Karnivool brings down the house

If the open-air theatre at the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay had a roof, Karnivool would have brought it down on Sunday night. Bhavya Dore reports.

If the open-air theatre at the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay had a roof, Karnivool would have brought it down on Sunday night.

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The Australian progressive rock band performed on the first day of this year’s Mood Indigo. This is their first performance in India, and the festival saw its biggest draw for the first day this year.

The group performed compositions from their old albums in front of hundreds of screaming, metal-crazy students who waited for two hours before the main event began. The opening act for Karnivool was Junkyard Groove, an alternative rock band, which set the tone for the night with lavish doses of heavy metal and headbanging.

"I came with an open mind and really enjoyed the show, the music was really global," said Saransh Singh, 22, a fourth year student. Two years ago, Porcupine Tree was the big act and last year it was Katatonia. “With Porcupine Tree setting the bar very high, this concert was a bit disappointing but it had its high points and moments,” said Ankit Seth, 22, a fourth year student.

The day also saw other musical performances such as Slow Joe and the Ginger Accident from France, a soul-blues group that dished out blues numbers in the lazy afternoon sun.

“They were totally awesome, they really got us going,” said Rushali Paratey, 19, a Mumbai University student. The group performed their own compositions as well as covers.

International student groups, visiting the fest for the first time, performed traditional numbers from their respective countries.

"We've had a great crowd and have been having a good time here so far," said Anna Wos, 23, a student from Poland.

Mood Indigo will go on until Wednesday. With increased prize money, international participation and several new competitions the festival has grown in scale and size this year.