When The F16s walked back onto the Echoes of the Earth stage in Bengaluru this year, it was more than a return to a familiar festival. It was a moment shaped by time, growth and parallel journeys, unfolding within a space that treats music and environmental responsibility as inseparable. Echoes of the Earth has long stood apart for embedding sustainability into its very structure, making it a natural setting for a band that has grown increasingly intentional about how and why it creates.
The Chennai-origin indie band had played the very first edition of the festival, back when both the group and Echoes of the Earth were still finding their footing. Years later, that shared origin story feels fitting. Both have evolved with clarity and purpose,
whether through music that prioritises honesty or a festival model built around clean energy, circular waste systems and plastic-free infrastructure.
Growing Up Together
There is a certain ease with which The F16s speak about their early days at Echoes of the Earth. Looking back, the memory feels less like nostalgia and more like perspective earned. “It’s nice to see the strides we’ve both made since then in parallel,” they say, framing the festival and the band as entities that have grown side by side. For The F16s, that growth is evident not only in their expanding discography but in the confidence with which they now occupy the stage.
Their live shows today are carefully considered without feeling rigid. Colour and light have become central motifs, supported by a sound and lighting crew that understands how to serve the performance rather than overpower it. The set lists are cohesive yet flexible, designed to move as a single arc while leaving room for instinctive decisions in the moment. It is the kind of assurance that only comes from years of touring, experimentation and learning to trust each other.
Pop Instincts In A Rock Silhouette
The band’s oft-repeated description of itself as a pop band disguised in a rock and roll outfit continues to hold. At its core, the philosophy is simple. The song always comes first. “Our duty as musicians in this band is to serve the song,” they explain. There are moments when the rock energy takes over, and things get loud and raw, but never at the cost of melody or emotional recall.
Pop songwriting, for The F16s, is not a compromise but a craft. Ignoring it in favour of spectacle, they believe, is a mistake. That approach has resulted in music that can feel instantly familiar or quietly confrontational, sometimes both at once. As the Indian indie scene continues to expand, the band has learned to be comfortable with that tension.
Listeners who arrive expecting every track to sound like Moonchild are often surprised by how varied the rest of the catalogue can be. Requests to write in Hindi surface often, but the band remains clear-eyed about what authenticity demands of them. Writing in English already narrows their creative lane. The only way to justify that choice, they argue, is to write honestly about the lives they are actually living.
Authenticity, In Real Time
In 2025, authenticity for The F16s is less about ideology and more about daily reality. Touring has forced them to confront the contradictions of creative life, freedom versus routine, fulfilment versus responsibility. Those tensions have grown sharper as their personal lives have changed. Today, the band members juggle full-time jobs across different industries, care for pets, and, in one case, navigate parenthood. “Harshan just became a dad,” they say, almost in disbelief. “What could be a more authentic human experience?”
That grounding found its way directly into the making of their upcoming record. For a month, the band isolated themselves in a house in the hills, working from morning to night. Some days passed with nothing but a single riff repeated until it finally revealed something worth keeping. On others, ideas flowed freely and quickly. Importantly, the time was not consumed by music alone. There were workouts, walks into town, evenings spent watching cricket or playing video games. The songs, they insist, emerged from the simple act of being together for long enough.
Living And Arguing Together
Cohabitation was not entirely new. Two members already live together, and the extended stay only reinforced patterns that already existed. There were disagreements, but they rarely spilt beyond the music itself. Arguments stayed focused on songs, not on personal relationships, a distinction that speaks to the band’s growing maturity. Knowing which battles matter, they admit, has been one of the most valuable lessons of the last few years.
That maturity shows up in smaller, unexpected ways, too. The F16s are now, by their own admission, surprisingly punctual. Soundchecks and rehearsals run on time, often accompanied by a familiar line that has become something of an internal refrain, “It’ll sound fine once people come.” It is equal parts humour and faith in the live experience.
Trust, Collaborators, And Looking Ahead
When it comes to lyrics, much of the responsibility rests with Josh, who prefers to write in isolation. The rest of the band rarely challenges his choices. There has not been a moment, they say, when he has not arrived at the right line. Whether that speaks to his instincts or to the band’s willingness to trust him completely is left open-ended.
Collaborations are on the horizon, though still in their early stages. Details are sparse. “You’ll know when we do,” they say. What they are more forthcoming about is the advice they wish they had received earlier. Get a lawyer. You can figure out most things on your own if the work is good, they believe, but legal clarity is essential.
Asked about scoring films or series, the band resists the idea of a perfect fit, but their wish list offers insight into their sensibilities. Paul Thomas Anderson, Ryan Coogler, Vince Gilligan and Yorgos Lanthimos all make the cut. Directors known for atmosphere, tension and emotional complexity, qualities that align closely with the band’s evolving sound.
A Festival That Walks The Talk
Playing at Echoes of the Earth adds a deeper context to that evolution. The festival’s commitment to sustainability is not performative. It is embedded into how the event functions. A circular waste system ensures that wet waste is converted into bio-CNG, garden waste is composted for local farmers, dry waste is recycled, and even rejected waste is repurposed as alternative fuel. Clear on-ground segregation and biodegradable serveware make audiences active participants in keeping the venue clean throughout the festival.
Plastic waste is eliminated at the source through a zero plastic hydration system that offers free RO water across the grounds. This year, 9,000 reusable steel tumblers and bottles were introduced, supported by multiple refill stations, while RO reject water is reused in restrooms.
Clean energy powers large parts of the festival, from solar-backed box offices and markets to bio-gas run food courts and EV-based artist transport.
For a band like The F16s, increasingly focused on intention, sustainability and long-term impact, Echoes of the Earth feels like more than another performance slot. It is a space where long-term values are reflected not just on stage, but in infrastructure and community behaviour.
As both the band and the festival continue to evolve, their shared trajectory offers a glimpse of what the future of India’s independent music culture could look like. One that values substance over spectacle, honesty over convenience and progress that leaves the ground better than it found it.
