Despite being based in Bangalore , you speak and sing of folk history , storytelling and mythology . Does physical distance from the actual sites of these stories ever make composition difficult ? Do you think your music would have been different if you were actually living in Kalimpong or any non-urban setting ?
Actually we feel our music happened because we were in Bangalore . Our sound , we believe , is a new articulation of our identities . We recognise that we are people from Kalimpong but also have lived outside Kalimpong ; some of us have been in Bangalore for 14 years .
Actually we don ’ t speak of folk or myth in our songs even though we are very influenced by it . We just share the essence of narratives and storytelling in our songs . Our effort in Gauley Bhai is to find a sound that denotes the new emerging identity of people and cultures that grow with time and travel and evolve to something else .
We want to tell you our story of the mountain from right here , standing in the city , finding a space in between Kalimpong and Bangalore .
You sing in Nepali , but often your instrumentation takes from other regional influences ( South Indian percussive elements , for example ). How do you bring about these amalgamation ? Do you look for similarities , or do you create them yourselves ?
Our creative process allows us a lot of freedom . In terms of ideas there are no limits . Our work is developed together in our jam studio where we ’ ve even started recording lately . Yes it ’ s true , a lot of our instrumentation takes from other regional influences like South Indian percussion for example , as Joe is from Calicut , Kerela and he too is influenced by his folk and the musical landscape he grew up in . So it ’ s a very natural process so far .
How do you know what you want to sing / compose / perform about ?
Sometimes we don ’ t ... Hehe . But usually it comes easily . We try and be really honest with each other and ourselveS . Our composition and writing stems from that . Then we just react to stimulus in life .
Is there another language you would consider singing in ?
Not as of now .
Your music explores and represents folk identities , histories and conflicts . Is that primarily drawn from your own experiences , or are these something you also study and follow ?
It is definitely from past experiences and of course it ’ s followed by a fair amount , if not a lot of studying .
Tell us about Joro , it ’ s inception and your intent behind creating the album .
Joro , was a crowdfunded album and released in 2019 . It is basically a collection of songs that we started making since the formation of the band . We were truly just thrilled to have this album out ourselves .
We figured that we had a sound and were so excited by it that two years went by and we didn ’ t notice until the album released and we heard it . It was a fulfilling experience when we drove back from the studio with the album playing in our car .
How has the lockdown and pandemic affected you ?
After Joro released and we started touring with the album , Corona hit us hard and how . Just 4 months after its release the Govt of India declared that there might be a lockdown from the 21st of March 2020 . We were starting our tour in Nepal and had to cancel the shows and rush back . The months of lockdown were as terrible for us as it was for people across the country . But despite this major obstacle , we still managed to use the time to work with Samuel Amulraj , our sound engineer , rigging up the jam room for recording and live streams with equipment donated by Abhi Tambay .
SHREYA BOSE
We are very happy with the audio and video and are planning to take it ahead even after the Corona scare is over . Till then , like all other workers , we will have to figure out a way to survive and stay in the city .
How do you see Gauley Bhai ’ s future panning out ?
That ’ s really a blank space for us but we hope it ’ s a lot of music-making and performance . We will be very happy finding sustenance in what we love doing .
The Score Magazine highonscore . com
33