Music and the mood: How Fakear, Acid Pauli, Square Pusher, Natasha Diggs rocked the crowd at Echoes of Earth

Music cuts across barriers, transcends all boundaries and brings people together. One does not need to know the language or understand the lyrics of a song to be able to enjoy it. The language of music is universal and can bring people together in perfect harmony.

This was the kind of music that guests enjoyed at the recently held Echoes of Earth Festival, against the backdrop of the lush green lawns of The Embassy Riding School, in Bengaluru. The festival brought together people from across the country and abroad.The theme of the event was “The Sanctuary’’ and the entire evening was a beautiful amalgamation of music, song, people and nature.

Music for all

Spread over a sprawling green cover, the organisers at Echoes had planned a musical bonanza that would cater to all genres of music lovers. The festival hosted artistes like Fakear, who had the most adulation, and this was followed by Acid Pauli and Prabhdeep, who also garnered a lot of attention from their fans, especially the international guests who were also attending the festival. The entire mood and ambience of the venue was designed to transport and transcend the audience to another universe, where music reigned supreme.

There were over 30 international and Indian artistes who attended the festival. This included well known international musicians like Fakear, Acid Pauli, Square Pusher, Natasha Diggs, Garden City Movement and more. The Indian artistes included Prabhdeep, Lifafa, Khasi Bloodz ft. Meba Ofilia and Thaalavattam among others.

The response to the artistes was all-encompassing as music-lovers enjoyed every minute. As one of the attendees, Bianca, said, “I had such an amazing experience. The artiste I was looking forward to listen to was Prabhdeep and he was brilliant.”    

Some of the main attractions at the event were the art installations. ‘The Mahseer Installation’ by the Wildlife Association of South India caught everyone’s attention. Often referred to as the “Tiger of the Cauvery river”, the Mahseer is one of the largest of 16 Mahseer species found globally and is one of the largest freshwater fish in India.

The organisers put up an interactive installation of the Mahseer built from scrap items found in the Cauvery river. Other than the art installations, the flea market was also very popular.

Every year, a particular stage is dedicated to pay tribute to the state of Karnataka and its rich culture. This year it was the year of the national animal of India - the TIGER.

The key installations at the event were...

The Tiger stage which was a tribute to the Indian tiger and a celebration of an increase in number of the tiger population as a result of precautionary measures by the government. The stage was made out of corrugated sheets and was created by artist Siddharth Kararwal and a few other students.

The Hangul Stage which is a Kashmiri stag, which stood 30-40 ft tall. This was made using polygonal structural modelling and had unique visuals projected on it. 

The Vulture Stage which was made from recycled metal from the Angler fish stage from last year. The parts used last year were all recycled auto parts and sheet metal. The wings of the vulture were kinetic, and moved to certain kinds of music.

Music makes bonds

People connected and bonded over music and nature, met old friends and enjoyed chilling out together, over music and food, against an eco-conscious environment. The festival recorded a huge number of guests who had braved the Saturday night traffic and gloomy weather and come to record their attendance at one of the coolest music festivals in town.

Music for an evolving audience  

Unlike most music festival which hosts musicians from popular culture, Echoes of Earth is one of those music festivals which has played an active role in promoting alternative music.

Roshan Netalkar, Festival Director, Echoes of Earth in an interview to YSWeekender before the event said that the “The idea was to organise a music festival which would showcase great music from around the world to an Indian audience which is evolving in its music taste.’’

The lineup consisted of musicians like Lifafa, Prabhdeep, Fakear who make alternate music like electronica, and rap.

Entertainment for all

Echoes of Earth is a unique music festival which also allows people to get their pets along with them. A considerable number of attendees at the event had brought their pets along with them. People could be seen walking with their dogs at the event and were warmly welcomed by other fellow attendees at the event. 

“We are overwhelmed by the response of all those who showed up! Echoes brings new music to the Indian audience and it's great to see how positive the response towards alternate music genres is. This has also created a lot of confidence amongst the global artist community towards India as a market. This is just the beginning.” said Roshan Netalkar, festival director & founder of Echoes of Earth after the event.