Rock bands are a comparatively recent phenomenon in the Indian musical landscape, which has its roots in classical, semi-classical and folk music.
Some of the famous Indian Rock Bands of 2019 are:
Silk Route
Silk Route was fronted by Mohit Chauhan. It was one of the most successful and famous members of its fraternity here in India. Their most well known numbers were Dooba Dooba, Boondein, and Sab Se Peeche Hum Khade. They were able to differentiate themselves because of the wide variety of instruments they used, and the ways that they used them.
Euphoria
Among all the bands on this list, Euphoria is really the one that was the most popular of the lot. In the 90s, their biggest hits were songs such as Maeri, Dhoom Pichak Dhoom, and Raja Rani. In fact, their songs remain on the favourite playlists of many music lovers even now. They recently came out with a new song – The Lord Has Risen. Their style of music is unique, with the combination of traditional and electric guitar.
Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean’s primary claim to fame was the song Are Ruk Ja Re Bande from the movie Black Friday. However, you may find it strange to know that the band is a lot more popular outside India than they are within it. Band member Rahul Ram is an alumnus of IIT Kanpur, and a PhD from Cornell University, USA. This perhaps explains why, more often than not, they are touring all across the world. One of their best songs is Bhor. The band was formed at New Delhi in 1990. This band is also regarded as the father of the fusion rock genre in India.
Pentagram
Pentagram is a four piece band that specializes in genres such as rock and electronica. It started in 1994. Vishal Dadlani, the well-known composer and singer of Bollywood, and part of the duo known as Vishal-Shekhar, is the singer of the band.
The guitarists here are Randolph Correia and Clyde D’ Souza. Shiraz Bhattacharya plays the drums and Papal Mane is the bassist. Their most famous song is Voice.
Bombay Vikings
When talking about famous Indian rock bands, the first name that comes to mind is that of the Bombay Vikings, which started its journey in 1994. They combined different genres of music such as the classical music and Indian pop. They had a number of hits at that time, including Kya Soorat Hai, an iconic song, the soulful Woh Chali Woh Chali, and Hawa Mein Udta Jaye, which featured a certain Gauhar Khan. They specialized in remixes and provided us plenty of them to cherish at that point in time.
The best aspect of their songs was the feel good factor that seemed to be inherent in those numbers. This is the reason why people have still not forgotten them. Neeraj Shridhar, Mats Nordenborg, and Oscar Soderberg started the band.
Parikrama
Parikrama is easily one of the top rock bands in India during the 1990s. If you do not believe this statement, all you need to do is take a look at the titles they have sold and the number of awards and credits that have come their way. All these accolades and successes prove that they were indeed among the most favoured and popular rock bands of their time in India.
The band was established on June 17, 1991. Today, Sonam Sherpa, lead guitarist of Parikrama, runs a very successful school of music in Delhi, which prepares the next generation for musical excellence through live performances.
Apache Indian
There is no doubt about the fact that Apache Indian was among the coolest bands of its time in the 1990s in India. Their Hinglish (a blend of Hindi and English) songs used to become the party favourites in the country during that period. Some of the most successful and popular numbers were Boom Shack A Lack, Om Numah Shivaya, Chock There, and Arranged Marriage, to name a few. The lead singer of the band was Steven Kapur, a British reggae DJ (disc jockey) and singer-songwriter of Indian origin.
