I N T E R V I E W S

Exclusive Interviews @S C X N E

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Pendulum Swing releases their full-length debut album 'Life Is Beautiful'.

Psychedelic rock quartet from Imphal city, Pendulum Swing are releasing their debut full-length album ‘Life Is Beautiful’ on 12th October, 2014. The album features 8 amazing melodic tracks. The band is playing live at Paradiso (IMC Cinema), Thangal Bazaar, Imphal at 4 pm on 12th October as their album release event. The all-girl band Maniac  from Imphal will also support the event. Be there and be first to listen to their amazing album.

We had a wonderful time sitting with the band and listen to their stories about their early days and the album in the making.  Read on to find out more details about the band and album – the real stories behind their music.

SC: As per our grasp, Pendulum Swing made its debut appearance at the Manipur Idol, so how would you guys like to introduce the band to the people who haven't heard of you guys yet?

Vabe:  Well, we made our debut appearance at the Manipur Idol and we have been playing around in the city (Imphal) as Pendulum Swing for a while now but hopefully this debut album of ours will be our breakthrough exposure as a mass introduction to everyone who hasn’t heard about us yet. We have put in our bloods and sweat in making of this album. So, guys, we are Pendulum Swing. We play a blended mixture of Blues, Psychedelic and Soft Rock and if you are someone who really digs these genres of music then we promise you, you will not be disappointed with this album. Give it a listen.

SC: List us the current members of the band along with their roles in the band.

Vabe: I cover the main vocal actions and play rhythm guitars in the band. Tinku is the lead guitarist and Bronjit is the bassist. Chinghkei is supporting us with the drums as of now but he has his personal preferences with other things in life so we will be eventually looking forward to cover for him.

SC: A brief history about the band, in short, how did Pendulum Swing happen as a band.

Vabe: It has been a long dream for me to gear up a band and play music for I have a huge inevitable interest in music. So, basically, it started off with me and my cousin Tinku before it was Pendulum Swing. I was in Delhi back then when it triggered me that I have to give in a shot and start up a band of my own. As Tinku has been an enthusiastic guitar since his early days, we discussed about it.  We started jamming with many amazing people but due to differences in music taste we could actually work out together. Then Amu and Chingkhei happened on the way. And soon Bronajit joined the team and we started out as Rebreed. Few months later, we coined Pendulum Swing as our official band title and since then we have been playing in and around the city till now.

SC: We all have heard that the band is on its high road of releasing a full length debut album very soon. Take us to a scoop of the whole making and recording process completed so far?

Vabe: Initially, we had to face a really hard time shaping up this album. At start, we have had it planned for a low budget album yet without compromising sound quality. We actually targeted on making just a single track at the first place but soon we started realising what’s of a worth if we’d release just a single track with all of the efforts we have put in our love of music so far. So, we charted out to releasing a full album and started to work with double amount of energy. We told ourselves that it will be our do or die moment. So, we approached this friend of Chingkhei, Delalo from Nambol, who was quite good with mixing and recording tracks. We spent a period of one and half month just recording just a single track. Yet at the end of the day we end up not achieving didn’t achieve the quality of sound we were looking forward to. So, we gave up on him and started to look out for other alternatives. Then it rang me about an old friend who is actually is beaming sound mixing artist in the present music scenario. Yes, so I called Tulajit who now has a recording studio of his own in Bangalore and spoke to him about my plans. We framed out the whole recording work together but since he was put up in Bangalore it cost us a hard time working out things as planned. We finally managed to pull up the recording process of the whole album in three traumatising weeks. And, now we are here. (Sigh!)

SC: How is the band planning to release the album? Will it be a digital release or physical release with CDs? If CDs, who are you guys planning to let out the stock for distribution? 

Tinku: Well, of course, we’ll be releasing it as both digital and physical releases as well. We’ll update the details about the releases as soon as we get it done. Anyway, we’ll make sure it reaches each and every one of you as soon as it gets out.

                                       (L-R: Vabe, Bronajit & Tinku)

SC: Has Pendulum Swing ever performed outside of their hometown Imphal? If so, brief us about the whole event and tell us how did it happen (who hooked you guys up)?

Vabe: Yes, we have played a couple of shows outside of Imphal as well. We have played as the opening act in the Battle of the bands in Delhi. We have also played at Cafe Rockafella in Delhi and few other cafes there.

  SC: From the songs the band has covered or played at live gigs, we notice more of psychedelic styles in particular. Does it mean you guys are very much influenced with this particular genre and can we expect the same in the upcoming album?

Vabe: Honestly, our music influences go to a wide variety of music. We listen to almost all genres of rock music. Yet, Blues, Psychedelic Rock, Soft Rock and Hard Rock have to go on top, if we have to go a little deeper on our major influences.

  SC:  Most of the lyrical concepts of Manipur bands are based in current scenario of the city or the anti-politics or anti-corruption issues and related stuffs. Do you guys also follow the same ideas when it comes to writing materials?

Vabe: Well, when it comes to writing I know I am not much of a great lyricist. We know we can acquire help from other great people in shaping great lyrics yet we didn’t because we’ve always wanted the lyrics to relate to ourselves so we carried on with what we could develop on our own. We write mostly about the inner feeling of our own- happiness, sadness, excitements, or either love. Or say, we generally write about things that we all normally face in our everyday life. There is one song, Hunger Of A Lady, which I have written in a little diverse perspective focusing more on the present socio-economic and political situations on our State at the present moment.

  SC: If you are asked to pick top 3 tracks from the album which three tracks would it be? Is there any special story behind these particular tracks?

Vabe:

1. Hunger Of A Lady. It has a whole different context in terms of meaning and lyrical approaches.

2. Wind And Rain- Well, just because, I believe, it is a very romantic track.

3. I Should Have Known - Another melodic track with great vibes.

  SC: On a lighter note, give us a brief idea about the personal lives of the band members apart from being an amazing band. What are they up to in their personal lives at present?

  Vabe:  I have acquired a Master’s Degree in Linguistics. Presently, I am working a private tutor taking private teaching classes for school goers. Also, I am applying for examinations in government and private sectors.

Bronajit: Currently, I am a full time musician. Music tops my list of priority in life.

Tinku:  I have just graduation from my college. So, right now, music is my sole focus.

  SC: Lastly, any messages for the fans and other people who are looking forward for the upcoming album?

Vabe: First of all, we are really thankful to each and every one of you who has helped us made this dreams come true in making who we are today. We are really indebted to you all for life, without your love and support we wouldn’t have been what we are today. If give a chance, we would really love to catch up with each and every one of you who has whistled and clapped at our shows, it really means the world to us. Secondly, please grab a copy of our debut album ‘Life Is Beautiful’. This is for you guys. Take it as our token of appreciation for all those love and support you all have showered on us all along. Thanks.

Track lists of the album 'Life Is Beautiful:

1. Life Is Beautiful

2. Wind And Rain

3. Hunger Of A Lady

4. Baby Blues

5. I Should have Known

6. Something To Make You Mine

7. Anger Roar

8. Untitled

Check out the video on their album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7y3Ac-5Lj_o

To read more about the band, follow them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thependulumswing

Be the first to stream their track ‘Hunger Of  A Lady’ here on our Sound Cloud Channel:

https://soundcloud.com/supportsoundcheck/pendulum-swing-hunger-of-a-lady

Interviewer: Chitradeep Nongmaithem

Photographs: Rohit Maisnam

Crew: Ken, Nganba & Andy

Documented by: Lenin Nameirakpam

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Deathcore pioneers from Imphal, Dead Mobster, announces a new guitarist and plans for a crowd funding tribute gig in August in the memory of their beloved ex-drummer Morly.

As long as we have the courage to take down every blows of this cruel life, we are not yet defeated but we have strengthened ourselves more. This is what the Deathcore Gods from Imphal believes about life. Despite of the tragic incident last year where their drummer Morly passed away in a road mishap and   guitarist Samson’s decision about parting ways with the band, Dead Mobster stood still crossing fingers and keeping faith in their only hope- the zeal of making music. After months of hibernation, they are now all set to house a crowd funding tribute gig for Morly and also release an EP afterwards.

Our crew Ken had an amazing time catching up with the band last week as a debut episode of Sound Check’s exclusive interview feature –‘Disclosures’. Here’s what the band had shared with us.

  Sound Check: Hey Guys, we welcome you all to the first edition of ‘Disclosures With Sound Check’. It’s been a while since Dead Mobster has played on any stage in front of the fans. So, how has been the band all these while?

Dead Mobster: Hey Sound Check! Thank you guys for making this happen.

Well, after our beloved drummer Morly left us in a tragic accident last year so, since then we have sat back from playing live shows but focussed more on writing and materials. Also, we were on the look-out for a drummer for the band. And now that we have got ourselves one we are planning to bounce back on the road. So, in all, we have been doing just fine.  We are housing a tribute gig for Morly in the upcoming weeks as a rebound.

SC: We heard that the band’s guitarist Samson is parting ways with the band now. Is there any particular reason behind him leaving the band? And, who is filling up Samson’s spot if he is no more playing in the band?

DM: Samson is our brother and will forever be. There is no scene of any conflicts with him abandoning the band. He had to leave the band for he has few other personal stuffs to work on at present, you know, life and its shits, so he needs a little time of his own to clear the shits out. We all are totally cool with each other and we hang out all the time. Now, we have James from War Machine to fill in his spot.

                                  (James, Ex-Guitarist War Machine)

SC: So, about James filling in for Samson, has the band made any official announcement about it yet?  And now there are changes in the line ups in the band, will the name ‘Dead Mobster’ remain as Dead Mobster only? 

DM: Yes, there will be no changes in the name of the band. We were, are and will forever be Dead Mobster.

About the announcements, no, we haven’t made any special announcement yet. Samson played with us at our last gig and James was playing for War Machine too, so we are planning to lay low with it at the moment. We will come up with the official new line-up announcement with our upcoming releases which we are planning to do very soon or, on this upcoming Morly tribute gig.

SC: The tribute gig for Morly which the band is planning, is it totally going to be a crowd funded gig?  Brief us a bit on how is the band exactly planning to organise it and how has been the help and responses from the people so far?

DM: Yes, this tribute gig for Morly is totally going to be a crowd funded gig. We are hoping to cover almost upto 50 percent of the expenses for the gig from our ends though. It will be a free gig, of course. Presently, we have reached out to our friends and families who love us or our beloved Morly, our fans and other people who wishes to support us with this event. We haven’t contacted any particular sponsors yet we are trying to reach out to as many as people possible. So, we heartily welcome any and every individual who is willing to contribute whatever he/she can to make this gig happen and show to our beloved brother that we still love and miss him. The whole metal music lover’s world still mourns for you, brother.

SC: Digging more on this upcoming tribute gig, brief us more about the detailed plans for gig- when and whereabouts? And also, about the other bands to play at the gig?

DM: Well, earlier this year we had actually planned to pull up the gig on the 26th of June as it was Morly’s first death anniversary but unfortunately, we couldn’t made it due to a few unavoidable circumstances. So, we have stretched out a complete two months’ period now and making it takes place on the 24th of August instead. As per plan, Iboyaima Shanglen’s open air grounds will the venue for the gig. Every essential information and contacts for formulating this gig has been taken under process now. We are pulling up 5 bands- 4 locals and one band from outside the State lines. No official announcements have been leaked about the line ups of the bands for the gig yet, although confirmations have been done.

SC: Is the special band, which you guys are bringing down in Imphal for the gig, related or bear any attachments to Morly or is there any specific involvements with his life?

DM: No, the band does not bear any exact attachments with Morly but we all knew each other back in those good old days when Morly was with us. On hearing about the upcoming tribute gig, this band, they really wanted to be a part of it in remembrance of one awesome drummer of a generation. So, during a conversation we fused together from both ends and resulted in taking them in.

SC: Ever since Morly left us all, Dead Mobster partly felt numb and drummers are very hard to get. So, how’s everything coming out with the new drummer?

DM: Well, Kelvin is helping out the band for now and we are taking him into the band and moving ahead with him. It is very hard to get drummer and bassist in a place like Manipur, you know.

  SC: As you guys have told us that the band is almost done with its teaser of the upcoming EP so is there any tracks which the band is planning to release in the upcoming months where Morly was involved?

DM: Yes. There are 2/3 tracks where Morly was a part of it yet all of them were just rough recordings.

  SC: We all have been noticing a huge change with the local music scene in your home town Manipur in the past few years, especially from rock music scene to metal music scene. What does the band has to comment on this change in scene?

DM: As we all know change is the essence of life, we all have the urge to change from time to time. We are not relating to music scene or tastes only but also in every aspects of life. It is actually the evolving generation that has resulted in making this huge change possible. Like no person prefers to stay the same forever, whether it is their looks, food habits nor any other way with every possible thing, we all urge to change with time. The same happens in case of music taste also. But, having said doesn’t mean that rock scene has been totally abandoned from the local scene. There are so many amazing rock bands rocking their way out till today.

  SC: Dead Mobster is such a huge inspiration to the local metal scene. What responsibilities do the band carry to help the local metal scene and how has been the band’s journey so far?

  DM: When Dead Mobster took birth, the mainstream local scene was full on with the Nu-Metal wave accompanied but Heavy Metal or Groove Metal music. Almost all of the bands in the scene back then either played Rock or Heavy Metal music yet they were very much perfect in whichever style they were playing. So, we wanted to pull up a little harder and create something new in the local music scene. We fused together our mutual love in music and shaped up ourselves resulting to this particular genre regardless of the mainstream considerations. Back then we have had a very hard time sticking to our music and being ourselves when the whole scene was flooded with other styles of music.  ‘Rock Fest 2011’ had been a great breakthrough gig for us. It was the first time where people start noticing us and following the style of music that we were playing which was entirely new and different from the mainstream scene. Since then they continued to support us till today.

  SC: The band has been playing Deathcore for a long time but lately we are witnessing slight changes in music style that the band plays at live shows, like little inclination to technical influences and other additional styles. So, is there any specific reason behind it?

DM: Well, there is no such thing as a genre in music, as we all know it. It is just the name of the style of music that different people experiment it to be. Yeah, we started out as total Deathcore band but we never stuck to any particular style or genre of music. Our main motive was to play what we love, what we feel regardless of the clueless genre boundaries and distinctions. So, for us, it’s like while we are sitting together and composing a track if we feel like adding a different riff or drumming pattern that, we think, will go well with the track then we do, we fuse it in to track. Having said does mean, we’d fuse reggae or pop elements to our sound. Not that we have any issues with such music styles but we keep our traditional Deathcore element stay as the soul for our sound with other matching elements from other sub-genres as sidekicks. That is how we shape our sound.

  SC: When the general population thinks about ‘Metal Music’ the first thing they picture will be about brutal sounds, lyrics that a full of evil conscience or anti-government elements.  So, what thoughts do you guys have about this.

DM: Our lyrics are mainly based on the society we live in today, you know, all those shits that we face in our day to day lives. Particularly, based on the local daily hindrances that we face every day in a society like ours, especially here in Manipur. We feel too much pressured with how the Government, the police and other people of higher authorities treat the ordinary citizens. We all need to shout out loud for a change. So, that’s what we wish to deliver to the ears of the entire populace residing here right through our songs.

  SC: This one is for the frontman of the band, Vavanda. How long have you been singing, like as a vocal guy in metal bands? And also, brief us about your practices and transitions with vocal styles from early days till this day.

  DM: Well, I started out practising Thrash metal around in the year 2008, so, in all; it has been almost 6/7 years now. Thrash metal bands like Metallica, Judas Priest, were my early influences. Back in those days there were very less genres of metal in the local scene. Only metal bands like Slipknot, Lamb Of God had huge influences in the local metal scene. So, I wanted to bring in a change in scene and I started looking for other heavier stuffs and my search didn’t go in vain, i did get what I was exactly looking for.

No, I have not gone through with any special vocal classes so far since in a town like ours we can never find a vocal tutor at any cost. So, I followed tutorial videos on YouTube and practised real hard in shaping up what I am today. It was not at all easy but you know, nothing is impossible in this world. All you need is determination and hard work, and the dream is yours.

SC: What are the upcoming plans for the band in the near future?

DM: Right now, we are fully focussing on the upcoming tribute gig for Morly so we all are giving in everything in making this gig as huge as possible. Our EP will be the follow up soon after the gig. Later, we’ll plan for playing as many live shows as possible in and outside Imphal as well.

SC: It’s been long that we have heard about the upcoming EP, so how has it been shaping up. Enlighten us and our readers a brief about it and its related elements such as recording process, artwork, etc.

DM: The EP will consist of 5 tracks including an intro. We are currently working on track listing and recording scratches at our home studio now but we will hit Lucid Records in Guwahati for the final recording. The Artwork of the EP is almost done now but we will reveal it only after all things are set to go.  

 SC: Lately, the whole NE India has been receiving a huge wave of Metal scene in its every nook and corner and every metal band has been working total hard with their possible efforts to make their music grow yet it fails to flourish up to the right level where it should be? What can be the main factor behind it and what should we all do to make it bigger like it does in other parts of the country, or the planet?

DM: Well, it’s mainly because of the so-long old traditions. The society and the general population that still follows this social taboo that long hair, tattoos, ripped out shirts and worn out jeans are the only outcome Metal music can result in the kids of present generation. The society still believes that Metal music and Satanism are like family. They don’t, and are not able to, see any good side of Metal music. Most people still believe that every metal gig are loaded with drug abused youths and spoiled kids causing chaos and nuisance. We’ll say ‘To hell’ with such believes and outdated ideas. Metal is just as much a style of music as the rest of the music styles.  We know it can help bring peace for we have been in love and peace with every single person that loves metal music. People need to stop thinking negative about this particular style of music and give it a try. Recently, in some part of Shillong there had been huge conflict when wearing metal or black tee shirts were banned in the false believe that Metal music leads to Satanism. Such things should not happen. Metal music is not related to Satanism in any possible way. Instead of banning or standing against such music, we all should stand up for each other and support one another to grow hand in hand and then only Metal music will seek to grow bigger.

  SC: We all have heard about the great news of Plague Throat being invited at their CM’s Bungalow for meet and greet evening with their superiors of the state. Don’t you guys think the superiors of their State are trying to support such music?

DM: Yes, it is indeed a great initiative from their State. We totally agree and respect the fact that their Government or the Superiors are evolving towards the brighter side. Here, it is totally different. The Government is defunct here in Manipur. They don’t know anything about metal music, not even a tiny bit of it. If they have known or atleast had a tiny idea about such music then it would have added a greater chance for us in promoting the local music scene. But see, here in Imphal, if there is any gig going on and when the clock ticks 9 the securities and police personnel will come down and wrap up the gig without any reason. And, it sucks to know that we cannot say nor do anything to stop them. It’s totally like we have been given a tiny parts of our own rights since it’s a democratic country but damn it feels like we are living in a communist country. We are even deprived from our own rights and freedoms. It just sucks to be a part of such society.

  SC: A final message for the fans?

DM: Well, we are planning to play 2 new tracks in upcoming gig. We will love to see all of you in paying our tribute to our beloved brother, Morly. So, please be part of it.  And, we are also planning to return a token of appreciation for every contributor and supporters. There will be no bar in the contribution, support with whatever you can. We’ll see you all very soon.

  Well, now that all of you have a solid reason to help Dead Mobster in realising their profound dream of the tribute gig for Morly, go spend a few bucks and make the event go up the ladder.

Watch the video on Youtube here: Disclosures With Sound Check

Dead Mobster is Vavananda (Vocals), Kenyo (Guitar), James (Guitar), Bungbi (Bass) & Kevin (Drums).

For more about the bands follow them on Facebook: Dead Mobster

Or, listen to their tracks at Reverbnation: Dead Mobster

Interviewer: Ken

Photograph / Video / Documentation: Lenin Nameirakpam

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Imphal based Death Metallers Yuthak Wah is streaming their second track ‘Freakonomy’ off of their upcoming album.

Death metal heavy weight Yuthak Wah of Imphal is working on their debut album. They have already offered their first track ‘Divide And Conquer’ off of their upcoming 9 tracked pure fuckin’ madness filled with anger, lust of blood and lot helluva diabolic attracted themes album. Our crew Ken had a chance to sit and chat with the axe man of the band Homendro (Founding guitarist) and here is what he the band has to say ‘As you already knew we are playing at this year’s Road To Rampage with our insertation of new guitarist Kelvin which he is shaping up pretty great, we have made a rough arrangement for our fans to pump up and get ready for the show on the 28th of June. We will be streaming our old rough remake of the song ‘Freakonomy’ recorded few months ago at Ray studio. The lyrical concept of this track is about the things which are illegal but legitimate for operation and their consequences, phenomena and vanity. We still have lots to change in the track but whatda heck, we are going to stream it for two days. The track is a conversion of Thrash to Death metal. It is compulsory for our fans to give us your feedback and comments.

And well, things has been quiet normal. We are still jamming with our new guitarist and we have completed almost 6 tracks from our 9 tracked album. Hopefully, we plan to release the album very soon. Be sure to catch us at Road To Rampage. See ya all”

Maintaining the tradition of death metal you just had to picture yourself with the crunchy mixing.

  Track list

Freakonomy

Anger With Pain

Divide And Conquer

Incarceratioin

Feed From Cannibalism

Kill And Survive

Three more tracks to unveiled.

Yuthak Wah is

Homen : Guitars

Kelvin : Guitars

Naocha a.k.a Cobian : Bass

Suraj : Vocals

Biyondyp : Drums

  Does it disappoint or pique your interest? Find out by streaming the track here: http://bit.ly/1j14iyi

Watch the official teaser of Road To Rampage here http://bit.ly/1pYhwU8

To follow the band on Facebook: Yuthak-Wah

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Grindcore Metallers from Guwahati 'Gnarled' hopes to attract the attention of Transcending Obscurity and Demonstealer Records.

Hey, you! Yeah, you! Do you realize how fucking spoiled you are? With your high-speed internet connection, your Smartphone, your surgically straightened teeth, with an organic grocery store on every corner, and a government that busies itself blowing up everything in sight but generally leaves you well enough alone? (Unless you decide to occupy “their” land in the name of freedom, but that’s another story)

You’re pretty lucky, kid, but no, that’s not enough for you. You’re pissed off. You can’t afford college, can’t find a job, and can’t figure out why the girl or guy you like doesn’t care about you. You feel alienated by the mainstream, misunderstood by your dad – “disenfranchised” is probably the word, but you’re not too clear on the definition. Either way, you’re not happy, so what do you do? What’s your grand gesture, your fist in the face of god?

You start a fucking Grindcore band – and now you feel a little better.

Imagine that scenario playing out against an entirely different backdrop. The government takes none too kindly to Western influences, let alone the godless, unnervingly dark exterior of extreme metal. You’re cut off from the global metal community, at least as far as the touring/festival circuit goes, but you’ve still got that internet connection, and a helluva lot more reasons to be pissed. You formed your own scene, patch together your own recording gear, write your own songs, and draw from the bands that you like, free of any input from foreign genre.

Here is Guwahati’s Gnarled giving us few stories behind their music.

Words by Bikas Das (Sound Check, Guwahati Crew)

    SC: Define Gnarled in one tweet

G: Gnarled is a death metal band with a twist.

SC: What is the current status of the band from a musical standpoint and why the audience should give a chance to listening to Gnarled?

G: Presently we are working on our writings, composing riffs, expecting few gigs as of now. We like to play death metal in our own way breaking the typical verse/chorus and conventionality of death metal. Which otherwise puts many bands of this genre into limitations. We like to break free from that. So peoples should definitely check us out ;)

SC: How important are the lyrics, tell us the lyrical concept behind the music?

G: We always felt you had to experience music as a whole, musically and lyrically. We want our lyrics to be heavy too and portray our themes rather than just growl patterns over music. We draw inspiration from the news, movies, sci-fi and real life practices. We try to fuse them all and take it to another level.

SC: What do you see as the primary difference in mentality between underground metal bands and the people you hear on day to day life or radio?

G: It’s the choice of the peoples. Some bands want their music to be dug out without mainstream promotions. Death metal is meant to be underground and musicians of this genre are often genuine and are not sold out persons. Whereas in mainstream media, it’s all about fame and money more than most now. There was a time when MTV and VH1 supported HEADBANGERS BALL. What a great time to grow up with.

SC: According to you guys, what are the least possible things to make a person listen to intense death metal records?

G: Death metal is for those who want their music to be heavy, challenging and harsh. Great source to channelize negative thoughts and go totally insane in the gig, if you know what i mean (Laughs off). The death metal community is now quite widespread across the globe. Many young people started appreciating death metal and attending underground gigs. I think the major impact is internet. People can access to music with a click right away.

SC: Name some of your favorite underground record labels.

G: There’s lot of great records labels out there like Relapse, Nuclear Blast, Earache which is every metal band’s dream. And also, Transcending Obscurity and Demonstealer Records from India. Hopefully we get a chance to sign up once we done with our EP and full length. If not then we are planning to release it independently. 

 SC: Underground bands are liked by few, refused by most but entertained to all. Share few words on this.

G: As we have said before, there is gap between underground music and mainstream. It’s the mainstream pop music lovers who don’t like underground music mostly because they don’t bother listening to and will probably ever understand it. Underground music fan are quite genuine and know how to choose their music wisely. We love playing this type of music and will continue playing irrespective of the haters.

SC: Your debut single 'Forced Impregnation' almost give an unexpected sound which made people curious about your next good news? When can we expect an EP/LP?

G: We are glad that people liked our music. We are still working on few more songs. We aren’t thinking to release more singles as we are to release it with the EP altogether. Apparently we can’t tell when but hopefully soon. Stay updated to our FB page.

  SC:  Lastly, how was it like working in a leading studio of North East like the Lucid Recess Studio?

G: It was really a fun experience working with Amitabh & Siddharth Barooa at the studio. They gave us the sound we wanted. And the studio was very well equipped.

Thanks for the interview. Cheers and stay twisted \m/

Gnarled is Chinmoy Lahkar (Vocals), Amalendu Kaushik (Guitars), Rishav Sarmah (Bass) & Angshuman Hazarika (Drums).

For more Gnarled, follow them on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gnarledofficial

Sound Cloud: https://soundcloud.com/narled

Reverbnation: http://www.reverbnation.com/gnarled

Stream or download their new single ‘Forced Impregnation’ here.

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The Indie Rock Band, which is influenced by Funk Rock, Reggae, Classic Rock and which they have been playing music together since childhood days. Yes, they are Minute Of Decay.

For the 3 Sisters hailing from Manipur, music has been the greatest gift in their family. Formed on October 2011, which recently released their Debut EP "Finding Betsy", and which they got a good response from the listeners, they are the sensational Minute Of Decay.

Our crew member, Sameer Haorungbam had a wonderful chat with the band members, so here's the whole story with M.O.D

Sound Check: Hello ladies, a very warm welcome from Sound Check. So as for the start ,would you kindly introduce yourselves with your respective instruments that you play?

MOD: Hi guys, So we are M.O.D known as Minute of Decay. We are a three piece band formed in 2011, Fortunately we are all sisters and we have been playing music since our childhood days.

Worshon Muivah (Vocal + Guitar + Synth), Singchon Muivah (Bass) and 

Thotyaphy Muivah (Drums + Percussion) 

Sound Check: So, what music genre you basically play, and give some glimpse of your music background. (Like when and why did you start playing?)

MOD: We are Indie Rock Band influenced by Funk Rock, Reggae, and Classic Rock.

Sound Check: Is your family into music? What is your family’s interest in music?

MOD: Well not actually but our parents are very encouraging... They are the pillar behind our band, without their support we wouldn't be here answering this... Music has been our greatest gift in our family, so yeah Music kinda runs in our family though not necessarily we form a band or not.

Sound Check: What inspired you sisters to make music together, and when did the formation of a band happened?

MOD: Our experiences in life and people around.

So, we were playing at a student function in 2011 in Delhi and people asked us if we were a band and what we called our self as that was the moment when we decided to name our self as Minute of Decay (M.O.D)... Since then we have been playing in and around Delhi and North East.

Sound Check: Anyway first things first. So tell us about your EP Album "Finding Betsy"? What is the entire album about? Why is it named Finding Betsy? Any theme behind the whole album?

MOD: 'Finding Betsy' is our Debut EP. The album is a jarring testimony about people from North east India, Each song in the album is a collective story of an individual which talks about life, struggle, drug abuse, relationships and faith. The song 'Little Betsy" in the EP is mainly about this girl Betsy who is our cousin who died of drug abuse when she young. So the tittle 'Finding Betsy' is a metaphor described to depict a life of someone whom we have known so closely and gone through so many things in life.

Sound Check: So as this is your debut album, how was the response from the listeners and fans?

MOD: Its was Awesome.. People who have listened to it loved it and we got good response from them.

Sound Check: Tell us about your first song, titled Lifesong released from the album? What's the idea behind it?

MOD: Lifesong was written by Shelmi Sankhil, He is a very good friend of ours and one of the most talented people we have ever met. He is currently working as an English Professor in Delhi University. 

The song talks about people from north east leaving their home and venturing out for studies, employment and other opportunities for better Life, it’s the struggle one face being away from home.

Sound Check: Your song Lifesong was mastered by Obed Zeme? How do you find your experience with him?

MOD: Obed Zeme is our most loving brother who is also our mentor, because of him finding Betsy is such a magic. His talent as a musician is way beyond our thoughts, most importantly he believes in us and our music.

Sound Check: Who writes your songs? And who usually comes up with the melody?

MOD: The writing process for us is very interesting, we write some and we collect some from our friends. But to put the words in melody is our entire job because we need to feel what we are singing and that really matters. 

Sound Check: Is there any plan for music video? Which song from the album would you select for making a video?

MOD: Finger crossed, Yes! There are some in our mind. We will also be doing collaboration with different artist too.

Sound Check: How did you learn music theory? Did you had any formal training or did you teach yourself?

MOD: No, we did not have any formal training but by God's Grace we are guided by excellent people who put a lot of time and effort on us... We mature with their patience.

Sound Check: Which band (National/International) has been influential for you ladies?

MOD: We love Classic Rock & Roll bands like CCR, Dream Theatre, Suzi Quatro, Janis Joplin, Bob Marley, Joan Jett, and so many other bands which play a crucial role in our music style.

Sound Check: How often you practice and where? How hard was that on your neighbours, parents?

MOD: Almost every day... and sometimes we get complaints from neighbours but we find a way out to practice. Practice is the only thing for us as a band, so we need to find a way to do this every day. 

Sound Check: Anyway please share your experience for all the gigs and concerts till now.

MOD: The whole Experience and feeling being on stage is beyond amazing. Till now we have come to love every performance and have given to ourselves a little sweet memories each time we perform. We would love to keep growing and perform more wherever it takes us.

Sound Check: Which song from the album will you play the most in the concerts and gigs in future?

MOD: Little Betsy.

Sound Check: How does music affect you and the world around you? How do you balance with your other works?

MOD: For us Music is simply our world, everything and anything falls behind. Not to mention we do other stuffs too.. :)

Sound Check: Let’s say cloning was science fact and you had a double, what she would be doing right now apart from music.

MOD: That would be freaky. We just might just form a Jazz Band.

Sound Check: What is your say on the music industry and scene here in Northeast?

MOD: It's sad to talk about it but at the same time it’s very difficult to break through in, only the strong survive. To make people love you involve a lot of sacrifice and patience. But on the brighter side, people are now appreciating local band which is a big boost in Music industry. 

Sound Check: Are there any events where you ladies will be performing so listeners and fans should be aware of?

MOD: For that please like our Facebook page.

Sound Check: What suggestions do you want to give to the beginners in making music?

MOD: Practice is the only Magic... So fall in love with your talent and never stop.

Sound Check:  Any message for the fans and well-wishers

MOD: Keep supporting us and Spread our love to everyone.

Interviewer: Sameer Haorungbam, Sound Check

To check out the songs and much more from the band, follow them on

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/pages/Minute-of-Decay/356445171046089

ReverbNation Profile : www.reverbnation.com/minuteofdecay

and get their Debut EP "Finding Betsy" http://www.oklisten.com/album/finding_betsy 

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Started out as a side project by five people merging out from different music bands but ended up achieving a great score in the current music scene in the country. Now, they evidently know who they are and what they can truly achieve. Yes, this is White Noise, Nagaland's own quintet alternative rockers, and they are coming to shower your way with the greatest melodies.

From naming themselves NO IDEA to FILE COVER to HANGING PAPAYA and much more stupid names Nagaland’s own quintet rockers finally settled with White Noise which was supposed to be the name of the studio that, sadly, never happened. Yes, this is White Noise, the uproaring alternative rockers from Kohima, Nagaland. Our crew Georgina had an amazing chat with the band and yes, they are one of the most laziest, silliest yet most honest bunch of guys who love music from their soul. 

Read on to know more about the band.

Sound Check - Introduce the band for us and the fans.

White Noise -White Nose is actually a project band comprising of members from various different bands.

Wapong Ozukum-Vocals/Guitar (Incipit), Atsa Lang Roths-Guitar/Vocals (Incipit), Akok Imsong-Keyboards/Vocals (Incipit), Imlier Jamir-Bass(Ex Clueless Attention) and Vitz Zhimo-Percussions/Vocals (Polar Lights)

  SC - If you were to describe your band in one sentence then how would you put it?

WN – Uhhhhhhhhhhh. A bunch of lazy ass guys making music (since that's the only thing we know how to do it right) (Laughs)

SC - How did White Noise turn up as the name of the band?

WN - There is a funny story behind the naming of the band. We came up with so many stupid funny names such as NO IDEA (because we had no idea what to call ourselves), I SEE A RED BUILDING, FILE COVER, HANGING PAPAYA, TIGER CLIMBING TREE and so many more. (Laughs) We then decided to stick with WHITE NOISE which was actually the name of a studio our guitarist was planning on naming it (which never happened by the way). (Laughs) 

SC - What style of music do you guys play and which band has been the most influential for you guys? 

WN - We Play Alternative/Pop/Contemporary Rock. And as for bands that has been most influential to us, we as individuals have our own interest and likes and what not but we try not to limit ourselves with one particular genre, or anything like that. One thing each one of us at White Noise have in common is that we are always open to anything that's musical and has good melody. 

SC - What inspire you all to make music together and when was the band formed?

WN – Well, actually White Noise started out as a side project, when Vitz (Drummer) and Atsa (guitars) were just goofing off and chatting on Facebook trying to see who could come up with the funniest name for a band just for the heck of it, and one thing led to another and White Noise was born :)

SC - What has been the biggest challenges and obstacles to the band or the band members as a musicians?

WN - Like every other musicians trying to make it big we have our shares of challenges and obstacles like finding a proper place to jam and practice, lack of proper professional equipments and so on.

   SC - Share us some of your funniest/fondest moment you had on stage?

WN - We are always goofing around regardless of whether we are on stage or off stage. One funny incident was during the HIRC 2013 finale when we were performing the song 'Roar" by Katy Perry, there was a particular section in our arrangement of the song where everybody had to stop playing except for the drums and then come in together after a few bars.The Keyboardist in his excitement started early and he pretended like nothing went wrong and continued playing (Should have seen the confidence in his face). (Laughs heartily) but luckily the mishap was not that big we were able to make it up eventually as the song progressed.

SC - Who among the band member writes the songs? Are there any story or theme behind the songs?

WN - Vitz, Wapong and Atsa are the main song writers for White Noise. And we try to write songs of past personal experiences and things like that, things everybody can relate to.     

SC - What image do you think your music convey? What is your say on the music industry and scene here in northeast?

WN – Well, we like to think that our music conveys a positive outlook on life and day to day experiences which relates to everyone. To be honest, there are lots of Good new and fresh artists coming out every day from the Northeast but due to lack of good production, networking and event marketing they are being dragged down and discouraged to pursue music as their full time profession. But as of late, things are picking up slowly and we see a light at the end of the tunnel.   

SC - Tell us how the band came up with the track "Summer Love"?

  WN - Ahh!! Yes, Summer Love. We wrote that song last November. There is a funny story behind how summer love came up. Actually, Summer Love was Vitz's idea. He had things where he kept going on and on about how he wanted to write a song about summer time and all the joys and fun of summer and what not, so Akok had this riff going on with just three chords on the keyboards and Vitz and Atsa started singing some melodies and rambling some random lyrics into the riff. One thing led to another and 2+1 and Lo and Behold!! Summer Love!! (Laughs)

SC - Which band (National/International) has been influential for you

guys this year at Hornbill international rock contest?

WN - F16 from Chennai and our very own friends from Dimapur, We The Giants! Wooohooo! Congrats again, by the way!

SC - How does the band see its tomorrow? Any ultimate goal in the store?

WN -Well as we mentioned earlier, we started off as a project band not knowing where it would lead us but as we spent more time jamming and writing songs together and just hanging out we felt like we have something good going on, the chemistry between the band members is very productive and as of now our main goal if you may is to keep writing songs and creating more beautiful music together!!

SC - Is the band working on any new material – singles/EP/Album, that the fans should be aware of?

WN- Of course we are hitting the studio soon to lay down some tracks and we are planning to release a single real soon.

  SC - What advice would you give to the people who wishes to step in to the world of music as an artist or band?

WN - Stay true to yourself and play what you love! And do it for the love of music and not anything else. And ohhhhh, always follow the three P's to greatness - PRACTICE! PRACTICE PRACTICE! And then some more. (Laughs) 

SC - What does the band want to share to the fan and supporters out there?

WN - First of all, thank you so very much to all those who have been so supportive since day one. And, as we mentioned earlier we have a new single coming out real soon and hopefully a music video too so do keep an eye on our page for more updates. Keep supporting White Noise. And lastly, thank you Sound Check, we had a blast chatting with the team! Cheers! 

To check out their single 'Summer Love' on YouTube: Summer Love

To follow the band on Facebook: White Noise Nagaland

[scxne-interviews]

Contemporary melodic rockers from Nagaland dreams of keeping rock music alive, and yes they are living the dream already. Let us all welcome, Infuse.

      Formed in December 2012 this is Nagaland’s own rock quartet ‘Infuse’ speeding up abruptly in the mainstream music scene of the country yet marking a spot already. As a big fan of Dream Theatre & Alter Bridge they love playing contemporary melodic rock and they confronts  that Music has always been an integral part of their lives.

“The process of learning and growing in music, it’s like rowing a boat upstream, stop once and you drift backwards”, quotes the band.

One of our crew, Georgina Peinyu, had a wonderful time with the band members and here is what we have come up from the amazing chat session.

Sound Check:  Hello Infuse, greetings from Sound Check. So, how would you like to introduce the band members for us?

  Infuse: We are Imtisanen Jamir (Vocals), Arenlong Longkumer (Guitars), Arenlong Jamir (Guitars), Yimkummeren Imsong (Bass) and Shilumeren Jamir (Drums).

  Sound Check: How did the name ‘Infuse’ happen as the name for the band? What kind of music do you guys love to play, and why?

  Infuse: We wanted a name that would be easy and meaningful at the same time. All sorts of weird names came up, but in the end we thought 'INFUSE' suited best. It was catchy and meaningful too. We play contemporary melodic metal and emphasizes mostly on melodies.

  Sound Check:  Brief us about the early days of the band? How long have you all known each other?

  Infuse: Initially! We were only friends living in different places perusing our studies. It was in December 2012(during vacation) where we competed at Sungkutenem Open Beat Contest in Mopungchuket Village, and by God’s grace we won the contest, since then we are a band.

  Sound Check: What inspire you all to make music together and when did it all happen as a band?

  Infuse: Well…the passion and love for music and the need to grow in music brought us together. We formed the band in December 2012 when we first did a gig together as a band.

  Sound Check: What have been your biggest challenges and obstacles as a musician?

Infuse: There are a lot of challenges being a musician we feel the most challenging task would be the process of learning and growing in music, it’s like rowing a boat upstream, stop once and you drift backwards.

  Sound Check: Share us some of your funniest/fondest moment you had on stage?

  Infuse: We got confused the title of songs that we composed and we end up asking each other the title forgetting other important aspects we need to consider on stage.

  Sound Check:  How about the lyrics and compositions of your songs?

Infuse:  We have written all the songs ourselves and the guitarists come up with the melodies.

  Sound Check: How does music affect you and the world around you? What is your say on the music industry and scene here in Northeast?

  Infuse: Music has always been an integral part of our lives...and we are sure it’s every man’s salvation. It’s a growing industry in Northeast, ever changing scene. One has to be spontaneous and opportunist and make the best out of every opportunity.

  Sound Check: Till now the band has come up with two tracks which was rated No.1 in ReverbNation rock chart so what exact idea was buried behind those tracks?

  Infuse: It all started from a scratch and we were in a hurry. So, it was in fact the first experiment we did for our first beat contest.

      Sound Check: Is there any particular band that has been most influential for you guys?

  Infuse: We listen to almost all kinds of music, but we derive ideas from the likes of Alter Bridge, Dream Theater and various solo artists.

  Sound Check: What is the vision and concept for the band? What is the ultimate goal?

  Infuse: To reach out to as many people as possible through our music. We play rock music because we love rock music, we've come across many people advising us to change our style of music but it will take a whole lot more to convince us, maybe a 'Revolution'(laugh). Our goal is to keep things original and keep rock music alive.

  Sound Check:  Is the band coming up with any new video/EP/album/singles? Is there any recent event where you guys will be performing or we fans should be aware of?

  Infuse: We are planning on an album/EP soon, just waiting for the right moment. And yeah! As of now we do not have any events coming up.

  Sound Check: What advice would you give to the beginner or for people who want to form their own band?

Infuse: Just work hard and persevere.

    Sound Check: What do you want to share to you fan or supporters out there?

Infuse: We'd just like to thank them all for supporting us. Especially during the Hornbill International Rock Contest. We were overwhelmed by the support and love they gave us, we had a truly memorable time and the fans made it all the more worthwhile.

Band: Infuse

Interviewer: Georgina Peinyu, Sound Check

To check out the songs and much more from the band, follow them on:

Facebook: Infuse Nagaland

Twitter: Infuse

Reverbnation: Infuse Band Nagaland

[scxne-interviews]

An Exclusive Interview: Boomarang, the Rap-Rockers from Mizoram.

We bring to you an exclusive interview of the India’s one of the most talented Rap/Rockers from Mizoram - Boomarang. As we got a chance to sit and have a chat with them when the band saddle downed to Imphal for REVIVAL PROJECT which was held on 6th January 2014 at B.O.A.T, Imphal, Manipur. The event was presented by Travelneta and the Event by Feather Entertainment (Entertainment Unit of Moyon Futuristic Solutions Pvt. Ltd). 

Interviewer: R.K Kennedy 

Words Documented by : Lenin Nameirakpam

  Sound Check: Hello guys, a very warm welcome from Sound Check. As a starter, would you kindly introduce yourselves with your respective instruments that you play?   

Boomarang:  Hi this is Atea (Vocalist), Joshua (Bassist), RS (Drummer) and Boom Hangsing (Guitarist).

  Sound Check: So, what music genre you basically play, and give some glimpse of your music background.

Boomarang: We play Junk Rock; it’s a mixture of Funk, Jazz, Punk and Rock. It’s like everything. Basically, we can call it Rock and Roll too, but we like to mix everything to there. So, we just simply let it known as Junk Rock. Moreover we wanted to play whatever we want.

  Sound Check: We have seen your songs being played on Vh1 India, how you feel when your songs being played on such a big National channels and getting exposure to the country.

Boomarang: For us it's what we have been waiting for long. For band like us, we really needed that kind of promotion and exposure in such big platforms. So Universal Records, Vh1 and Hard Rock Cafe gave this kind of opportunity using the platform Contrabands. It’s the most perfect thing for us. Because, no Indian band has been promoted so much in that level like ours did.

  Sound Check: That’s really wonderful and most promising thing for you guys. Anyways please share your experience for all the gigs and concerts on your entire spell.

Boomarang: We’ve played gigs for 8 years now and I guess it’s always been good. There are times we hate travelling, just wanted to relax. But still music is a true passion for us, so we needed to pass through those tough times. Sometimes it’s not fun at all. But at the end of the day it’s always been good. We never feel like giving up anytime soon.

  Sound Check: How you guys looking forward for the gig at Imphal?

Boomarang: Since it’s the 3rd time we are going to play in Imphal, it seems very interesting.

  Sound Check: Where were the two gigs you played in Imphal before?

Boomarang: The first one was organized by Chumthang Events at BOAT (Imphal) and the 2nd one was Nokia Yaosang Festival at D.M College Campus.

  Sound Check: What was the most memorable show for the band in your entire career?

Boomarang: Well, opening for KORN at Delhi was the greatest moment for us.

  Sound Check: Have you guys played anywhere abroad?

Boomarang: We played at Hanoi, Vietnam back in December 2012.

Sound Check: So is there anything coming up soon for gigs or concerts abroad?

Boomarang: We are not really sure for now but there is this offer we might play somewhere in USA maybe at Austin, Texas. There’s an event called as South By South West short termed as SXSW. It’s now in pre-mature stage. But still there’s talk between the organizers and our Managers.

Sound Check: Beside Korn have you guys opened for any other international band?

Boomarang: Yes, we played at the opening for Lamb Of God at Bangalore.

  Sound Check: So the band recently release an album called Home? Give us some insight of the released album, and why you named it as Home?

Boomarang: Yes we just recently release the album Home. The album doesn’t specifically have that kind of meaning but it’s all about the production of our songs, which we had from ever since we started the band. It’s moreover the collection of our songs which has variety of stuffs. Its ideas are beliefs, our emotions, feelings and everything. It doesn’t have a specific theme to it, but rather we can say just a variety of songs.

In this album the songs are all different. Some are political, some are love song and some are like fun song. We write what just comes in our minds. In the album the song ‘Home’ is the one which we really like; it’s the song about our belief. With the belief that when this life ends then maybe there is a home after it.

  Sound Check: So is the album a self-release album or with the Record Label?

Boomarang: It’s not a self-release album. We release this album with the Record Label Universal Music.

  Sound Check: As far as we have seen in India, there are not so much of exposures when a band releases an album CD’s. What do you think about the fact? What you want to suggest to the uprising bands regarding releasing of an album.

Boomarang: Well, we don’t exactly have a clue how to promote the release of an album, but luckily we have hooked up with Universal Music. They funding us everything, they produce the album and distributed everywhere. It's an international release. For us it’s up to them how they distributed. I guess, to be sort of successful and to be sign up with the record label, it takes time. We have been playing faithfully (giggled). It’s pretty exhausting and tiring but we never gave up. If you try hard I guess people will come to you.

  Sound Check: How did you got the attraction of the record label?

Boomarang: There is a concept called Contrabands. There will be demos from every corner of the country. They will pick the best artist. They pick us because the really like our song. It was different from other bands because our music has variety. Most of Indian bands play Metal. So Universal Music was pretty much interested with us, so among them they called us. Around September they called us and after a month later we sign the contract on November 2013.

  Sound Check: Seems you guys are on the verge of making a music video from the recent album. So which song do you guys pick for the music video to be made?

Boomarang: Yes, we are on the way to make a good music video. We are picking the song called Camouflage. It’s the song about people really don’t show themselves, people who have hidden characters. And well Vh1 is producing it, we are shooting in Aizawl and it is directed by Siama Video Production (SVP). We are planning to release the video on 2nd week of January. We are partially done with the video. So as soon as we have the video we are going to get it released.

  Sound Check: So how many tracks are there in the album ‘Home’?

Boomarang: There are 12 tracks and 2 Bonus tracks in it.

  Sound Check: Which track will you pick to play the most from the album?

Boomarang: Leaving Babylon, because it’s our newest song and it’s our new favourite too. It’s been a favourite one to the listeners also these days.

  Sound Check: Do you have any further plans regarding collaboration of music with other bands from India.

Boomarang: We really don’t have plans regarding the collaboration right now. But Universal Music is trying to collaborate us with some other band from the same record label. It’s not important that the band is an Indian band; it can be an International band too. It can be a collaboration project.

  Sound Check: Now you have release the album Home, are there any plans for making new album?

Boomarang: Yes we do have plans for the next album. We now have 6 songs for the new album, which we will be working upon it. We are trying to release album every year, we do have lots of songs with us. So that’s our plan. The good thing is we had just sign with the record label. It’s kind of new beginning for us with the album.

Sound Check: How are your support from family and friends?

Boomarang: It’s always been wonderful for us with the great support.

 Well, we had a really good time sitting down the rap-rockers bunch. We wish them the best with their future endeavours.

[scxne-interviews]

Dimapur's Post/Indie rockers We The Giants shares stories of their journey so far.

The band is constituted by musicians from various bands teaming up to try and play something unique. Started as a studio project, they ended up forming a band which is now one of the finest band in the country. We are talking about the most amazing band hailing from Dimapur, Nagaland who also happened to be The Runner’s up at the recent Hornbill International Rock Contest 2013 held at Kohima, Nagaland. Ladies and Gentlemen, they are ‘We The Giants’. Our crew Georgina had a chance to chat with the band and this is what the band has to share with the fans.

Words by Georgina Pienyii (Sound Check, Kohima)

Sound Check: Greetings from Sound Check. Well as for the start please let us know how does it feel being the Runner’s up at Hornbill International Rock Contest? What experience did you guys take home with you?

We The Giants: Wooo..1st Runner’s up of Hornbill International Rock Contest! Just unbelievable. We are totally astounded by the experience, playing in front of thousands of people. Hornbill is such a prestigious event in the whole of India and it just got International, we are totally honored and privileged to be a part of it. An unforgettable experience.

SC: How would you like to introduce the band members?

WTG: We are a four piece Band from Dimapur,

Meyasunep Imchen (Bassist), Yangkum Jinger (Drummer), Lima Mongro (Guitarist) and Kevi Pucho (Vocalist).

SC: So, how did you pick a name for the band?

WTG: We wanted the band name to represent something bigger than us which would give us more reasons to work harder in order to live up to the name, hence we named it ‘We The Giants’

  SC: What style of music do you play, and why?

WTG: Post Indie Rock because that’s what we love and really influenced with.

  SC: Anyways, what inspires you all to make music together and when was the band formed?

WTG: Individually we all came from different influence and background musically. The band members as you must know are from various backgrounds. But as a band when we jam we like to experiment with music that is out of our comfort zone. It all started when we were working in a studio for a project, but ended up forming a band.

  SC: What has been your biggest challenges and obstacles as a musician? How have you all overcome those?

WTG: Well that will be proving to our parents that we can earn a living out of music, and keeping our dreams alive everyday is how we overcome challenges and obstacles.

  SC: Share us some of your funniest moment you had on stage?

WTG: We had a show where our sound  check  was not really up to our satisfaction  especially the bassist,  but later on as we got up on stage and started up suddenly our bassist  starting shouting  “Moilaga tone paishe” (I got my tone) not knowing that the microphone was on the output and we had a nice laugh.

  SC: Who writes the songs? Are there any stories or theme behind them?

WTG: Our front man Kevi Pucho writes all our songs.There is no theme as such but basically our songs talks about the reality of love, hate and war. The fact that arbitrary moments are the presents of life rather than a mare fantasies on a Layman’s eyes.

  SC: What image do you think your music convey?

WTG: We want to portray positive image through our music but at the end of the day it all depends on the listeners how they grasp it.

SC: Tell us how the band came up with the track "Joker for you”? What exact idea was buried behind the track?

WTG: Originally ‘Joker For You’ was a slow tempo song, which later became an up tempo with lot of groove. Long story Short the band needed a fast track and the lyrics got its perfect fit to the beat, hence Joker For You was born.

The song talks about a girl who’s identity is a blur because, she is a fictional character who plays the role of Miss Perfect and the boy who plays the fool who is ever ready to do anything and everything for the girl to keep her from the reality of life and pretend that life is indeed bed of roses with no thorns.

SC: Which band (National/International) has been influential for you guys?

WTG: As we all mentioned earlier individually we all came from different influence and background musically. So, when it comes to the band's influence we are pretty blurred. But there are some few bands that have really intrigued us in making music, bands like Toe, Tangled Hair, The Jezabels, MuteMath, John Mayer, Kings Of Leon, The 1975 and so on.

  SC: What is the vision and concept for the band? What is the ultimate goal?

WTG: We want our music to be heard across the globe and let our listeners feel and experience the emotions and intensity through our music.

  SC: What advice would you give to the beginner or for people who want to form their own band?

WTG: Always believe in yourself and your music, never give up.

  SC: What do you want to share to your fans or supporters out there?

WTG: First of all we would like to thank each and everyone who supported us from the beginning. It was an overwhelming experience just to see and know how much people appreciate our music, we just want to thank everyone and we hope you guys keep supporting our music because we are what we are today because of you all. And we will try and continue to make good music. You guys are the real Rockstars.

  Well, people that was We The Giants from Dimapur. Hoping you got to know more the band and their members from the brief chat we had with them.

For more details or queries about the band, follow them on Facebook: We The Giants

[scxne-interviews]

An Exclusive Interview With Kohima's Indie Rockers 'Making Merry'.

This is an exclusive interview with "Making Merry" (Winner of NSAC Zero 2013) on 14/12/13 at Kashi Cafe, Jail Colony, Kohima.

Words by Gerogina (Sound Check, Kohima) and Photos by Tako Jamir (Sound Check, Kohima)

Our very first 'Sound Check' interview was with Kohima's own band Making Merry. Undoubtedly the interview went congenially terrific and am pretty much sure you all will agree with me after going through our round table. So here are the details of our remarkable evening.

Geo: It's really a pleasure to have you guys with us this evening. I warmly welcome you all on behalf of Sound Check and thank you guys personally for seeing us on such a short notice.

MM: It's a pleasure.

Geo: I would love it if you all could introduce yourself first and tell us your respective instrument of each band members. (Am taking the youngest one home.....Laughed)

MM: Sunep: Hi, we are Making Merry from Kohima. I'am Sunep oz, the front-man of the band and I occasionally play guitars.

Jungshi: Hi, I'am Jungshi. The bassist of the band.

Aling: Hi, I'am Aling. The lead guitarist of the band.

Chuba: Hi, I'am Chuba. The drummer of the band.

(Sadly Sanen, the keyboardist of the band couldn't make it as he was out for some personal work. The band missed him and so did we.)

Well apparently most of them are single, so this is a shout out to all my single ladies to try your luck. Who knows you might end up with one of these cuties (Jokes apart)

Geo: How did you guys came to know each other and for how long?

MM: We've known each other for our entire life, we guess. As you heard we're childhood buddies.Our root is from the church itself, so we are so thankful to them because without them there won't be Making Merry today.

Geo: Entire life....that's sounds decades eh!!! Why did you formed the band and what really inspires you all to do what you do?

MM: The band was formed on 2011 October and yeah obviously starting with the band Making Merry is very positive and fun name, we kind of stick up with different type of genres. The most fun part of the band is that everyone of us are into different types of music. Like, for Chuba, he is into praise and worship kind of songs, Aling is into metal (Sunep- Aling even thought he should be in a COB.....giggled) Jungshi is the most fun part of the band. He started off with classical guitar. He brings styles in creating music for the band. Jungshi is like the backbone of the band. Sanen, he's the master of the band. He sticks with sintisizer, keyboard and guitars. He 's always on the run every time, in fact he is more like the principal of the band. Every member in the band plays a really important role in making the band look good and different out there, says Sunep. Over all me, being the frontman I kind of just take advantage of everyone of their talents because I started off as the screamo artist. I used to be the frontman of the band "Genetic Love For Grown Up" but somehow because of the fame and all, the band broke down. Taking advantage of all this talented musicians I formed this personal charisma and somehow we came up with great sound. We are really proud and really starting to appreciate our songs. So to say we inspire each other.

Geo: Wow..... Tell us the brief history of your band and what has been your biggest challenge as a band?

MM: We did started off as a side project band because most of us were working with some band and were caught up doing our own thing but then finally we found comfort with the band "Making Merry" on our run. The friendship and dedication of each one of us really brought us together into what we are today. Other than the band Making Merry the name that people recognize us with, we are more of like a family, brothers. Well as for the challenges, it was mostly through financial side as we don't have a band manager, but we pretty much managed to overcome those through the love and support from our family, friends, supporters and of course each other.

Geo: You guys are truly blessed to have each other, ain't you? That's absolutely inspirational though. So okay, which band has been most influential for you guys?

MM: Most influential bands for us would be MGMT, Young The Giant, Phoenix and our list just goes on. We have a wide range of taste in music.

Geo: Whoa, that's pretty long list you got there. Alright then, who usually writes your songs? And what usually are the main themes or topic of your songs?

MM: Well usually Sunep does all the writing (the brainy one) Sunep: And they never help me with that (laughed) and to be honest, most of the songs we wrote are of broken heart (laughed again). There ain't any specific topic or themes for our songs really, I just write what I feel or inspires me and believe me, there are different stories behind every song of ours. We have 5 released tracks till now, and they are FOOT-DANCE, BETTER NOT DREAM CUZ IT'S ONLY A DREAM, NAUGHTY BOY SHOE AND SCHOOL BUS, DEEPER SIDE OF YOU and GREY. And everyone of it is really close to our heart like that "Naughty Boy Shoe and School Bus" was about a serious yet funny conversation between me and my dad, so like that, each song really connects and is related to us emotionally. Yes, the topic or should I say inspiration will change overtime.

Geo: Am sure there are more amazing songs still to be written, composed and released from you guys, we are waiting and expecting for the big boom. Well wow again. Yeah so, tell us if you guys were to pick few bands with whom you would like to tour/share stage with in near future, who would you pick?

MM: F16s, MGMD, The Urban Early Man. Sunep: Did I mentioned that we are into psychedelic music, trends, house and classical rocks. Geo: You just did. MM: If we were to pick Naga bands then obviously 'Theja Meru', 'Summer Government' (They are great), 'Clueless Attention' (Those guys are simply amazing) and the list goes on.

Geo:Tell us more about the whole recording and production process of your latest record? New singles/EP/video/albums from the band coming up anytime soon?

MM: Recently we're getting a free recording and production worldwide from 'Indihut' and 'Indielement', they collaborated to each other within NSAC Zero. We're gonna see how it goes eh!! Ummm we still haven't recorded yet, but we're planning for an album and hopefully it'll be out by a year or two and am sure its gonna be a big hit.

Geo: Big dreams Bigger plans huh!!! How did the band came up with such element in your track "FOOT-DANCE" which hit no.4 in Reverberations Rock chart, what exact idea was behind the track? How was the response from the fans on the released record?

Geo: We're known by the song as it was our first single and we think our very own personality is buried in that song. FOOT-DANCE just describe or should I say suite each one of us in the band. The lyric was written way back in year 2008 even before the band was created, the story behind the song was about Chuba: Heartbreak again (giggles). Yeah and was about everybody being all happy, ignoring the problems, being all merry, dancing and just having lots of fun, you know like going all crazy (laugh) but sometimes you have to artificialise on stage and I should say that's one of the challenges being in a band. Our fans loved it, really loved our first released. Sometimes they even demand for it on our gigs. Their were lots of appreciation for our first single and we are really proud of it.

Geo: It is a very jolly song very lively indeed. So what's your outlook on the record industry of music today in North-east?

MM: Very poor and we don't really appreciate it. We wish to be born somewhere out. Really. Geo: You're not proud to born as Naga then, why? MM: No, totally not. We really wish we had a good production out here in North East, if there were then am sure we would be renowned in MTV or so VH1 either if we were to go international.

Geo: Well okay, tell us more about your personal life's, when you are not playing or jamming? Or if its not the band then what would you guys be doing?

MM: Chuba: Coolie, I guess (LOL) well on a serious note, I would still be just a music teacher if it weren't for the band (am still teaching though but with a known name) Aling: I would have still be studying (i am still now) but am more into the band then studies (giggles). Jungshi: Same goes out with me, I would be still studying, playing my guitar wishing to have a band. Sunep: I don't know really, i would have still be with my old band, I guess. Well honestly its really not about the fame but its really for the love for music that really got us together to do what we do best. Maybe that's why either we can't really figure out what genre we really play.

Geo: Sounds like you guys really love what you do and how you do. Not having a specific genre for the band is like that irresistible element of surprise in your band. Well so what advises would you like to give to beginners or people who wants to form their own band?

MM: In simple sentence. Friendship and Unity!!! That's the main element in the band, if you guys lacks that in a band then one way or the other its gonna fall no matter how big you become and so yeah, we should say, Friendship and Unity.

Geo: The oneness. Am glad to see you guys have that!! Last but not the least, what are the biggest obstacles for the band according to you guys?

MM: Well according to us, the biggest obstacle for any band would be financial issues and we don't really want to or either have to elaborate it because we believe every musicians knows and have faced that. A band without a good manager or without a financial support is really hard to cope up with out here in northeast music industry, so yeah.

Geo: As much as I hate to admit but we have to fold our talk. So before we wrapped it up, what would you guys want to share to your fans or people out there in North East who are still dancing to your tune?

MM: We really wanna thank all our fans (well supporters! because we feel closer to them by calling them that) we really appreciate each and everyone of you who has supported us being there at our gigs, concerts and cared to visit our page, we really can't personally thank each one of you but we will obviously try and give you all our gratitude by making beautiful songs for you all. So yeah, thank you keep supporting us, keep believing that together we can definitely make a difference in this world and well yeah, Go crazy.

Geo: Thank you again, Making Merry for sparing us your priceless time. Hopefully we'll meet again when you're album is out. Well people that was "Making merry" from Kohima and was also our first Sound Check interview. Hoping you got to know more of the band and their members, for more details or queries about the band, log in to their Facebook page at [email protected]. Thank you all for whoever cared to read and checked our round table.

This is Georgina, the content editor and writer (Sound Check, Kohima) along with our very own photographer Tako Jamir (Sound Check, Kohima) checking out.

Documented by: Lenin Nameirakpam