Sunday: ‘Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga’ free listening party today at Palate in Glendale

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As they did for many sonic movements, restaurants and bars played a pivotal role in the ‘70s Indian psychedelic funk scene. Inside the balmy local haunts of Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) the hypnotic percussion and fuzz guitars of bands like Atomic Forest and the Black Beats perfected a distinct fusion of Western rock and Indian culture. On any given weeknight, a neighborhood food joint could transform into a packed dance party. In time, these exotic sounds even became fodder for Bollywood films of the era.

On Sunday get a taste of this progressive sonic movement at a listening party for ‘Psych Funk Sa-Re-Ga,’ an anthology on the history of psychedelic music from India circa 1970-1983. The party, hosted at Palate Food + Wine in Glendale, is presented by Now-Again Records and World Psychedelic Funk Classics, which released the album back in November 2010. From 4 to 8 p.m., seekers of raw, mind-altering funk will enjoy a parade of DJs spinning tunes inspired by the anthology along with a special menu of Indian street food.

Admission to the party is free. The food and wine, however, are not. But those willing to part with a few bucks can get their paws on some authentic behl puri and tikka marsala.

Having been postponed for several months, the party celebrating the album has been a long time coming. For Eothen ‘Egon’ Alapatt, founder of Now-Again and general manager of Stones Throw Records, Palate seemed like a fitting place to host a celebration for the sounds of ‘Sa-Re-Ga.’ He suspects that a good portion of the wine merchants and the fine-dining Sunday crowd will be taken by surprise.

‘It’s kind of fitting to get people that are just there to hang out and they’re being inundated with all this weird Indian music,” Alapatt said.

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-- Nate Jackson