Aftertaste wins at city auditions

Keegan Pereira and gang are a happy lot. The band of five, that calls itself Aftertaste, recently won the city auditions for Independence Rock, after competing with eight rock acts in the city like, The Ungulates, BLEK and The Lightyears Explode.

Keegan Pereira and gang are a happy lot. The band of five, that calls itself Aftertaste, recently won the city auditions for Independence Rock, after competing with eight rock acts in the city like, The Ungulates, BLEK and The Lightyears Explode.

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And when Pereira, the outfit’s vocalist says, “It’s all about good timing,” he literally means it. Aftertaste, formed in 2005, disbanded in 2008, only to make a comeback this year. Pereira adds, “This is the third time we have participated in I-rock auditions. I guess we were third-time lucky.”

Besides Pereira, Aftertaste comprises Levin Mendes on drums, Michael Lee on guitar and Ruell Barretto on bass. The latest addition comes in the form of DJ Bharadwaj. “After disbanding, when we decided to come together, our sound changed from a heavy grunge setup to a alternative rock outfit with traces of electronica. It was a fresh, new sound,” insists Pereira. The band, with its new sound, is also contemplating changing its name. “We were thinking Catholic Sabha…” laughs off Pereira.

Though Aftertaste won the Mumbai title, the city auditions for Delhi and Bangalore are still due. Others like the Shillong-based band, Pip of the Fourth Mother who won the Kolkata rounds and Life, that won Pune rounds, will share the stage with Aftertaste at Independence Rock, slated to take place on November 26 and 27.

The city band is busy finalising their setlist. “We’ll be playing a bunch of our originals. Our songs revolve around socio-politic issues as well as everyday life, so people can expect to hear our track, ‘1992…’ about the Mumbai riots or our personal favourite ‘Next week…’ about procrastination,” he says. Besides I-rock, the band is also prepping up to perform at Hornbill’s music festival in Nagaland. “We haven’t received confirmation, but it sounds like fun,” adds Pereira.

MTS MTV Independence Rock will take place on November 26 and 27 at Chitrakoot Grounds, Andheri.