The original ‘rock machine’ is back

India’s first Indie rock band, Indus Creed, to release an album after a hiatus of 16 years.

If you were a rock fan who grew up in the eighties, chances are you headbanged to songs like ‘Rock’n roll Renegade’ or ‘Top of the Rock’ performed by five long-haired lanky guys who made up Rock Machine (the original band name of Indus Creed).Almost 16 years since their last release, the band which shut shop in 1997, is back together to work on their next album.

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“It’s great to be back. We never expected to return on the scene but didn’t rule it out either,” says Mahesh Tinaikar, the band’s guitarist. “Our new album will have eight to ten songs and it will be very different from what we have done before. It will reflect the new changes that have taken place over these years in terms of lyrics, recording and production processes,” he adds.

Formed in 1984, Rock Machine was one of the earliest acts to tour across the country, delivering power-packed performances at colleges and rock festivals.Their stature grew when they rechristened themselves as Indus Creed in 1993 and went on to rule the airwaves on MTV and Channel V.

Talking about the split, Tinaikar, who also works as an independent music composer-producer, says, “We didn’t really split, we just grew sick of it. But all the members have been good friends throughout.” The video of the band’s song — ‘Pretty baby’ — won them the MTV Video Music Award in 1993. Also, competing alongside Madonna and Michael Jackson, the band was ranked as the 9th best video of the year by the channel.

Band vocalist Uday Benegal, keyboardist Zubin Balaporia and Tinaikar eventually re-grouped last year and teamed up with new members, bassist Rushad Mistry and drummer Jai Row Kavi. Now, they plan to release a three-song EP (extended play) before the entire album is out.