JOIN USIt was spectacular to watch the enthusiasm with which basketball players in the City participated in the three-on-three tournament as part of the ‘National Basketball Association (NBA) Jam’ that recently took place at Kanteerava Stadium.
But other than what was happening on the courts, a lot of activities like graffiti and live music were also on the cards. On each of the two nights, there was a performance by a band, followed by a DJ set.
Day one saw local rock band Galeej Gurus take the stage. Performing their original compositions, they did what they could to engage the scattered crowd who sung along to a few songs.
This was followed by a short set by DJ Tuhin Mehta from New Delhi, which also saw only a handful sticking around till the end.
On the second night, after the finals were over and the winners announced, ‘Bombay Bassment’ took the stage. The novel idea of a band that fused hip-hop, reggae and electronica worked for only a few, while others in the crowd danced to the groovy tunes and beats.
From ‘Reggae Revolution’ to ‘Pump It Up’, a track composed for the ‘NBA Jam’, they played like they were playing to a crowd of 1,000.
It was when the NBA freebies were thrown around that the audience were most involved.
The barricades in front of the stage made it too formal a setup. To make matters worse, by the time DJ Vachan got his set going, the police forced him to stop saying that it was 10 pm.
It was disheartening to see the lack of a crowd at such a big event, given the sheer numbers that were present for the matches during the day.
“I can’t complain because these kids have been here and playing since nine in the morning. But what could have been done was to make the music part of the game on the side, not as a separate slot,” said Vachan.
‘Bombay Bassment’ wasn’t too disappointed with the response they got. “It wasn’t the usual crowd that we play to but we were happy that they were singing and jumping with us. That’s when you know you’re making good music,” said BobKat, the band’s vocalist.
A few people were spotted dancing inconspicuously in the corners and the music lovers in the crowd were content with the experience.
“For the crowd that they played to, they did a decent job. The fact that people didn’t leave and stayed till the end is proof of that. The music itself on both the nights was fun to listen to,” said Sreeja Basu, an audience member.