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Many styles, one groove

Lehera brings to the table a unique sound born out of a confluence of Hindustani, Western and Carnatic music styles

MAKING WAVES Lehera members Prashant Michael John, Prakash Sontakke and Karthik Subramanium

Possibly one of the best side effects of globalisation is that art and artistes cannot survive in isolated microcosms independent of each other. One needn't even look far for proof of the pudding: a number of bands in our own city draw inspiration from a variety of musical styles, bending the rules and escaping definition. And thus you have Lehera that not only fuses Hindustani and Western musical styles, but also throws in some Carnatic percussion for good measure.

Instant connection

It all started when Indo-Canadian acoustic guitarist Prashant Michael John was referred to Hindustani Hawaiian slide guitarist Prakash Sontakke while on a visit to the country. The two met, spoke and played music to each other, and within hours of meeting, felt as if "we had known each other musically for years. I could complement everything Prashant did in Hindustani, without distorting any of it," says Prakash. Then came the question of a percussionist. As both guitarists prefer to perform on acoustic instruments — the Spanish guitar and the Hawaiian slide guitar — neither was keen on a Western percussionist with a complicated, electric set up. The natural choice, therefore, was a close friend and Carnatic percussionist, Karthik Subramanium. "He was the first choice because his knowledge of his own system of music is good, but he always works with a free mind."

The choice of band name, says Prakash, was aimed at conveying the variety and range that the three musicians brought to the band. Lehera, explains Prakash, is derived from the word leher meaning "waves". "Every wave is a fresh one, and each one brings something fresh to the shore." He adds that it also has a second meaning of a melodic, rhythmic tempo loop maintained during a kathak performance. "We wanted to convey the fact that we are trying to combine the technical beauty of Western music with the melodic charm of Hindustani music and the rhythmic intricacies of Carnatic music," he says.

And as easily as the band was born, its first demo CD was also created. "We formed the band on a Monday, and Prashant was going back to Canada on Friday," explains Prakash. So we met on Tuesday and discussed various musical pieces. On Wednesday, we recorded our CD. The recording session was actually a rehearsal and recording."

Listen to the CD, however, and you have no inkling of it. Over three planned pieces and two jam sessions, the band has expertly blended everything from kunnakol or Carnatic bol to blues and jazz guitaring to vocal harmonies from the Tuvon tradition. The album packs in plenty of free-flowing experimentation, but is nicely anchored in a practised ease that one is hard-pressed to believe came out of only a day's rehearsal.

In fact, the demo has come out so well that Prashant has already got the band booked into a three-week tour of Canada based on its strength alone. Starting from July 12, Lehera will be making appearances at a series of festivals including the Pacific Rim Summer Festival, the Kispiox Valley Festival, In the House Concert Festival, the Harrisons Festival for Arts and the Islands Folk Festival. This, in itself, clarifies Prakash is a major achievement for a band that was formed all of two days before its first recording. "Most of the bands who play at these festivals have been together for five or six years, and often have two or three albums under their belt," he says.

"We have also booked a recording session with Canada's top DJ who just got nominated for a Juno (Canadian Grammy), Adham Shaikh," informs Prashant. If all goes as planned, he says, the band will record their first full album while they are in Canada. Moreover, the band is seriously looking at the possibility of a world tour early next year, and their present Canadian tour will serve as a means to test the international waters. "We're also open to adding on new musicians, provided they offer something completely different to the band," reveals Prakash.

One is likely to label Lehera as a fusion band after the first listen, but both Prakash and Prashant are quick to point out the band is very unique from most other fusion bands. "I think Lehera is more of a world music band influenced by Indian music than an Indian fusion group," says Prashant. "We try to avoid composing too much around classical rhythmic scales as much as possible," he adds.

Natural blend

What gives the band its easily likeable sound, explains Prakash, is a completely natural mixing of styles. "We don't try to force separate elements together. I'm not trying to drag Prashant out of his Western style, and neither is he trying to make me follow him." What this lack of competition between various styles also translates to is a fuller, more wholesome sound. "None of us try to dominate or outplay the others," explains Prakash. "And when you interact with someone and listen to them more than try to play over them, you benefit from the learning."

When this takes place, he says, genuine exchanges take place, bringing about a true amalgamation of styles rather than an unholy union of discordant approaches.

This openness to other music styles, he adds, is born out of an ethos ingrained in all of them since childhood. "In my house, although everybody was a serious classical musician, we were never discouraged from listening to other styles of music. And Karthik's parents were pioneers of fusion music."

As Prashant says, the world is a small place. And thanks to experiments along the lines of Lehera, it's only getting smaller, and a lot more interesting.

RAKESH MEHAR

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