Thermal and a quarter

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Thermal And A Quarter
Origin Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Genre(s) Rock
Years active 1996 – present
Label(s) Independent
Website http://thermalandaquarter.com
Members
Bruce Lee Mani (guitars, vocals)
Rajeev Rajagopal (drums)
Rzhude David (bass, guitars, vocals)
Former members
Sunil Chandy
Vishak Gopinath

Thermal And A Quarter is a rock band based in Bangalore, India, and is notable for their focus on original music at a time when the nascent Indian rock music industry focused on cover songs, and their innovative use of the Internet to reach out to new audiences. They were among the first groups in Asia to make their music available under a Creative Commons-like license.

In its ten-year career, TAAQ has earned the enviable reputation of being a pioneering Indian Rock band that has consistently defied categorization. Encompassing styles as diverse as Carnatic to Jazz-funk, Thermal And A Quarter has three albums and hundreds of live performances under its collective belt. Highlights include:

Middle East Tour with performances in Dubai and Bahrain – June 2007
• Winner, WorldSpace Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Indian Rock’. (Other honorees include Johnny Cash, Baba Maal, Lionel Ritchie, The Who, Jay-Z, and more) - 2007
• Voted one of the Best Indian Bands by The Hindustan Times, New Delhi - 2006
UK Tour, with multiple performances in London and Glasgow, 2006
• 3rd studio album Plan B released, 2006
• Opening act for Jethro Tull, 2006
• Featured on National Public Radio (www.npr.org) in the USA, on All Things Considered, 2005 – the first Indian band to receive this acclaim; interviewed by Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers
• Voted ‘2nd biggest band in India’ by a nation-wide reader’s poll conducted by RSJ magazine, 2004
• Heart Cave: Sphurana VCD released, 2003
• Prime-time FM airplay, Dubai, 2002
• 2nd album Jupiter Café released, 2002
• Opening act for Deep Purple, 2001
• Self-titled debut album released 1999
• Winner, ‘Battle of the Bands’ competitions across India, 1996 – 1998
• Founded 1996

Thermal And A Quarter music is currently available to the world on www.cdbaby.com, on Apple iTunes, on www.musicyogi.com, and on the band’s website.

Thermal And A Quarter is currently working on its fourth studio album. The band has mixed the record at A.R. Rehman’s AM Studios in Chennai, India. Multiple Grammy Award-winning producer/engineer Jeff Peters (worked with The Beach Boys, Charles Lloyd, Little Feat, Brian Setzer, Live Aid, Sarah Brightman, Indigo Girls, Khaled, Cheb Mami, Ringo Starr, and more) from Los Angeles, California, USA has mixed this album. TAAQ is planning a worldwide release of the fourth album by early 2008.