Playing Doubles

Ask the average music-loving Indian,however,and their names will probably throw up a blank. Which is why,when asked,the sisters admit to being very nervous indeed. “Playing somewhere new is always exciting and we’ve always wanted to come here,” says Sara,“It’s a big leap of faith to go to a new country,because there’s always the fear that nobody knows who we are.”

They’ve come armed with about 25 songs from all six of their albums,and in the absence of their bass player and drummer — who couldn’t join them here — are preparing to play as a two-piece band. “We’ve done this before,” Tegan assures,“We’re going to ensure that the show is as dynamic and interesting as possible.” The sisters are also well-known for their onstage chemistry and stream-of-consciousness banter,about anything from philosophising about love to reminiscing stories from their childhood.

Their music is hard to describe — from the pleasing ‘80s pop sounds of Alligator to the punk edge in Northshore and the electronica-influenced Feel it in my Bones,which they created with DJ Tiesto,there seems to be a bit of every genre in their sound. The Quins are the first to admit it. “We always joke around saying that our music is mini-pop. Like the ‘80s sound. We take influence from Cyndi Lauper and Bruce Springsteen. Of late,we have been very influenced by electronic music,basically good music with a good beat about it. So it’s hard to say what we sound like,but the ‘80s and ‘90s have been a big influence,” says Tegan.

There’s no denying,however,that undefinable as their music might be,it’s found a massive following. Their music has been featured in movies such as Monster-in-Law and Sweet November and on television shows such as Grey’s Anatomy,One Tree Hill,Veronica Mars and The L Word. One of their songs,Walking with a Ghost,was even covered by The White Stripes.

Following their concert in Delhi,the 30-year-olds will be going on tour with American singer-songwriter Jack Johnson in Australia and New Zealand. There’s also a DVD project in the works. “It includes footage from five different countries that we’ve toured in — Australia,New Zealand,India,America and Canada. We’ve been filming all year. A bunch of collaborations are also in the process and we will also start work on our seventh record,” says Sara. As for returning to India,“I sure hope so. We feel so energised by taking our music to new places. We will definitely be back.”