what results when a land of rich and multifarious literary resource, numerous musical greats and a huge middle class undergoes a wave of modernization that not only brings in new blood into the life of the common man but also encourages the new generation of youngsters to express their emotions, aggression, pain and anguish more zealously is a common channel, a common element that provides solace to all, a sort of release. The new age Bengali teenagers seem to have found that release in Rock.
The seventies came up with Rock acts such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and many more that influenced the lives of millions all over the West, the 500 plus Bangla Rock bands today derive their musical influences from these western legends and emulate them.It’s a misconception that Bangla rock is still an alternative form of music; it has come of age and also entered the mainstream. Most albums by popular bands today sell like hot cakes the moment they hit stores and Band performances draw huge crowds mostly comprising of young school and college-goers but don’t be surprised if you find a few ‘uncles’ and ‘aunties’ whooping and clapping, among the huge melee of youngsters, Bangla music is for everybody.Bengali lyrics loaded with emotion, sarcasm, pains of heartbreak coupled up with western style music and rhythm, garnished with a hint of traditional Bengali Baul or a mellifluous Raag in certain places is what Bangla music is all about.
Bangla rockers make sure they retain the distinct Bengaliness in their music in spite of the heavy guitars and drums. It is this balance that imparts Bangla music it’s distinctive charm.Kolkata, the city of joy with its numerous discos and pubs provides a huge platform for these bands to perform in and a sizeable audience to perform before. Nazrul Manch is one of the best and most spacious auditoriums in Kolkata with excellent acoustic facilities where most rock bands perform; Someplace Else in Park Street seems to be a favourite for English, Hindi as well as Bengali rock enthusiasts as some contemporary rock bands such as Krosswindz and Fossils have performed here. Chandrabindoo, Miles and Cactus, few of the pioneering bands of Bangla Rock are a huge favourite among people and Bhumi, being more of a folk band is a huge hit with it’s hugely popular singles such as “Barandaye roddur”and “ Sohag chaand”. Parashpathor is another popular band with it’s own distinctive style of music and percussion and has a huge fan following. These bands have carved a niche’ for themselves in the Bangla music scenario, perform regularly, cater to a wide variety of people and are here to stay.What more could a music loving Kolkatan probably ask for??Bangla band music is like lifeblood for the average Bengali, they can relate to it; most of these popular songs portray the life of an average Bengali and his sentiments, his dreams and ambitions, his heartaches and infatuations, life and Death. Bangla music today pulses through every Bengali’s life and it only seems natural that the men and women behind these bands have given up promising careers as doctors, salesmen, cartoonists teachers, businessmen to come together and make music.The rebirth of the radio has been highly instrumental in bringing about an upsurge in the popularity of these bands as their music has been taken to the farthest of towns and villages in Bengal and are played regularly on popular demand on all Radio stations.
This phenomenal change in the taste for music of Bengali youth today has been met with sceptism from many quarters, many feel that Bengali traditional and classical music has suffered a setback because of the huge and ever increasing popularity of these Rock and Folk bands, the very fact that a few bands charge upto half a lakh of Rupees per show and some others have more than 200 performances a year bear testament to this.But the fact that this is a comparatively newer form of music for the Bengali masses, a sort of experimentation involving the blending of two very different genres of music and that it has been overwhelmingly successful is a point to be noted. Bengali classical music is an institution by itself and forms the basis of all other forms of Bangla music and can’t be ignored, replaced or substituted and Bengali classics taking a blow due to the advent of Rock is nothing but hypothetical.
The advent
of Bangla Rock has resulted in the birth of a new breed of musicians
who are prepared to defy almost any impediment that come their way,
be it tradition, critics or even cultural limitations for the sake of
music because to them music is a medium that transgresses all limits.
To these new age rockers, music means rock and rock……. music.
Ronojoy
Basu
www.drummingworld.com
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