Head to this open-air music festival at Mazagaon this weekend

Goa-based electronic musician Anyasa will bring his fresh experimental sounds to an open-air music festival this weekend

If you spent a fair part of your college life outside the gates like this writer, you’d recognise Anish Sood from his posters that would pop up overnight all across the city come November, the college festival season in the mid-2010s. On the back of collaborations with pioneers of EDM like David Guetta, and features with the likes of Hardwell and Afrojack, Sood’s performances made for the perfect party evenings for the young, passionate crowd that was just taking to EDM. A decade later, as the musician prepares to play at the Anjunadeep Open Air this weekend, expect to witness a whole new avatar. Sood’s new minimalistic, sound-centred, Indian classical-infused identity — Anyasa.

“Anyasa originates from Sanskrit; it means effortless,” Sood shares, as he recalls his journey of shedding the ‘Anish Sood’ identity following the pandemic. The Goa-born musician explains, “The vocal pop music I was making in the 2010s was a good fit for the time and the audience it was crafted for. With time, I outgrew that sound and when the pandemic hit, I took the opportunity to perform a hard reset,” he shares. Sood’s music, following suit, now features lighter production with Indian classical influences, most noticeably in his newest EP Apollo (2023), featuring a sitar section by sitarist Asad Khan. “I realised you don’t need fireworks to put up a great show. A dark room, a minimal light set-up, and the right audience-music mix can make for a memorable performance,” he adds.

Anish Sood

Having signed to Anjunadeep, a London-based record label that has been promoting electronic music talent since 2005, Sood admits that while the Indian classical influence helped drive the transition to Anyasa, the future is international. “As I head to perform in the US and in Amsterdam following the Mumbai gig, I realise that my music needs to be palatable for a wider audience. I plan to collaborate with international artistes but I’ll still find a way to infuse my Indian influences in the tracks” Sood shares over a short call between studio sessions where he is working on two new tracks with American musician HANA. “HANA will be performing vocals on stage with me this weekend and here we are, putting together something that will surprise the audience,” he chuckles.

We throw a curveball in the mix, and ask Sood how the city compares to his hometown when it comes to partying. “Goa is like Ibiza; tourists make up most of our audience here. Goans prefer rock, jazz and hip-hop,” he shares. “For Mumbai on the other hand, EDM is a lifestyle. They are aware of the developments in the scene, they have been emotionally invested in the culture, and most importantly, the city never shies away from going out and having a banger of a night.”

On: February 25; 3 pm 
At: Bayview Lawns, Princess Dock, Mumbai Port Trust, Mazgaon.
Log on to: insider.in 
Cost: Rs 1,652 onwards

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