Q&A: Bass Producer Su Real on New EP “Brown Folks” that Mashes Indian Oldies with Modern Dance Music

Bass producer and DJ Su Real’s music matches the pulse of a busy Indian street, which under all the frenetic motion, adheres to a method that makes the madness functional. It clangs, twirls, and thumps its way into your head, dribbling down to your tippy toes, till the ten little piggies come out to dance.Su Real a.k.a. Suhrid Manchanda is the guy that curated the Disco 31 party scene at T.L.R. (The Living Room bar/ café),) in Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village five years ago, turning the bar and the neighborhood into an after hours hipster hot zone. His debut E.P. “The Grind” that released in September 2013 earned him a nomination for a VH1 Sound Nation award in the “Best Hip Hop Act” category, and rooted his credentials as a genre-bending bass producer and a pivotal figure on the Delhi club scene. One year later, with the release of his first full-length album “Trapistan”, Su Real introduced Indian EDM audiences to the genre of ‘trap’ music, expanding his musical roster and winning praise from critics.His latest E.P. “Brown Folks”, which came out last month, blends modern styles of dance music such as twerk, moombahton, midtempo and dancehall with distinctly Indian sounds absorbed from retro Bollywood soundtracks, as well as devotional and folk songs. These five tracks tend to shift your brain into overdrive with a sound-image mashup of street festivity, wedding revelry, temple chanting, and cinema hall hooting.Manchanda’s creativity seems to thrive on the daily chaos involved with navigating life in an Indian city. He embraces the sounds, sights, and eccentricity around him to churn out a heady brand of music that has the power to resonate both with the clubber and the masses. This knack for putting together such gritty, vibrant tunes perhaps comes from his experience of having lived and worked in Montreal and New York before coming to India the first time with an outsider’s perspective. The energy of a city is never more obvious than to a transplant.Born in 1980, and as a product of the ’90s, Manchanda lists off various names as having influenced his music sensibility. He says, ““Brown Folks”, as the concept for this E.P., is an homage to the sub continental-origin musical pioneers that established themselves at a global level. Not just your Ustads like Ravi Shankar and Zakir Hussain… From Apache Indian’s “Make Way For The Indian” to Cornershop’s “Brimful of Asha” to Talvin Singh’s “Sutrix” to Jai Paul’s “Str8 Outta Mumbai” – these songs helped build my identity as a child of the Indian diaspora. Growing up abroad, never really fitting in anywhere, music defined my identity. Now, back at home, it continues to do so.”Blouin Artinfo chats with Su Real about “Brown Folks”.Tell us a little about the journey leading up to your live music career in Delhi.Mostly I was living between Montreal and New York City working on the “business” side of the “music business”. I’d pretty much given up on my own career in music, as I found that along with my M.B.A., I could earn a better living as a publicist for other people’s music careers. But eventually I got sick of it all and decided to move back to Delhi where I was born. In 2008, I thought I was getting away from the music industry... little did I realize what trouble was brewing back home! With the opening of T.L.R., the coming up of H.K.V. (Hauz Khas Village in South Delhi) and locals like Nucleya, Reggae Rajahs and BASSFoundation burning up desi dance floors, I soon found myself back in the thick of the mix.What would you count as your musical influences? My musical influences are very broad. I’m just as inspired by Johnny Cash and John Coltrane as I am by Diplo and Hudson Mohawke. Back in India, I’m also tremendously inspired by legendary producers like R.D. Burman and Bappi Lahiri who were tremendously skilled at soaking up influences around the world and presenting them to Indian audiences. In a way, I seek to do the same with my music.Would you like to talk about the process of making this E.P.? Actually I’ve been working on “Twerkistan”, a follow-up to my 2014 L.P. “Trapistan”. But I want that to be as dope as possible, so I’m taking my time to develop the tunes, artwork, videos, etc. In the meantime, for the festival and gigging season coming up, I decided to release “Brown Folks” to give people an idea of the evolution of my sound and production. Most other music producers would probably describe my process as quite haphazard (haha). I have a terrible “workflow” and am constantly working on dozens of ideas side by side, along with basically managing the business side of Su Real. Some of these tracks on “Brown Folks” took a year to finish; some of them were wrapped up from ideation to final master in a single day.Are there any interesting facts/ inspirations/ references around the making of “Brown Folks”? For instance, how you might have come across a sample, or if you particularly always wanted to use a bit?I love the art of sampling – I’ve followed its evolution from early experiments by the Fluxus artist collective to its blossoming in hip hop culture and modern dance music. Unfortunately, as I’m developing as an artist, I’m learning to be more protective about my sample sources. I definitely do not want to get sued! But I’m hopeful that people in India too can start to embrace the concepts of “creative commons” and “fair use”. In a way, remix culture helps prolong the life of music from previous eras. I definitely consider most of my sample placements a tribute to those artists, and I always try to make something completely new and fresh out of them.How would you describe your brand of music?The Su Real brand of music is all about contextualizing modern dance music for the desi dance floor. In terms of genres, I present a broad mix of E.D.M., Trap, Twerk, Hip Hop, Dancehall, Moombahton and more – serving it up as a seamless whole, the zeitgeist of shaking booty, if you will.How do you (fancifully) imagine someone listening to your new EP – in what setting, what mood? Definitely not sitting back with a whiskey at home?All my music is targeted at the dance floor, but that dance floor can be wherever the listener desires!Would someone making dance music need to be a social person? Yes and no. I just watched this biopic about Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys, who made some of the happiest sounding music ever but Wilson who wrote all of it suffered from extreme depression and hated crowds of people. There is more than one way to be a thing.Does the city of Delhi influence your music? What has your relationship with Delhi (and also India) been? Since the first time you moved here, to staying on in the city for so many years now. Do you find it creatively stimulating, or stifling, or perhaps the city you live in has no bearing on your creative output?I have a special, perverse admiration for Delhi. It’s messed up and wild. People here persist in an absurd state of denial. Everything about Delhi is contradictory – simultaneously stimulating and stifling. In my home where I’m in self-imposed seclusion most of the time, I often fantasize about being that last lonely violin player amidst the post-apocalyptic rubble. A lot of my music composed here inevitably veers towards darker directions. But perhaps that’s what lies at the root of my soul anyway.Do you feel the scene has changed in the last few years that you’ve been making, producing, playing music in Delhi? In terms of audience, venues, events, taste, professionalism? If so, how?Definitely, the Indian music scene has exploded. As I mentioned, when I moved back here for the second time from NYC in 2008, I was under the mistaken assumption that the music industry in India was primarily Bollywood and that there was no independent scene. Boy, was I wrong! Especially in the last five years we’ve seen a massive growth in the pool of talented artists, rapidly outpacing the growth in music festivals and venues. There is a cultural shift accompanying the economic growth – people are developing a more outgoing lifestyle and seeking alternatives for entertainment and recreation. Subsequently, for the first time ever, for a lot of us it seems possible to actually develop a career out of our passions. In addition, perhaps now more than ever, there is a need for an alternative voice that represents the Indian youth of today. As far as I can tell, kids today want all the accouterments of globalized society, but they don’t want them at the expense of our heritage and traditions. Perhaps that leaves products of the Indian diaspora like myself in a unique position to represent the sound and ideas of a renewed India.What are your views on Indian artists developing a distinct voice/ sound that absorbs cultural influences from around us?I think it’s the only real way to connect with local audiences in India... to introduce people to something new, you must first show them something familiar.What Indian musicians/ acts do you personally find interesting?In terms of dance music, I’m mostly inspired by Nucleya. He’s hit the nail on the head and his music genuinely resonates with Indian audiences. He’s also a hard worker and deserves every bit of his success. Meanwhile, that helps a lot of other producers like myself break through to a wider audience as well.In terms of the whole scene - Delhi/ Bombay/ other metros - what is the one thing that’s overrated and one that’s underrated, in your opinion?Let’s see... I suppose now I can say that H.K.V. has become overrated. It could have been something really special, and it was for a while, but now whatever it’s become, I just can’t identify with it anymore. There used to be a focus on the music and culture, but now it’s only about boozing and appeasing the lowest common denominator. At the same time, I would say what’s under-rated throughout India is all-ages venues and festivals – some of the best gigs I’ve played have been on college campuses with the Red Bull Tour Bus as well as the MTV Bloc Party on Juhu Beach that was an all-ages festival. Hundreds of teenagers with wide eyes and wider smiles – non-stop jumping up and down! What is the equation between intoxication and enjoying music? And does the “scene” currently exclude a latent mass of young fans?Do you agree or disagree with the following sentiment? Most electronic music seems to have a cultish element to it. Its audience as well as creators try to separate themselves or view themselves as separate from the masses. In the past music movements have had more of a universal appeal, struck a chord with entire generations. What are your views on this? Well, from my perspective it’s a symbiotic relationship between the underground cults and the mainstream masses. Much has been said on the 20 Year Design Theory (now shortened down to 8 Years, I believe?) – basically the idea that as a generation grows up and comes into political power, the subcultures they used to define themselves as separate from the masses, gets absorbed into the mainstream. I’ve witnessed that in just the last two to three years as I started playing “Trap” music in India when producers in the West had just started the Trap subculture in E.D.M., and now even David Guetta is releasing trap tracks (that too with the undisputed Trap Queen Nicki Minaj on vocals). Nothing starts BIG. Perhaps it is our perception of the past, itself crafted through second-hand data like audio recordings and videos and books, that assigns the music of the past its status. At the same time, I feel like many Indian listeners are stuck on this inaccurate dichotomy of underground vs. mainstream. Even I’ve been accused of “selling out”. But I think it’s silly to allow one’s personal tastes to be influenced so much (positively or negatively) by how many other people like it and what the artist’s bank balance is. Just enjoy the music for what it is.What are you listening to now? New dance craze “Watch Me (Nae Nae)” by Silento. Check the official YouTube video!What’s next?Finishing up “Twerkistan”, hopefully by the end of the year! Lots more music, music videos, gigs, and possibly even going to start a little weekly YouTube show. Basically, I have a lot of experience in radio – it was my first real job – and recently I co-produced the Krunk podcasts wherein we showcased the best in electronic music around India. But I’m starting to feel like perhaps I could reformat that Indian indie podcast for a short YouTube show instead. The Indian scene definitely suffers from a dearth of music-related media. There are a handful of websites and magazines, but nowhere near enough required to cover all the music that one billion brown people are making!The EP “Brown Folks” is available here. Su Real will be performing in various cities across India in September 2015.“Brown Folks” E.P. Tracklist:1. Indian Curse2. Bajre De Soundboy3. Dum & Dumma4. Brown People5. Dilli ShaharSu Real Tour Dates:New Delhi: When - September 4, Friday/ Where - Social, New DelhiHyderabad: When - September 12, Saturday/ Where - Bass Sanskriti, The Farm, HyderabadPune: When – September 13, Sunday/ Where – High Spirits, PuneShillong: When – September 19, Saturday/ Where – Cloud 9, ShillongChandigarh: When – September 26, Saturday/ Where – TBD (Check here for further details)Links:www.realsureal.infacebook.com/RealSuRealtwitter.com/SuRealNewDelhisoundcloud.com/dj-su-realyoutube.com/user/RealSuRealSample Credits on “Brown Folks”:“Indian Curse” contains a sample from the film “Where’s The Party Yaar”.“Indian Curse” contains various samples from Sivamani “Fusion”.“Bajre De Soundboy” contains a sample from BollywoodSounds.net “Gidda Voices”.“Brown People” contains a sample from Jiddu Krishnamurti’s 1966 lecture “Freedom from Fear”.“Dilli Shahar” contains various samples from “Kajra Mohabbat Wala” by Asha Bhosle, Shamshad Begum, O.P. Nayyar recorded originally for the film “Kismat” (1968).“Dilli Shahar” contains a sample from “Jaan Pahechaan Ho” by Shankar-Jaikishan recorded originally for the film “Gumnaam” (1965).“Dilli Shahar” contains a sample from Delhi Sultanate & Reggae Rajahs “Run Delhi”.  Follow @ARTINFOIndia