Turbulence Chapter 1 organised by New World Order Propaganda (event curators) on June 4 at 35 Lounge and Bar (The Samilton Hotel) saw talented hip-hop artistes from Calcutta share space with metalheads. The tagline Haq Se Hiphop caught some attention with the headlining hip-hop groups Toxic 13 and Dark Grinding keeping the crowd on their toes, asking for more groovy tracks. Hip-hop culture is growing in the city as more and more young and talented artistes find expression in the rap music they create. Turbulence Chapter 1 saw 17 hip-hop acts and one metal band perform to blend art forms and genres. Some of the notable performances delivered were by the crews Toxic 13, Dark Grinding, WINGS.SZN, Kharap Khobor and a Calcutta-based metal band, Survival Through Sufferings. Here are glimpses from the event.
“The city consisted of only metal events and only a few hip hop events. Pulling off Turbulence Chapter 1 — Haq Se Hiphop was to take a step forward at promoting the talented hip-hop scene of Calcutta,” said the organiser and founder of New World Order Propaganda, Somsubhro Acharjee.
“We are separate artistes who are united by a similar soundscape. Although we have different influences and visions, it comes down to a singular vision of being self-made rock stars. When we perform, it’s not only about trap/rock/metal or any other genre, we bring out the voices trapped inside everyone. We bring out the rage,” said Toxic13 aka Sayok Kash who performed with team members with stage names Promise, Spandan Ghoshal, Sxrkr and Sleez.
Hip hop boys Kharap Khobor performed Bangla rap numbers like Din sheshe, Khujchi ami, Ghum holo naki and Bojh. Members of Kharap Khobor include Sagnik Banerjee aka Tobehoyejak, Satadru Majumder aka Satadru and Soham Dey aka So Hammered. “Our clan is growing, we are aiming for big shows and hopefully all Bengalis will relate to us,” said a team member of Kharap Khobor.
WINGS.SZN, a new wave hip hop collective from Calcutta, was founded by Nirabhra Biswas aka DDXVIL and Rameez aka YXTO. The artistes are from multiple genres but have a singular vision. “We come together to carry forward the vision of collectively bringing fresh sounds and doing something that has never been done before,” said Nirabhra aka DDXVIL. The team members Bhaswar Chakrabarti aka bsrwashere, Akash Chatterjee aka Prixarr, Aritro Ghosh aka Ace FTW, Debmalyo Dasgupta aka YxvngSxar, Swastik Bose aka Ryxk, Sayak Brahmachari aka Sayak B and Akash Das aka Axe D impressed with their fresh playlist on June 4.
“Turbulence Chapter 1 was an awesome experience for us as an extreme metal band playing alongside so many hip hop artistes,” said drummer Anirban Bhowmick from the Calcutta-based metal band Survival Through Sufferings. Members Shrihan Das on the guitar, Sayan Sengupta and Anubhav Das on vocals growled and pulled off a metal performance with original tracks Infringement, Necromantic Inheritance and Act of Killing.
Pictures: The organisers