It's around the one minute-mark of the track Lemonade that the screech comes in, a sound that's similar to a radio losing signal. It pricks your ears open like a deer that's just heard the roar of a lion. And a track that was thus far reminiscent of alternative metal act Deftones suddenly breaks into a distorted rendition of an Indian folk song, before it returns to its grungy foundations.

That's the sort of what-the-hell-just-happened effect that eclectic Delhi/Bengaluru-based rock band Hoirong's new album, Hope & Light, has on listeners. The sound of that screech is pure noise music, a genre that's as rare in the Indian indie circuit as people wearing masks would be at a rally of Donald Trump supporters. It's a no-holds-barred form of music that can also encapsulate the chaos of our times. Lead vocalist Kamal Singh agrees when we point that out to him. "I can see what you're getting at," he confides.