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With a pinch of sax
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Ten years down the road Thermal And A Quarter is finding even more sounds to experiment with
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FULL CIRCLE The concert at St. John's was a home-coming as TAAQ started their career here 10 years ago
Thermal and a Quarter (popularly known as TAAQ) have not only outlasted other Indian rock acts but have also emerged as one of India's premier bands. Since their formation in 1996 they have been a matter of pride for the local music scene and they successfully toured Glasgow and London this year.
Their music over the years has developed into a more complete sound, with an increasing Indian identity. Now, with the recent introduction of American, Nate Linkon, on the saxophone, TAAQ has added a new facet to its music. All the characteristics of the new and mature TAAQ were on display at Muse Rock on the penultimate day of the annual cultural festival, Autumn Muse at St. John's Medical College. This was a special moment for TAAQ considering that they kick-started their career at this very venue 10 years ago.
Bruce Lee Maniimmediately set the tempo in "Galacktiqua". The music generally remained steadily paced throughout the evening with some heavy guitar interludes. Their selections for the homecoming gig spanned some highly successful originals. There were also some Thermalized renditions like "Wonderwall", capped with an interesting sax finish and the groovy set-closure from Emerson Lake and Palmer, "Hoedown".
The rain-soaked fans thoroughly savoured the unbelievably faithful cover of Pink Floyd's "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". The Hendrix-like intros in crowd favourite "Brigade Street" and "Paper Puli" as usual drew loud cheers, even while one tried hard to listen to the saxophone, which seemed to be hiding behind the guitars. Tony Dass (on electric guitar and vocals) and Rzhude (on bass and vocals) ably supported Bruce's fast and rhythmic lead throughout the performance.
Rzhude's "Holy Jose" stood out for its catchy melody and the newly incorporated solos for Nate's horn. Rajeev Rajagopalan's performance on the drums was top-notch, blazing away right from the start; notably in "Galacktiqua" and their yet-to-be released "Chameleon". Sunil Chandy's keyboards flavoured the frequently changing TAAQ sound and it was evident in "Brigade Street" and "Holy Jose", which were different from their studio versions.
Clearly TAAQ's experimentation with a new sound in Nate Linkon was, on the whole, a hit with the 400-strong audience. The new-entrant to TAAQ says: "The saxophone is nothing less than a great fit. I really dig the TAAQ sound. At times the music sounds as if it were written for a horn section that never showed up."
Linkon's saxophone, emphatic at times, directs the TAAQ sound into avant-garde blues territory, as was seen in "Look At Me". The highlight of the evening was his foray on the ramp playing the solo on "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", supported by some atmospheric instrumentation by Bruce's Fender. As they left the arena, fans eagerly awaited TAAQ's next release, their fourth.
BHARADWAJ M.V.
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