With two albums to their credit, and various concerts across the country, Slain was back again on the Hard Rock Cafe stage on the 5th of July.
Hailed as one of the country’s finest progressive rock bands, Slain lived up to the reputation on Thursday at Hard Rock Café. The Bangalore based band which started in 2007 has now made its place in the Rock music scene of India winning various awards and competitions and also being named one of the top 10 Indian bands. The band members being, Ranjit Abraham (Vocals), Bryden Lewis (Guitar), Manek D’Silva (Guitar), Naresh Nathan (Bass), Jonathan Wesley (Keyboard) and Joe Jacob (Drums).
“We believe music should be loud enough to make you jump, smart enough to make you think, and inspiring enough to make an impact.” This motto of the band is weaved into every song they bring to the stage.
Being a usual Thursday night at HRC, the place was packed with music enthusiasts and many fans of the band. Giving the audience a good mix of originals and covers, the band knew the tricks to keep the crowd enticed. They opened with a cover of Falling In Between by Toto and set the mood for the evening.
They then moved to play quite a few numbers from their “Here and Beyond” album. First up was ‘Your Majesty’, a power progressive rock song with a tinge of techno feel to it. Backed by strong vocals of Ranjith it sounded as good as the studio version.
For all the head bangers in the house, they next played, ‘Judgement Call’. The song was fast, intricate, head banging music which was matched by the crowd’s enthusiasm, grooving to the energy of the song.
Next up was ‘Solider’, an energy packed song with a pinch of symphony to it. An extremely fast number, thanks to the strong drumming. The song included two packed solos of the guitar and the keyboard. As Bryden rightly put it, the crowd seemed to be getting bigger and bigger as the evening progressed.
The band next played a cover of the song Separate Ways by Journey. The song was heavily empowered by guitars and had a metal timbre to it.
Slain next brought to the stage, a new piece called the New Genesis. Even though there was a small technical glitch and Ranjith’s voice couldn’t be heard initially, it was soon taken care of and it did not scar the beauty of the song. A well structured song which spoke for their promising new album. The energy of the band members kept the crowd grooving.
Slain Speaks To Score!
When the band took a quick break, we caught up with the guitarists of the band and asked them a few questions.
How does it feel to back on HRC stage?
We are getting used to being on this stage now. We performed here in January and this time the support and audience is bigger. Said Naresh
Has Slain any new album lined up?
We are working on a solo and if things work out it would be a complete album. We played one of the songs today, called the New Genesis, said Manek
Being in the music scene since 2007, have you seen the response for rock improve in India?
When we started it was a lot of competition, even now there is a lot of competition but we have seen the standard improve. Now a lot of people are recording and making original music. Before it used to be just playing covers of various famous bands. Now we also see a lot of foreign artists collaborating with Indian bands. Fans are willing buying the songs of local bands online. It has improved a lot since 2007. Said Naresh and Manek
“You don’t have to be a star” from their album Here and Beyond was the next song they played. Compared to all the songs so far, this seemed to be the best received and the crowd was singing along and swaying to the tune of this comparatively soothing song. Ranjith’s emotion packed voice complimented the music very well.
With Manek enacting the words of the song, the band next brought to the stage a rather mild and softer cover of a Pegan’s Mind song, called Search for Life. The only song where the band seemed to be interacting with the crowd directly. Next up was again a cover of the song Living On A Prayer by Bon Jovi.
Seeing Slain on stage, anybody would know that they are an experienced band and their music has a certain standard and quality. With barely any technical glitches or falters the band pulled off a smooth show.
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