Blackstratblues
| Blackstratblues | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Warren Mendonsa |
| Born |
12 September 1979 Bombay, India |
| Genres |
Blues Instrumental Guitar Rock Rock & Roll Pop rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician Songwriter Guitarist Sound Engineer |
| Instruments | Guitar Bass Guitar Fretless Bass Drum Programming Keyboards Software Synthesizers |
| Years active | since 1998 |
| Labels | Unsigned |
| Associated acts |
Zero 3 Guys & A Girl |
| Website | Official Website |
Blackstratblues is a solo project of Warren Mendonsa, who is a guitarist, composer and record producer. He is the nephew of Indian musician and celebrated Bollywood composer Loy Mendonsa of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy fame.
After picking up the guitar at the age of 5, Mendonsa went on to play rhythm guitar in a few local bands with friends Siddharth Coutto (drums) and Girish 'Bobby' Talwar (rhythm guitar, bass). Sometime around 1997-98, they formed Zero, with Rajeev Talwar on vocals.
Over the years, Zero grew to enjoy nationwide popularity in India. With Warren, Zero released two albums and an EP - Albummed (1999), Hook EP (2002), & Procrastination (2005).
Besides his work in Zero, Warren Mendonsa recorded & released numerous instrumentals - the most popular works being Christmas in July, Spitleaf, & Evil- which enjoyed some fame on online music forums like Gigpad, & Harmony Central. He was also involved in many online collaborations with musicians - most notably Adam Martin, Ed DeGenaro and Zorran Mendonsa - which resulted in a few songs. In late 2004, Mendonsa moved to Auckland, New Zealand, thereby quitting Zero.
During this period, he was also a highly sought-after recording engineer and session guitarist in Bombay, having worked on various film soundtracks, advertising jingles, & other albums.
After moving to Auckland, Warren Mendonsa began to work on solo instrumental material. While visiting India, he reunited with Zero for a few gigs, most notably at the Great Indian Rock Festival 2006.
Blackstratblues' debut album, Nights in Shining Karma was released on 18 April 2007 as a free digital-only download.
The album garnered significant appreciation and popularity on online music forums.
Eschewing the gymnastic stunts of many high profile solo guitar artists, Mendonsa's stunning technique weaves itself subtly into the musical tapestry of completely realised songs, rather than mere vehicles for a vulgar display of ability.
With golden tones and unassailable taste and touch, Mendonsa echoes Gilmour and Johnson without being derivative of either.
...
Wikipedia