Kishan Balaji is a professional percussionist based out of the IT capital of India, Bangalore. Playing for the last ten years, Kishan has collaborated with the best in the country. Currently, he is the drummer of Masala Cofffee and Galeej Gurus and an instructor at Octavium.
Some of his influences are Dave Weckle, Vinnie Coluita, Dennis Chambers, Gavin Harrison, Richard Christy, Sean Reinhardt, Flint, Brett Garsed, Sting, Jojo Mayer, Simon Phillips, L Shankar, and Mr Big.
Hailing from a musical family, where his mother is a professional Indian classical singer, he realised that music was something he wanted to do for a living. While he tried out different instruments in the beginning and somehow latched on the world of drums. Since then, Kishan never looked back and strived to take his drumming skills to the next level.
Playing for six odd years predominantly in the circuit of diverse forms of music, Kishan has carved himself a mark with a sizeable fan following. From winning the fans over at every place he has performed, he also plays for a diverse range of bands catering to various different types of genres. He has also played around 250 odd shows in total and counting.
Kishan has been playing LIVE drums with popular acts such as Bhoomi, Galeej Gurus, Caesar's Palace, Extinct Reflections, Second Hand, Pulse Plug, and Vasundhara Das simultaneously. His plan is on being a better musician and sharing his knowledge to various upcoming artists in innovative ways included in clinics, classes, online help, etc.
Kishan also has a studio setup where he records bands at very reasonable prices enabling more artists to come out with their material, grow as musicians and help the overall scene grow as well. He is involved in the production of music for online virals, ads, sound design, electronic projects, and other forms of production.