Pentagram (Indian band)
Encyclopedia
Pentagram is a four piece Indian rock/electronica band started in 1994 in Mumbai
, India
. Regarded as one of the pioneers of original Indian independent music, the band has received much recognition and has played in venues around the world including the Glastonbury festival in the UK in 2005.
Pentagram is fronted by Vishal Dadlani (one half of the film music producing duo Vishal-Shekhar
) with Randolph Correia (also of Shaa'ir + Func) on guitars, Papal Mane on bass and Shiraz Bhattacharya (also of Shkabang) on drums.
Pentagram received their initial recognition and fame by winning three major rock competitions at the Kanpur, Delhi and Bombay IIT
's. Of these, Livewire (annual band competition at IIT Bombay) landed them a record deal. This record deal with Plus Music led to the release of their debut album We Are Not Listening in 1996 and it was listed by Rhythm House as the fastest selling rock album. In view of the album's positive reception, th band released two videos ('The Ignorant 1' and 'Yoo') which were frequently played by all the music channels. Pentagram were MTV India's 'Artist of the Month' award in 1997 and also won the Channel V awards for Best Live Band and Best Indian Band in 1997 & 1998. They were featured on Channel V's Big Gig show, a showcase of an hour long live performance. During the Kargil war, Pentagram recorded and released India's first exclusive-to-internet song, 'The Price of Bullets', which featured famous poet Javed Akhtar and popular Indian classical artist Shankar Mahadevan. The video, directed by Farhan Akhtar, was blacked out by channels across the board for being 'too politically loaded'. It was then added as a bonus track on their second album "Up".
The second album Up (2002) saw the band’s sound evolve into a deliberate, definitive electro rock. The album went on to sell over 15,000 copies and was rated by Indiecision as one of the top 25 albums of the decade. Following their increasing popularity they headlined the Sundance Music Festival in Estonia in 2003, a first for any Indian band and were also invited to, and played at the Glastonbury Music Festival in 2005 where they shared the stage with international contemporary giants like Coldplay, Chemical Brothers, Tori Amos, Fat Boy Slim and White Stripes.
Pentagram released their third album It’s OK, It’s All Good in 2007 on their own record label, Pentagram Music. The first single off this album Voice won the Song Of The Year and vocalist Vishal was awarded Vocalist Of The Year at the Jack Daniel's Annual Indian Rock Awards. Voice also received considerable airplay on VH1 India. The song was later used in a music video competition by the channel and Nokia, and the video that has been released features the contributions of various fans across India who sent in their videos.
The band released their latest studio album Bloddywood in March 2011 containing more electro-beats and heavy funk driven Guitar & Synth Layers than their previous albums. Lyrically, it is more personal and candid than their earlier work.
In 2011, episodes of Penta TV which featured behind-the-scenes videos of the bands shows and tours were added to their site.
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Regarded as one of the pioneers of original Indian independent music, the band has received much recognition and has played in venues around the world including the Glastonbury festival in the UK in 2005.
Pentagram is fronted by Vishal Dadlani (one half of the film music producing duo Vishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar
Vishal-Shekhar are a music directing duo for Hindi films and are among the leading music directors in the industry today...
) with Randolph Correia (also of Shaa'ir + Func) on guitars, Papal Mane on bass and Shiraz Bhattacharya (also of Shkabang) on drums.
Pentagram received their initial recognition and fame by winning three major rock competitions at the Kanpur, Delhi and Bombay IIT
IIT
IIT may refer to:*A number of institutes of technology, including:** Illinois Institute of Technology, a private Ph.D.-granting research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA** Indian Institutes of Technology, a group of higher education institutes in India...
's. Of these, Livewire (annual band competition at IIT Bombay) landed them a record deal. This record deal with Plus Music led to the release of their debut album We Are Not Listening in 1996 and it was listed by Rhythm House as the fastest selling rock album. In view of the album's positive reception, th band released two videos ('The Ignorant 1' and 'Yoo') which were frequently played by all the music channels. Pentagram were MTV India's 'Artist of the Month' award in 1997 and also won the Channel V awards for Best Live Band and Best Indian Band in 1997 & 1998. They were featured on Channel V's Big Gig show, a showcase of an hour long live performance. During the Kargil war, Pentagram recorded and released India's first exclusive-to-internet song, 'The Price of Bullets', which featured famous poet Javed Akhtar and popular Indian classical artist Shankar Mahadevan. The video, directed by Farhan Akhtar, was blacked out by channels across the board for being 'too politically loaded'. It was then added as a bonus track on their second album "Up".
The second album Up (2002) saw the band’s sound evolve into a deliberate, definitive electro rock. The album went on to sell over 15,000 copies and was rated by Indiecision as one of the top 25 albums of the decade. Following their increasing popularity they headlined the Sundance Music Festival in Estonia in 2003, a first for any Indian band and were also invited to, and played at the Glastonbury Music Festival in 2005 where they shared the stage with international contemporary giants like Coldplay, Chemical Brothers, Tori Amos, Fat Boy Slim and White Stripes.
Pentagram released their third album It’s OK, It’s All Good in 2007 on their own record label, Pentagram Music. The first single off this album Voice won the Song Of The Year and vocalist Vishal was awarded Vocalist Of The Year at the Jack Daniel's Annual Indian Rock Awards. Voice also received considerable airplay on VH1 India. The song was later used in a music video competition by the channel and Nokia, and the video that has been released features the contributions of various fans across India who sent in their videos.
The band released their latest studio album Bloddywood in March 2011 containing more electro-beats and heavy funk driven Guitar & Synth Layers than their previous albums. Lyrically, it is more personal and candid than their earlier work.
In 2011, episodes of Penta TV which featured behind-the-scenes videos of the bands shows and tours were added to their site.
Discography
- We're Not Listening (1996 Plus Music)
- Up (2002 Pentagram Music, Sony Music)
- It's OK, It's All GoodIt's OK, It's All GoodThis is an album by the Mumbai based-band Pentagram.In 2007, the band released a new album "It's OK, It's all Good". "Voice" was released as the first single and has received considerable airplay on VH1. The song was used in a music video competition by the channel and Nokia, and the video that has...
(2007 Pentagram Music) - "Bloodywood" (2011, Pentagram Music)