Dirty Class is a psychedelic rock outfit famous for their immersive live performances, soul-stirring energy and an approach to musicality that is straight out of Woodstock 69.
Eyes Can Hear, Ears Can See is an EP rooted in the tradition of stoner rock, acid rock and psychedelic rock. Sonic inspirations include Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Strawberry Alarm Clock, Pretty Things, Quicksilver Messenger Service, etc.
The first song nods to Kerouac’s character Marylou from On the Road that is considered as the bible for hippies. The vocals are sung in a Mick Jagger way.
Excuse me baby
How do you do
Are you excited
To be my Marylou
‘I want to buy a bus and just tour all over. Grateful Dead had a touring bus that was driven by Neal Cassady for a while. Something like that.’ Deepankar, the lead singer tells me. Cassady was an American mythos who was immortalized forever by Kerouac in his opus.
The adventures of Cassady and Kerouac chronicled in the book inspired a movement that bloomed into the rise of the hippies and further into inspiring the formative years of rock music.
‘He was the first person I met who he himself was the art. He was an artist and he was the art also. He was doing it consciously, as well. He worked with the world… He scared a lot of people. A lot of people thought he was crazy. Most people I know didn’t understand him at all.’ Thus spoke Jerry Garcia of Grateful Dead about Neal Cassady and this could be said as well for Dirty Class, an act whose authenticity is as artistic as it is outrageous!
In My Presence is the strongest song on the EP. A simple but strong riff carries the entire track. ‘We laugh and we gamble, we fall, we play.’ The chorus goes. There’s a bruised laughter on the lyrics.
We wake up running, chasing the sun
Dreams in our pockets, smoke in our lungs
Speeding through the days, but we never arrive
Looking for meaning on a one-way ride
The outro of the song is in memory of Zubin Garg and is sung by Bijoy, their bassist who reveals that Zubin Garg was the reason he started playing music.
Perfume is a seductive banger. Sensuality, groove and vocals delivered in an erotic way followed by an interesting climax leading to the last song.
The EP gives off a high sense of joy though a quiet melancholy pervades the lyrics especially on the closer.
It’s so hard to listen
It’s so hard to see
It’s so hard to live
It’s so hard to be
The looping repetition of this line is the point signaling burnout…
The EP spans a diverse set of influences. The Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead and other rock bands of the 60s and 70s would be proud of this. On the same song you can hear the ethos of Jagger as well as the might of Motley Crue. There is the grandiose quality of Deep Purple as well as the simplicity of The Beatles.
‘What inspires the EP?’ I ask Deepankar. ‘Purely hippies and hippie music.’ Comes a fast reply. The wish is for their music to make people dance in joy and forget the worries of life.
Dirty Class’ debut is a lesson in remembrance for what rock music is supposed to sound like. There is a high degree of freeing spirit in the music. The sound is supposed to lead to ‘the opening of windows’ – states Deepankar whose appetite for freedom is rooted heavily in ideals inspired by the lore of Cassady and 60s hippies.
Eyes Can Hear, Ears Can See is a very in the face album that adds much to great rock music.I insist you hear it!
Photo Credits – Aishik Dutta (aishik.jpg)
