This interview is the first of a series of interviews to be conducted with the ex-Black Frontman, Jon Kabir; the series is intended to inform the fans and listeners of Indalo about the inception, conceptualization, implementation, and the persistence of the band as a whole. Let’s take a look at how it went:
After you left Black, why did you choose to go for Indalo? Why these 3 individuals in particular to collaborate with?
After my departure from Black, I started listening to numerous artists; started going to different gigs, in hopes to grasp the kind of music people listen to. This shaped up into a routine for quite some time, until the day Titu took me to Aashor’s practice. Anyone who is familiar with the scene will know about Aashor’s absence. So, it was rather exciting to know that they are doing music again. It was, especially, intriguing to know that Zubair’s doing music again! One lead to another and before anyone of us realized, Zubair and I were taking up guitars and amps and were jamming. We easily felt a strong connection; you know the way you feel when you share the same sentiment with a friend about a song? Zubi and I shared these sentiments about so many albums – it was uncanny! We knew we were onto something. We also knew who to call onboard first – Titu. He was a very grungy musician to begin with, and we knew he would fit in perfectly.
Now, some might argue about this but the abundance of drummers with the skills Dio possesses are quite low. We basically needed a musician, who can play exquisite drums. We wanted someone who we can guide, and who can guide us in return. This is exactly what we got in him. Dio might come from a different musical paradigm, but it’s so nice to see Dio acquiring our taste so efficiently and unleashing it these days. So, this set up, these people, it was not a choice. It just happened, one step at a time.
Formation and the move-on: How did Indalo look into music and how did it look into the future of the band?
We did not have a concise idea. We did not know where to go, what to do – no plans in mind when we started out. We just covered what we wanted to cover. What you see now is what evolved with time. When we began, we did not even know we will be here, or we would want to be here. We just enjoyed our time.
Indalo decided to showcase their sound through a solo, 2-hour performance. Why? And how long did it take to find the sound you were looking for?
I believe that was the only way we could have expressed ourselves. We could have started out in a gig with 7-8 other bands, but to perfectly express the idea of these four men locked together into one world of music, we needed to play all the songs we had at once. All the songs we played had significant contribution in shaping up Indalo. We had to play all of them. We did not care about setting examples or anything of that sort. It was important that people knew our sound, or at least get a tinge of what it can be. After that gig, we thought of hitting the studio – no albums or singles, we just wanted to get into the studio and record something.
The first day was weird, and quite hard to take. We could not even believe what we were listening to. Adding pain to our misery was our own conscience when we knew we can do much better. So, it took us quite time to find our right balance.
If you were still in Black, would Indalo shape up to be what it is now?
That would have been a project, instead of a band. I was focused towards songwriting and lyric in Black. I wanted others to share, but they seldom did. Indalo is a completely new experience; everyone contributes in the same amount! There were many times when Dio just stopped and rearranged the whole structure of the song and we played it. Same goes for Bart and Titu. We all contribute. Its amazing how we all respect each other a lot, and this important element really takes us an extra mile. I know they will be ready to throw stones at me, if my compositions are bad, but the heightened respect we have for each other makes us take it constructively and it helps in the whole process. Indalo is the best experience. It might be a lucky hunch but I love how this band has everything that I always wanted in a band.
