Funky gig

Someone once said the principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality. And one thing all those musically inclined souls in Colombo appreciate for sure is originality – in its purest form.

Come August, if you're in the mood for some classy entertainment, all you've got to do is make your way to possibly the funkiest gig to hit town. And from the sounds of it, "Rockapoluza," scheduled for August 3, at 7.30pm, at Onyx (Taj Samudra), promises to be just that!

The gig, presented by Anil Balasuriya, owes its catchy name to the pun on a famed annual 90's music festival called Lollapolooza which is considered to be the Woodstock of the 90's in the way it captured the youth culture of the Generation X.

“It's fitting that the concert we host puns on this festival because of the many featured artists who hail from this Generation X and continue to capture the essence of today's youth culture in their music.

The objective of the concert, according to him, is to revive the energy of contemporary arts, and deliver a platform for this eclectic range of musical styles and expertise to be showcased. The event brings together five of today's most talented bands, that primarily play originals, with the line up being Anil Balasuriya, Hollow Point Halo, Paranoid Earthling, Powercut Circuss, 10 Second Rule and Daddy. The bands are some of the first in recent times to release original albums, and have received widespread radio airplay and also a considerably large number of fans at launch concerts.

The gig will see musicians who have some affiliation to rock, but belong to varied genres, providing a range of music to indulge you.

"The atmosphere at the gig will be intimate and personal, with the audience being able to be close to the bands, which is why we chose this particular venue," said Anil.

And now introducing the line up for the night (drum roll)…

Being a singer song-writer and vocalist of famed Independent Square, Anil has released two albums with the band Bring back the Sun and five and a half.

He has also released a debut solo album titled ‘The last few pieces of April’ in October, last year. Currently working on his second solo album, hit singles by him include "Songs of what I know," "Hey," "Today," "Ten Minute Conversations" and "A February Story." Anil has also been at the forefront of original music and promoting local bands with similar interests.

Being a familiar face on the original rock music scene, Paranoid Earthling came together in 2001 ands is made up of singer/songwriter/guitarist Mirshad Buckman, bassist Asela, drummer Shanka and his brother, rhythm guitarist Dhanushka. Since then Paranoid Earthling has produced electrifying live performances and gutsy originality that stems from their multi-faceted brand of rock that has seemingly gained them an avid following. Picture 90's grunge/post grunge interspersed with 70's retro/blues and elements of punk and funk tweaked in for good measure; Paranoid Earthling’s genre is their own – hard to define and easy to like. Currently the band has completed all their tracks for their full length debut album which will be launched later this year.

10 Second Rule operates around an evolving line-up featuring artistes such as Aadhil (songwriter, lead vocals, guitars of the now extinct "The Brass Monkey Band" and fronts this new band 10 SR), who is seeking to follow up the success of his first signed album, "Monsoon Sunday 1: Warning Signs." This venture stemmed from a jam session with his cousin Aftab (Guitars – Groundzero and 10 SR).

The band plans to pull from Aadhil's mountain of unreleased moldering material and produce the follow up album under the new band name "10 second rule." Naveen (Drums - Magic Box Mixup) joins 10 Second Rule, and the album "Monsoon Sunday 2: Storm" will be released in a unique fashion at this, their first live performance.

Powercut Circus, formed in 2006, claims that psychedelic danceable rock is their genre, and their creations are generally feature politics, polythene and pony-tailed has-beens. The band is made up of Sean, referred to as the Bond Villain, who handles voice, keys and echo delay, while his favourite acts are Pink Floyd and Tool. Dhinesh, or Phil Collins with tan, is on drums and glockenspiel, with Mars Volta and The Editors being his favourites.

Shehan/Aging hippie is the bassist of the band, claming that The Police and Cake make the top of his list, while Asvajit on guitar, is the Boy band bad boy, with Radiohead and Gong being his. Tracks performed by the band to date are, "Fantastic Plastic," "Red Spit," "Curfew on a Friday," "Tsunamian," "The Minister's Son," "One Man Army," "Arrack Attack," "Manual Boil," "Drinking and Thinking," "Decibel," and "Tourettes."

HollowPoint Halo is a Collective. A grouping of every kind of artiste – artistes, composers, creative writers, musicians, interactive developers, brought together, according to them, through the bonds of a deep-seated and strong friendship. It is a multi-medium, inextricably interlinked and a dangerously dynamic assemblage, on a personal journey of expression. 101.7 TNL radio will be electronic media sponsors for the event.