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YOUNG MUSICIANS ON A SONG!
Fresh talent seems to be brewing in cafes, hotels and fests across Lucknow. On World Music Day, today, HT City talks to a few collegegoing musicians who have made a mark in the local contemporary music scene.
Opportunities have certainly become easier to get by. These days I get a decent number of openings in cafes and hotels VISHAL THAKUR SINGER
I asked myself whether I’d feel better if I were a doctor, who earns a decent amount or a musician who is struggling to make ends meet and the answer was clear – I wanted to pursue music no matter what FAZAL KHAN SINGER
An amplifier and a microphone stand are placed next to a barstool where a millennial, sporting a Guns and Roses tee, sings, garnering the rapt attention of the pancake eating, cappuccino drinking patrons of a local cafe.
Meanwhile, in another location in the city, a suave four-piece band lends to the sophistication of a dignified corporate party as it plays a tuneful Sufi number. These are vignettes that, until a few years ago, you couldn’t have expected to unfold in this laidback capital. However, Lucknow seems to be awakening to a renaissance of sorts when it comes to contemporary music.
LAUNCH PADS
Mushrooming cafés in the city have given launching pads to local musicians and their compositions. Cosy and relaxed, they have emerged as the perfect incubators for Lucknow’s Indie scene.
“People listen to you and appreciate what you’re playing in cafes.” says MBBS student-turned-musician Fazal Khan, who performed songs written by lyricist Irshad Kamil at the Lucknow Literature
Fest last year and often plays to jampacked gigs at city cafes.
Vishal Pandey, a B.Tech student at BBD University and the lead vocalist of fusion rock band Indies, says: “There is a growing trend in Lucknow wherein live music is being promoted through café performances, college fests and private gigs. This was not there two years back.”
For most musicians in the city, moving out to metros like Mumbai and Delhi for further opportunities used to be the norm but this is not the case anymore. “Artistes no longer feel the need to move out of the city. A lot of us want to pitch our base here as Lucknow becomes increasingly vibrant,” Pandey says.
It wasn’t easy for us starting out. However, I was able to channel all the frustration into my music and express it through my compositions HARSH NEGI, SINGER
OPTIONS APLENTY
Vishal Thakur, a B.Tech student at SRM University and singer, has performed in various gigs across the city. “Opportunities have certainly become easier to get by,” he says, adding, “These days I get a decent number of openings in cafes and hotels”. Thakur recently performed at Cappuccino Blast and has performed in almost all popular joints. However, all is not hunky dory in the Luckno w music scene and the city still has a long way to go. Fazal says, “The problem with the Lucknow circuit is that organisers play safe and don’t encourage originality. Also, more often than not, Lucknowites stay in their comfort zone and Bollywood covers reign supreme.”
Talking about the struggle he faced as a young musician in a tier-two city, Harsh Negi says, “Initially, opportunities were hard to come by and we almost gave up. It wasn’t easy for us starting out. However, I was able to channel all the frustration into my music and express it through my compositions.”
Harsh, a B.Com student at Lucknow Christian College by day and the lead guitarist of the Lucknow-based band Escape Artists by night.
When asked how he manages to balance his passion with studies, he says: “It’s not as difficult as it seems, one just needs to be focused and disciplined.” Harsh not only performs at competitions and gigs but also manages to squeeze in time for taking workshops on music theory. “Music is not just something you sit and listen to, it’s also something very systematic, it is a science. I want people to realise that,” he explains.
MEDICO TURNS SINGER
Harsh’s case is not unique. It seems that being a musician comes with its share of difficulties. However, this hasn’t deterred musicians like Fazal. “I asked myself whether I’d feel better if I were a doctor, who earns a decent amount or a musician who is struggling to make ends meet and the answer was clear – I wanted to pursue music no matter what,” he says, explaining why he dropped out of medical school.
Kushagra Dubey, an MBA student and a rapper well known in the local circuit, adds: “You have to keep your ego aside and perform at all sorts of venues and work on all sorts of projects. You can’t be choosy when you’re starting out.”
ORIGINAL MUSIC
Despite grappling with a relatively nascent professional arena and, more often than not, a tough audience, some of these young maestros are not afraid to wander off the beaten track. Fazal is currently working on an EP titled ‘Darinda’ which portrays the clash between id, ego and superego while Escape Artist’s Kartik Mishra, maintaining that a true artiste must learn to explore, says “Politics informs a lot of our music! Our last composition was based on the Syrian war crisis.”
Kushagra tells us why it’s important to break out of the mould despite a pressure to conform. “Rapping is a nuanced art, which is why I aim to popularise fresh subgenres like Reggae, Jazz and Blues rap. Audiences need to know that rap isn’t just about ‘money, hoes and clothes’,” he says.