After their spell binding performance on their first visit to India in February 2015, Alt- J took music enthusiasts by a storm once again at the live set of the Emerge festival recently. 

After one of their gigs was cancelled the last time in Delhi due to the unpredictable heavy showers, LIVE Viacom 18 brought back Alternate rock sensation Alt J, back to India one more time. The band performed live in Gurgaon on 21^st of May 2015 and then to Mumbai on the 22^nd of May 2015.

Alt-J band member Gus Unger-Hamilton was happy to be back in India. We met up Gus in Mumbai hours before the band took the stage for their concert on 22^nd May. Excerpts from the interview.

What has been the most memorable gig/show you have been part of, and why? Describe it a bit for your fans. 

I think coming to Australia for the first time was amazing. It was the furthest we'd ever been from home and we didn't know we were popular there. I don't know which country's fans are like India's but we like them!

Can we get a peek into your song writing process?

Song writing tends to start with Joe. He's responsible for all the lyrics and most of the idea kernels for the songs. Then we work as a group to finish the writing. It's nice to reference earlier work and give your albums a sense of continuity if possible. So far there haven't been too many creative clashes, but if they do happen it's best to remember that we've never been unhappy with a finished, recorded track, so whatever direction the majority wants to move in has always proved to be a good one.

Your career trajectory has been incredible. How has life changed post the 2012 Mercury prize? And how has it remained the same?

We're just concerned with making music that interests us. Beyond that everything is down to other people's perceptions, which it's best not to pander to.

How would you describe the alt-J sound? How has it evolved from the dorm to festival slots to being the headliners?

We tend to shy away from talking about the genre of our music. It's not our place to categorize ourselves and we don't really believe in putting music into boxes. Beyond making music that we like I don't think the band has - or needs - an aim.

How come you named the band Daljit Dhaliwal earlier? Was she a muse of sorts?

Daljit Dhaliwal was a newsreader we grew up with on TV in the '90s. I guess these things just stick in your head sometimes... To my knowledge she has not heard our music.

Please talk about the band’s journey after the departure of Gwil Sainsbury.

It was a surprise when Gwil left the band, and we struggled with the news initially. However we had no time to sit about, as the second album needed to be made, and I think it was finding we could do this as a threesome that helped us get over Gwil's departure. I don't think his exit changed the sound of the band. However I do miss his presence on tour as we were (and are) all best friends.

Who are the major influences on the band? Any artistes or bands that’ve inspired the members to come up with the kind of music they come up with?

We all come from different musical backgrounds - classical, folk, metal, Americana... but once we got together at university it felt natural to make music together. There was an unspoken chemistry. It's mostly a combination of our different musical backgrounds. We don't really have direct influences or inspirations.

Interviewed by Verus Ferreira