Listen: Madboy/ Mink Release New EP ‘Union Farm’

The self described ‘terror twins’ of funk and swing - Madboy/Mink a.k.a. Imaad Shah and Saba Azad have just released a brand new EP, streamable (for now) exclusively here on GQ.

The four track release is their second after last year’s ‘All Ball’ – a fresh, energetic EP with distinct take on nu-disco, which, along with their electrically charged live performances, bought them a steady set of fans across the country. The KRUNK signees have also been getting a lot of attention recently for 'Calcutta Kiss' – their musical contribution to Dibankar Banerjee's movie ‘Detective Byomkesh Bakshy’, which featured an OST scored by some of the brightest in our indie / alternative music space.

Now with the release of ‘Union Farm’, it’s safe to say that Madboy/Mink have had a busy year. Here’s what they had to say about the new release:

“This one is an evolution of our raw sound, we bring back our trademark vibe with this baby, while going in new directions. The last year was all about live shows and travel for us we had to ask our manager for a month long forced break so we could finally spent some time in our studio and produce this EP.

We continue to make our own genre of music as usual, but these songs do have a slightly harder edge to them. The synths and guitars are dirty, and we've experimented with new sonic ideas although its still very much Madboy/Mink. We want to keep reinventing ourselves, and don't like the idea of limitations brought on by style or culture. For us, we hope this is a step towards opening up our own minds and taking new braver decisions with our music”

‘Union Farm’ is indeed still very much Madboy/Mink – it’s got the same earworm quality and dirty-disco feel as its predecessor, but with a slightly edgier temperament in ‘Fire In The Street’, ‘Powders’ and hindi number ‘Sharaabi’. We stress on the word ‘slightly’ there because by the time we got to EP closer ‘Mousegirl’, things went all out kawaii (although to be fair, that is a large part of Madboy/Mink’s attraction).

Succinctly, we think that a lot of people are going to like ‘Union Farm’ and not without reason – its catchy sound balances itself between alternative and commercial; it works well on the dancefloor and you can even sing along to it. The EP, however, suffers from the same affliction of its predecessor. The lyrics remain as simplistic and their song structures could do with a bit more love. We’re keen to see what’s in store.

You can listen to the EP in its entirety here on GQ and follow Madboy / Mink on Facebook for updates. The duo will embark on a four city tour to launch the album next week, details below:

New Delhi - 5 June - antiSOCIAL
Mumbai - 6 June - blueFROG
Pune - 7 June - The High Spirits
Chennai 12 June - Taj, Vivaanta

Words: Diya Gupta