Advaita

Advaita is an Indian fusion band based in New Delhi, formed in 2004. To the uninitiated, Advaita is an Upanishadic concept that refers to the identification of the individual Self, Ātman, with the highest Reality, Brahman, both of which are pure consciousness. Simply put, it is the philosophical idea of experiencing everything without the duality of subject or object. The band is the expression of eight distinct musical sensibilities that dissolve into each other to bring forth a truly unique and ingenious sound. The musical equivalent of the Advaita experience is defined by the pursuit of that incredible moment during a performance when the musician becomes the music that he is creating through his instrument and forgets the ego of his own identity, resulting in thoroughly electrifying stage performances. Since their inception in 2004, Advaita has been established as one of the most thrilling, innovative and original acts on the Indian music scene, with the unique reputation of enthralling audiences in any kind of setting – from corporate events and Music festivals to pub gigs and college shows. Hailed by music lovers and media alike, the band is now a well respected entity on the cultural map of both Delhi and India. Advaita was one of only four bands from India selected by famous producer John Leckie (who has worked with the likes of Pink Floyd, George Harrison and Radiohead) to record two songs with him for a compilation released by the British council. As part of this project, called the India Soundpad Project, the band toured the UK playing 6 shows in 5 cities, including opening the famous Great Escape Festival in Brighton. In March 2009 Advaita launched their first album on EMI records titled 'Grounded in Space' which further catapulted the status of the band. Recorded at the famed Yash Raj Studios, Mumbai, the album spent 4 weeks at number one on the International charts at the Music World stores for all of Delhi. The year 2010 saw Advaita being featured on the Indian leg of the popular MTV shows ‘MTV Coke Studio’ and ‘MTV Unplugged’. Advaita's video, 'Rasiya', was also featured on MTV Roots. The band (Feb2012) launched their much awaited second album ‘The Silent Sea’ on EMI records. The second album was also recorded at Yash Raj studios in Mumbai and mixed by Shantanu Hudlikar. Advaita recently played at Johannesburg, South Africa where they were a part of the shared history festival (Teamworks). Advaita played at the Eldos Jazz Festival and the Bassline club. Advaita has just won the GIMA (Global Indian Music Awards) 2012 award for Best rock album 2012 for their album -The Silent Sea! They also received a nomination under the Best fusion album (the silent sea) along with artistes like A.R Rahman, Anoushka Shankar, Karsh Kale etc. Their track ‘Gorakh’ was nominated for GIMA awards 2011. Advaita has been voted best fusion band by PALM EXPO 2011. The expo focuses on various kinds of music gear and audio technology. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.