Happy Bandcamp Friday! We wanted to bring you a list of South Asian musicians you can support today.

Bandcamp Friday happens on the first Friday of the month and it’s the day when Bandcamp waive their revenue share, putting more money in the artist’s pocket. The initiative was introduced in March 2020 to help support the many artists who have seen their livelihoods disrupted by the pandemic.

Although vaccines are rolling out, it will likely be several months before live performance revenue starts to return, so Bandcamp decided to extend this initiative into 2021. For more details, visit isitbandcampfriday.com.

In this article we wanted to highlight a few artists on our radar, but this is not an exhaustive list! If you’d like to be added to next month’s list (the final Bandcamp Friday!), please drop your links in the Google Form.

Solidarity Not Silence

‘This Is Sisterhood’ is the single by Solidarity Not Silence supergroup ft. The Tuts, Kathleen Hanna, Petrol Girls, Colour Me Wednesday, Personal Best & More! Solidarity Not Silence defendants collaborate with supporters on this new single to raise money for legal defence. It’s an incredibly powerful and emotional song with lead vocals by Nadia Javed (The Tuts).

For our readers who don’t already know, Solidarity Not Silence is a group that was created by women defending themselves against defamation claim made by man in music industry for statements that they made concerning his treatment of women. The group includes his ex-partner and feminist musicians.

The latest news is that this single reached number 4 in the iTunes charts which is bloody incredible!! All money from digital sales and merch line go straight to Bindmans Solicitors. Please considering buying merch or sharing their new song!

Bandcamp: https://solidaritynotsilence.bandcamp.com/track/this-is-sisterhood

Marigold Mixtape

A mutual aid mixtape curated by Nina Bhattacharya (@radio.rani) and payal kumar (@riotlrrrkhi). Featuring artists including Awaaz Do, The Kominas and Why Try?. All proceeds will be directed to Hasiru Dala, an incredible Bengaluru-based social impact organization working to support waste workers and their communities since 2011. Learn more about their work via their website hasirudala.in.

Statement about the release on Bandcamp:

“India’s current COVID crisis has sent painful shockwaves across the world, calling to attention the need for transnational community mobilization at an unprecedented scale. The pandemic has laid bare the abuse and neglect of the current fascist regime. Coupled with the unreliability of the state to fulfill even the most basic of needs, predatory systems of global capital have exacerbated the lack of treatment and prevention options for folks across the entire subcontinent.

In the current influx of resources to the region (many of which are channeled through NGOs tied to right-wing Hindutva organizations), the most marginalized folks are still being overlooked despite being disproportionately impacted by sudden lockdowns, medical inequity, and state violence.

As diasporic artists, we wanted to create an intervention to both harness our skills and contribute to direct financial aid on the subcontinent. This compilation amplifies the voices of South Asian musicians and poets with ties to so-called Boston (Wampanoag, Pawtucket, and Massachusett land), bringing together talents from across genres into one collaborative mutual aid mixtape. Like the sun-soaked petals of a marigold, we hope this project can be a beacon towards brighter days - ones we are actively pushing towards in solidarity and struggle.”

Bandcamp: https://marigoldmixtape.bandcamp.com/

naz & ella

Fusing a gritty, grunge-infused aura with traditional folk-inspired musicality, Naz & Ella is the London-based duo channelling their anger and frustration at the world through tightly wound harmonies and intricate guitar riffs. They have just released their EP ‘(DE)HUMANISE’ featuring songs about normalised sexual harassment, internalised queerphobia and the exotification of women of colour. On their Bandcamp, they have merch available including a zine where they share details behind the making of the EP, thoughts on each song and more.

Bandcamp: https://nazandella.bandcamp.com/

muscle vest

Muscle Vest is a 5 piece noise-rock band from London. We were enough lucky to get to listen to a preview of their upcoming EP ‘Live Laugh Loathe’ and the energy is incredible - we cannot wait to see them live!! They just release a single from the EP called Creepy Crawlie - stop what you’re doing, hit the link below, listen and hit buy to support this sick single.

Bandcamp: https://musclevest.bandcamp.com/

Maya Lakhani

British Indian rock artist, Maya Lakhani, just released her second single ‘Walk Alone’. It’s a song inspired by the current conversations around women’s safety, the culture of victim blaming and the reasonable desire to walk alone as a woman without fear of attack or abuse. Just like her previous single ‘The Line’, Maya wrote, recorded and produced this track entirely from her bedroom over lockdown. Support Maya’s latest single and download it now via Bandcamp.

Bandcamp: https://mayalakhani.bandcamp.com/

Regret

Hong Kong hardcore punk band Regret just released their debut EP and available on cassette. Each cassette comes with a copy of the Regret Zine that includes the band's lyrics. They also released a lyric video for their single 'We Exist' which is dedicated to people of colour and ethnic minorities all over the world.

Bandcamp: https://regrethongkong.bandcamp.com/

Pinkshift

We’re sure you didn’t miss this, but in case you did, Baltimore-based pop punk band Pinkshift released their debut EP ‘Saccharine’ early last month. Has it really been over a month already since this iconic band released ‘Saccharine’?! Their posters and pink vinyl have now sold out, but their black vinyl, CD and ‘Toro’ t-shirt are still available on their Bandcamp.

Bandcamp: https://pinkshift.bandcamp.com/

Nadu

LA-based Nadu makes brash DIY surfy garage punk rock that you must listen to! Nader is the singer/bassist/drummer/guitarist on record, and live he is joined by Nadine Torres (The Groans, Garbitch) and Kenny Esparza (Kenny On The Moon). The second EP ‘Determinator II’ was released in June 2020 and is available to buy on Bandcamp along with a Nadu logo t-shirt.

Bandcamp: https://naduband.bandcamp.com/

Passionless Pointless

Berlin-based grunge band Passionless Pointless released their debut album Passionless Pointless last Bandcamp Friday which we reviewed here. They have lots of merch available on their Bandcamp including a t-shirt and tote bag, which you can grab alongside their album on tape + their zine! But, if listening to music on tape isn’t your thing, the album is available to download.

Bandcamp: https://passionlesspointless.bandcamp.com/

mirrored fatality

mirrored fatality is a nonbinary Kapampangan-Pilipinx and Bangladeshi-Pakistani-Muslim performance art duo Mango and Samar, sharing their rituals, altars, and medicine through DIT (Do It Together) experimental and healing noise punk. Their debut EP COCOON WEBS is out now and available to download.

Bandcamp: https://mirroredfatality.bandcamp.com/

The Kominas

The Kominas is a punk rock band blending late 1970s punk with influences from psychedelic rock from around the world. They have some merch still available including “Pigs Are Haram!” t-shirt based in their infamous song of the same name.

Bandcamp: https://kominas.bandcamp.com/

Shay Khan

Shay Khan is a British/South Asian artist & musician creating their own distinctive flavour of experimental folk/punk/rock, sung in English, Urdu, Punjabi and Hindi. They recently released a new single In Love² and "INSIDE OUT TERRAIN II" feat. Primitive Ignorant which is the second in a series of global collaborations between Shay Khan and other diasporic artists in quarantine responding through sound, film and performance to the poem “INSIDE OUT TERRAIN” written by Shay Khan. Both releases are available to download now.

Bandcamp: https://shaykhan.bandcamp.com/

Aurat

Aurat (OH-RUT), meaning "Women" in Urdu, is a darkwave band based in Los Angeles, CA. Aurat embraces the Urdu language with lyrics of its native language and nontraditional sounds. All of their merch is sadly sold out, but their music is available for download.

Bandcamp: https://aurat.bandcamp.com/