Rock band Vin Sinners have become the first UAE-based rock band to be signed to a major label.
Front man and Chennai-native Vin Nair has announced that he and his band mates — Johan Roy on bass, ‘Tazz’ Khan on guitar, ‘The Skinner’ Naveen on drums/percussion and Keith Roche on keyboards — have singed onto a multi-year record deal with Universal Music India. This deal comes just in time for the global release of their sophomore album, A Mighty Black Box, which will act as a follow-up to their 2011 independent release An Element of Surprise.
In December of last year, Nair spoke to tabloid! about working with Blaze Baley, ex-front man for Iron Maiden, on their upcoming song, Open the Box.
“I remember travelling all the way from Chennai to Bangalore [India] to buy the new Iron Maiden record he debuted on called X Factor back in 1996, because back then it was difficult to get the absolute latest music. So it is really a great honour to have him feature on a track that we’ve produced.”
The single is scheduled to be released digitally on March 1. The full album will be available online by March 15 with physical albums on sale by the end of that month.
In a press release, head of A & R at Universal Music India Suburna Roy said that they had seen the rock genre gain traction over the past years, a fact that influenced their decision to sign Vin Sinners.
“There are some bands out there who pack a lot of talent, hard work and commitment into their overall brand value and Vin Sinners is one such band that we believe has worked exceptionally hard on all fronts,” she said.
Nair called the deal “a dream come true”, though he acknowledged that this is only the beginning of the road.
“It also means that there’s a lot more hard work and effort that needs to come together,” Nair wrote. “Our sound has indeed evolved even further and we believe this album is a huge step in the right direction. For now, we’re absolutely excited about what the future has in store for us.”
For more on the band, go to facebook.com/vinsinners
