, Volkswagen, and the official Olympics Channel. He also dabbles in TV & film music, having scored a theme track for ‘Inside Edge’, an Emmy-nominated Indian sports-drama.
His most recent collaboration with Savera was for Shakun Batra’s film, ‘Gehraiyaan’, starring Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, and Dhairya Karwa.
Tech Panda & Kenzani
Bringing the Asian underground back to life, this powerful duo single-handedly made it a big phenomenon.
Tech Panda’s musical education began when he was a child, playing tabla and piano, which led to his next role – producing and performing. Initially immersing himself in the electronic music scene, he gained a keen interest for the genre and the exciting new music it showcased. Dedicated to new and experimental music, Tech Panda aims to show people how exciting minimal techno can be, far from the ordinary.
Kenzani, on the other hand, is considered an unorthodox electronic music producer responsible for the evolution of traditional Indian sounds. By fusing his signature electronica soundscapes with profound Indian sounds, he allows listeners worldwide to rediscover ‘Abstract Indian Electronica’.
Anyasa
The name Anish Sood is not a new one amongst the top DJs in India. Inspired by the period of contemplation and silence that many people found themselves in 2020, Anish Sood unearthed a new sound for himself.
Three Oscillators
Three Oscillators is a solo project of music producer Brij Dalvi. A former duo with Avit Rane, Three Oscillators’s style carries influences of glitch music, sci-fi, and an overall futuristic sound. Within these attributes, Three Oscillators is a diverse mix of organic samples, dreamy sounds, and otherworldly samples. He spins everything from underground dance floor tracks to heavy bass and fast-paced beats.
In addition to sharing the stage with Parra For Cuva, Kode9, DJ Paypal, DJ Spinn, Daisuke Tanabe and Yosi Horikawa among others, the act has played on platforms like Sofar Sounds, Magnetic Fields Festival and Control ALT Delete Festival. The artist has been featured by UKF, Resident Advisor, COLORSXSTUDIOS, and Rolling Stone India.
In the latest phase of his career, he released his EP ‘Disintegration’ via 4NC¥. His 8-track compilation, ‘Emergence’, features elements of lo-fi and honky-tonk as well as halftime, footwork, post-dubstep, and more with the goal of showcasing upcoming talents.
Fake Tattoos
Bringing us house music from the east, Fake Tattoos is the definition of mystic, oriental and organic dance music.
Using a particular style of fusing eastern, oriental, and ethnic sounds with house and techno, Fake Tattoos has developed a contemporary global sound. Creating an excessive demand within Indian nightlife and building a community around the sound, he has become one of the most recognizable names in India.
Besides performing with artists like Krewella, Third Party, Nucleya, etc., Fake Tattoos has also been featured on major radio channels, namely BBC Asian Network and Tomorrowland.
His debut album ‘Branded’, which could easily change the house music scene in India, is currently in the works.
Stalvart John
Founder of Dynamite Disco Club, a record label, event series, and radio show, Stalvart John is a DJ, producer, innovator, and an entrepreneur.
Since discovering artists like Fatboy Slim, Prodigy, and Robert Miles about a decade ago, he has found his home in electronic music. With his radio shows, he found success in no time after taking the plunge into dance music.
Lifafa
He has spent five years exploring uncharted territory in this part of the world: electronic music that speaks not only of the sounds but also of the words and meaning behind them. His continuous exploration of the Hindi and Urdu languages, constant refinement of his own production techniques, and instinctual approach to melody and harmony have caught the attention of audiences across the country, and beyond.
His albums “Jaago” and “Superpower 2020” have cumulatively racked up streams of 5+ Million.
KAYOBEN
Nush Lewis, a Mumbai-based singer-songwriter and harpist, and Shadaab Kadri, also known as Riatsu, have formed the duo Kayoben.
Magnetic Fields Festival in 2019 laid the foundations for the act. As the journey began, they realized that this journey was intended to inspire more people than just those attending a festival.
By combining live harp with electronica, the artists have found a way to bridge the gap between curiosity and knowledge through their sound. As Riatsu explores meditative territory as well as taking a more groove-oriented approach, Lewis’s poignant vocals blend perfectly with his graceful production.
‘Asrar’, their debut EP, was recently featured in ‘Top 10 Best Indian EP’s of 2021’.
Kiss Nuka
The singer, music producer, and composer Anushka Manchanda is better known by her stage name Kiss Nuka. She rose to fame as a member of the Indipop group “Viva!” with almost 20 years of experience in Indian music. A new vision for a better world inspired her to adopt the name “Kiss Nuka”, which stands for nature’s universal kinetic attention.
She is deeply rooted in her love of nature and all living creatures, and her activism inspires cinematic, audiovisual experiences that touch people’s hearts. In her music, she mixes electronic bass with ambient layers, electro-pop melodies, and a hint of roots. According to her, the world requires more feminine energy for healing.
She is also the music director of Ranveer Singh and Navzar Eranee’s music label IncInk Records, along with her younger brother Shikhar Yuvraj Manchanda aka Rākhis.
Her latest song “Dakini” celebrates the power of the feminine, wrapped in Drum and Bass, and demonstrates the potential that inner engineering possesses for raising awareness and promoting awakening.
Kanishk Seth
Here we have the artist behind the viral hit “Rangi Saari”.
Kanishk Seth’s music has had an incredible journey. He has given three TEDx talks, received numerous award nominations, produced an international film, and performed over 100 live concerts. His collaboration with his mother, the renowned singer Kavita Seth, resulted in the world’s first Sufi-Electronic/Trance album, nominated alongside Oscar winner A R Rahman’s album in the best fusion category at the Great Indian Music Academy Awards.
His singles “Aane Ko Hai Khaab”, “Rangi Saari” and “Jhinjhoti” are all complemented with beautiful poetry-style lyrics and some really eye-catching visuals. His band, The Kanishk Seth Trio, combines soulful Sufi and Electronic music to usher the audience into a state of trance.
Earlier this month, he premiered his first track “Saacha Sahib” from his upcoming EP titled “Surmayi” on Rolling Stone India. Spotify also featured him as artist of the month for “Radar India,” a playlist that includes the most exciting artists in the Indian music scene.
Rusha & Blizza
Paurush Kumar (Rusha) & Aman Khare (Blizza) are the new commandants of Indian bass music. By combining Indian Folk and Electronic Bass music, they have created a new wave of experimental music.
With songs like “Atpati Tarang”, “Kaka” and “Adhunik Tandav”, the group rose to prominence on Soundcloud with their EP “Mudra”, which was featured in Vogue as the best non-film music tracks. Their “Sutra” and “Mudra 2” EPs followed, getting on the top 15 albums of the Indian Apple Music Charts, which established them in the scene.
Rusha & Blizza continue to explore the future with their new EP “Better Future Frequencies”.
SickFlip
SickFlip has become a more accomplished artist in just a short period since he emerged on the scene with his phenomenal hit track “Dessert Bae”.
He gained the most notoriety in 2019 when he appeared in FACT Mag’s video series “Against The Clock” – in which artists were given ten minutes to create a track from scratch, while the magazine filmed every step in real-time. His driving force is an amalgamation of travel, music and collaboration.
One of his collaborative singles, ‘Roshni’ with Ritviz & Seedhe Maut peaked at number 10 on YouTube India’s ‘Trending’ charts, and ‘White Collar’ with Kaam Bhaari was nominated for the ‘Best Hip Hop’ category on FeverFM. The two singles made it to Vh1 India’s “Top 50 videos Of 2020”.
Having played at festivals in recent years including Magnetic Fields Fest, NH7 Weekender (Shillong), Boxout Weekender and VH1 Supersonic, he has also shared stages with the likes of Troyboi, Grandtheft, Netsky, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Dengue Dengue Dengue, Alix Perez, Ikonika and many others. Mixmag’s global live stream series ‘The Lab’ recently featured his eclectic DJ sets.
His recent remix, “Doobey” has already gone viral on Instagram.
The next decade, and then some, for the Indian Electronic Music scene looks more promising that ever. We expect nothing but an upward trajectory, with existing and incoming talents that pack skills, sensibilities and sonic brilliance that will go on to inspire generations to come.
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