In the last 20-odd years,there has been little music that Ben Walsh has not experimented with. As a child,Walsh picked up pots and pans and began drumming on them. He was encouraged by his parents to study and practise music. In 1994,he formed Pablo Percusso,a trio with fellow Australian musicians. Ever since,the percussionist has been touring the world and collaborating with musicians from all walks of life. In November last year,Walsh visited India as part of the Oz Fest (an Australian cultural festival staged in India),and paid tribute to Fearless Nadia,the Australian-born Indian stuntwoman famous for her work in Bollywood. For this,he composed a score for the 1940 classic Diamond Queen,which was then performed by the Orkestra of the Underground,a 13-man group. Walsh now returns to India for a five-city tour beginning this evening in Mumbai,with a new show titled Loop Zero. He will perform in Delhi on June 27. The show contains a lot of technology and custom-built instruments, says Walsh. As a performer,its difficult to integrate technology into your act,so this is one of my most experimental shows. Loop Zero is an audio- visual project that explores the manner in which humans interact with technology today but,at the same time,is also a high-octane club event. In our lifetime,weve seen a huge change in the way people interact because of technology, he says,Theres a lot of disconnect but,at the same time,reconnection between people in the world. Walsh is also involved in a number of other projects,including bands in Australia such as the three-piece Circle of Rhythm; a two-man project Groovelands Soundsystem with percussionist Bobby Singh,the Crusty Suitcase Band,an instruments-only project that consists of horns and drums,and The Bird,an electronica act thats considered one of Australias best.
