The Harry James Angus &Dheeraj Shrestha Project @Powerhouse, Brisbane(04/09/2009)

Mon 14th Sep, 2009 in Gig Reviews

A voyage from India to Pakistan, tales of a naughty cricketer and a story of a child running through a bustling market were just a few of the rich scenes portrayed to the audience in musical form on this magical night. The Harry James Angus & Dheeraj Shrestha Project is a very new collaboration between The Cat Empire ’s and Jackson Jackson ’s Harry Angus and the very talented tabla player Dheeraj Shrestha. A backing band of keys prodigy Ollie McGill, a mysterious harmonium player dressed in a white robe, FourPlay ’s violinist Shenton Gregory and a percussionist with a table full of strange kitchenware, makes up the ensemble.

The brochure describes the night as – œIndo-Jazz’, and that would be rather succinctly correct. But, the gig was definitely much more than what a singular hyphenated word can describe. Walking into the room, the quintet is set up in a row, all on their respective black platforms, surrounded by their respective instruments. The reverence of the audience toward these maestros is a hum of energy in the room, but with the occasional “WOO” from a displaced drunken member who seems to have accidentally strayed from a footy match. Nevertheless, even the most restless hooligan is captivated by Shrestha’s fingertips moving with fantastic speed as he plays two drums of two different timbres at two different rhythms. The slap of his hands on the skin has such as satisfying water-dripping-from-a-tap sensation. I can feel in my own fingers a desire to make that deep clicking slapping noise for myself. The temptation to jump onstage, pick up one of the many tabla surrounding Shrestha and join in on the music making is barely containable.

This desire soon relents when Harry Angus speaks of the next song. Like a child I am distracted from my initial desire for some primal drum banging, giving it up to listen to Harry’s captivating storytelling. Bring the Rain is the first lyrical narrative of the night. It describes a boy walking to the markets in a far-off land to buy goods for his mother. Bring the rain is also code for drop the bomb; thus the music that is made is a cross between refreshing monsoonal noises and the zooming of planes overtaking the sky. The child looks up in confusion. The – œrain’ slaps down on the thirsty dirt as the people run through the markets. Recreating the scene through Harry’s wonderful voice, and the sound effect skills of the percussionists, make for an eye-opening and emotional story.

Tonight is relaxed. This is the band’s first official gig, so they are not overly prepared. This does not matter though. Just because they don’t know what they are playing next does not mean we won’t be blown away by whatever they decide to eventually choose. “Dheeraj, what’s next?” says Harry. “Well, what would you like to play?” says Dheeraj. “What do you want to play?” says the crowd collectively. Dheeraj replies with Train, an instrumental song involving mainly the tabla and the violin, simulating the journey from Delhi to Pakistan on a packed train. The ride starts with a whistle from the violin, and then the momentum of the train chugging on the tracks and the whoosh through the tunnel is all tabla skill. Everyone is lost in this magnificent song. The lyrics are the sound of the drums, as Shrestha explains. – œChk chk chk dakka di dak dak’ the beat scats, and the train does the same. It takes a while for the audience to come out of their trance to applaud the song.

Harry treats us to three or four of his songs, accompanied by his acoustic guitar. Matty and Josie stands out. It is a tale of trickery, love and murder. Harry tells it with such an air that we hang on his every word. I cannot stress his abilities as a narrator enough!

After this we are treated to a drum-off between violin and tabla. Yes, violin. Shenton Gregory is amazing, keeping up with Shrestha’s rhythms, answering with fast taps of his bow on the strings and body of the violin. I have not seen this before. A long applause ensues.

The night is finished off with a jam. The trumpet is whipped out and the piano comes in for a New Orleans-meets-the-East-type sound. Indo-Jazz indeed.

What a talented bunch. I sincerely hope this first gig has encouraged the band to perform many more in future. I know I will drag everyone I know to see the next one, if we are lucky enough to see this collaboration form again.