March has been a month of sonic abundance. With Def Leppard just wrapping up their anticipated India tour, Scorpions gearing up to bring their stadium thunder to India, and progressive heavyweights like Plini and Opeth on the horizon for later in the year, the live music calendar is looking gloriously stacked. But beyond the arena spectacle, the independent scene has been quietly churning out some really compelling music. I’ve tried to keep things balanced across genres because good playlists, like good meals, need variety.

Electronic indie artist Kambli (the name means “blanket” in Malayalam) turns the terror of sleep paralysis into something deceptively soothing, wrapping it in warm, soft-focus production. I especially love the jazzy chord changes, which keep gently shifting the ground under your feet. Drawing from the worlds of Tennyson, Rex Orange County, John Mayer, Dora Jar, Finneas, and Jon Bellion, this is sleek indie-electronica-jazz pop, full of playful vocal effects, close harmonies, and little bits of production magic that keep you guessing where the song will land next.

A debut this assured demands your attention. Wishes And Dreams is a metal band from Nagaland, formed in 2023, and already making serious noise. 'Save Me' is their debut single, mixed and mastered by Nash Longkumer, and it arrives fully formed, with the kind of conviction that bands usually spend years working toward. The Northeast has been producing some of the most interesting music in India for decades, and Wishes And Dreams feel like a worthy continuation of that tradition.

Ahmedabad's Heat Sink have been one of the more quietly influential bands in Indian indie since their formation in 2017. Founded by guitarist and composer Chirag Todi, the band blends progressive rock, jazz, and RnB. They were the super-winners of the Nexa Music Contest and have collaborated with A.R. Rahman and Clinton Cerejo. The last track on their latest EP ‘On Second Thought’, ‘Self Destruct’ blends some mesmerizing jazz with some prog metal goodness towards the outro, topped off with a tasty guitar solo.

Delhi experimental producer Garv Taneja, aka Chaar Diwaari, has been pushing the edge in Indian indie music and hip-hop. His latest EP 'Parvana', features collaborations from across the spectrum, from the likes of Sonu Nigam to Indian Ocean. On this track, featuring Seedhe Maut’s Encore ABJ, Chaar Diwari is at his experimental best, working as a chapter in a storyline highlighting a love-torn moth. How's that for progressive hip-hop!

Having come a long way from his debut album, 'The Emerging', Sutej Singh has been crafting some fine instrumental guitar with appearances at Bandland, Ziro Festival, Mahindra Independence Rock, and an opening stint for Steve Vai under his belt. 'Kaadambari' is already a defining track in his catalogue, but this live recording from Tagore Theatre, the closing night of his Restless | Relentless India Tour is a work of art. With vocals by Ananya Bhatt and violin by Disha Goswami, this is music at its finest.

Dabzee, born Mohammed Fasil in Kerala, is one of the most important voices to emerge from Indian hip-hop in the last few years. He first broke through nationally with the incredibly groovy 'Manavaalan Thug' from the Malayalam film 'Thallumaala'. 'ACHARRR' is raw and rooted in Malabar slang. Drawing directly from his own experiences of watching people find success and lose themselves, Dabzee uses the metaphor of squashed achar (pickles). The music video is absolutely essential viewing too.

From Kannada indie music, we have 'Fire', a soulful travel anthem celebrating adventure and the beauty of the unknown. The song performed and composed by Karthik Chennoji Rao, aka KC of former Pineapple Express fame, has had some brilliant earlier Kannada releases, such as the heart-warming 'Chinnada Hoovu' and 'Confessions' with his alternative rock band My Conscience. Complete with flute and saxophone courtesy of Arjun MPN, and featuring actor-producer Shine Shetty, the video by Pratheek Shetty matches the music's wandering spirit with strong visual storytelling. 

Written and performed by Tarun Bisht, Nikkisha, and Saksham Dhyani, 'Mere Pyare Pahad' is a hip-hop track that takes on the present reality of Uttarakhand: the climate crisis, political apathy, and violence against women. Produced by Tarun Bisht and AadiSwara, it depicts a region long romanticised while its actual struggles go unaddressed. The vocal section by Nikkisha singing in Kumaoni, coupled with the hard-hitting music video, is good socially conscious art.

The first time I saw Rhythm Shaw perform was alongside Marco Minnemann and Mohini Dey at The Humming Tree. Since then, he's cemented his reputation as one of India's premier session guitarists and live collaborators, sharing stages with A.R. Rahman, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Shankar Mahadevan, and Louiz Banks. 'Nothing to Lose', his debut album recorded with a 42-piece orchestra, is an incredibly ambitious project. 'Vortex' is the album's most visceral moment; a plunge into prog metal and djent territory, recorded on a seven-string Strandberg, which casts some precise, syncopated aggression. 

Champak is the 4-piece bedroom pop and alt-rock band project bringing together Shoumik Biswas (Disco Puppet), Lakshman Parsuram (February 31st), Aditya Bharadwaj (Badie A), and Aman Chawla, all names that will ring bells for anyone who's been paying attention to the Indian alternative space. 'Feed The Clown' is their debut single, from a forthcoming 7-track EP called A1, and it's a brilliantly crafted piece that mixes both whimsy and creativity.

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