Recently news hit, that a homegrown bass duo that we all know and love, namely B.R.E.E.D will be the first Indian Β act to be performing at Coachella 2015! The Sherp had a timely chat with the pair (who are now based in L.A) to talk influences, bagging the festival gig and their own Coachella favourites!
Hey Ritesh and Tara, congratulations on this bagging a Coachella gig! Do you have any message for up-and-coming Indian artists/DJs who aspire to do the same?
Thank you Festival Sherpa! As for a message to other aspiring artists and DJs, stay focused on your goal and work very hard towards it even if it gets tough; do not take your eye off of it, if it is something you deeply want to accomplish. Making strategic decisions according to your goal is very important, but seeing that decision through is even more important. We made the decision to put ourselves in a place that would expose us to new opportunities and bring us closer to bigger goals. However, those decisions were not easy ones, and it was definitely not a quickΒ manoeuvre that brought us to Coachella. We had to work really hard in the last 2 years, to get our name strong in a brand new territory, build new relationships and market ourselves, by ourselves and with the support of our loyal LA business partner. But all the hard work certainly pays off when you get even one step closer to your goal. The key so far has been to never let down even if it gets tough.
What is the sort of set-up that accompanies you for a live performance?
For our βfullβ live set-up, weβll be showcasing live keys and synths along with live vocals. However, we are still perfecting our βfullβ live set up and in the meantime, we have done a βpartialβ live set, which is when we just do live keys/synths.
What kind of a set can we expect from your set at Coachella?
We will be doing a βpartialβ live set at Coachella with live keys/synths and we will also be showcasing a lot of the tracks from βThe Insideβ EP that we released in November 2014, along with a lot of our new unreleased tracks. We are actually really excited to be able to play out a lot of our latest music to such a diverse and large audience. It has been hard to get our music heard to the right people, so this is essentially the opportunity we have been waiting for.
Who/what has been your best influence? What inspires you to perform?
Our best influence has always been other artists from around the world that make super well-crafted and mega-inspiring music. Those artists and songs always hit us deep and make us want to hit the studio hard. Β So other striking music and art has been the best influence. We are inspired to perform because we actually both love to be in front of a crowd and share the energy and toxicity of music with a crowd and audience. But again this inspiration stems from the actual music and art.
As DJs, whatβs the basic element in your sets that you always try to stick to?
We always try to stick to an honest set β meaning we stick to what we believe is true to the environment around us, but also to the music that we want to play and feel. We have been able to turn crowds around that may have been otherwise bored and uninspired for whatever reason, and then turned them into super enlightened, intrigued and inspired audiences. Because we donβt let the mood of the environment stop us from playing what we believe is soul music; music that can really grab at your soul and touch you in a way that you canβt explain. That soul music is essentially the basic element in all of our sets, and also defies all categories and genres, and it is never the same.
Playing at Coachella is the stuff of dreams! Whatβs the best part about being producers?
Thatβs a very hard question. There are so many amazing parts about being producers, artists and musicians. But if we had to narrow it to one part, itβs being able to be artists and creators in this world, and actually do what we feel, and turn those feelings and our creative minds into music that can be shared and played around the world. That might just be at the core of amazing.
If you were to play a back to back set with another DJ/producer, who would you pick and why?
Thatβs another hard one. There are a lot of other DJs and producers that we adore and would love to play back to back with. At this time, we might have to say Flume in this case. We love his style, his energy, yet his ability to incorporate the works of what we consider some of the most amazing artists into his music.
Out of the Coachella lineup, you must have some favourites? Which artiste/artistes are you looking forward to see perform at the festival?
Thereβs a lot of good ones that we want to see perform like FKA Twigs, Ryan Hemsworth, Sylvan Esso, Tycho, What So Not, Chet Faker, Flying Lotus, DJ Snake etc.
B.R.E.E.D is a benchmark for path-breaking DJs and producers who areΒ persistently challenging the evolution of todayβs EDM forms in India and across the world. One of theΒ busiest acts in the country, B.R.E.E.D has performed alongside a variety of international artists includingΒ Major Lazer, Dillon Francis, Jon Hopkins, Alesso and significant more.
Do catch themΒ live at The Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festivalβs Do Lab stage Β starting 10th April 2015.Β