Odd Me: Strange Noises
OddMe’s Manish Anand found his talent in music from
an early age. Having arrived in the United States from India in 1972, Anand
pursued his musical desires throughout his teenage years, self-teaching himself
to play the keyboard and working part-time as a mobile disc jockey during
school.
During his college years, he experimented and fused various types of dance music including House, Techno and Freestyle. The commitment to creating his own music led him to get his own weekly dance show on New Jersey Radio in Trenton, NJ.
After college, his focus on making music became a lot more serious, including many trips to the studio which resulted in the 1997 release, the House/Techno record Journey to Bhangra which featured prominently in the DJ record pool charts. The second release comes with a different twist as he takes ownership by producing and writing his 10 track CD. An interesting release, the sound and visions of OddMe need to be consumed with an open mind before any aspersions can be cast. We were able to get a little more insight from the man behind the music:
Q: Where has your music been played?
I released my first single Journey to Bhangra in 1997 and it was played all over the U.S. in clubs in Los Angeles, Miami, NYC, Philadelphia and Chicago. There was also feedback from as far afield as Moscow in Russia! Now, the Internet has opened many doors, so I’ll try to post some tracks on MP3.com. Already a few hundred CDs of Oddme have been distributed to the DJs for promotional use.
Who are your musical influences?
I don’t have any influence in my style of Techno/Electronica music. I’ve always liked Qawali music and personally admire the talent of Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and the Ghazal’s of Jagjit Singh. The music I do is more sampling beats and sounds… it is your creativity that is required.
What do you hope to achieve with this release?
To get the CD played and to get some kind of record deal ... to get even more distribution!
Q: Do you see a successful and full-time career in music?
It is one of my dreams to do music full-time. I can see myself getting some talented singers and making music. Like Bally Sagoo did, but my style would be more geared to Electronica Music.
Q: Whom would you like to produce/write for?
My personal favorite would have been Nusrat — that would been a great honor. I really like Cornershop and Stereo Nation … I love their current song Oh Carol. Talvin Singh would be great to do some experimental music with, and some of the Punjabi singers such as Daler Mendhi, Sukwinder and the one and only Malkit Singh would all be challenging.
Q: What’s next for you and your music?
I’ve just written a song about my wife titled Runaway with Me, a Pop-dance tune ... I even sang it, which is scary (laugh)! I’m just a diverse person. I’ll try to post this song on Mp3.com to see the audience reaction.
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