christvskrishna.com

myspace.com/pankspage

Canadian hipster pop laced with British excess and Indian subtleties

 Christ vs Krishna, aka Pank Bagga, travels back and forth along a 30-year trans-Atlantic continuum: from the hard-driving early 70s punk of The Ramones, to 80s Britpoppers such as The Cure and the Smiths, and the dance-floor rocking sounds of Prince & Michael Jackson; from the Pixies and others synonymous with the early 90s heyday of alternative rock to today’s vanguards of epic pop like Oasis, Radiohead and Sam Roberts.  In fact, Pank opened for Sam Roberts while with Toronto band The Turnarounds. He has also shared the stage with Bedouin Soundclash.

 Underpinning these more traditional inspirations are a lush sense of ambience and rhythm, and a highly sophisticated ear for melodies, befitting someone who grew up listening to Indian ragas. Pank plays guitar, bass and drums and also sings, meticulously crafting each song until absolutely certain it is ready to be unveiled. His lyrics immediately resonate with depth, contemplation, commitment and a sense of self-therapy without being maudlin or self-pitying.  Pank’s debut EP was produced by Dean Marino and Jay Sad of Chemical Sound, producers of the Tokyo Police Club’s Juno-nominated Elephant Shell and many other leading Canadian rock/pop acts such as the Born Ruffians. 

 Pank is nothing if not a study in contrasts.  He’s your classic slightly rebellious and angst-ridden Canadian indie hipster kid – except he’s got a B.A. in psychology, meditates to invoke the divine and sees music as a sacred trust.  He has spent most of his young adult life trying to avoid a seemingly predestined fate of working in his parents’ family business, yet is always grateful for so many practical lessons he has learned growing up immersed in it.   He’s self-deprecating and humble almost to a fault, yet fun loving and innately confident in his purpose and gifts.

 After an extended hibernation, crafting his album at home at the hipster Ground Zero of Queen and Bathurst in Toronto, Pank is ready to seek the limelight and prepared for the lowlights.  As a sideman, he has done his time in the proverbial trenches of Southern Ontario’s teeming indie scene played in most every major (and minor) Toronto rock venue: The El Mocambo, Lee’s Palace, The Cameron House, Reverb and many more across Southern Ontario.

 “I feel lucky to have been able to create this album at my own pace,” says Pank.  “It’s been a three year process – first creating musical ideas that were evolving on the fly, then developing the technical skills to manifest the music, and all the while dealing with my  own neurosis about originality and perfectionism.  In fact, I decided on Christ vs Krishna because it reflects my belief

that no religion race or culture is so unique or special enough to have a monopoly on the creative forces of the universe – and having learned that there’s no such thing as a completely original record.  All that said, I’m pleased as punch with how the record sounds.”