Beat of India

Published on January 25, 2008

Talvin Singh burst onto the scene in 1997 with his blend of bhangra and hip-hop beats.

Among the talents who specialise in the subtle clash between bhangra and techy tunes, one name that comes to mind is Talvin Singh, the renowned DJ and skilful tabla player from the UK. For years he has proved to be one of the few successful cases to break it through the electronic dance-floor scene with a tinge of Indian music.

Starting in the early '90s, when being a minority wasn't seen as cool, the young Singh went on a journey to learn the art of playing the tabla in India from tabla master Pandit Lakshman Singh. But upon his return, he was not recognised by classical Indian music promoters in England. While sticking to his Indian instrumental background, Singh started absorbing various styles and sounds when he collaborated with the likes of Icelandic singer Bjork, jazz multi-instrumentalist Courtney Pine, improvisational jazz vocalist Cleveland Watkiss, blues guitarist Little Axe, reggae singer Bim Sherman and more artists.

He started combining bhangra mash with dance music later when he started DJing and producing music for his co-owned club, Anokha, in late 1995. From his Monday night session came the first compilation, "Anokha: Soundz of the Asian Underground" in 1997, a milestone for Indian-inspired electronic music. The following year, Singh released his debut "OK", which features the dance-floor hits like "Travellers" and "Light".

Although written in London's Brick Lane, the album was recorded during travels between London, New York, Okinawa, Bombay and Madras.

This album also claimed him the Mercury Music Prize. Singh's victory definitely paved the way for talents of the same generation like DJ Ravin of "Buddha Bar" fame, indie rock band Cornershop, drum and bass jungle rock collective Asian Dub Foundation and Bhangra hip-hip group Dum Dum

Project.

While working mainly as remixer and tabla musician, Singha also still does live DJ gigs in clubs around the world. On January 17, Singh was in Bangkok for a show at Bed Supperclub on Sukhumvit Soi 11. His terrific set and sense of style was still there, though he could not pull it off to meet that night's crowd who were calling out for more upbeat, danceable tunes. Weekend had 10 minutes with Singh before he hit the deck.

What are you up to now?

On the 15th next month I'll be at the Bombay Art Gallery to show my works, sounds and installation. I'll be there for 45 days. I have two albums coming out, one album is called "Sleep Walk" and another one is sort of a retrospective, universal look on life. And I've been doing a lot of tabla concerts in India with many Indian musicians.

Have you been around in Bangkok?

No, I got here yesterday and spent the whole time in the hotel room. Actually this is my first time here.

You should get one of the Thai traditional drums.

Yeah, I'd love to. I'm interested in the transition of drums in different cultures. I'd love to get a Thai drum but I'm not allowed to buy anything because I'm travelling a lot now. India and Thailand seem to be really close if you look at a map but I think they're very different in many aspects.

How do you join Indian and Western music then?

They are far away from each other. You just have to find the relationship then. I suppose my relationship would be I live in India and I live in London and I always go back and forth. It's a very natural thing, you know, it's not anything that is forced upon me.

Does one have to go all the way to India to learn tabla?

Yeah, pretty much you just have to be there to learn. You can't learn from a book; it's practice and lifestyle involved. And the tradition gets passed on from the master to the student, it's a very special relationship. The master says it takes 10 life times to play, and I'm still learning.

How does DJing appeal to you?

I started DJing only in my club, Anokha, in the '90s for a Monday night where we did also sounds and graphic installation and short films. It was a really special period, and a very special club. But really I don't DJ that often. I just play two live gigs and then I get bored. DJing is actually what I do now and then. Sometimes I don't even like mixing records, like two records at one time. In Bombay, when I DJ just now at the art opening I just had one CD playing. Because anyone can mix now, with a computer when they want.

What does the future hold for the electronic music scene?

If you talk about electronic music now, it's changing a lot. You can spend like US$500 (Bt16,500) and have a music application with 6,000 songs in there. So anyone can do it. That's why I'm more into live instruments and rendering them to a level where they sound really different. The power of technology can do that. You know, it's like cooking them and actually going to buy your own vegetables, or growing your own vegetables.

Manta Klangboonkrong