Two city guitar idols depart within a week of each other

Childhood friends Joshua Alexander and Steven’s passing away has left a void in the city’s rock music scene

Bengaluru has a huge fan following for rock music and musicians from this genre are no less than superstars.
The passing away of rock band members, musicians, and childhood friends Joshua Alexander and Steven has left a void that is hard to fill in the city’s rock music scene.

“Both of them had great personalities and knew how to lighten up the mood in a room. Never the ones to seek attention, they had an unmatched aura. People usually gravitate towards personalities with in-depth knowledge of their chosen field. Such was the presence my dad and uncle Steven had,” says Jaya, daughter of Joshua.

Joshua, a hypertension patient, had a fall while taking a bath on July 5 last year, which put him in a state of coma for the following four months. Just when the family started seeing signs of improvement, a urinary infection turned out to be fatal. And on January 25 this year, he passed away.

Exactly a week later, after a show in Hassan, when Steven’s band members were out for dinner, he lost his life due to a massive heart attack. The inseparable bond they shared proved to be true even in death.

The two guitarists started out their musical journey as band members of the ‘The Unknowns’. The band, with Steven as one of the founding members, performed across Southern India.

Joshua started performing independently after a few years, but always looked up to Steven for inspiration while being supported unconditionally by the latter.

Apart from practising together, they have many original compositions to their credit. Their songs were a mix of genres, for example, their fusions of Carnatic and rock music were a big hit amongst the crowd.

“As a professional musician all his life, he (Joshua) was a part of the first blues band in Bengaluru called ‘The Chronic Blues’, as well as a Hindi pop group called ‘Retrospect’. Not only did he perform at gigs but dad also taught music at Sarla Birla Academy. He was a regular judge at many music competitions including the ones at Bishop Cotton School. Uncle Steven, on the other hand, was a true performer who was an expert in getting the crowd on to their feet. His tricks, like playing the guitar by placing it on his shoulder, were crowd-pullers. Though many musicians struggle after a while, both of them stayed at the top throughout their lives and left this world without any regrets,” says Jaya.

Some of the hit songs performed by them, that were almost similar to their respective original bands, were ‘Hotel California’, ‘Highway to hell’, and songs of the band ‘Deep Purple’.

“As a kid, going to rock concerts, especially in Palace Grounds, with both of them playing these classics is a memory I will live with forever,” she said.