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On top from down under
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New Zealand's Red Rain, a band which stands for clean, purposeful rock, is scheduled to perform this evening
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LIKE STARS, most rock bands glow brightly against the evening sky and fade away at dawn. Despite possessing abundant talent, they disappear without a trace, Michael Turner says something to that effect, during a chat. Michael (lead vocalist and guitarist of the New Zealand band Red Rain) and his band members are relaxing for a day at the Unwind Center, before boarding a flight to Thiruvananthapuram for a concert. The band will be back in Chennai this afternoon to set JRO 2004 rolling.
Michael follows that impressive intro with a one-liner that can pass off as a slogan for promoting clean and purposeful rock. "Music without a purpose is soulless, lifeless." The band's bass guitarist and vocalist Stephen Turner says, "Our new album `New Day' encapsulates the values that we, as a band, stand for. Everybody secretly hopes for a `new day'. A better day. Through our gigs we tell our audience that there is reason for hope. That they can look forward to a new day. We also try to communicate to them `the high' that we feel. A high that is not dependent on drugs and alcohol."
The Red Rain members talk about many high points in their career, but nothing quite compares with what they experienced at a concert in Pershotravensk, Ukraine. "About 4,000 among the 10,000-odd audience, went berserk. They were crying for joy," says Michael. "Such things work both ways. They pep up the performers as well."
Though the `Reds' are inspired by U2, they have not styled their music after that band. "We are primarily a new generation rock band with our own style and sounds. We are, nevertheless, open to diverse musical influences," say the Reds. The band's percussionist David Francis sums it up. "My creative juices flow more freely when I experiment with other types of percussion." He adds that he has tried his fingers on the tabla.
You round off the interview with the inevitable question. Why do you call yourselves `Red Rain'? "Though our music is not characterised by any `Christian topography', in our personal lives we are grounded in Christian beliefs. Red Rain symbolises the blood of Christ. We believe it has cleansed us of all our negatives."
PRINCE FREDERICK
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