Fresh sounds, meaningful lyrics, simple arrangements and hum-worthy tunes are what Kaushik and the Unassumed Identity are known for. The five member blues/rock band from the city are creating ripples in the music scene with their original compositions.
Performing for a live audience, seems like their first love though. In a tete-a-tete with the band, we find out more about the reason for their unique name, how they came to be and more...
The band which is the brainchild of Kaushik Shukla – the lead vocalist, has been around for a year now. “I relocated from Pune to pursue music and it took a while for me to find my groove in the city,” explains Kaushik who has been formally trained in music for over 20 years and has already performed across the country!
“After the move, I started giging with local artistes until I got along really well with a few, and we decided to get together and make music,” he adds simply, about how the band came to be! With Rahul Chidambaram on bass, Rushik on keys, Prithviraj on drums, and Deepanjan on lead guitars the bands biggest influence seems to be Coldplay.
“Their tunes are exactly what we want ours to sound like. They are soulful, you can hum to them and their lyrics are so meaningful,” says Rahul, animatedly.
What is the reason for adding Unassumed Identity to their name, we want to know. “People tend to have certain assumptions about music and bands prior to knowing about them or listening to them. And we didn’t want to give off anything about the kind of music we play through our name,” says Prithviraj, who is into music full time and even has his own recording studio, while his contemporaries juggle with day jobs in order to pay the bills.
The lads are currently prepping and gearing up to release their EP with a number of original compositions already lined up, we dig in and find out how they deal with their creative differences.
“We do have creative differences but are very vocal about what we feel about sounds, which is essential because we know that our main aim is to make amazing music. So we have come to respect each other’s feedback and take every opinion into consideration,” says Rahul confidently.
And when they aren’t at gigs or working hard, the lads make sure to take time off to do their own thing. “I love travelling and just got back from Leh. Prithvi often takes off on treks and when Kaushik needs a break he too takes off with his guitar. And Rahul is a massive foodie – he loves cooking and experimenting with new stuff,” says Rushil about his mates, in conclusion. The band will be performing at the Bak Bak Bar tonight at 8.30 pm
