The Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011 gave rock lovers a reason to let their hair down
The chilly November winds and the cloudy skies couldn't keep music fans from turning up in huge numbers for one of the most awaited rock competitions of the year - The Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011. Forty-six bands from all over the country participated in the event, out of which five bands across various genres were selected for the grand finale of the competition: Jekyll and Hyde (garage rock), VerseS (melodic/death metal), 83 Miles Per Hour (hard rock), Sycorax (Pavitra Gorkha metal/thrash metal) and Mad Orange Fireworks (rock). In the end, Bangalore band VerseS emerged the winner.
Guru Somayaji, one of the four judges for The Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011, says it was difficult to pick a winner among the bands. "It is quite a task to pick the winning band since all the finalists put their best foot forward. All the five finalists had fine content and they knew their instruments well. We judged them on different parameters - their stage act, whether they put together a tight set and the way they got the crowd going. There was a marginal difference between 83 Miles Per Hour and VerseS," explains Guru. After the results were announced, the co-headlining acts took the stage and blew the audience away. First up was Chennai-based band, The Captains of Hook, followed by Bangalore band Bevar Sea. The evening was rounded off by Singapore-based Vedic metal band Rudra, who got the crowd going with their killer hour-and-a-half-long set.
I t was a cold Sunday night, but that did nothing to deter Bangaloreans from heading to the showdown of the Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011, the annual rock festival held at the National Law School of India University. The three day event lasted through the weekend and the crowds were witness to a total of 46 bands that performed over the span of the first two days.
The final countdown began Sunday afternoon, with five bands from across the country - from Kolkatta to Chennai - battling it out to the finish. The crowds enjoyed themselves thoroughly, air-guitaring and head banging to the music. Jekyll and Hyde were the second runners up, 88 Miles Per Hour were declared first runners up and VerseS emerged triumphant as this year's winners.
BT spotted many rock fans in their trademark band T-shirts and hoodies. Bevar Sea and The Captains Of Hook also played their part in keeping the crowds entertained. The headlining act - Vedic-metal band Rudra - brought the festival to a close with an hour-long set. Music fans went home very satisfied, having had their fill of gigs for the week.
WINNER VerseS, a death metal outfit from Bangalore, has been on the music scene since 2006, and comprises Roshan D'Souza (vocals), Sagar Gururaj (keyboards), Suraj Dutt (lead guitar), Vinod J Isaac (guitar), Amith Kumar (bass) and Yadhunandan Nagaraj (drums). "I've been following this event for the last eight years, so playing here and winning was unbelievable. We played the last two years as well and we decided that this would be the last time we would take part. Last year, the judges gave us inputs, which we worked on for our performance this year," says Vinod.
The chilly November winds and the cloudy skies couldn't keep music fans from turning up in huge numbers for one of the most awaited rock competitions of the year - The Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011. Forty-six bands from all over the country participated in the event, out of which five bands across various genres were selected for the grand finale of the competition: Jekyll and Hyde (garage rock), VerseS (melodic/death metal), 83 Miles Per Hour (hard rock), Sycorax (Pavitra Gorkha metal/thrash metal) and Mad Orange Fireworks (rock). In the end, Bangalore band VerseS emerged the winner.
Guru Somayaji, one of the four judges for The Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011, says it was difficult to pick a winner among the bands. "It is quite a task to pick the winning band since all the finalists put their best foot forward. All the five finalists had fine content and they knew their instruments well. We judged them on different parameters - their stage act, whether they put together a tight set and the way they got the crowd going. There was a marginal difference between 83 Miles Per Hour and VerseS," explains Guru. After the results were announced, the co-headlining acts took the stage and blew the audience away. First up was Chennai-based band, The Captains of Hook, followed by Bangalore band Bevar Sea. The evening was rounded off by Singapore-based Vedic metal band Rudra, who got the crowd going with their killer hour-and-a-half-long set.
I t was a cold Sunday night, but that did nothing to deter Bangaloreans from heading to the showdown of the Times of India Strawberry Fields 2011, the annual rock festival held at the National Law School of India University. The three day event lasted through the weekend and the crowds were witness to a total of 46 bands that performed over the span of the first two days.
The final countdown began Sunday afternoon, with five bands from across the country - from Kolkatta to Chennai - battling it out to the finish. The crowds enjoyed themselves thoroughly, air-guitaring and head banging to the music. Jekyll and Hyde were the second runners up, 88 Miles Per Hour were declared first runners up and VerseS emerged triumphant as this year's winners.
BT spotted many rock fans in their trademark band T-shirts and hoodies. Bevar Sea and The Captains Of Hook also played their part in keeping the crowds entertained. The headlining act - Vedic-metal band Rudra - brought the festival to a close with an hour-long set. Music fans went home very satisfied, having had their fill of gigs for the week.
WINNER VerseS, a death metal outfit from Bangalore, has been on the music scene since 2006, and comprises Roshan D'Souza (vocals), Sagar Gururaj (keyboards), Suraj Dutt (lead guitar), Vinod J Isaac (guitar), Amith Kumar (bass) and Yadhunandan Nagaraj (drums). "I've been following this event for the last eight years, so playing here and winning was unbelievable. We played the last two years as well and we decided that this would be the last time we would take part. Last year, the judges gave us inputs, which we worked on for our performance this year," says Vinod.
TOI
Post a Comment
We love to hear from you! What's on your mind?