RUPA & THE APRIL FISHES [US]

While the music of Rupa & the April Fishes defies categorization, their intimate sound combined with a broad appeal has earned them comparisons to everyone from Manu Chao, Pink Martini and Lhasa to Beirut, Dengue Fever, Gogol Bordello and Keren Ann. Rupa’s nomadic upbringing has led her to write songs in a multitude of languages, including French, Spanish, Hindi and English. With themes ranging from love and death to politics and philosophy, the songs offer a magic carpet ride through time and place and embody Rupa’s goal of breaking down borders both real and imagined, arranged for cello, accordion, guitar, trumpet, upright bass and drums.

Besides being a songwriter and band leader, Rupa is also a doctor, splitting her time between her music career and caring for patients, whom she often finds inspiration from. “A lot of my music feels like it derives its heart from these vulnerable encounters with people,” says Rupa. “Taking care of people is such a deep inspiration for so many things, but especially music.”

The band is based in the lotus-eaters land of San Francisco and has toured on the West Coast, Mexico, NYC and Europe. They have traveled to Tijuana where they stayed with deported migrants and learned more about the humanistic impact of the US-Mexico border. In San Francisco, they have orchestrated spectacular sold out shows at the Great American Music Hall and the Independent, working with local musicians, performance and visual artists to create transportive events, removing the audience from ordinary experience to create fresh perspective. Rupa & the April Fishes have had the honor of working with Marcus Shelby, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Aterciopelados, Susana Baca, Rodrigo y Gabriela and Richard Dawkins. They play in concert halls and on streetcars, inviting people from different backgrounds to get together across supposed divides for a shared moment.

"these folks are the shining embodiment of globalization-gone-good...As someone who has very fond memories of drunken trots through impromptu street parties during last year’s World Cup, let me just say that Rupa and the April Fishes remind me of those festive convergences in which folks from all over the world would get together to kick it up, regardless of language barrier."—Todd Lavoie, SF Bay Guardian