(Above) Camouflage; (below) Safire; (bottom) Crystal And The Witches. Pictures by Sanat Kumar Sinha and Sayan Dutta

Forty rock bands, five cities, 65 days — that’s what Independence Rock promises eager audiences this year. In its 23-year-old history — the first “I-Rock”, as it’s better known in the rock circles, was held on August 15, 1985 — the nationwide competition has moved to Delhi and Bangalore in recent times from its mainstay, Mumbai. This is the first time Calcutta and Pune are going to get a piece of the national action through Airtel Independence Rock XXIII, in association with t2 and E-18.

The Calcutta leg of the selections is slated for today (July 31) and tomorrow (August 1), with eight bands short-listed (from over 300 for the east zone) to battle it out at The Apartment, City Centre, 7.30pm onwards. The city finals will be held on Sunday, August 3 at Nazrul Mancha.

The winning band will go on to compete with four other bands from Delhi, Bangalore, Pune and Mumbai at the grand finals on August 30 at Chitrakoot Grounds, Andheri. Apart from the adulation and the “victory lap” — a nationwide tour for the winning band — there’s gear worth approximately Rs 2 lakh to be won.

t2 RisingRockers Camouflage are in the fray from Calcutta, along with up-and-coming metal messiahs Crystal And The Witches, relative greenhorns Safire and last-minute entrants Atmahatya. The other four bands include Third Eye, Ahimxa, Dark Horizon and The Scavenger Project.

The focus in I-Rock is on originality. “We have always believed in promoting original music, right from the time we had Indus Creed to Brahma, Agni, Zero and Millennium. In I-Rock XX, we actually gave away a free audio CD of original music of the 20-odd participating bands to everyone in the audience,” says Farhad Wadia, CEO of E-18. Along with ex-Shiva frontman Pervez Quadir and music critic Narendra Kusnur, Wadia himself will be a judge at the finals.

So how’s Calcutta gearing up for the contest? “We’re just looking forward to having a good time on stage,” smiles Shubhodip, guitarist for Safire, the underdogs in this leg of the contest, “We’re just about a year old, and a good gig is all that we’re concerned about.” The alternative band will play about five tracks in its all-original set and hopes to make a mark with that move.

For Camouflage, the going has been great so far in 2008 — consecutive wins at IIM-Calcutta and the Springfest at IIT Kharagpur; followed by participation in the RSJ Pubrockfest. Will it ace I-Rock XXIII as well? “We’re honoured to play on this prestigious platform and we’re just looking forward to having fun. As long as we do that, we know that the audience will enjoy our music,” says Camouflage drummer Premjit. The band’s USP? “That’s gotta be our sound,” he smiles.

Crystal And The Witches (CATW) are confident about reaching the Mumbai finals. “It feels great to be a part of I-Rock, since this is the first time it has come to Calcutta,” says Arthur Gomes, keyboardist for CATW. The band has covers in its setlist, but will stick to originals to make an impression. “I guess it’s our sound and our stage presence that are going to make all the difference,” says Arthur.

To those about to rock Calcutta — and that would be the eight participating bands today and tomorrow — all we can say is all the best.

Which band are you rocking with in I-Rock? Tell t2@abpmail.com