JOIN USFresh in Bangalore’s growing dance music scene is techno and deep house producer duo ‘Twokid Wickid’ comprising Achal Khanolkar and Prithvi Varadarajan.
Experimental in their sound and disciplined in their approach, the two have opened for big names like Guy J, Booka Shade and James Zabiela and been playing the festival circuit for the last three years.
“It’s been a roller-coaster ride. We never expected to be where we are today but whatever hard work we’ve put in seems to have paid off. We play music for fun. We have no inhibition when we play and it’s working out so far,” Prithvi tells Metrolife at an EDM festival, where they performed recently.
“Initially, we were more inspired by artistes we looked up to. Eventually, the need for innovation took over. We want to have a uniqueness in our sound so that when someone hears our track, they know it’s ‘Twokid Wickid’. Hopefully, we’ll get there soon,” he adds.
Commenting on the music scene in Bangalore, Achal says, “Bangalore is open to new talent. But the scene demands a specific type of music. For people like us who don’t play a certain genre of music, it’s difficult to adapt. We’ve been pushing the non-mainstream music that we play and it’s now that people are accepting us.
“On the ‘Electronic Dance Music’ (EDM) culture that’s taking over India, he adds, “The term ‘EDM’ has been bastardised really badly, so let’s call it ‘dance music’ instead. I’m in two minds about the way India’s escalated to a different level with everyone wanting to show hand hearts at concerts and it being so commercial. But it’s also because of this that people like our style of music.”
The two have been friends for close to nine years and were even in the same cricket team. Asked about their chemistry, Prithvi replies, “Everything is spontaneous. I know what I’m doing and he knows what he’s doing. We both like artistes like Loco Dice Richie Hawtin and Dubfire. There’s no conflict but it’s nice to have different opinions because we want to bring out the best in both of us.”
What’s keeping them busy of late? “We’re in the nascent stage of production and experimenting with different sounds. But we won’t put out an album unless it’s something different from what you hear now. There’s already too much music out there, so there’s no point in not having an identity. It’s an adventure to find your own sound and we’re still looking,” wraps up Achal.