Artist: Blakc
Album: Mothered Land
Label: N/A
Mastering: Chris Athens, Sterling Studios
Release Date: June 2012
“BLAKC has always been about two things, the music and the people. We believe that our music is an extension of our personalities and the only way to connect to so many music lovers. Off stage we are weird; on stage we can tear a place apart purely because of the energy we have. We love making music and playing it LIVE.”
This is what Mumbai based Alternative Rock band; Blakc has to say about themselves on one of their digital domains. This digitally active being has generated quite a following for itself over the years through its ear catching music and innovation inspired professional promotion skills.
‘Mothered Land’ is the second release of the band after ‘Choking on a Dream’(2009). The band has almost redone / remade itself in this album. “Our first album, ‘Choking on a Dream’, is more grunge. ‘Mothered Land’ has more focus and an important message. We also love experimenting with art and visuals, so we’re always thinking of interesting ways to make our cover art and our videos stand out,” quoted Anish Menon (guitarist) in an interview. The band has already released a video ‘Untitled’ from this album on YouTube, with around 10,000 views.
An alternative classic rock treat. This album is Classic Rock meets Nu Metal meets Alternative meets Progressive. Apart from the Gods of Rock, the band is inspired by various local acts that made it big, such as Avial, Junkyard Groove, Thermal and a Quarter, Indus Creed and Parikrama.
‘Anti-Corruption’ is the main concept behind this album. The cover depicts the current state of affairs, where individuals increasingly become pawns in someone else’s scheme. Anish Menon and Shawn Pereira (vocalist) together wrote lyrics for the entire album. This is aimed at showing the political skullduggery that is prevalent in every contemporary sphere of activity. “The title was thought of after all the songs had been written. We realized what a mess it is out there in our motherland. Thus we came up with mothered, which means ‘messed up’,” says Pereira.
Classic guitar riffs, lip smacking drumming patterns by Shishir Thakur, complimented by Roop Thomas on the bass, dynamic vocals presented by Shawn Pereira and Reinhart Dias is what Mothered Land is packed with. An interesting support of effects on the vocals has given the vocalist the ability to keep things fresh.
Shantanu Hudlikar from Yashraj and Keshav Dhar from Skyharbor have also worked on this album. The mastering has been done by Chris Athens (who has worked with artists such as Coldplay and AC/DC) at Sterling Studio, New York. Shantanu was so adamant in getting the mastering done by Chris that he paid for the expenses for the mastering himself. This change is probably the best reflection of how the Indian Rock Scene has improved since the nineties. Listen to any recordings pre-2003 and be the judge. Blakc released their sophomore offering ‘Mothered Land’ at a launch party at Blue Frog, Mumbai on June 3rd and Hard Rock Cafe, Hyderabad on 28th June. The band is also offering this album in a box set along with ‘Mothered Land’ t-shirt, stickers and a poster. Grab at will!
