Original music is now the basis of everything: Uday Benegal

It’s been 17 years since their last album Rock’n’Roll Renegade came out. The trailblazers of the rock movement, Indus Creed are back with a new eight-track album, titled Evolve, mixed by Tim Palmer—producer and mixer for artists like Robert Plant, David Bowie, Tears For Fears, Ozzy Osbourne, Goo Goo Dolls and U2.

The new Indus Creed line-up has three old names—Uday Benegal on vocals, Mahesh Tinaikar on guitar, Zubin Balaporia on keyboard (bassist Mark Selwyn hung his guitar and moved on to real estate), along with two new members — Jai Row Kavi on drums and Rushad Mistry on bass.

In an exclusive interview, Uday Benegal, Indus Creed's lead singer talks about the new line-up, working with Tim Palmer, record companies, change in the music scene and more...

Indus Creed 2.0
The first time we actually met Jai (Row Kavi) was when he was playing in this really soft, mellow band called Shanky. It was only later that I discovered that there’s a beast that lurks within him (laughs).

At some point Zubin (Balaporia), Mahesh (Tinaikar) and I got together and discussed starting up Indus Creed. We pretty much knew that the other ex Rock Machine members wouldn’t join because Jayesh Gandhi lives with his family in New York, Mark Selwyn lives in Mumbai but he had stopped making music after we shut Indus Creed down in the late 90s.

By then we had already played with Jai, and we thought he was the perfect guy for the band. Once on board, he recommended Rushad Mistry—a bass player who he had played with earlier. I think the two of them are absolute right kind of energy for this kind of music.

The new blood
Jai and Rushad were the right guys on multiple levels. Of course they’re really good musicians, but more importantly they fit in musically and gelled with the band’s vibe. One of the things that kept Rock Machine and later Indus Creed together is the fact that we really got along.

Since Jai and Rushad were born a few years after us (laughs), they bring their own influences and experiences to the table—which are very different from ours. They’ve grown up on different music and artists. But at the same time, they also like the kind of music that we like. Some of the common bands that we’re all fans of include Karnivool from Australia and Porcupine Tree.