Someplace Else took a journey all the way back to the ’70s as Disco Inferno took the stage with their second gig. The new ensemble featuring Tanya Sen, Arunima Dasgupta, Rivu, Chiradeep Lahiri, Nitin Mani and Samrat Mukherjee performed songs like Self Control, Venus and Voulez-Vous that kept the disco vibe up throughout the night on December 3. The music was groovy and the song list was known to most people in the audience. There were enough moments of... “I haven’t heard this song in so long.” With a 22-song set list the band ironically ended the night with Disco Inferno. The Telegraph was in the house.
When one mentions disco to Tanya Sen and Arunima Dasgupta, a gala time is ensured. As usual, the two of them created magic with their voices and performed their disco set that got the party going. “We did a full disco set with focus on the ’70s. What I loved most is that no one requested tracks outside the disco genre and most were eager to listen to the set list we had prepared,” said Tanya. “Disco Inferno is essentially Tanya’s idea. She called me one day and said let’s do a full retro disco set — something no one in the city is doing. Since we are best of friends and have amazing chemistry on stage I immediately agreed, despite the genre being quite alien to me. After our very first rehearsal we realised that we had something magical cooking and there’s no looking back,” said Arunima.
Not only did Rivu have fun on the guitar, he brought his sense of humour to the stage as well. “Playing classic disco is all about fitting into a groove with a band, like pieces in a jigsaw. When the audience feels it and grooves along (like they did at SPE) you know the fit is snug,” he said.
Chiradeep Lahiri was the man behind the beats of the band. “The sound of the band is out and out disco. We’re simply trying to recreate that awesome organic sound from the ’70s which seems to be a rare thing nowadays. Playing with a bunch of super-talented musicians gives a high. We hope to take this song list across the country and share some of our magic,” he said.
Keyboardist Samrat Mukherjee wowed the audience with some of his solos. “It’s always immense fun to rehearse and share the stage with these musicians. Though this is only our second gig, it feels like we’ve been playing forever. I feel this is the energy that is relayed to the audience, making it a disco experience. Someplace Else was no exception,” he said.
Nitin Mani was the man behind the bass. “We aimed at doing a set which had some great disco songs, mainly from the ’70s. It was an energetic list to play. This is the sound we are essentially moving towards,” he said.
They witnessed
Members in the audience had enough #throwback moments when Disco Inferno took the stage
Area general manager of The Park, Pramode Bhandari, was present with his wife Neelu (left) and friend Cassandra. “It was wonderful to see Arunima and Tanya back on the SPE stage. The music they make and the energy they bring to the stage are simply amazing. I hope to see the duo back on stage soon,” said Bhandari.
Surjapriya Ghosh (right) dropped in for the gig with friend Mariki Sayles. “Someplace Else has been a place I’ve been coming to for a very long time. The night was young and the music was groovy and my friends and I had an amazing night,” said the director of Continental Advertising.
Lovebirds Sambit Chatterjee and Chitrangada Satarupa had a great time. “I’ve been a huge fan of Chiradeep kaku. He has been an inspiration from a young age. Our generation of drummers owe a lot to him, so seeing him live after such a long time was amazing. Chitrangada and I enjoyed ourselves so much that I requested the band to play at my cocktail party before our wedding. Nitin’s thick basslines with Samrat and Rivu’s melody blanket is perfect and Tanyadi and Arundi are queens,” he said.
DJ Tushar Bagla (left) and producer Vinay Daswani were in the house. “Felt like I was back in SPE in the old days. Tanya and Arunima doing their thing while all the live music enthusiasts of the city are on the dance floor,” said Vinay.
Musician Deboprotim Baksi, aka Tukai, was spotted in the audience. “It was a different sound and no one really does this genre, so it was good to see the members of the band dedicated to the genre. It was good to hear a different kind of music at a place like SPE; it felt like a breath of fresh air. It was a very tight band and all of them are experienced musicians,” he said.