Nepathya - In the forefront

FROM ISSUE # 69 (September 2001) | IN THIS ISSUE
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If there's one band in the Nepali music scene that can claim to have made it to the top, it's Nepathya.

When they came into existence in 1990, Nepathya brought with them a new mix of music elements that later developed into a separate genre altogether, within Nepali pop. Adding western flavour to the local folk tunes, they popularized the kind of music, which now is known as folk pop, or lok pop. Almost immediately after the release of their self-titled debut album in 1993, they attracted a noticeable fan following among the young 'pop' music fans all over the country. Their first success could have been dismissed as sheer luck or just a case of being there at the right time - as there were few bands then, it could not have been an enormous task to get noticed. But when the band later on set a record in Nepali pop music by selling more than a lakh and twenty thousand copies of their third album Minpachasma, it became obvious that there was something more than plain luck. Their lyrics were simple, their music light: they made it look very easy to touch the hearts of millions of young people.

But Nepathya knows it better than anyone - that's it's anything but easy to make it to the top, and stay.

They, however, are not too concerned about fighting compettion and remaining #1. And that is the difference you will hear in the music of Resham, their latest offering. They've decided to make music for the sake of making good music.

We talked to Nepathya on the eve of the release of their 5th album, Resham and discussed their concert schedules for Kathmandu and Pokhara. Excerpts:

Wave: How do you define Nepathya's music?
Amrit: Our music cannot be defined under any particular category. Resham, the album has incorporated new sounds, which cannot really be categorized. It was fun working in the studio, for this album.

Wave: What about the lyrical content?
Ratna: It's the usual - romantic, catchy phrases, while there are those that seem simple yet profound. The process of choosing lyrics wasn't our prior concern. Some of them even got changed while we began recording.

Wave: You have a 13-minute-long song in Resham. What was that all about?
Dhruba: Let's not reveal the characteristics of that song yet. It was an experiment. The audience should listen and comment on it. We would love feedback and their interpretations of that song.

Wave: Any particular event or inspiration that might have created it?
Dhruba: There's no inspiration. This album is a result of spontaneity, nothing was formatted. Whatever you hear on this album was improvised at the spur of the moment. Basically we left no stone unturned.

Wave: Naresh, you were a member of Crisscross, a cover band, so to speak. What difference, if any, do you find having joined Nepathya?
Naresh: A vast differences - I would consider, working in a set up like this, my first experience. I played hard-core rock but I have changed my style now. I didn't change to fit in with Nepathya. I was already in the process of metamorphosis, in my music style, when the band approached me. Amrit and I used to have long discussions, regarding this, and I found out that our ideas clicked. Had creative differences creeped in, I probably wouldn't have joined Nepathya.

Wave: Amrit, you are the oldest member of the band, do you see a vast difference in the songs?
Amrit: The composition of songs, even then had a good feel. But the music didn't quite satisfy the required mark. Since our knowledge of music, at the time, was less, we stuck to songs that were simple. That does not mean they were not good. Now, the arrangement and music elements have improved and sound of music has a broader horizon. If there is a difference in the songs back then and now, it would be in the melody. This time it's more of a raw sound. Earlier we depended largely on studio technicians, we compromised, but now with Naresh in the band, he has taken our music to another level. He directs, we follow.
Naresh: It was team effort, I wouldn't take all the credit. We all worked equally hard, be it the composition, arrangement and practice. This album is balanced.
Amrit: The months we put into this album was a wonderful experience. Our jobs became secondary, we put them aside, picked up our instruments, put our heads together and the result was Resham.

Wave: Were there gruelling hours of practice involved?
Amrit: Initially we thought we would practice for 5 months, but came down to 3.
Ratna: I would say not more than 45 days.
Amrit: Ratna came a month late from Pokhara. The practice went smoothly after that, but then Naresh's dad expired and we took a break. that was followed by Michael's exam, the incident (royal massacre), so with all these hurdles, the album took 8 months, whereas the plan was 5 months.

Wave: What kind of development do you see, in Nepali music, in the last 10 years that you've been around?
Ratna: No doubt there has been improvements...
Naresh: Actually there is a simultaneous effect of improvement and deterioration. People are misusing instruments like madal and sarangi. They are going less for authenticity and more for digitally recorded sounds. The effect, especially, make the rsult very unnatural, and the consequence is destruction of music. There are only a handful of bands that are really genuine and passionate about this form of art.
Amrit: Ten years ago, if you had to record, there was Radio Nepal and there was Music Nepal. Now the number of recording studios has quadrupled and with it the number of singers and bands, which is a positive development. But we've seen compromise in music quality and that is sad. It's even worse when musicians who are in tune resort to mechanically engineered music, which is not pleasant to the ear.

Wave: And you don't have that in your new album?
Amrit: Not at all. In that aspect, this Nepathya album is different from all our past work. What you will hear in Resham is what you are used to hearing in our live shows.

Wave: How about your audience, how much have they changed?
Amrit: It's been four years since we last did a concert, so it will be difficult to judge their tastes. We'll have to see how they accept us in this concert.

Wave: Your last album Shringar was a disaster. What went wrong?
Amrit: We were working towards one direction and we reached a totally new destination. We had planned on a semi-acoustic album and if we had worked harder and practiced more, who knows. I guess everybody was excited about the Japan tour. When an artist becomes a star, things are downhill henceforth. An artist should remain an artist. Being a star is not a big deal. A good artist is a star. The only difference would be that the life of an artist is longer than that of a star. But the failure of that album has encouraged us to persevere on this album. And we have faith that this has been a well rounded project. We gave our time, our friends and well-wishers helped us and we believe that Resham has much more potential than Shringar. We'll just have to wait for the reaction of the audience.
Naresh: Resham is more about self-satisfaction and I must say we are more than satisfied with the outcome.

Wave: But then every album is made for self-satisfaction...
Amrit: No, we weren't too optimistic about releasing Shringar. We spent 2-3 lakhs, and then decided we were not happy with the result. Then some of our well-wishers advised us to go ahead and release it. They assured us that it was a good album. Music Nepal sold some 14,000 copies of
Shringar, and then we asked them to stop the sales. You can see how unsatisfied we were.

Wave: Do you expect a Chekyo Chekyo sensation from this album?
Amrit: No such expectation...

Wave: May not have to do with a song, but are you expecting any kind of sensation?
Naresh: If anything like that happens, it would be unexpected.
Michael: Like we said before, it's not necessary that the songs be hits. We have put the best melodies, have put the best of ourselves. But that doesn't mean that the songs have to be chartoppers.

Wave: How would you describe a 'good song'?
Naresh: If you are satisfied then it's a good song. If I've created a song that I'm not happy about, even if it becomes a hit, I wouldn't say it's a good song.
Ratna: We have two songs in the album - Lampati Surati and Resham, that went through a rough phase. We were not happy with the arrangement although they were good songs. So we re-worked on it and finally got it right, after which we decided to include them in the album.
Naresh: That's why we say that nothing is pre-planned. But that requires a good amount of dedication.

Wave: If this album turns out to be a super hit, would you reintroduce Shringar in the market?
Amrit: There is a possibility and we may sing songs from Shringar in our concerts.

Wave: What other Nepali singers and bands do you listen to?
Ratna: I like Mukti and Revival, Robin n Looza:, Cadenza.
Naresh: I listened to Cadenza when I was out of station, and I liked them a lot. They are an outstanding band.
Amrit: The old timers like Amar Gurung, Narayan Gopal, Gopal Yonzon and Manik Ratna were from an important era of Nepali music. And if you ask me, there's a big gap between them and the new generation of music. The one who tried to bridge the gap was Arun Thapa. There were many who gained popularity but no one tried to create a link between the two generations. In the new crop of musicians, I think Cadenza, Robin n Looza and Avash Funyal are performing well. Otherwise, there is plenty of music, but not enough quality.

Wave: How long will Nepathya last?
Amrit: We don't know. The album is one project, the concerts in Kathmandu and Pokhara, another. After that if we feel like doing it again we will sit and think about it. If our listeners like our music and support us, we might be around for longer than we think. Or else we will pack up and head home.
Ratna: Life is unpredicatable, so who's to say how long we'll last.

Wave: What do you think of the volatile situation of our country?
Amrit: It is tragic, people are killing each other. But what can you do? There's no use commenting when no one listens or implements.
Michael: I feel like I am watching an action-packed movie, full of suspense, thrill and action!

Wave: Any comments on the banning of alcohol issue?
Amrit: On the onset, you cannot really comment when it's about banning products like cigarettes and alcohol. If it was milk or other health products, then there's a reason to voice against it. However, if you look at the big picture, it's an entire nation we have to save, and banning alcohol should definitely not be the first on the list. Issues that should come to mind should have more to do with humanity, then culture and society. That's what we should strive to save - humanity and culture.

Wave: Do you have a few words of wisdom conveyed to our new Prime Minister?
Naresh: Listen to our album.
Amrit: Have a good time for at least an hour.
Naresh: It would make us feel that finally there's a Prime Minister who appreciates art.
Amrit: He might not like it but it would be nice if he'd just listen to it.

Wave: What about the Maoists?
Michael: Just do it.
Amrit: It's a war of principles. What makes difference is how you fight it.

Wave: Does frustration creep in? Don't you feel like going where the grass is green?
Amrit: If we'd felt like that we'd have long gone.
Naresh: When you are very hungry, you even forget the hunger. We all are used to it now. And living abroad is not easy; you miss your country so much. We are so frustrated here that we've got used to it. It doesn't bother us all that much, anymore.

On the songs:-
Amrit: Resham, the title song, is from Eastern parts of Nepal. It's based on a folk tune. Dhak Dhak is related to Kathmandu - we, the people living in Kathmandu and our situation, the environment, why people come to Kathmandu etc. Yo Zindagani has actually been recorded twice before (not by Nepathya). It didn't go well in both attempts. But we still like the song, it talks about life. Ghatana, for us, is an experiment. This is the song we like the most. Ukali Orali is also in our fourth album. It's based more on a folk tune; it's about a journey to Kala Patthar. We are still not fully satisfied with it though. Maya Garne Bani, written by Ganga Bardhan, is an old song. It has simple words, it's more aadhunik geet based. Yani Maya is basically sung around Kaligandaki area, western side of Nepal. We have different words, but have used the same thego. Lampati Surati is also a folk song, about love. Naramro Sapana is again a aadhunik geet. When you listen to it at first, you might not think much about it. But if you listen to it frequently, it will move you. Mai Nache, is a jhayure song.
Naresh: We have used acoustic drums, madals and when we use guitars, we isolate them using amplifier speakers and microphones for the bass guitars as well. The setup is basically very simple. We have the exact music that has the feel of a live concert. That's very important. We have tried to bring the sound of the stage to the studio. We can do as well on stage as in the studio.