JOIN USLagori doesn’t remain just a game of seven stones anymore. With Tejas Shankar on vocals, Edward Rasquinha and Geeth Vaz on guitars, Vinyl Kumar on drums and Shalini Mohan on bass, the word has been given a whole new dimension.
This Bangalore-based band combines
Indian classical melodies and inflections with rock music, resulting in an interesting mix that is high on energy, while being catchy and soulful at the same time.
Pronounced La-go-ree, the band gets its name from the popular street game played in South India. The band is fascinated by the rich diversity of culture that exists in the country, especially the evolving definition of what it means to be ‘Indian’. Having grown up in the cosmopolitan city of Bangalore, Lagori’s music reflects the varied influences of each band member, culminating in a unique, fresh and honest sound.
Their debut album self titled Lagori was released in March this year. The band has collaborated with international EDM giants ‘Above and Beyond’ and also been nominated for the ‘Karnataka International Music Awards’ in the non-film category.
“We have been invited for a guest performance at the ‘ETV Music Awards’, where we will be playing a Kannada set of three songs. That’s going to be interesting,” claims Tejas. “The routine of playing in pubs and other such venues is very etiquette-oriented. We love performing in public spaces and are open to
collaborations. It’s good fun,” he adds.
The band started off with its first gig in Mumbai, which was apparently for a TV shoot.
“As soon as we reached the venue, we were taken to this film set. It had rained the previous night and there was water all over the stage. The crew asked us to wait for a while until they cleared the water before we started. It was an awesome experience, but only for the producer and it was never on TV,” laughs Geeth.
“We wrote a song about one of our first gigs in Gulmarg, named ‘Kashmir Song’, which is the only Kannada song in our debut album. The rest are in Hindi. Each of our songs has its own sound, which comes from a mix of all our musical influences,” he says.
All the members of the band have full-time corporate jobs but they
never seem to be too tired to be playing music.
“Honestly, we don’t have time. We usually jam in the evenings after work, sometimes even early in the morning. If things don’t work out that way, we figure out whenever all of us are free and get together. At the end of the day, playing music takes away the tiredness and makes us feel a little relaxed. We relate to everything happening
around us through music,” says Edward.
Vinyl Kumar says, “The most challenging task is that you need to make up your mind about making a career in music, which is very difficult. We have all made a lot of sacrifices, invested in time, money, emotions and everything else. This is a career that doesn’t pay off on the first day. It took us two years of hard work, dedication and umpteen effort to get to where we are today.”