'The challenge lies in finding the right crowd'

Perfect blend

With the city nourishing the indie music circuit, the latest addition to the music scene is the power-packed, energetic ‘Little Coffee In Your Sugar’.

Although just five months old, their music and stage presence define their sound. The boys are as fun and quirky as their band name. Soyam Dean, the vocalist and bass guitarist, talks to Anushka Sivakumar about the band’s musical journey and the challenges they face in the music scene today.

How did the band come together?
We studied at the Nathaniel School of Music (NSM). The guitarist, Ankur, and I were in the same batch. We would come together for recitals, performances and other shows. We also used to jam a lot so we would write songs and record everything.

Later, we met our keyboardist who joined us in these sessions. We looked for bassists as well but it was hard to find one so I took on that job. Suyash was the last addition as a drummer and he studied in the batch after me.

How was the experience of opening for Berklee Indian Ensemble?
We performed as NSM brought Berklee Indian Ensemble down here. There was another opening act which was a fusion band and since Berklee is also a fusion ensemble, we wanted to bring something different to the concert. It was a really good and memorable performance. It was our second show and we had three power cuts in between. There were power cuts before the guitar solo but we kept our cool and ended up playing our solos thrice.  

How does your music and songwriting evolve?
We are a mix of blues, funk and rock. I end up writing a bass riff and then start
playing it with the rest of the band. All our musical influences are different and we
figure out what works and what doesn’t while  we jam. Someone writes a piece and the others make something
off it.

How did you come up with the quirky name?
We had this name in mind for a long time. Ankur comes with a blues background and Nitin adds the classical touch to our music. This is the sweet element in the band, so we call ourselves ‘sugar’. Suyash is from a metal background and I come from a hard rock experience and that is the ‘coffee’ aspect of our band. So, as quirky as it sounds, we call ourselves ‘Little Coffee in Your Sugar’.  

What are the challenges the indie music scene in Bengaluru faces?
The industry and the music is evolving as we speak. There are a lot of bands coming up but the challenge lies in striking a chord with the crowd. Our music mainly involves
classics with new dynamics added to it. There are many who enjoy fusion and other troupes who add Indian elements to their music to cater to the audience but we don’t want to do that because we feel we wouldn’t do justice to either genres.

When is your next performance?
We have a show at Black Pearl in the second week of July and hope to present our original compositions.  

Are you scared of the competition?
I wouldn’t call this competition and we aren’t scared of anything. The scene only motivates us to get more music out there. A lot of bands in the scene are amazing and are a league ahead of us. We look upto them and it only pushes us forward.