We love India’s energy and enthusiasm: The Aristocrats

The rock supergroup The Aristocrats made a pit stop in Kolkata during their second Indian tour. The rock-fusion instrumental band featuring a trio of iconic musicians, Guthrie Govan (guitar), Bryan Beller (bass) and Marco Minnemann (drums), was formed in 2011. On the last leg of their six-show tour, the band played the weekend crowd at a Sector V hotspot.A few minutes before they went up on stage, CT caught up with the trio. Excerpts:

Bryan: We’re happy to play and people are happy to see live shows again. It's really not much more complicated than that. No one wanted to be locked down, and no one likes to not play live. Now we can play again for our crowds and people love seeing us play live, so it has been good.

Bryan: We loved the energy and enthusiasm that India has shown us so far. People can once again attend our shows and the response has been fantastic.


Marco: I played with many musicians from India, including Mohini Dey, Thaikkkudam Bridge, Inner Sanctum and Karunamoorthy, and a few others as well. It’s always a lovely experience because not only do they listen to music but music is their life and that’s a good thing.

Guthrie: Thanks for tuning in! (Laughs) But honestly, I don’t think I have anything to contribute now that there are five million YouTube videos out there. But if you’re looking for advice you know where to find me!

Marco: There is a certain charm playing in a space like this, and we have something special planned, but you’ll get to know only after the show!
- By Poorna Banerjee
(Pic credit: Shilajit Das Mahapatra, Rajat Mitra
Courtesy: Moonriver Events)