Ish Chowdhury is easily one of the coolest. chillest people I know. He's the lead-singer of The Indigo Curve, who are currently working on their debut album, and he is an all around positive presence in the local music community, with a respect of the past and a visionary/forward thinking outlook that is sure to turn some heads. We're so stoked to share our interview with Ish below. Enjoy!
Remove Records: Can you tell us how you started playing music?
Ish: Oh man. I guess it started in 7th grade when I wrote a rap song about pollution for science class. Shit was a hit haha, I had to perform it in front of three classes. I even had a beat and everything. After that, my time in rap began. And I mean I came up on Nas, Big L, Big Pun, a lot of nasty east coast spitters whom I definitely crafted my flow and style from. My plan was to graduate high school and drop an album, with 5 - 6 years of my best shit I've never recorded. And then my computer crashed. Everything was lost. So I bought a guitar. Nowadays I'll still freestyle for fun, love it.
How did The Indigo Curve come together and what are the bands future plans?
Initially at the beginning of 2020 I wanted to start a solo project, which was The Indigo Curve. Me and my little brother came up with the name while we were in New York the last week of December. Came back with the name, and recorded a song with Adam, our lead guitarist. Then one day Adam called me like just before midnight, and said, "listen, I met this drummer." He was referring to Markus (aka Chef). He just had Niko join him for his solo band. But on the phone he told me to come over next week and jam. That's where it happened. I introduced three or four songs I had written and they just took it to another level. At that point I was like, alright, fuck the solo shit, this is ours now. Mike used to be the bassist in an old band with me and Adam, and he joined us a few weeks later to play the keys for us. I'm really stoked, it's just the dopest band I've been in, and I think we have something special for folks to come.
I haven't been able to make it out to your recent shows, but how has it been for you playing shows during COVID?
Shit's dead man, understandably so. Outdoor shows in the summer sun are fun, but people are just apprehensive to be out, and I can dig that. Our burden was forming literally a week before COVID took serious effect. After a few months, we had a handful of outdoor shows, and it felt good to share what we've been working on, and seeing what people think. Now that we kinda "exist" to people, we're hitting the studio to work on a full length album. Definitely gonna try to shake some socks with this new stuff.
What are some of your favorite venues in Detroit? Any outside of the city?
I don't know why but Trumbullplex is just my favorite for some reason. I hate lit up places and lights just bother me to an incomprehensible extent. Dark joints kinda hidden away from lots of traffic do it for me. Outside of the city? Hamtown's got a bunch of cool spots. Aside from them, I'm a big fan of Elektricity. I pray to the gods you know I'm joking.
Why do you think Detroit has so many good musicians/bands, both past and present?
Culture bro. Art is not possible without a culture existing somewhere. And Detroit has such a rich mix of humans with different vibes. I grew up on Talbot street in Hamtown as a kid and remember going to the masjid, then walking outside into the poultry market, then walking down the street with my uncle to a money transfer shop his boy owned. Down the same street a Ukrainian church, polish meat markets, Yemeni joints, all of it man. I used to work at the Church's Chicken when I was 16 on Vernor. Never did I see so many Hispanic people just stopping in to grab their chicken for their lunch. Different, various groups of people just naturally invokes mad culture bumping around. And that's a source of inspiration. The city has never felt as gritty as it was made to seem to me, it's always been beautiful. All these artists, musicians, writers - these people carry these experiences and feelings and put it down on their medium. But honestly, I could do without a Starbucks or two. It's like an invasive species for dope cities.
What have you been listening to lately?
Bumping the new Stags album you just sent me at the moment. I would totally burn a house down to the tune of Do Some Curls, shit slams. Been on a return to Joey Bada$$ and Capital Steez the last few days. But I've recently gotten into 80s Japanese city pop and Phoebe Bridgers lately. Phoebe is such a bad bitch man. Not as in looks even though she's pretty, but bad bitch in the way she weaves hardbody lyrics together with a gorgeous voice. Her writing is next level. And she just starts songs so hard. I'm a huge believer in the first bar you drop being memorable. She started a song off with, "When the speed kicks in, I go to the store for nothing." That's where she had me.
If you could collaborate with any artist/musician, who would it be and why?
I really fuck with Bakpak Durden, they're one of my favorite artists around the city. I saw their work at an art show my friend Allison Scout, who is also an incredible artist, invited me to. And I was just like, yo. This is so lovely, while simultaneously street as fuck. Once I found out Bakpak does a bunch of murals that was it. Not now, but at some point I wanna do something, I have no idea what, with them.
How do you feel about the future of art and music?
I'm hopeful man. I want the city to get back to its riotous roar of music shows, art shows, pop ups, anything and everything in between. Interesting people live here. I can't name a neighborhood without artists and creators living there. And as creators we live off presenting our creation to the world. It's a drag having to keep our space from all the groups of people we fuck with, because it's our art that brings us together. But we'll get by. We always get by.