‘We believe independent music in India is booming’

The four-piece band will be performing at the OnePlus Music Festival in Mumbai this weekend

Little did two aspiring musicians know that their jamming sessions within a small home studio in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, would be the start of a rock band, that would go on to perform globally with their original music. Founded by Uddipan Sarmah and Shubham Gurung, Aswekeepsearching (AWKS) has been carving a niche for themselves since their debut in 2015. It all began when Uddipan and Shubham met Robert Alex and Gautam Deb to create music. The four-piece band launched their debut album titled Khwaab and are known for their tracks such as Kalga, What If_?, Ativa, Chasing Light and more. The band, that currently comprises members Uddipan, Shubham, Robert and Sambit Chatterjee, will be in the city for a performance at the OnePlus Music Festival. We caught up with bassist and spokesperson Robert, who spoke about the current state of independent bands and music in India, the story behind their bands name, and more. Excerpts:

Aswekeepsearching

It has been four years since your debut single. How do you think you guys have evolved over the years?

The past four years have been a roller-coaster ride for us. Since the first online release, back in 2014, band has put out three albums — Khwaab (2015), Zia (2017) and Rooh (2019) and the EP Growing Suspicions (2014), and toured across India, Russia, and Europe promoting our music. We’ve mellowed down and gotten more grounded as individuals and as a unit over the years, travelling together over extended periods tend to have that effect.

What is the story behind the name of your band? Could you tell us the names you all debated around at that time before deciding AWKS?

Initially, when Uddipan and Shubham started writing music and were thinking of a name, they were looking for a drummer and a bass player to complete the band lineup and settled on the name — We Keep Searching. Then, to have a more continuous/fluid effect, it ended up as ‘aswekeepsearching’.

You have performed in different countries and extensively across India, what are the major differences that you can point out?

From a performer’s point of view, the biggest difference is the culture and ethics for work. In India, I feel (in some ways) bands and artistes are pampered quite a bit, and there is a certain bit of complacency. Whereas outside, bands have to travel with their backline for the show, set up and dismantle everything each day of the performance, make sure the schedule for the day is strictly followed, set up the merchandise counter and right after the show be present at the merch table to ensure sales are happening, repeat the same steps for the next 20 days, which if you think about it is how it’s supposed to be done, and in India 4 out of those 5 key things don’t happen or happen in a disorganised way.

What do you think is the current state of independent bands in India?

I think audiences across India have been opening up to and following independent bands and artistes a lot more over the past couple of years. But we still have a long way to go.

Where does independent music stand currently in India?

We believe that the Independent music in India is booming. People are accepting experimental music, which is far away from Bollywood and also the best part is, they are buying tickets to watch the artistes live. Finally, it is helping indie artistes to sustain and keep making more music.

Do you think budding musicians are a bit too social media conscious these days?

We have got to roll with the times, we can’t still sit in 2001 thinking what worked then will work now. Social media is, in my opinion, one of the biggest tools bands have at their disposal, which I feel is still being underused. Around 10 to 15 years ago, no one would have imagined that social media would be relevant to an industry such as music and entertainment. It’s direct communication and marketing with your fan-base and potential new listeners, so social media is something we would advise every musician to make the most of it.

What can we expect from AWKS this time at the OnePlus Music Festival (OPMF)?

We have a very immersive set in store for the OnePlus Music Festival. During our tour, we tried experimenting with different songs
across the set-list to set different moods, and we’ve come up with one which would be perfect for the OPMF.

Tell us about your future plans.

We have a lot of shows and tours in the works for 2020, and to add to that we have already begun penning
down ideas for new music. So, in the first half of next year, you could expect some form of a release from our end.

More Info:

What: OnePlus Music Festival

Where: DY Patil Sports Stadium

When: November 16, from 2pm.