The Great Indian Rock 2009

The long awaited Great Indian Rock festival took place at Hamsadhwani amphitheatre in Pragati Maidan on 24th and 25th October, presented by the Rock Street Journal.Popularily known as GIR, it is one of the most sought after music events, and it sure lived up to the hype. A vast array of bands played various genres of rock, including some international bands that were, quite obviously, the headlining bands. It was a treat to all rock music lovers.

The bands included Rabbit is Rich, Undying Inc, Circus, Another Vertigo Rush, Boomerang, Scribe, Bhayanak Maut, Indigo Children and many others, and of course, the international bands- Intronaut (U.S.A.), Benea Reach (Norway) and Solstate (New Zealand), with the latter two performing on Day 1 and Intronaut headlining the second day. According to Ryan Hazarika, a hard-rock addict, “The first day was mild in comparison to the second day. Only the international bands and Undying Inc were good. Circus lived up to its name, as it was more of a circus than a rock act. Clearly, the second day was the clincher.” Bands like Another Vertigo Rush, Boomerang and Scribe engaged the audience and were well appreciated, though Boomerang did not have much of an audience, being the first ones to perform. Bhayanak Maut, despite their “bhayanak” name, got everybody’s attention right away. The atmosphere created by them was dampened by Indigo Children as they lacked the zing, strange as it was, considering they were winners of the 2007 edition of Channel [V] Launch Pad. US based Intronaut were the real deal. They hypnotized the crowd with their classical rock act. Their drummer was brilliant and the gig was truly ‘international’. Priyanka Adhikary, who was there for the entire duration, said, “Had a blast! My neck went stiff with constant head-banging. Bhayanak Maut was killer.” A few girls got hurt in the mosh pits but all in all, the crowd was amazing- apt for a ‘ROCK’ show.

The slight nip in the air was set against the heat generated by the bands. Their energy levels were reciprocated with the crowd’s enthusiasm. The event was well organised, it started and ended on time, without much trouble. This surely was one helluva ‘rockin’ event!