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Bands to look
out for The Hierarchize
who made their debut with a winning performance at the recently
concluded Interact Grammies, (All Island Talent Search) held at
Navarangahala, are five talented young Anthonians from Kandy. They
specialise in both rap and rock. Sanka Gayawansa
(18), lead vocalist of the Hierarchize first started rapping especially
songs by Shaggy, with a friend from another school. Thereafter,
he tried some rock with two other friends, Mohamed Omar (17) and
Thamir Iftiquar (18) also from his alma mater. Then the rock/rap
trio performed at an inter-school competition. Soon after,
they were joined by Free Phillip (17) and Gihan Mackey (17), who
have stuck with the group and hope to do so for a long time more.
They prefer singing songs of Puddle of Mud, Linkin Park and P.O.D.
but their repertoire extends to all kinds of rock and rap songs.
They have hopes of performing as a live band, instead of singing
to tracks from next year and also hope to come up with some originals
in the near future says Sanka optimistically. Our parents
and school have been quite supportive, although, initially, they
shared similar reservations about us being rock musicians. But they
understand now that we are singing for the love of music and not
for anything else, adds Sanka. Meet Chronic
Decorum, six talented youths who also made their debut at Talent
Search-2002. Starting off as a foursome Surath Punchihewa (17),
Shehan Nelson (19), Nimesh Dissanayaka (18) and Nishan Daniels (18)
were later joined by Ranin Abeysekera(18), who later brought in
a friend of his, Nadia Isadeen (18). Lead singer
Surath says that they want to create their own identity instead
of copying some other band. "Surath sounded good singing and
we all could play instruments so we got together and it just clicked,"
says Nimesh. Already having produced two originals Rock & Roar
and Alone, (not yet performed in public), they hope to launch an
album in the near future. Having regular
practices once a week, all of them except Nadia are self-trained.
Nadia who takes guitar lessons is also a very good piano player
with a gold medal to her credit. They have no
set dress code and give little thought to what they wear. On stage
they say that time just flies and they have little time to be nervous
or scared. All of them
who will be going away for studies in the near future say that music
is more a hobby. Performing as a band unfortunately is not really
a stable vocation here in Sri Lanka, they feel. Ground Zero
(whose name's pending change) is a nearly all-Royal Band of five
'crazy' young guys who want to make a name for themselves on the
Lankan rock scene. If they continue performing like at their debut
at Talent Search held last month, they just might be able to achieve
their goal. Nanda Abeysekera
(19), lead vocalist comes from a very musical background, as both
his parents are musicians. His father being one of the founder members
of Cancer, a band that introduced rock music to the local music
arena, it's only natural that Nanda should follow in his footsteps.
The band hopes
to perform 'unplugged' at an event next month. Thereafter, they'll
be on hold until their lead and rhythm guitarists, Suranga Rajapakse
(18) and Aftab Aziz (18), finish their A/Ls next year. The band members
seem to have a fondness for unusual props. The cutest of the lot
was the Daffy Duck hanging off the bass guitarist cum back up vocalist,
Chinthu Viswakula's guitar. Anik Jayasekara
(18), their talented drummer, has a 'glow in the dark' skeleton,
fondly referred to as ' Skeli' propped up on his drum set and Nanda
walks onto stage with a traffic cone (How it ended up in his possession,
remains a mystery!). Many of them have personalised/favourite T-shirts
that they wear when they perform but, "We don't have any strict
dress code as such. We wear whatever we want to," they chorus
in unison. Two originals,
The Unheard Cry and Ignite, composed by Anik have not yet been performed.
Anik is inspired by various things he says, and some are actually
quite unusual! He's also into jazz fusion. "I started banging
forks and spoons on the table from the time I was six and my cousin
abroad who had a set of drums showed me how to hold the sticks etc.
However, it was Mr. Aruna Siriwardena who taught me all I know up
to now. I still have a long way more to go but I owe everything
I know, to him." "We are
open to incorporating any instrumentalists to perform with our band
if the song requires it," says Afthab. "We all hope to
continue with the band as a hobby, not on a full time basis. The
whole group is based on fun 'cos we enjoy playing and making music,"
says Nanda. "We prefer
to play alternate rock and songs from Metallica and System of a
Down. We may release an album someday but, not quite yet,"
says Nanda, realistically. Suranga however
adds, "If the music scene was better recognised and more stable
in our country, I would have liked to pursue it as a career. Unfortunately,
it's not." "My parents are quite supportive but they advised
me against making a career of it as it's not stable," says
Chinthu. "My parents got me all the stuff I needed to play
but I have been banned from playing until my exams next year,"
says Suranga with a laugh. Phase Three
literally moves us on to a different level as they don't really
fall into the new, up and coming bands category but, unfortunately
neither do they receive due recognition for their talent's worth
either. Comprising old and young hands in the music industry, the
band is made up of Rasmar Lye on percussion, Jude Thyagaraja on
drums, Trevin Joseph on main vocals, Ramesh Nonis on lead guitar,
Alston Joachim on bass, and Debbie Arnolda on keyboards. Ramesh,
Alston and Debbie also join in on back up vocals. Phase Three
features a host of experience and talent, starting with Alston,
who could easily be deemed the number one bass guitarist on the
musical scene at the moment. Once you've heard him play, you'll
see for yourself how he's earned this title. Rasmar together with
his brother Dylan has been on the music scene for a long time now.
As for Debbie, she has singing in her blood, coming down from her
mother Dalreen, one of Sri Lanka's first female artistes to make
an impact on the industry. Phase Three
is soon to feature the first local female saxophonist (the versatile
Debbie) to perform on a professional level. She was also one of
the youngest female solo artistes to start out on a solo career,
sometime back. This will add a uniqueness to our music and performances,
says Rasmar. "We like
to play all types of music ranging from jazz to R&B to Latin,
funk and pop. We don't restrict ourselves to any one type of music.
All kinds of music holds some meaning for someone out there, so
all we do is tap into that meaning and bring it alive for our audiences." Phase Three
hopes to host a workshop to educate the media on all the various
types of music that's out there. "We recognise the huge part
the media plays in people's choice of music, therefore we feel that
if the media is made aware of the wide range of music available
in the world of music, that would enable them in turn to act responsibly
by giving the public a variety of music to choose from rather than
only what's commercially profitable," adds Rasmar. Damage is yet
another band that is not exactly new in the music scene but are
making their presence felt. The band is made up of Ashantha Perera
on keyboards, Inshi Deen on bass, Shehan Perera on guitar, Oshan
Sampath on guitar and Chamida Dantila on drums. "We would
like to be known as a pop band, but then we don't really restrict
ourselves, we play anything," says Ashantha. All of them are
full time musicians and they have a couple of originals written
by Shehan, Prageeth and Ashantha that have not yet been performed.
So folks keep
your eyes and ears open for these exciting sounds. You are sure
to hear more of them in the year ahead. |
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Copyright © 2001 Wijeya Newspapers
Ltd. All rights reserved. |
tired
of listening to the same old bands over and over again.Well, you
won't be disappointed for there's loads of fresh talent, just waiting
to make it to the big league.
