Music from the Hills
Landour-based singer-songwriter Ady Manral lists some of his recent favourite artists from the Indian hills
- Ady Manral
While most of us are talking about Katty Perry, Opeth and Kodaline coming to India soon, you won’t find me here suggesting to you any such big international names. But what you can find here, is me writing about good local music from time to time. When I say good local music, you must wonder what that really amounts to these days. What I really mean is that whatever is pleasant to my ears will probably find a mention or a shout out. Now if we can all agree to move along with my definition, I can write briefly about who I am (you are welcome to stay and read in case you disagree).
Abdon is a singer songwriter who comes from Nagaland and is often called the ‘John Mayer of Nagaland’! His music is simple and catchy with beautiful acoustic guitar melodies.
Let me start by talking about where I live and not where I grew up (don’t think we can fit that in one article). Many people think of Mussoorie as just another hill station for folks who usually come from Delhi and Chandigarh, get some Maggie and Momos, some chai, and a place where they can throw darts at balloons. But to me, it has been my home for the last 10 years and also been a place where I can do exactly the same stuff which the Delhi and Chandigarh folks come here for! To be precise, I live in Landour, which technically is also a part of Mussoorie, but for some reason sounds much cooler when you tell someone that you’re not from the main town but from another part which is still part of the town anyways.
Taba Chake - Photo: Rose Tommy
I also happen to be a singer songwriter (if writing music, releasing it, and avoiding playing in towns qualifies as a singer-songwriter) and work full time at a boarding school.
Enough about me here already and I’ll come to my main point of talking about music that is pleasant to my ears. I would like to pick some of my recent favorites from the hills to begin with for this piece. Some of these acts I have personally seen or played along with, some are friends, and some referred by friends! So here goes – Music from the hills that I enjoy!!
Taba Chake
A few weeks ago, I met Taba in Delhi, who after finding out that I am from Landour, mentioned that his first EP ‘Bond with Nature’ is named after Ruskin Bond’s book, who also happens to be a local Landour hillside resident! Of course, this commonality was enough for me to get interested. One of the well-known cool cats in the local Indian independent music scene, Taba is a multi-lingual singer-songwriter who swings between Hindi, English and Nyishi, a local dialect from Arunachal Pradesh where he hails from. And boy he sure knows how to get the crowd moving. His recent full-length album ‘Bombay Dreams’ is available on digital platforms.
Blue Temptation
I remember watching Blue Temptation perform at Ziro festival of music in Arunachal Pradesh and obviously got interested because they were playing a bunch of good blues music! Not only was the live set amazing, I went back to finding their music on Spotify which was equally impressive with well-produced tracks for their 5-song debut release called Tempted.
Abdon Mech
My personal favorite and a good friend. Few weeks ago, I met Abdon as part of a campaign being run by a brand and got to share the stage with him. Abdon is a singer songwriter who comes from Nagaland and is often called the ‘John Mayer of Nagaland’! His music is simple and catchy with beautiful acoustic guitar melodies. Abdon goes to college during the days and at night makes music! His honest dedication to music is reflective through his songs.
Gauley Bhai
This one is a bit tricky, as the band is not based in the hills. Though they sing in Nepali and are based in Bangalore, I assume if they have connections to Sikkim or Darjeeling (You see I should have done my homework better!). Anyways, I heard them at Ziro festival again and was struck by the uniqueness of their sound. A regular band setup with the singer playing the violin and singing songs that sounds like Nepali folk songs! Their Debut release ‘Joro’ came out in 2019 and is available on digital platforms.
Imliakum Aier
I am just discovering the rich singer-songwriter scene in Nagaland. Imliakum was referred to me by Abdon (above), and trust me, this guy is talented! His music is definitely reflective of the mountains and the hills. Again, simple and very well-crafted tunes accompanied by a pleasant yet unique voice. His music does remind me a bit of ‘The Tallest Man On Earth’ which I wonder could be an influence.
There are more on the list (I also absolutely love Soulmate and Bipul Chettri, which you do too I’m sure!) and you might have a few that you can share with me too, which I would love to listen to! Drop me an email if you think of something.
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Ady Manral is a singer-songwriter based in Landour whose debut EP Lean On Love was released globally to critical acclaim in 2018. Ady has performed gigs in India, the UK and USA over the past few years. He was the co-founder and director of Big Gig, a music festival in Landour. He currently works at Woodstock School India. You can follow him on Instagram at @adyindia or Twitter @adymanral
