For The Record
Them Clones: New Album Scheduled for June 2006 Release
Delhi’s very own, the very popular Them Clones have had a very busy past few months — the band has been electrifying audiences all over the country, from Chandigarh and Shillong (Campus Rock Idols), to Kolkata (Someplace Else) and Mumbai.
Says Them Clones guitarist Gucci, “First up, I want to congratulate you on your new magazine… it’s great! I’d like to see everything happening in the circuit reflected right here, cheers to you.
“Chandigarh’s a great place to do a rock show of late, and the Campus Rock Idols [concert] in Shillong had just the best junta to play to. We reached by evening, grabbed some momos, and were rushed up onto stage — and suddenly there were 6,000 people staring us in the face.
“We also played at Someplace Else, The Park Hotel in Kolkata. [It was] a very electric set… just the most number of people in the smallest space in the world, I’d say.”
The band is also set to release a full-length album very soon, following their self-titled EP.
When asked about the album title, Gucci doesn’t want to reveal too much. “I’d rather not tell, man, y’know, ’coz it’ll take away the surprise element,” he says.
“Everything’s in place. We just need to get over with our exams, get office leaves sanctioned and stuff. After that, we head to record in Mumbai. The album will have 12-13 tracks.”
Why would a band from Delhi come all the way down to Bombay to record an album?
“Well, Vijay Nair (Only Much Louder), is hopefully hooking us a deal at Empire studios, with Shantanu Hudlikar and Vishal Dadlani (Pentagram) putting in there ideas and efforts for the album. It’d be a pleasure and honour to have these guys give us inputs. They understand the importance of good production. We understand the power of our songs.”
So, what are the new songs like?
“Well, there’s a new ballad. You’ll have to listen to it. Come winter, and one or two ballad-y nuggets find there way out of our systems — we’re emotional ducks, all of us.
“And there’s some meaty shit also, with riff-based power rock on the lines of ‘Zoopertrip’, but with its own character.
“Then there’s ‘My Life’. It’s a song penned by Prith (Prithwish, lead vocals, Them Clones) — a junta classic. We play it live all the time. It’s got a live thing to it that lets the junta come aboard with the band. We make it interactive with the intruments stopping in the middle and Prith urging everyone to join in the cho-rush.”
The album, which should be out by June 2006, will also contain “reproduced” tracks from the debut EP such as “In the Name of God”, “Awaken”, “Wait For Me”, “Zephyretta” and others, in addition to newer songs such as “Ignite and Walk Away”.
“We’re not scared to experiment,” says Gucci, “The [new] CD will be the best CD you’re going to lay your hands on — or you won’t lay your hands on it at all.”
wen is the album releasing?