Thermal And A Quarter, India's most innovative rock band, will add more ammunition to its arsenal with the voice of Chennai vocalist David Pascal. TAAQ, as the band is known to fans, will launch a new phase of its nine-year-long career at Opus, a leading Bangalore restaurant, over lunch on December 18. TAAQ invites Opus guests to enjoy a lazy Sunday morning enjoying the fine food and ambience, snapping up TAAQ on the side.
In the last year, Thermal And A Quarter has made continuous innovations. Between December 2004 and March 2005, the band released ten tracks from 'Plan B', its free-for-download third album, on its website http://www.thermalandaquarter.com. In February, TAAQ became the first Indian rock band to be prominently showcased on National Public Radio's (NPR) 'All Things Considered' in North America. In a few months, its second album 'Jupiter Cafe' was made available for sale to fans in North America on the e-store CDBaby.com, and subsequently on Apple iTunes. Later in the year, the band restructured its lineup and strengthened its stage sound, bringing keyboard player Sunil Chandy into the dual role of guitarist. Even as TAAQ looks forward to releasing its next album, it is experimenting with a new vocalist.
"We have experimented with guitar players and bass players, but this is the first time in ages that we are trying out a new vocalist," said Bruce Lee Mani, vocalist and guitar player. "It's an innovative and exciting step for us. David has loads of experience singing with the best Chennai bands, and his voice is a perfect fit with our sound. It's also important to have the right chemistry, personally, and we've shared that with David from day one."
David Pascal is a prominent figure on the Chennai circuit. He has fronted bands like The Banned, Spyne, Juravi, Glass, Another Page, Jus' Friends, Alter Egoz (Hyderabad), Bacchus and Roxygen. He also performs at public and private events with his 5-piece band UnderCover. A noted voiceover artist, he has breathed life into commercials of leading brands as well as television and radio spots.
"Everybody knows TAAQ is a very good band, but we want to take that reputation two steps further," said Rzhude, bass-player and vocalist. "We are a band of generalist-specialists -- Bruce is unbeatable on guitar, Sunil is absolutely magical when he juggles keyboards, guitar and occasionally, bass. Rajeev is a handful behind the drums, and I am busy keeping up the rhythm on bass. Bruce is a big crowd favourite on vocals, but we decided to add a new dimension by bringing in another specialist -- a vocalist."
Drummer Rajeev Rajagopal added, "Adding a vocalist is like adding another instrument to your sound -- it's a bold and risky step and it takes patience to get it right. With the kind of unique sound that we have, we were very particular about finding a vocalist who would fit in perfectly."
Sunil Chandy, guitar and keyboard player, added that David Pascal would redefine the band's stage presence. "We're a very busy, busy band on stage -- our music is complex, and we're all hopping around multi-tasking. Bruce does a great job of playing his guitar parts and singing as well. It's a tough act to pull off and he does it well. But it's important to set a guitar player free and give the vocalist some more juice. Of course, it doesn't mean that any of us will stop doing anything we are already doing. We'll be doing a lot more on stage and we hope our fans are going to love it."
TAAQ will feature David Pascal over lunch at Opus, a leading restaurant on Palace Road, Bangalore, on Sunday, December 18. Drop in any time after 12 noon.
About 'Thermal And A Quarter'
Thermal And A Quarter (TAAQ to the impatient and the familiar) was established in Bangalore in 1996. TAAQ is a prolific, innovative and genre-busting rock band that embodies the part-global, part-local spirit of Bangalore in its music and attitude. For nearly ten years, TAAQ has performed hundreds of concerts in Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi and Pondicherry. Among the highlights in TAAQ's career was opening for Deep Purple in Bangalore (2001), being the first Indian rock band to be featured on National Public Radio's 'All Things Considered' (2004) and independently releasing three albums -- Thermalandaquarter.com (2000), Jupiter Cafe (2002) and Plan B (2004). Plan B was released for complimentary download on the band's website http://www.thermalandaquarter.com
TAAQ is: Bruce Lee Mani (guitars, vocals), Rzhude (Bass, vocals), Rajeev Rajagopal (Drums) and Sunil Chandy (Keyboard, Guitar)
About 'Opus'
Opus defines itself as ?a patch of Goa right in the heart of Bangalore?. With an open-air amphitheatre that plays host to some of the best music talent in the city, Opus also stages plays, book readings, art exhibitions and dance performances. The cuisine is predominantly Goan, with other coastal, continental and personal favorites. You can lounge around on mattresses or on the bean bags while listening to some great music. Or play scrabble, boggle, taboo or pictionary.
Opus, #4, 1st Main, Chakravarthy Layout, Palace Cross Road, Bangalore 560020
98440 30198/ 98452 44610
For more information, contact:
P G Santhosh 93419 74744 /Rudy David 98452 19390
Thermal And A Quarter
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