We deserve respect as listeners!!!!

Rock music in many a ways is a channel to vent out frustrations and stress for listeners...

Unfortunately, last evening the target of my frustration was the rock band itself!!! And for "Avial" to be the focal point of my article with negative connotations is a pretty sad turn of things to say the least!!!

Avial are an Indian band with an ever expanding fan base!!! They play some of the finest rock music in India. Their You tube channel is a crowd favourite!!! I was deeply impressed by their professionalism, videos & song quality and was very much looking forward to last evenings show at Kyra.

3 major disappointments from my perspective:

1. The show started very late and had a break every 20 minutes for 15 minutes. That killed the continuity and feel
2. Like most rock bands, the group is going through an over-haul of sorts with their lead vocalist moving out and one of the guitarists calling it quits. They played the female vocals through a tape and that to me was an absolute dis-respect for a paying public
3. And finally, the more I pull myself back, the more I struggle!!! The make shift female singer they had was an absolute sham to say the least. She cant sing for nuts and if I ever felt like venting out my frustration last night, it was then... I just had 5 words on my lips- "Give me my money back!!!!" Her voice cracked, she could not sing the high notes for nuts and she was constantly out of pitch. If you randomly pick a singer from any of our colleges, I am sure you will find better ones!!!

Overall, I would have preferred the show to have been a neat 60-90 minute affair with only their 8 songs sans the ladies, instead of playing it out of a stereo (Why do I need to pay for live music then, I have youtube at home) or having absolutely rank amateurs perform.

The saving grace was the impromptu performance by Suresh Peters. He got the crowd going with his drums recital and "peta rap" performance

Overall, I still have great confidence in this over-hauled group too. I particularly liked "Nada nada" and "Aranda" last evening. Although my favourites are "Karukara" & "Chakele". And the song I just melt in ought to be "Njan aara"!!!!

This new group is only going to get better once it gets used to playing without Benjamin and Kamath. But, they will never sound the same without Benjamin in the lead vocals.

I think Tony can go a long way once he performs a lot more, but as a true "Avial" follower, cant help wonder why the typical rock band fate (Break ups) hit upon this group as well....

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Simply the best Indian Group I have seen on stage.......

For a music buff like me, surprises are a every day thing!!! I cant sing for nuts but I just love to listen to a new tune or a new rendition style whatever time of the day it is....

But, what transpired on a lazy Saturday Morning was completely un-expected. A little known band- Swarathma (http://swarathma.in/) was performing during the Twestival organized by some free-spirited tweeters who got offline to put up some show!!!

From the moment they went on stage to the moment they went off it rather unwillingly (as both the band and the audience wanted more of it), they were simply fantabulous. Their ability to get the crowd into the show is worth writing home about. The attention to detail that they had right from the costumes they wore to the instruments they carried on stage was synonymous of a professional band who took their work very seriously and treated audiences as customers who desire innovation even in the way music is presented.

Their instruments like the guitar and violins had so much colour to them quite literally. Add to that the backing vocalist and bass guitarist Jishnu who had this un-ending passion and life about him on stage. His rendition of how a Bihari talks and introduction to each song really got the crowd involved in every song. The more said about its lead vocalist- Vasu the lesser it feels. He was a bundle of energy and was constantly jumping around while singing. (No guys he was not lip syncing!!!) He is not your usual singer and am sure with time he will create his own niche for his style of singing.

They tried new instruments from the khomo to various percussion instruments. Sanjeev on the violin and Varun on the Guitar make for a great team on stage. But, the real live wire was Montry on the Drums. He was constantly smiling, jumping with energy and enjoying himself while wielding magic with his sticks!!! A lot of us were discussing how its fun to be seeing someone going about doing what he is best at and enjoys doing!!!

Having seen family and friends with their own tryst with music at various levels, I can understand the difficulty in putting together a band and keeping like-minded people together. And one can only wish them the best in times to come!!! You have definitely made 10 odd new fans on that Saturday morning. For all of us in the group were out cold and really did not know what hit us!!!

Their first album has been released recently. I have got myself a copy and its gonna run till the CD player in my car refuses to do so!!! My favourites are:

1. Jana Kahan Hai- Nice folky number
2. Ee Bhoomi- Awesome lyrics and a real feel good song
3. Pyaasi- A neat slow song thats quite a treat for the ears.

But, the 2 songs that they played at the show (unreleased)- Tibet (Amazing fusion of various sounds and instruments) and Toppi Wale (A live wire song) is what I am waiting for on a CD. They sound really different and great.

In the past I have been to many a live shows and have felt disappointed at the gulf of difference between the CD version and the live show. Very few bands can claim to have bridged this gap effectively and Swarathma in my words sure have mastered this art of both sounding and looking great on stage!!!

They are playing on Saturday at 7:00 pm at Garuda Mall in Bangalore. Do go and watch them. Unfortunately God (Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar) will be on TV that day and hence I cant join you. But, I am sure you will thank me for the treat....

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