Get the beats up

Gear up for an evening of head-banging and foot-stomping in Bengaluru to the beats of Drum and Bass India

When Drum and Bass India (Dnb India) started in 2013, it intended to represent the up-tempo electronic music movement in its “purest form”, according to the community organisation’s co-founder Debjyoti Das. Joined by Ritu Arya as co-founder, Das says they were building upon several years of groundwork laid down by DJs like Vachan Chinnappa. “He (Chinnappa) encountered Jungle (a style that led to drum and bass music) as early as 1992 in Mysore,” Das says. 

From small parties to now having large gatherings and tours, Drum and Bass India has teamed up with UK’s leading drum and bass label, Hospital Records, to mount a four-city tour called Hospitality, a global event series run by the label. The label’s top artists, including AnaÏs, Degs and Whiney, make their India debut as part of the tour, which concludes on June 23 in Bengaluru with a sundowner show at Koramangala SOCIAL. “We keep getting messages from around the country asking us to get global talents to India, and we are happy to deliver on a big scale now,” Das adds. 

Das, who makes music under the moniker, The Untitled One, is also part of the Hospitality line-up in Bengaluru, alongside Sri Lankan DJ-producer Iyre and Indian artists including High Rez, Big Trouble, Hunnit D, Sharma, Dwij, and Sinister. Das recounts that it is only fitting that Iyre performs as part of this new series in India, considering his India tour in September last year was the one that caught the eye of Hospital Records, particularly Hospitality’s events manager James King-Thompson. “You won’t believe it, I actually pinched myself when I saw the message from James,” Das says with a laugh. “As an artist, this is a dream come true to share the stage with them and moreover, I am happy to present these artists to the Indian Drum and Bass fans,” he adds. 

In a press release, King-Thompson spoke about Hospitality’s collaboration with Drum and Bass India to bring these artists down. “We have always had a strong desire to deliver a Hospitality tour in India...music and dance are intrinsically rooted in India’s culture and a place where we know drum and bass music will be received with full in-the-moment passion and energy,” he says. 

Das, for his part, says fans in the city can expect top-notch music from international and Indian DJs, a great sound system and a 360 DJ setup (where the audience are all around the DJ decks) and an “amazing vibe in a sundowner setup”. He particularly credits the SOCIAL team, considering all Hospitality India shows are taking place at their outlets in the country.

In addition to Bengaluru, the tour has stops in New Delhi (June 20), Mumbai (June 21) and Hyderabad (June 22). Das says there are more tours being planned by Drum and Bass India following this run of shows. “After handling this massive four-city Hospitality India Tour, we have better understanding to do things bigger. We are already planning more Hospital DJs to come down and also hoping to send Indian drum and bass DJs and producers to represent India in the UK and EU under Hospitality.”

Hospitality Bangalore is on June 23, 2 pm onwards at Koramangala Social. Entry: ₹499 onwards, tickets available via TicketFairy.com and https://bit.ly/HospitalityBangalore