For most people, Bollywood is their only go-to when it comes to Indian music. We don’t blame them ’cause Bollywood is so out there – in your face 24×7 through every single medium – but you have to be a special kind of hermit if you have never heard of indie artists. India is pretty rich when it comes to cultural diversity, and with it, come its various art forms. While we might have had a glimpse of music from different corners of the nation, the Northeast remains largely unexplored.
Various musical festivals like the Hornbill Festival in Nagaland and the Ziro Festival of Music in Arunachal Pradesh have been trying to bring artists from the Seven Sister States into the limelight. Despite that, however, many are still unaware of the rich talent the Northeast holds. The region has a large number of bands, mainly in the rock genre, who are pretty famous locally.
Here, in no particular order, are 10 such indie artists from the Northeastern states of the country that you need to listen to right away.
The Vinyl Records is a four-member all-girl band, all of whom are from the state of Arunachal Pradesh. They describe their music as indie rock, new wave, and post punk and are currently based in New Delhi.
2. Afflatus
Another all-girl assemble, the Afflatus hail from Shillong and have been producing rock music ever since their formation in 2004.
Formed in 2004, this Kohima boy band loves experimenting with rock, funk jazz, blues, Hindi and contemporary gospel music.
Formed by four sisters in 2011, Tetseo Sisters strive to keep their Naga culture alive through their music. The band mainly plays folk, fusion, world, experimental & pop music.
5. Lucid Recess
Lucid Recess was formed by two brothers from Guwahati back in 2004. They describe their music as one that appeals to both the head and the heart and it is mainly of alternative metal or progressive rock genre.
6. Soulmate
Soulmate is a two-person band from Shillong, formed in 2003, that is into blues, rock and R&B music.
Alobo Naga & the Band is a contemporary pop rock band based in Dimapur, Nagaland. ANTB was formed in 2010 and gained shot to fame sometime later after winning the 2012 Best Indian Act at MTV Europe Music Awards.
8. Boomarang
Based in Aizawl, this five-member rock band came together back in 2005 and has performed at various festivals in and outside of India.
The hard rock/ heavy metal band was created by Girish Pradhan in 2009 in Gangtok, Sikkim. They draw inspiration from other popular bands such as Led Zeppelin, ACDC, Deep Purple, Iron Maiden and Guns and Roses.
10. Abiogenesis
Like the Tetseo Sisters, Nagaland-based Abiogenesis too is a fusion of folk and modern music and have even created their own style of world music that they like to call ‘Howey music’.
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