Bamboo Shoots Blog

Official UK Tour Press Release

2009-10-29T12:24:00.001-04:00

NEW YORK RISING STARS BAMBOO SHOOTS TO TOUR UK WITH 3OH!3!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(NEW YORK, 28-10-2009) BAMBOO SHOOTS, American Epic Records artists are slated to begin their first-ever tour of the UK next week opening for hitmakers 3OH!3!. The tour will bring the foursome, whose music has been described as “Daft Punk meets Hall and Oates” to Wales, Great Britain, and Scotland over a week-long string of dates.

“We’re psyched to get out there and bring our music to a new audience,” says Avir Mitra, vocalist/guitarist. Coming off the American release of their debut, “Armour,” which was produced by the Talking Heads/Modern Lovers’ Jerry Harrison, and features the catchy single “Hey Girl,” this will mark the second international outing this year for Bamboo Shoots. The band traveled to India last April, where they played to sold out crowds around the country and were featured in media like Rolling Stone India and on channels like CNN-IBN. “India was a blast, and it seemed like the next logical international stop for Bamboo Shoots would be the UK,” adds Shiv Puri, drummer.

Bamboo Shoots’ shows, with their blend of “rhythmically propulsive alt-rock,” have been called “energetic and electrifying performances,” “a riot on stage,” and “a party, whether you’re ready to move or not.” Get ready—starting November 2nd, the party is finally coming to the UK.

Dates (with 3OH!3!):

11/2 - Cardiff - Millenium Music Hall

11/3 - London - Electric Ballroom

11/4 - Brighton - Komedia

11/6 - Glasgow - Classic Grand (Sold Out)

11/7 - Manchester - Academy 1

—————-

Bamboo Shoots will have select media avails over the course of the tour. Please contact Jared Kaner at jared[at]brightlineartistsmanagement[dot]com or bambooshoots[at]gmail{dot]com with any requests.

www.bambooshoots.com

www.epicrecords.com

www.myspace.com/bambooshoots

TOUR! and we're moving....to Tumblr

2009-10-22T01:30:00.003-04:00

Hey everyone. So our posts have been pretty sporadic on here for a good reason--we've moved our blog to Tumblr - from now on, you can get all your Bamboo Shoots updates there (also on www.bambooshoots.com)! This blog will stay up for archival purposes for a while. PS- Don't forget to check out a show on our first national tour:

Dates:
Oct 23 Brooklyn NY Public Assembly
Oct 24 New York NY Fontana's (CMJ)
Oct 30 Clementon NJ The Cherrywood
Oct 31 Bennington VT Knapp's Underground
Nov 01 Boston MA Henesy Hooley House
Nov 02 Hamden CT The Space
Nov 04 Philadelphia PA The Khyber
Nov 06 Centerville VA Café Martini
Nov 07 Silver Spring MD Takoma Park Perf. Arts
Nov 08 Fayetteville NC The Rock Shop
Nov 09 Mt. Pleasant SC The Village Tavern
Nov 13 Mobile AL Alabama Music Box
Nov 15 New Orleans LA Dragon's Den
Nov 18 Austin TX Club Mixx
Nov 19 San Antonio TX Jiggers
Nov 24 Hollywood CA The Viper Room
Nov 26 Las Vegas NV Freakin' Frog
Nov 28 San Francisco CA El Rio
Nov 30 Seattle WA Studio Seven
Dec 07 Des Moines IA Vaudeville Mews
Dec 09 St. Louis MO Cicero's
Dec 10 Chicago IL Bottom Lounge
Dec 11 Indianapolis IN The Melody Inn
Dec 12 Rochester MI The Factory
Dec 13 Lakewood OH Hi-Fi Concert Club
Dec 18 New York NY Pianos

Band of the Day...in Canada?

2009-10-06T10:58:00.002-04:00

merci à nos voisins nordiques... :)

"What does your Monday afternoon need? A bit of good times? Some office chair-shaking dance-rock? Bamboo Shoots has it." (via The National Post Ampersand)

Announcing official Bamboo Shoots ringtones on iPhone and Verizon

2009-10-04T10:54:00.003-04:00

Update: We've just been informed ringtones are available via the Verizon ringtones store (on your phone), with the same songs as the iPhone PLUS "Wrong All Along"!

Hey guys! iPhone users can now download Bamboo Shoots ringtones simply by going to the iTunes store on their phone and searching "Bamboo Shoots." "Hey Girl," "Where The Ocean Meets the Road," and "If You Should Die" are all available for $1.29 each. Just download on the spot and assign to that special someone. Enjoy! Please note, as of today these are only available via iTunes on the iPhone.

Street Teamers wanted!

2009-10-03T13:10:00.000-04:00

Hey guys! Bamboo Shoots is looking for a hard-working, dedicated Street Team that wants to promote us, make more contacts, and have fun! We're looking for Street Teamers primarily in the Northeast region of the U.S, but really all over the country. For your help, we will give away prizes such as a FREE DOWNLOAD, FREE MERCH, and a GUESTLIST spot at a show of your choosing. Make sure also to check out our new tour dates (more coming soon as well) and let us know if you can help promote any of these. If you're interested, kindly hit up our manager, Jared Kaner, at jared@brightlineartistmanagement.com with "Bamboo Shoots Street Team" in the subject line. thanks for your help!! Bamboo Shoots

Armour...now with digital booklet

2009-10-01T21:20:00.003-04:00

Haven't downloaded Armour yet? Not to worry! If you look on iTunes, you might see (somewhat confusingly) that there are two versions of the album- the correct link is here, and includes a download of a digital booklet with pictures and lyrics.

Bamboo Shoots blog/press wrap up

2009-09-30T23:47:00.004-04:00

Here's what everyone's been saying about us...

"Bamboo Shoots’ debut ‘Armour’ is out... first track is hot" via Ultrabrown

"Bamboo Shoots' major-label debut features Parsippany native" via The Daily Record
"A band with an eclectic sound, unique look and rising popularity may soon be joining the list of famous musicians from New Jersey...Bamboo Shoots will debut its first CD, "Armour," on Tuesday. The release is the latest stop on this quartet's meteoric rise in the music industry." via Burlington County Times

"That album, a bubbly cocktail of new wave, dance pop and a dash of their Indian heritage, would be shepherded by producer Jerry Harrison...who straddles the line between megapop (Madonna, Beyonce, U2) and indie (Arcade Fire, CSS, MIA) like few others. The result is a frenetic offering that teems with Price-indebted electro like “Hey Girl..." via Shakefire

"Armour officially drops today, and we’ve officially started paying attention." via Format Magazine"
I cannot seem to get [Hey Girl] out of my head, so I wish you all good luck with that." via Guilt Free Pleasures

"Try It Before You Buy It- Week of September 29th, 2009" via Largehearted Boy and KEXP Blog Out This Week

Epic Records Press Release on Armour

2009-09-30T22:04:00.001-04:00

Epic Records posted a press release about the release of "Armour" which you can read here.

Avir wants YOU to buy Armour!

2009-09-30T17:00:00.000-04:00

Bamboo Shoots and Kofi Annan's TCK TCK TCK- free download

2009-09-29T15:38:00.005-04:00

A while back, Bamboo Shoots joined Kofi Annan's TCK TCK TCK Campaign for global climate change. The campaign is geared towards this year's conference in Copenhagen. All of the artists involved recorded a cover of the 1987 Midnight Oil track "Beds are Burning." Get it as a free iTunes download here. While you're there, don't forget to pick up Armour, Bamboo Shoots' debut album!

Check out the other artists involved:

ARMOUR IS RELEASED!!!

2009-09-28T22:21:00.004-04:00

Armour, Bamboo Shoots's major label debut is available NOW as a digital download at your favorite online music retailer. Pick it up on iTunes, Amazon.com or at www.bambooshoots.com TODAY!

5 days till Armour...what what! Get your copy now...

2009-09-24T00:56:00.001-04:00

We can't believe Armour is out in 5 days! Finally! Pre-order your copy now at www.bambooshoots.com.

Bamboo Shoots attend "Age of Stupid" premiere in NYC and Shiv chats with Heather Graham

2009-09-23T14:25:00.012-04:00

(via http://shivhead.blogspot.com/)

Yesterday Bamboo Shoots and I were invited to attend the premier of the documentary, The Age of Stupid. It's about climate change, the war for resources, the ending of humanity if we continue to consume the way we do etc. It was pretty moving. Here's a link to a decent review in case you wanted to read more.

Upon arriving, we were escorted to walk the "green carpet" and posed for a couple pictures and did some interviews.

And then I met Heather Graham! I've always been a fan of her but when she appeared in my favorites series ever, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, it sealed the deal. I got a quick photo with her, and upon saying goodbye I said "I love Saddam!" (it's a line she spoke in ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, Season 1 Episode 14, "Shock and Aww")...she laughed and smiled. And the rest of the night I was glowing. And of course I totally thought she was into me.

Kofi Anan was also there, as well was the former president of Ireland, Mary Robinson (whose business card I still have from meeting her at a development conference at Yale back in 2004), the president of the Maldives (Bamboo Shoots tour??), Gilian Anderson, Stephen Baldwin, and one of my new favorite actors, Larry Gilliard, Jr. who plays D'Angelo in HBO'S The Wire.

Bamboo Shoots Cover Series: We cover Ne-Yo

2009-09-21T20:29:00.001-04:00

Notes on the Video:

We met up earlier in the day for practice and setup to do this taping. Right from the start, everything went wrong. The audio setup wasn't working right, everything was taking forever and we were getting frustrated. Then my wurlitzer fuse blew and Ankur had to disassemble it and jerry-rig it into the PA. It was hot and sweaty and by the time the cameras finally turned on, we were all aggravated and taking it out on each other. If you're in a band you probably know what I'm taking about. As I'm watching this, I can feel the tension in the room and if you know us, you can probably see it on our faces too. I love that Steve dutifully captured it. Anyway, we hugged and made up after the taping, and now it's just funny to see us going through this band drama while singing "nobody struts like her" in perfect harmony.

Huge disclaimer: I think Ne-Yo is one of the best singers out there right now. I'm not Ne-Yo, we're a rock band, and believe me I'm not trying to put my voice in the same league as his. We just like his songwriting, it inspired us, and we thought we'd share. Hope you dig.

--Avir

About to Pop: Bamboo Shoots

2009-09-16T19:36:00.001-04:00

Check out this interview with Avir and Shiv on Popeater, it's good stuff:

About to Pop: Bamboo Shoots

Less than two weeks to go!

2009-09-16T13:06:00.002-04:00

Armour's almost here, folks... hitting your computer on September 29th. Be sure to pre-order your copy here and get a free 3 song EP of "Hey Girl," "Wrong All Along," and "Milk, Satin & Silk," while you count down with us to the big day!

We've also got a great new official website up at www.bambooshoots.com

Hey Girl Video Premiere

2009-09-11T00:31:00.001-04:00

Coming soon...cooking with Frankie

2009-09-08T15:54:00.001-04:00

Hey guys it's Shiv here, the drummer from Bamboo Shoots, and this is my first blog entry! Wanted to let you know that tomorrow, Wednesday September 9th, I'll be featured doing one of my favorite things - cooking! There's this blog site about music and cooking called The Young and The Hungry, and I've been invited to showcase some of my favorite recipes for a video shoot. This is a really interesting site by an eccentric guy called Frankie who has previously hosted bands to come in and cook for the show. And in between he does a bunch of weird stuff like this video which is all about cooking a fillet of sole fish -- all set to an original song and video written, directed and performed by Frankie himself. I must say I've never seen anything quite like it before -- there's a part in the middle of the video when the fish is slowly frying and reaching it's point of done-ness that Frankie splits the screen to a raging and building guitar solo which matches the climax of the cooking fish! So I'm pretty excited to be working with Frankie tomorrow and think it'll be a lot of fun to cook for his show.

I figured I'd make what I love to cook for the rest of Bamboo Shoots when we have super long rehearsals at Avir's house. My boys need a high protein, lowfat and tasty meal to keep on rockin! So tomorrow I will showcase my "Chicken Curry with Lentil Brown Rice and Cucumber-Mint Lowfat Yogurt." I don't know if you're into Indian food, let alone curries, but wait till you see how I'm going to make it -- this aint yo mamma's preparation for sure! I don't know when the video of me doing this is going to be online, but be sure to check back for updates! THIS IS GONNA BE FUN....AND TASTY!!

Shiv with his Mom, the best cook in the world!

Choose our next cover

2009-09-06T12:42:00.004-04:00

That's right...YOU can choose our next cover - go to our MySpace to vote for what song you think we'd do best. We'll be recording it with a video too. The choices:

Sweet Dream- Beyonce
Party in the USA- Miley Cyrus
I Gotta Feeling - Black Eyed Peas
Love Game - Lady GaGa

T-Pain iphone app

2009-09-04T17:19:00.008-04:00

siiiick

Anokhi Magazine Article

2009-09-02T08:01:00.002-04:00

Cheers to our friend Hilal for writing this piece which you can read in its original form here

Bamboo Shoots Are Shooting Stars
Desi American Pop-Rockers Are New Jersey's Next Big Export

BY: Hilal Nakiboglu Isler
PHOTO: Courtesy of Hilal Nakiboglu Isler

I met Ankur Patel in an over-lit New Jersey diner a few years ago. A
kid with a quick smile and over-sized jeans who didn’t talk much, and
when he did, it was about this band, called Bamboo Shoots, he was in
with a couple of his buddies.

I might not have taken Patel that seriously (what is it with boys and
their garage-bands?) if Rekha Malhotra, a.k.a. DJ Rekha, hadn’t been there.
She’s the New York-based turntablist responsible for bringing Bhangra to the
city through her long-standing club night Basement Bhangra. I was
interviewing her and had spent the day being SUV-ed around to a local
TV taping to her offices in Brooklyn and now here to this restaurant
booth off the New Jersey Turnpike.

It was she who introduced us. And over some deep-fried food, which the
three of us now shared, she told me Ankur’s band was the real deal, a
group to watch. She was a fan, and had recently hosted them at
Basement Bhangra, part of an attempt to showcase Desi-American music
not of the dhol-beat-repeat kind.

Patel, softspoken with an earring and well-pruned goatee, told us
about a competition they’d recently entered: an annual contest
sponsored by mtvU, held in attempt to find the "Best Music On Campus."
He said if they won, it would be "huge" and gave me the online address
where I could go and place my vote — which I did later that night.

So did thousands of others. The Bamboo Shoots secured a win, becoming the
first Desi-American band to do so. The prize: a chance to perform on
Late Night With Conan O'Brien and a deal with Epic Records, a major
mainstream label.

That was two years ago. Since then, there have been gigs, lots of
them, across the United States: at dive bars, clubs, even a theme park
(the tween girls seemed to really enjoy that one). Then three months
ago, a first: a five-city tour of India.

You don’t see many young bands travel to India so early on in their
careers. That’s something generally reserved for rock veterans
(Metallica, Iron Maiden come to mind) who roll through, almost as an
afterthought, on the tail-end of an Asian blitz. So why India? And why
now?

"We get the sense that most American bands would only come to India
once they were firmly established internationally," frontman Avir
Mitra told me from Delhi, where he had performed at the Turquoise
Cottage the evening before. "They'd stop by on their way to Japan or
something and play huge venues and then leave. We want to do it
differently…to start from a grassroots level, build a solid
relationship with India early on." They’ve managed to pull this strategy
off nicely in the States.

The guys (there are five: Avir Mitra, Karl Sukhia, Shiv Puri, Ankur
Patel and Ahmed Mahmoud) have a following as loyal as any — people
they’ve won over with their accessibility and their endearing, nerdy
charm. Watch their YouTube videos (/bambooshootsband), and you’ll see
what I mean. In the clip where Mitra announces the India tour, for
instance, he sits mumbling in a collapsed lawn chair, nervously
tossing a pebble around before someone (is that Ankur?) starts raking
a pile of dead leaves in the background.

The video ends as awkwardly as it began which makes you realize two
things. One: these guys probably didn’t go on many dates in high
school. And two: they don’t see any reason you can’t be rock stars and
normal people simultaneously.

The Shoots cover both classics (Al Green’s I’m Still In Love With
You), and contemporary hits (by Kanye West, Radiohead), but it’s their
original pieces like Milk, Satin, Silk and Wrong All Along that are
really memorable, full of punchy charm. Their debut album, Armour, is
to be released late this year. Jerry Harrison of the Talking Heads
gets production credits.

Their legion of committed online fans will help make the album a
success here. And in India? "None of us had any idea how our sound
would be received," says Avir Mehta, "But people there are definitely
getting it."

That’s reassuring and suggests if word-of-mouse spreads, as it does,
the Shoots just might become a band with a transcontinental following.

Visit the band on MySpace for more info: http://www.myspace.com/bambooshoots.

One Day for Change

2009-08-31T12:07:00.005-04:00

Our label mate Matisyahu has a new community service project- One Day for Change - we think it's great. We've gotten involved, and think you should too. The idea is to "create a viral online movement via Twitter and YouTube that encourages people to share ideas to positively affect their communities in one day." You can win $5,000 to donate to a charity of your choice as well as some other cool prizes like FlipCams...

Here's our video:

You can share ideas via Twitter using the hash tag #onedaychange.net or on YouTube by posting a video of what you would do to change your community at the One Day For Change group on YouTube

Menya

2009-08-28T15:14:00.004-04:00

Our friends Menya have been putting out some cool covers lately... their cover of Vanessa Carlton's White Houses, featuring dj Good Goose has a pretty rad beat. check 'em out.

It's here....preorder Armour today!!!

2009-08-19T23:07:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone!

Great news! Armour, our debut album on Epic Records is available for pre-order here - you also get instant access to the Armour EP with the download - pre-order it today!

Hey friends and fans

2009-08-19T15:21:00.002-04:00

Hey friends and fans,

Some sad news: we have parted ways with our guitarist, Ahmed Mahmoud, and will be moving forward as a four piece. We are honored to have worked with him and he brought a lot of energy in the band. Although we are parting ways - we remain friends and are eagerly looking forward to new music from Ahmed. We will keep you posted on his future endeavors and we know you'll support him just like you do for Bamboo Shoots.

Hey Girl - live at the Gramercy Theatre Tumblr Concert

2009-08-13T14:54:00.003-04:00

Check out this new version of Hey Girl we played at Tumblr's Reblog This Concert earlier this week..

Long time coming...on tour...and Armour out 9/29!

2009-08-12T17:42:00.006-04:00

it's been a while folks... we're smack in the middle of a tour leading up to the release of Armour, our debut in September! A few days back we played Tumblr's Reblog This Concert in NYC - you can see our tumblr at bambooshoots.tumblr.com and thanks to Bianca at Tumblr for putting us on the bill...it was a blast

Here's some choice pics and vids from the last few weeks...

sign at the bar at Ground Zero in South Carolina

The one and only....in Big Stone Gap, Virginia

Pics from the Tumblr show...

2300 Jackson St

2009-07-18T23:02:00.004-04:00

These past few days we've added a good 1500 miles on the van, hosted a couple of dance contests mid set, and Shiv freestyled for the first time. And that's just the beginning. For just four (admittedly far) shows, we had our fair share of adventure.

We set out on our mini-tour at 7am Monday making our way to Shiv's childhood summer camp in Rochester, NY to spend a day and a half. We got there, set up all our gear, did our band thing, kids did their kid thing, fun was had, dancing, campfires, group sing-alongs ensued as the night went on... considering I never went to overnight camp as a kid, it was like making up for lost time. Oh and it was my birthday on Tues and something about hearing 120 kids shout out 'happy birthday Karl' first thing in the morn made it totally bearable to be another year older. And tshirts were all sold out, that makes this band member happy enough to use emoticons:) fuel aint cheap and those kids fueled us for the whole tour, both literally and spiritually. f'n rad experience.

From there, we headed to Rochester, MI (close to the Canadian border) for our next show that Tues night. We opted to add a few hours to our trip and not take the shortcut over Lake Michigan/through Canada since we all didn't have passports; wise choice we felt. Anyways about 30 minutes away from the venue, I wake up to Avir driving the van dangerously close to Canada. Like border close. Fackin gps... the thing had basically led him past the point of no return onto the Ambassador bridge into Canada, where we made our accidental crossing into the waiting arms of the Canadian border police who proceeded to search our van full of brown dudes and equipment very, very thoroughly. These guys and girls were full body armoured, quite Storm Trooper-ish. We were searched, then processed; I had to sign papers saying god- knows-what since I wasn't born in the U.S., and we were sent back to the states where the same process started over again on the other side (but with fatter, slower cops). Of course we totally missed our show in the meanwhile... all this and it was still my birthday. Only one of the cops (on the Canadian side) wished me a happy bday. sigh.

Kalamazoo, MI and Lake Villa, Indiana followed that crazy night. In Michigan we stayed at our pal MC Imagery's house (that's where Shiv freestyled btw, at 2:20am Jul 15th, a rapper was born). And after Lake Villa, we decided to head home that night - 15 hrs back to jerz. As I was driving back that Fri morning, at about 2:30am we passed the road sign for Gary, IN. I took the exit as we googled the address for Michael Jackson's boyhood house. 2300 Jackson St. 3am. We were alone in the dead of night with the tiny building that housed the Jackson 5. Hallowed ground. Amazing way to end the tour, a quiet goodbye to one of my heroes.

-Karl

Like FREE stuff? Download Hey Girl for FREE courtesy of Reverb Nation & Microsoft!!!

2009-07-10T16:21:00.002-04:00

Hey guys!

Guess what? You can download our first single, HEY GIRL, from our album "Armour," for FREE courtesy of Reverb Nation and Microsoft.

We need as many people to download it as possible to make an impact so please invite as many people as you know to join in!

TO DOWNLOAD:

CLICK HERE: http://www.reverbnation.com/bambooshoots

THEN CLICK: GET MUSIC NOW

EXCLUSIVE Audio from our show in Hamden, CT last night

2009-07-09T17:12:00.005-04:00

last night we played The Space in Hamden, CT, with a special lineup of Avir, Karl and Shiv (aka Bojangles). It was the first time we've played like that in years.

Dance contest.

Check out some of the cuts from the soundboard

Speeding Star

Speeding Star - Bamboo Shoots

The World Is Beautiful

The World is Beautiful - Bamboo Shoots

Wrong All Along

Wrong All Along - Bamboo Shoots

Into the Sea (with Karl Singing!)

Into the Sea - Bamboo Shoots

Leakin...

2009-07-09T00:49:00.003-04:00

On the Tappan Zee

interesting..plus show in Hamden, CT tonight (7/8)!

2009-07-08T15:31:00.006-04:00

so we're doing a bit of a stripped down set tonight at The Space in Hamden, CT (doors 7pm) so be sure to listen for some cool switch ups... here's some shots from practice

IM BACK FROM THE JUNGLE. Avir updates us on his Costa Rica trip

2009-07-07T17:47:00.005-04:00

IM BACK FROM THE JUNGLE.

although I miss the jungle and the unpaved roads and the wild lychees and someday I will go back and learn to live like an animal and to hell with all of you. not really but, you know, sorta. here's some pics from costa rica. before that i was in turkey (less jungles, more ancient civilizations, more unibrows, still amazing).

a toucan eating a bug.

i eat often

tried to keep the boots, couldn't

miles of perfectly lined african nut oil trees, courtesy of united fruit co.

african nut oil seeds, millions of them

those leaves were big enough to hold a small child.

More pics:

wow this video is cool... Hypnotic Brass

2009-06-30T01:56:00.000-04:00

So a bunch of us have seen these guys Hypnotic Brass (from Chicago) playing around NYC subways over the past few years. They are great. We came across this video of theirs, it's just a great piece of cinematography and we wanted to share it with you all!

YRock/88.5FM @ 6pm Today - Live Performance & Interview

2009-06-27T16:17:00.003-04:00

Hey there, tune into Y-Rock Philly, 88.5fm or goto http://xpn.org/yrock-on-xpn/listen-live at 6PM TODAY to hear us play some songs live in the XPN studios...

Consequence of Sound: Review of Northside Festival Performance

2009-06-19T19:33:00.003-04:00

From Consequence of Sound:

Sunday, June 14: Day 4

Those who managed to jump back on their hungover feet, returned to the streets of Brooklyn/Williamsburg to catch the last day of Northside Festival. They waited in parks, drank more “coffee” and “smoothies” and listened to meringue from leftover attendees of the Puerto Rican Day festivities. The momentum was clear – time for more so let’s move on to day four .

Bamboo Shoots:
Public Assembly (back room)

Bamboo Shoots approached the stage with a handicap – the lead singer was off somewhere in Turkey, while his band managed without him. This quirky quintet played their asses off and at times, the whole missing lead singer thing was forgotten. Although similarities can be drawn to Radio 4, the band has its own pop-indie sound that put the audience in a good mood.

During one song, the synth player grabbed up a drum and banged on it furtively to pick up a tribal element for an already energetic tune. The force of Bamboo Shoots’ music was received with dance and smiles but this is nothing new to them. The word on the streets about this band is getting around, which is what got them signed to Epic Records in the first place.

Some great pics from the past two shows...

2009-06-17T23:27:00.002-04:00

One of our friends took some great pics of the Walk for Hope and Public Assembly shows. For those of you who don't know, Karl sang lead Sunday and kicked some major ass!

Mayor Jun H. Choi of Edison, NJ issues proclamation honoring Bamboo Shoots

2009-06-16T12:37:00.004-04:00

Mayor Jun H. Choi of Edison, NJ issued this proclamation honoring Bamboo Shoots:

Proclamation: Office of the Mayor

WHEREAS, The Bamboo Shoots will be performing during the post-walk celebration in support of the 8th Annual Michelle Offsie Memorial Walk for Hope on June 7, 2009 at the Community Campus in Edison, New Jersey; and

WHEREAS, the Walk for Hope is a nation-wide fundraising effort in support of breast cancer research, treatment, and education programs at City of Hope; and

WHEREAS, The Bamboo Shoots won mtvU's 2007 Artist of the Year Award for Best Music on Campus--performing on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and signing with Epic Records; and

WHEREAS, The Bamboo Shoots will be releasing their debut album, Armour, later this year,

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Jun H. Choi, MAYOR OF EDISON, NEW JERSEY, do hereby recognize

THE BAMBOO SHOOTS

And encourage all residents to honor them for their hard work, dedication, and talent.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of Edison to be affixed, this Seventh day of June, in the Year Two Thousand and Nine.

Marvin “Lemonhead” Grossberg

2009-06-09T17:03:00.001-04:00

Marvin “Lemonhead” Grossberg, lost member of Bamboo Shoots?

Just came across this! Is he referring to us!?

Photos from the Walk for Hope

2009-06-08T17:20:00.004-04:00

Here are some photos from the Walk for Hope (courtesy Reuven Kaswin):

Two shows this weekend! Plus Interview Video

2009-06-05T10:45:00.002-04:00

Hey there!

We're playing two shows this weekend, in Philly and in Edison, NJ. Are you coming? In the meantime, check out this clip of the interview we did with Y-Rock last weekend in Philly. The final radio version will air on June 27.

Getting Creative in the Studio - Jams, and a New Song Clip

2009-06-03T01:51:00.003-04:00

There was something in the air this past weekend in Philly at Y-Rock - the studio was amazing, the people were amazing, and things just felt great. Creative juices were flowing, and as everyone warmed up, Ankur started playing this great salsa riff on his percussion, and everyone else soon joined in:

But that wasn't all - the night before the taping, Avir sent us all a demo track, tentatively called "I'm a Red Light." The song, which has yet to be finished, sounds like nothing we've ever made. Keeping those juices flowin' in Philly, Ahmed suddenly started playing a riff from the song, and we got what followed on camera:

Anyway, we've got even more exclusive videos to come this week, and the radio show airs on Y-Rock and online June 27th (Saturday).

Feature in Appendix Mag

2009-06-03T01:06:00.001-04:00

We were featured in Appendix Max last week - click here to read the interview.

Busy Week

2009-06-01T10:15:00.003-04:00

Last week was really busy- we were practicing a lot, filmed a TV show pilot, taped a radio show, and more. Here's two clips from practice last week:

Wrong All Along - new arrangement:

Whenever You're Around

Both Wrong All Along and Whenever You're Around will be available on "Armour," our debut, out at the end of summer.

Don't Curse

2009-05-27T12:42:00.000-04:00

Kickin' it old school.

RajStar (our buddy) wins John Legend Contest

2009-05-26T23:28:00.004-04:00

Remember that John Legend Indaba mix contest we told you all about last month? Our good first Raj Makhija (aka RajStar) won!

Check it out!

Featured on John Legend's MySpace

On Indaba

Congrats to Raj!! And his crazy dog, Zealot, who is the only dog we have seen with the ability to play fetch with itself and sing into a microphone at the same time. Okay, maybe not at the same time. But still a really, really smart dog. Maybe Zealot did the remix?

Press Release from Edison Mayor's Office about Walk for Hope

2009-05-24T20:47:00.005-04:00

Read the original article here.

Breakout Band and Mayor Choi Call on Others to join Nation's Largest Suburban Walk for Hope
(May 21, 2009)

EDISON, N.J.: In an effort to increase the ever-growing fund-raising event, Mayor Jun Choi once again announced his support of the 8th Annual Michelle Offsie Memorial Walk for Hope, which will take place on the morning of Sunday, June 7.

Mayor Choi made the announcement at the Jewish Community Center on Oak Tree Road alongside Janna Zuckerman, the 19-year-old Edison resident and college junior who has organizes the walk each year and the Bamboo Shoots, Epic Record recording artists who will headline the post-walk festivities.

“There is no other event quite like this in our community. I encourage Edison residents and residents from around the region to join us in our efforts to raise awareness and raise money to find a cure for breast cancer,” Mayor Choi said. “It is the people who are willing to selflessly serve that make a community great. I commend Janna Zuckerman and her family for all their efforts.”

The Michelle Offsie Memorial Walk for Hope to Cure Breast Cancer started in 2002 with 260 participants. The event grew to nearly 2,000 walkers last year and is expected to have more participants this year. To date, the local walks have raised more than $650,000 for the City of Hope Cancer Center. Zuckerman’s goal is to raise $1 million by the time she graduates from college in 2011.

“I hope everyone comes out to make a difference and support this cause. Hopefully, one day, we won’t have to be walking because we would have found a cure,” Zuckerman said.

Registration for this year’s walk begins at 8 a.m. on Sunday, June 7. At 10 a.m., a 4-mile run will begin. The 2-mile and 4-mile walks will begin at 10:15 a.m. Post-walk celebrations involving awards and a festival atmosphere will commence at 11 a.m.

The Bamboo Shoots and their electro-rock sound won the mtvU Best Music on Campus contest in 2007. They signed with Epic Records in the summer of 2007 and are slated to release their album, “Armour,” later this summer.

The Community Campus at 1775 Oak Tree Road is where the walk will begin and where the post walk festivities will take place.

To pre-register or for more information on the 8th Annual Michelle Offsie Memorial Walk for Hope log onto this page.

Blog on Blog love

2009-05-24T20:35:00.003-04:00

Sepia Mutiny covered Bamboo Shoot's tour in India, and did a really good job of pointing out some of the "highlight" posts on this blog. It's a great overview of what went on in India. So if you missed our updates during the tour, check out the article here...

our friend mandalay @ virgin america on opraahhhh

2009-05-21T17:54:00.001-04:00

Bamboo Shoots to Perform at the Walk for Hope to Cure Breast Cancer

2009-05-20T18:35:00.004-04:00

Bamboo Shoots appeared at a Press Conference in Edison, New Jersey alongside Mayor Jun Choi to announce their upcoming performance at the Walk for Hope to Cure Breast Cancer. The Walk is on June 7th. Link to register for walk: http://tinyurl.com/qbhfyz

Check out the photos and video below!

Northside Festival June 14th

2009-05-20T17:04:00.004-04:00

Hey everyone!

We're playing the Northside Festival June 14th at Public Assembly. Other bands include Murder Mystery, Wakey! Wakey!, Bamboo Shoots, The Bloodsugars, Porter Block

Come check it out!

omgomg

2009-05-18T15:16:00.000-04:00

Just bought NI's Maschine. Those pads can be used like an mpc or made to work like a step sequencer. Radddd.

We will not be playing AIDS Walk today!!!

2009-05-17T09:14:00.002-04:00

Hey guys, we have to cancel our set at the AIDS Walk today! Bummer - but unlike walkers, we cannot afford to get wet. Electricity + rain = death

If you were planning on going, still go and support - the walk is on!!

--Bamboo Shoots

South Jersey Rollerderby Girls are insannnne

2009-05-12T22:59:00.002-04:00

Here's what happens when you play a show in Wildwood, NJ - at a Rollerderby pool party. Here's the basic trajectory of the night. Somewhere between Marco Polo and pillowfighting insanity I believe we played a show. - Avir

Funny Pics from India

2009-05-07T16:48:00.003-04:00

Hey everyone!

We just came across these pics and thought you'd enjoy them. Just some fun pics from the overnight sleeper train from Delhi to Mumbai.

Jamming and Searching Pockets

2009-05-04T00:28:00.002-04:00

Watch as the band jams and Ahmed is inexplicably searched...okay, not so hard to explain, Shiv was looking for his lighter!

Review of our show at Kyra, Bangalore

2009-05-01T11:22:00.001-04:00

BAMBOO SHOOTS

April 11th and 12th : MTV USA's hottest and perhaps the best alternate dance-rock band around‚ Bamboo Shoots : performed LIVE to the swaying of a nubile young crowd that tripped on the bands original line up and their amazing music. The show was opened by Allegro Fudge, another great band with great potential. Bamboo Shoots was a riot on stage,a gig that made the crowds shake their heads and legs. The drummer Ankur got on to percussion, keyboards, drum machine and even a dholak (which he turneds to one side and used like a bongo with sticks!) almost simultaneously. And when you least expected ‚ him to do anything more stunning than that, he broke into some incredible break dance moves!

Kyra on the web: Website | Twitter

Yellowbuzz covers Bamboo Shoots

2009-04-30T14:02:00.002-04:00

You Better Dance Or Else It's Your Loss: Bamboo Shoots Wields Rhythmic Discipline

I have a secret. I’ve been listening to Bamboo Shoots 2006 Blue EP non-stop since I saw their show at Alley Katz in Richmond, Virginia on March 15. This disc has been spinning in my car stereo system for about 6 weeks now. Its groove leeches on you and your internal organs. This disc is a party, whether you’re ready to move or not. No joke. I have been failing miserably at resisting the temptation to put this disc on repeat.

Based out of the New York metropolitan area, linking the Jersey suburbs, New York, and Brooklyn, the five-piece band Bamboo Shoots has been making groove-oriented indie eletro pop since their first show at the Pianos in New York City in 2004. The band stems from a close, long-term collaboration project between two friends Avir Mitra and Karl Sukhia that started in their pre-college years in South Jersey. Notably, in 2007, Bamboo Shoots won the MTVu Best Music on Campus contest after qualifying to be in the final round of 50 and then surpassing all other contestants by the grassroots support of votes from family and friends around the world. Packaged along with the prize were instant media exposure – a live performance on Late Night with Conan O’Brian – and a major record deal with Epic.

Before their load-in, Bamboo Shoots met me for an interview at a Thai restaurant nearby the club in downtown Richmond. They thoughtfully answered my questions about their music endeavors and experiences. They talked about the centrality of rhythm in their music, their South Asian musical influences, experiences of growing up within the South Asian community in New Jersey and negotiating their parents' expectations for professional career like medicine, engineering, or finance. Interestingly, Karl used the analogy of “coming out” to describe the process of divulging to his parents his passion and pursuit for music making. Our conversation evolved into an informal chat about music gear (geeky!) and their DIY plans for touring India [documented on the band blog]. At the end the interview, Shiv turned the table around and asked me about my research findings.

More photos from this performance

It was a particularly rainy and foggy night in Richmond, unfortunately. Despite the low turnout, Bamboo Shoots played a high-energy, crowd-pleasing set consisting of songs from their 2006 EP and the more recent “Hey Girl” and others from Music for Cotillions, a mixtape web release in spite of their contract with Epic. Ankur’s percussion was low in the mix - a disappointment, personally. Nevertheless, I had a blast moving to the syncopated rhythmic texture and tension between guitar and keys, drum set and bongos (and drum machine!). Who says that indie rock lacks rhythmic depth?

The best way to enjoy their music is to throw all objects aside and feel the music through moving the body. Bamboo Shoots will perform on June 14 at Public Assembly in Brooklyn. The performance is a part of Northside Festival in Brooklyn that features NYC bands. At my next Bamboo Shoots’ show, I will ditch my duty to capture media. I will dance freely following their disciplined rhythm in abandonment. Who’s going to watch my field recording devices? Also, there better be some bopping and swinging en masse. Who’s in?

Black and White in Mumbai

2009-04-29T13:33:00.006-04:00

Check out these gorgeous pictures from Pune and Mumbai, taken by Neville Sukhia.

Text 'Shoots' to 41411 for Updates from Bamboo Shoots!

2009-04-28T13:59:00.001-04:00

Hey guys!

You can now stay connected with us even when you're on the go, by texting 'Shoots' to 41411 - for mobile alerts about shows, news, downloads, and more!

Only Much Louder Blog posts about Bamboo Shoots

2009-04-27T00:06:00.002-04:00

Only Much Louder, the great folks over in India who booked our entire tour in India posted about us this week here, with some kind words, saying we "are the best example of how international indie acts should strategise and work the Indian market."

You should check out their website, Only Much Louder

Our cover of "Paranoid" hits 7,000 views on YouTube!

2009-04-25T16:41:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone,
Our cover of Kanye West's paranoid just passed 7,000 views. Wow!

Check out Yellowbuzz for some pics from Richmond!

2009-04-25T14:00:00.002-04:00

Yellowbuzz posted some cool pics from our richmond show last month. Check it out here!

Shiv quoted in DNA India...

2009-04-25T13:44:00.003-04:00

Check out this weird, but interesting quote from Shiv in this article...

update from karl.... yea, i stayed back

2009-04-24T01:49:00.001-04:00

Karl writes in an update from India:

while most of my bandmates have returned stateside, i was unable to tear myself away from this place just yet. its funny, i never thought i would feel so strongly about staying back, im still wrestling with the guilt of not returning to the grind and the work that has to be done back in the us, but at the same time i simply couldn't leave right after the tour was over. India has become of those things in my life that lives somewhere shoved deep into the cupboard, or hidden under my bed. Mostly because in the last few years India has become a painful reminder of how little physical contact I have with those i deeply love, whether its family or friends, and also a reminder of those who keep leaving my life as time pushes on.

when i was a kid growing up here, my grandparents and my parents were indistinguishable to me, i knew one was much older than the other, but they were all part of the village that raised me. my dad was at sea quite often (most of the year in fact) and so my grandfathers became just as influential to me as my father during those years. a few years back, i got the word that my moms dad passed away, and then my dads mom, and then my aunt, and the news registers only as much as you allow it to when you are thousands of miles away. there was always something else to place in between me and the news of their deaths; work, songs, shows, bandmates etc. then i get here and that distance is gone.

im wading through it all now, it overwhelms me at times. its like standing at the 6 foot marker in the pool and having just your nose above water, one tiny wave from a passerby and water rushes into your nasal passages, breath gone. im also trying to spend as much time with those that i likely wont see again, my grandmother, and my great aunt who never married, who nursed all her brothers and sisters as they left her. She remained the last one who could walk, who could travel to them as they were ailing. Now she is 93, still walks through the gardens around her home every day, but her once sharp mind is dulling as alzheimers sets in. She asks me in mid conversation who I am again. At the same time im watching the next generation of my family blossom. My cousin who is autistic and has great difficulty speaking is turning into an accomplished painter, another cousin a great photographer, and they are all becoming good men and women as far as i can tell.

I remain quiet most of the time around them, im not exactly here enough to tell them how to live their lives or to give sagely advice because im still figuring this shit out myself. But i enjoy their company immensely, and im just trying to soak everybody in as much as i can in these next few days that im still here. years will likely pass before i see them again, but they never act distant. we pick up where we left off last, and hopefully we all grow old together, in our own little corners of the earth.

- Karl

Bamboo Shoots on CNN-IBN India

2009-04-23T14:52:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone! We were on CNN-IBN India a few weeks back, and we just got the tape in. Check it out!

Exclusive video from Bangalore pre and post-show- We cover "Rock Your Body!" -kinda ;)

2009-04-22T10:04:00.003-04:00

First we drove: 5 people. 2 cars. Guitars on top, luggage in the back. Driving to the gig in style. Bangalore, India.- Avir

And then we even after the show, we still played! This clip is after our show at Kyra in Bangalore. Who knew Justin Timberlake was so popular in India. Actually, probably everybody. These girls rocked! - Avir

Even more videos from Mumbai, India! (Tom Cruise)

2009-04-22T10:01:00.002-04:00

Tom Cruise Part I

Tom Cruise Part II

Shake it Off and Wrong All Along Videos-live in Mumbai and Kolkata

2009-04-20T12:11:00.003-04:00

This just in-clips from our Mumbai and Kolkata show. The Wrong All Along clip really highlights our low-end side. More to come!

Wrong All Along, Mumbai

Getting a bit of crowd participation in Kolkata!

Shake It Off in Kolkata - check out Ahmed rocking out!

4,838 people in 117 countries download Music for Cotilions

2009-04-19T14:40:00.005-04:00

This is pretty cool--we've just found out that almost 5,000 people have downloaded our Music for Cotillions mixtape. Incidentally, if you haven't gotten a chance to download it yet, you can by clicking here.

Check out the screenshot!

Walk like an Egyptian?

2009-04-18T15:51:00.002-04:00

Here's a quick video of us being interviewed by Rolling Stone India outside the Blue Frog in Mumbai.

" I think we're describing what it means to walk like an Egyptian? I have no idea." - Avir

Avir...back in the States

2009-04-17T21:12:00.000-04:00

I'm home. So odd being back. For example, it's 8am and I'm wide awake and I'm about to go to a Zumba class at my gym because I don't know what else to do. Ahmed, Ankur and I flew back together, Karl and Shiv have stayed on in India for a bit. The flight was more or less unremarkable. We watched Almost Famous. Arriving in Newark was an adventure though. We had discussed on the flight that we might get split apart by security so whatever. As Ahmed says, he has 5 names, and they're all on the terrorist watchlist. Sure enough, when we landed, Ahmed was pulled aside by security right from the get go, and taken to an undisclosed location. Ankur and I pointed and laughed. As expected. This was right at customs. So me and Ankur are still left. We were waiting in the customs line, Ankur was behind a guy who looked dumb high. He had a little micro ponytail and he straight up walked into customs with nothing but a bag of chips. He was just carrying this bag of chips everywhere, getting it scanned, carefully handing it to customs, and he was just very mellow about it. He was hilarious. Ankur and I got through, got to baggage claim, got our bags and Ahmed was still nowhere to be seen. I thought gitmo was closed? Usually I get harrassed at airports so I was thinking maybe Ahmed was a nice decoy for me.

So finally we started walking out but Ankur and I get routed to one last security check where they scanned our bags because we had a bunch of gear that looked suspicious. Ankur is first and he's describing his equipment, what an MPC does, how midi works, he's in a band signed to Epic records, we just toured India... basically kicking his game to the security guard. That works well, and I have less gear, so I step up figuring I'll do the same. I don't even get to open my mouth. I get escorted through automatic glass doors, down a long empty hallway and into another area. Asked to sit down and wait. And there was Ahmed. And bag of chips. So now us three are sitting there looking at each other. Security goes through our bags, opens my shaving cream, goes through my clothes, looks through my camera. Asks me why I packed so little for a 3 week trip, grilling me about my guitar pedals, etc etc. Backstory - our ride to the Delhi airport was literally in a duststorm, so as a result I was sneezing and blowing my nose nonstop. I had dust in my hair and on my clothes and anytime I'd shake my head I'd start sneezing on the plane. So my bag was full of used tissues and this dude is meticulously going through them one by one. I asked him how us three got back here and he said it was totally random (righhtt).

Anyway, now that I'm home with my trusty computer we're going to be getting more pics and video up soon. There's a few clips up already. Keep checking back for more. Also more articles from India will be surfacing and we'll be sure to get them to you.

Piano's Show Webcast- Happening NOW!!! at 2:30!!!

2009-04-17T14:18:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! We're on a plane and will be back in the US this morning. To thank everyone for the great time we had in India, we are presenting a special presentation of our live show at Piano's last January. The webcast will begin TODAY, APRIL 16TH around 12:30 PM, and we'll have another encore broadcast tomorrow, APRIL 17TH at 2:30 PM (which might work better for those of you on the West Coast.

Tune in here then:

Streaming live video by Ustream

Direct link: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bamboo-shoots-band-special-broadcasts

Video from Blue Frog Bombay/Mumbai

2009-04-17T01:04:00.002-04:00

Hope you enjoyed the webcast today! Here's an exclusive video from our show at the Blue Frog in Bombay/Mumbai. Most of us just landed this morning so we've got lots of stuff to show you all--keep checking the blog because the fun's not over yet!

A Few more pictures...

2009-04-15T02:02:00.002-04:00

Mid-Day Bangalore Interview and Pics!!

2009-04-15T01:58:00.001-04:00

Rock and Dhol

By: Namita Gupta

Bangalore:
The energetic and talented five-member American band Bamboo Shoots is on an India tour and their gig at Kyra's opening night has won them a big fan following

Need some ammunition to recover from your 9 to 5 grind? Go jive to some good music. Just like Bob Marley once said, "One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain". And when you lend an eager ear to these all-in-their-twenties boys from the band Bamboo Shoots, this is exactly what hits you unadulterated fun that combines high-energy rock with intense originality.

The five-member band of Indian boys, born and raised in the US, comprises Avir Mitra on guitar and vocals, Karl Sukhia on bass, Shiv Puri on drums, Ankur Patel on percussion and Ahmed Mahmoud on guitar.

Does your band have a fairytale beginning?
Avir: Karl and me met before we entered our teens through the Parsi community in Southern New Jersey. We got our guitars when we were about 12 years old and we began playing music together from 2004. We also began writing our own songs.
Shiv: I had already heard some of Avir's songs before I met him through a DJ friend, while I was a student at the Stern School of Business in New York. We started playing music for house parties and wrote for fun under the moniker Bojangles.
Ankur: My brother was a friend of Avir's and introduced me to the group at one of their early practice sessions. I remember I was so passionate about playing the dhol over their songs, that the dhol became a part of our music.
Ahmed: I met the band at Karl's birthday party in 2006. Their guitarist had quit and there I was on the guitar strings.

What kind of music did you want to create when you got together?
The kind of music we wanted to listen to and hear and enjoy. Not something, which we had heard a hundred times. We would like to call it headbobbing, hip shaking.... we have our own take on rock.

Any Indian influences?
Shiv: During our college days we met up in South Jersey on weekends to hone our music and play local gigs. We travelled a few thousand miles to work on music. We have an Indian heritage, but we don't describe ourselves as an Indian-American rock band. We never tried to shoehorn the Indian part of ourselves. We're going mainstream in America and would not like to go through any cultural identity crisis at this stage. Our culture could seep through, but we are into rock music and nothing else.
Karl: You could call us Rock n Dhol instead of Rock n Roll!

Do you write all your songs? And what's your inspiration?
Avir: Karl and I write most of the lyrics. We take inspiration from life itself and its struggles. Sometimes it takes hours to write a good song and sometimes it just happens in an hour. Once Karl broke up with his girl and wanted to write something. So it's various instances like that. They are mostly reflective.
Shiv: Also, the unique thing was that we all grew up to listening to different types of music and artists like Prince, Michael Jackson and the Indian dholak. It was like a stir-fry.

Did you have family support when you started out and did you all complete your education before you took this path?
Shiv: Family support is very important. Avir's parents are doctors and wanted him to be a doctor. But once they saw that he was passionate about what he was doing, they were extremely supportive. It's the same with our parents.
Avir: I attended Brown University for a degree in Biology and was a few months away from commencing medical school when we won the mtvU contest and I chose music over medicine.
Shiv: I received a finance degree from NYU Stern School of Business and quit a job on Wall Street to be in the band full time.
Ahmed: I graduated from William Paterson University with a degree in biology and here I am.
Ankur: I postponed his college degree in civil engineering at Middlesex Community College.
Karl: I have received my degree in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland. I can't straddle careers and I chose music.

Are you trained in classical music?
Avir: We took guitar lessons when we were young. I learnt the saxophone when I was in the 4th grade.
Shiv: I learnt sitar from Ustad Shujaat Khan for many years. I had wanted drums since I was four and begged for them for many years and got them when I was 13. Since then I've been playing.

What's been the highpoint of your work together?
In late 2006 we signed up for the MtvU Best Music on campus contest. In 2007 we were informed that our song Hey Girl had made it to the Top 50. Out of the thousands of participating bands, we were voted amongst the Top 5. Friends and fans voted for us and one fine day we were surprised about our winning the contest, while we were just hanging out at an apartment in Brooklyn. Our big moment was when we were told that we would be playing live on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Our sparkling moment came on May 14, 2007 when we performed live on that show. The Conan O'Brien gig was our slice of the grand prize for winning the mtvU and Epic Records Best Music On Campus Artiste of the Year contest. In addition to the late night appearance, we received a promotion video and record deal worth up to $1.5 million. Now we have band managers, lawyers and organisers, who take care of everything and we concentrate on our music.

Tell us about your first album for which you're touring the world?
Bamboo Shoots signed up with Epic Records in the summer of 2007. In October 2007 we left New York for Sausalito, CA where we began working with producer Jerry Harrison from Talking Heads on our debut, which was completed by March 2008, which was later mixed at Chalice Studios in Los Angeles and mastered by Brian Gardner. The album, titled Armour, is releasing this year. We're on our first India music tour and have performed at Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Kolkata and now Bangalore.

Other passions besides music?
Long drives. And, all of us love to cook Indian food. Log on to www.myspace.com/bambooshoots to listen to their music

Making work fun
Bamboo Shoots dropped by MiD DAY yesterday. Natural performers, they broke into a spirited rendition of Hey Girl, a song from their debut album. Amazed by the "sounds of India" but bewildered by the ban on dancing in pubs, they confessed they were horrified when the local police burst in on their performance at Kyra. They told us they were open to all influences, and were impressed by a Kannada song they heard on FM. Hip hop and rock are, of course, big influences.

In DNA Bangalore!

2009-04-14T11:20:00.003-04:00

New York minute

Ah the pleasures of international gigs in plush lounges! And let the city brood over nightlife deadlines, Bangalore continues to be one of the best cities to catch some phoren talent, at least as far as music is concerned

Shruti Goutham

g_shruti@dnaindia.net

They feel "honoured" to be playing in the city. An often heard statement as international bands and DJs come down to this city to perform, across various venues that range from nightclubs, amphitheatres, stages and even lounge bars. That's the magic of the city. Give them something musical and the entire city laps it up. Be it tickets worth Rs 100, Rs 5,000 or even free — the audience is discerning and loves any kind of show that makes it here.

The latest on the list is Bamboo Shoots, a New York-based five-piece band that's performing in the country for the first time and put Bangalore on their map as well. And the venue that's grabbed their time is the newest arena on the block — Kyra, where they are performing tonight. Split over different levels, Kyra comes with quite a unique concept. Apart from their fine-dining area, they also have a dedicated space for performances. Dipali Sikand, proprietor of Kyra, says that one can have a debate there if they wanted to as long as it was interesting. But they are not the only ones headhunting.

Hard Rock Café had recently played host to the Canadian alternative rock band Low Level Flight, which apparently had a great time singing to the audience. Opus is known to have live gigs often and their range of shows cover everything — from desi to international.

And while cops come down on places to prevent any kind of 'live' band, Bangaloreans continue to rock!
Coming to the band, Bamboo Shoots might be from everything American, but they'd rather sell themselves as one with an Asian identity.

Avir Mitra, Carl Sukhiya, Shiv Puri, Ankur Patel and Ahmed Mahumoud, are the partners in rhyme and are also credited for being one of MTV US's hottest artists. So if you like them at Kyra, you can look forward to their new album Armour, which will release soon.

Now all we need are a few more great places that open their doors to music. Perhaps then, Bangalore will have its true music back.

To catch Bamboo Shoots, at Kyra theatre, Katti-ma Centre, 100 Feet Road Indiranagar, tonight, call 43419999 for detailsBelt it out: Bamboo Shoot at a performance

A Picture Update

2009-04-14T08:19:00.004-04:00

Enjoy!!

Featured in Sakal Times!

2009-04-14T08:14:00.003-04:00

'We just follow our instincts'

Akshata Shetty chats up Avir Mitra, member of Bamboo Shoots, currently touring India

Bamboo Shoots, a US-based band comprising young and talented musicians - Avir Mitra (vocals/guitar), Ahmed (guitars), Karl (bass/synths) and Ankur (percussion) - is currently touring India. With their energetic and electrifying performances in Pune and Mumbai, the band is now heading to Kolkata and Bengaluru. Here, Avir introduces us to their style of music and the challenges of an upcoming band...

What is your style of music?

Honestly, that's really hard for us to say. It's sort of like trying to describe the back of your own head. So close to you but so very hard to see. I'd rather hear others' perspectives on it; I think that would be more valuable. We just follow our instincts when we write.

Did you take up music because you loved it or was it a way to bask in the limelight?

We simply had to. Sometimes I don't know if it's love or hate or both. There was something that needed to come out and music was the channel. It never felt like a choice. Also, basking in that glorious limelight gives you so many opportunities to wear fashionable sunglasses!

Your idea behind the India tour?
Someone once told me, "Have goals, not expectations". So, our goal is to make a solid connection with the people who truly love upcoming music in India. Most US bands come to India only after they are established internationally. India is just one stop around the world for them. We, on the other hand, want to make a real connection here and take our fans just as seriously as we do at home in America.

When it comes to promoting your albums, what are the challenges you face?

The challenge right now is that the music industry as it currently operates is no longer viable. Selling CDs is basically like selling VHS tapes. On the other hand, demand for fresh music is as strong ever. So how do you reconcile these two facts? That's the challenge. I think it has to do with making as many personal connections as you can. You can travel and interact much more directly with people now. You have to give them an experience they'll never forget.

Do you think albums are best sold at concerts and not in music stores?

Personally, I'd rather have Bamboo Shoots sell albums at concerts, whether it be a CD or just a laptop sitting there that can transfer MP3s to your ipod. I haven't stepped into a music store for a long time. I'd also like to sell our albums in strange places like roadside food stands in Mumbai or in cabs only after midnight on commission. That would be hilarious!

Which do you prefer: covers or originals?

I'll always prefer originals, but the occasional cover here and there can be fun. We just released a free mixtape of cover songs - we did it because we were bored (if you can believe that!). It's called 'Music for Cotillions' - you can find the free download online. (HERE)

Helping out a friend!

2009-04-14T08:01:00.004-04:00

Our new friend raj (who is an old friend of our friend Andrew) out here from bombay just did a remix of "If you're out there" for a John Legend remix contest. We think it's awesome. Help him have it featured on John Legend's MySpace by voting for it here:

http://www.indabamusic.com/submissions/show/6976

Last Day of the Tour...:(

2009-04-14T04:14:00.006-04:00

Alas, today is the last day of the tour :(...Some of us are sticking around to see family, some are going back to the United States. If you're in New Delhi tonight, come out to the Living Room to see us finish the tour off in style!!

Don't fret, we'll be back to play India again soon! And soon enough, you'll be able to relive the whole experience through video...thanks to technology and YouTube!

And, a Happy Easter and Passover to everyone celebrating, though that's a bit belated...

Avir becomes a father...

2009-04-13T14:59:00.004-04:00

India's technological boom has resulted in Avir conceiving and having a child in a record two weeks. This phenomenon is a rare but interesting side effect of international touring, no doubt.

Just kidding...the baby is just a friend!

Day off in Bangalore

2009-04-13T11:42:00.000-04:00

today is our day off in bangalore. we just got done an interview with midday newspaper here. they gave us flowers at the end, no joke. - Avir

The Schedule... dun dun dun

2009-04-12T23:54:00.004-04:00

We just wanted to share some of the sleep-deprived craziness with you guys.

A Few Kolkata Show Pics!

2009-04-12T09:24:00.010-04:00

Featured in Deccan Chronicle Bangalore!

2009-04-12T09:13:00.004-04:00

Rock band Bamboo Shoots are performing in India for the first time. Here’s a lowdown on them...

by Rhik Kundu

They are the only band with members of Indian origin to win MTV USA, Best Music on Campus contest, back in 2006. Three years later, Bamboo Shoots is in their land of origin for a series of concerts. These live performances will take place in cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Pune, Mumbai and our very own Bengaluru where it is scheduled to be held on April 11 and 12. With four musicians — Avir Mitra, Karl Sukhia, Shiv Puri, Ankur Patel hailing from India and one Ahmed Mahmoud of Egyptian origin, the band is all set for rock the desi audience.

“Pop music you would like to rock out to” is the term used by the band to describe their genre of music. Influenced by the likes of Michael Jackson, INXS, Police and Foo Fighters, the band is popular in the US for their dueling two-person rhythm section, their South Asian identity and influence. Their current Indian tour also happens to be their first international tour. “We are looking forward to connecting with people through our music. We would like to hang out with them and get a positive response,” says Shiv Puri, a member of the band.

Bamboo Shoots started off as a college band representing Middlesex College. But, winning the MTV contest gave them a glimpse of fame. But, this didn’t come without competition. “At the MTV contest there were more than 1600 registered bands competing for the laurels. We were lucky to win at such a huge competition,” says Shiv. They feel that a whole new world of opportunities opened up after the competition. They were signed by Epic Records in the summer of 2007. As a result, Armour, their debut album is all set to hit the market this summer.

Also, greats of the music world like Jerry Harrison from Talking Heads and Spike Stent associated with Madonna, Britney Spears and Maroon 5 were associated with the band for their debut album, thanks to their record deal with Epic.

The band is eagerly looking forward to their Bengaluru show. Only Shiv has been to the city as a kid. But, they are positive about making an impact. “We are expecting a nice young crowd and a good turnout,” he says.

Update from Karl- Dirty Dancing in Bangalore

2009-04-12T09:05:00.000-04:00

I feel like Patrick Swayze today. No im not feathering my mullet or trying to communicate from the dead with Demi Moore, but I can relate to the ways of the Swayz. Basically we played the opening show at this amazing theatre (Kyra) in Bangalore, great sound, great vibe, amazing stage, and no dancing allowed. Yea, for real, in all of Bangalore, no mofuckin dancing. They warned us before we played not to ask the audience to even stand out of their chairs, under threat of a week long stay in jail. The nice part was that they gave us that talk while we dined at the resteraunt below the theatre eating a meal prepared by a Michelin Star chef, which did make the news a little less bitter to swallow. Anyways, we took the stage, did our thing, and the audience did theirs. It started slow, first bodies swayed in their chairs, then people at their tables getting out of their chairs for a few seconds at a time, and finally chairs were brought to the front of the stage where people went as crazy as possible while still seated. Then the screaming. Oh the screaming... it was like some Beatles shit, girls shreiking so loudly they were drowning us out, no lie. The security started to threaten people with arrest, but they simply wouldnt stop. It was beautiful, all that repressed emotion finding its way to the surface like lava tearing open a mountain top. Of course there were repercussions. This morning we were awoken with several calls, basically letting us know that even though we were great, we cant play our show tonight with our full setup. Its gotta be essentially drum-less, stripped down, and "less sexy and provocative". But Bangalore is amazing, people find ways to keep the party going after the clubs close (at 11!). We had a whole bunch of folks come back to our hotel, after we picked up some beer n whisky which was aquired on a quiet overpass after a call to the booze dealer and dropped off to us like a kilo of something far more potent. We're about to head out to a secret party now at some place called the beach (the party starts at 2pm) which those screaming girls invited us out to... mid-day fun, and some more dirty dancing.

-Karl

Catch the test broadcast now!

2009-04-11T20:19:00.000-04:00

Broadcast of a few clips from our show at Pianos last January. See it now at http://tinyurl.com/da8eyn

Coming soon... a special webcast, "from the vault..."

2009-04-11T15:53:00.004-04:00

Hello!

Since we are down in India, we haven't played shows in the US in some time. We'd love to be able to play in two places at once but the technology hasn't been created yet... so we're doing th next best thing. Coming soon, we're going to be featuring a special webcast of our show from Piano's (in NYC) this past January. It'll be accessible via our blog and also on "Ustream.tv" --so keep your eyes peeled! And don't worry if you miss it, we'll be rebroadcasting it a few times.

We'll be having a "test" broadcast tonight at 8pm EST featuring one or two of the highlights from the show... the full show will follow soon!

Update on Bangalore and Kolkata from Avir

2009-04-11T15:51:00.001-04:00

just got back from back 2 back shows. bangalore just got done. kyra. its a brand new club. we learned today that it was supposed to open next week but when they heard we were coming they hired more people and got it up and running for tonight. apparently they put up the windows only a few hours before we arrived. it was rad. especially because you arent allowed to dance in bangalore! and clubs must close by 11!!! but it sort of made for a fun time as everyone tried their hardest not to dance (like dancing while holding their chairs so they werent leaving their seats). i also had a wireless mic so i got to run around the venue like a dumbass and stand on chairs and sort of get in trouble. the crowd ended up playing along with spoons. long story. we have video somewhere...

last night was kolkata - also sick. small little rock cub where u cant breathe type thing. the crowd was super super enthusiastic. i had a whole bunch of my family there. it was fun.

i havent slept in forever. after the kolkata show we had a flight at 6am. so we stayed up in the hotel, sang with these philipina karaoke singers and headed straight to the airport. from there straight to soundcheck in bangalore. day before we went to like 2 afterparties in mumbai after our show at blue frog so we didnt sleep then either. now im sitting here in our hotel where we're having a little after party. whiskey, soda, and potato chips. sorry if im not making sense. im about to knock out.

night night
avir

Featured in Hindustan Times (Again!)

2009-04-11T04:36:00.003-04:00

Namaste, Shooting Stars

Bamboo Shoots. the alternative dance rock band based out of New York, recently performed in Delhi at Turquoise Cottage, organized by Hot Coffee Events. The five members - Avir Mitra (lead vocals and guitar), Karl Sukhia (Backup vocals and keyboards) Shiv Puri (Drums), Ahmed Mahmoud (Guitar) and Ankur Patel (Percussionist) speak with HT City about their music and the debut album.

What's this buzz about the dancerock genre? What makes it different and unique?

SHIV: Well, I think you can get down and dirty with our songs the way you would at a club.

Tell us something about your debut album.

SHIV: This is our first album with Epic Records. We're lucky to have worked with our producer, Jerry Harrison from the Talking Heads.

How did you guys come together?

AVIR: Karl and I met when we were little kids. I met Shiv at New York university and got to know he played drums.

ANKUR: I met you guys in '03 right? AVIR: Ankur, just sort of walked in to our practice, and was like, 'I play this', and we were like, 'Alright, cool'.

AVIR: And Ahmed joined the band about two years ago. We needed a guitarist and he knew our songs better than we did. We were like, 'You're in!' How different are the shows in India from the US? Which one's better? ANKUR: The shows here are not that different from the US. The only difference lies in the venue - which varies from big and fancy to more intimate... I can't say which one is better, but both countries are exciting in their own way.

Which indian musician you would want to work with?

SHIV: I'm a big fan of classical music... I would love to collaborate with Viku Vinayakram. He's such an incredible musician.

The craziest thing you guys have done?

SHIV: Well, I recently got married here in Delhi to my girlfriend. I don't think anyone in the band anticipated dancing with the hijras. I think some of us will have some explaining to do to our friends in America, when they see these photos (above).

Are you guys planning to enter the Bollywood music industry?

SHIV: It's an interesting time to be in the Bollywood industry, especially with the huge success of AR Rehman. Even before the Oscars, however, the pulse of a lot of new music coming out of Bollywood, like influences of hip hop, is something Bamboo Shoots can contribute towards.

What next?

SHIV: We're going to continue touring America when we get back and prepare for our album release. We'd love to come back to India but maybe in the fall or winter when the weather isn't so damn hot.

himadree.c@hindustantimes.com

Videos of Avir and Alan at Salaam Baalak Trust

2009-04-10T04:24:00.002-04:00

Enjoy!!!!

Played Blue Frog (Mumbai) yesterday, playing Kolkata (West Bengal) the 10th!

2009-04-09T19:07:00.003-04:00

Hey guys,

We just played a show at the Blue Frog in Mumbai... If you're in Kolkata, West Bengal tonight (the 10th), come check us out at the Park Hotel. We'll update with pics from Mumbai soon!

- Bamboo Shoots

Pictures (again)

2009-04-09T10:10:00.002-04:00

Here's some pics- Avir says he had "an eye check up in India because glasses are so cheap!"

More Pics!

2009-04-07T23:56:00.003-04:00

Enjoy!

Pics from the Trip!!

2009-04-07T23:54:00.001-04:00

Check these out!

Wrong All Along featured on MTV IGGY!

2009-04-07T14:06:00.004-04:00

Our video for "Wrong All Along," is featured on MTV IGGY. Here's a screenshot!

The video

null |MTV Music

The infamous haunted hotel in Pune...and back to Delhi

2009-04-07T10:49:00.002-04:00

Haunted or not? We thought so. You decide!

Ahmed checks out the market. Could be a good movie--'An Egyptian in India,' kind of like "An American in Paris." Wonder if Ahmed know how to tap?

View from our hotel in Delhi

More vids!

2009-04-07T10:46:00.003-04:00

More of the wait for the train, and some interesting tidbits about bugs

Ever wondered what's it like to travel by train in India?

A glimpse (and more) at India

2009-04-07T10:40:00.003-04:00

Here's a look at some videos we've taken so far!

An interview with Karl by Shiv

A look at the train station in Delhi

more to come!