Author: Lisa

Malinggo Homestay – A Home Away From Home in Sikkim

Published by Lisa

We have become much dependent on our environment but we have turned ignorant to them. Paul helps in bringing awareness and closeness to the nature with the concept of homestay. Here’s a quick conversation with the Founder of Malinggo Homestay in Sikkim who is in love with nature and its beauty of Gangtok. Tell us something about yourself My name is Paul Karna Rai and I live in the valley of Pastanga (East Sikkim). I used to be a Government Contractor and also worked with Voluntary Health Association of Sikkim (VHAS). Perhaps because I live in this valley, I have always felt close to nature, to the environment – the sound of the running river, the chirping of the birds, the cry of the crickets, the flowers of spring, the dew of the winter morning and mostly the first fall of sun’s rays on the mighty Mt. Kanchenjunga. Home is right here in the mountains amidst nature. How did you come up with an idea of a homestay? The concept of homestay first started in …

Catching up with Pop/Rock Indie Band : Avora Records from Mizoram

Published by Lisa

With successful singles like “Sides” and “We Happy Few”, Aizawl-based pop/rock band, Avora Records has come a long way since they were just a couple of friends jamming together in 2013. An all-boy band creating quite the rave with their fun, upbeat J-Pop/rock and Indie music, this local-gig-favorite band from Aizawl, Mizoram, has shown the crowd that they are here to stay. Avora Records was one of the many artists that performed at the Bacardi NH7 Weekender this year in Meghalaya. Here is an excerpt from their interview with our R&L member, Lisa. Tell us how you guys got together? How did you come up with the band name? It started off as just a couple of friends hanging out recording songs in a studio back in 2013. Our first live gig was in 2016. The name of the band, Avora, is in honor of our producer and founder of the band, Mamaa. What’s your inspiration behind your music? What kind of music do you make? We try to make our music sound clean and honest. We …

In Conversation With the Reggae Band from the East- Dewdrops

Published by Lisa

Dewdrops is a roots reggae/ska/dub/rockers/rocksteady band, hailing from Rymbai Village in the Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya. The band came together with one common interest to share- music and to promote the message of love, peace and brotherhood through their music. The band comprises of Rowynk Dkhar as the lead vocalist, Leonard Dkhar as the guitarist and vocalist, Eglancis Dkhar as the lead guitarist, Daioh Lyngdoh on the electric bass, Manavon Massar on keys and Doni Ksih on drums. R&L’s Lisa, caught up with the band members for a quick chat during one of their sessions, to talk about the band, their musical style, inspiration behind their music and thoughts on the music scene in the northeast. Tell us how you got together to form the band? We are from Rymbai Village and are hugely influenced by the legendary artist, Bob Marley. In the beginning, we would get together for jam sessions and play mostly Bob Marley’s reggae songs. Then later, we formed our band in 2007. In fact, our band name, Dewdrops is inspired by one of his songs. The name ‘Dewdrops’ came …

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Exclusive Interview with Rudy Wallang and his Guitar Jamboree Group

Published by Lisa

“The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree” is a group of 8 guitarists from Northeast, India curated by SOULMATE‘s guitarist and song writer, Rudy Wallang. He shared the stage this year at the NH7 Weekender, Meghalaya along with 8 talented guitarists from Northeast- Cornelius Kharsyntiew , Aribam Uttam Sharma, Arenlong Longkumer , Gyt Artha , Ztpa Rokhum, Sonam Lachungpa and Takar Nabam R&L ‘s Lisa recently sat down for an interview with the members to talk about their act, how The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree came together, their music, and the music scene in the Northeast. So, tell us how you guys got together for “The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree”? Rudy: This whole idea behind the Guitar Jamboree started when OML contacted my brother, Keith about 3-4 months ago, to curate a guitar gig. They wanted a series of guitar acts leading up to the main act- Steve Vai, one of the headliners this year. So I got in touch with a few guitarists from the Northeast and eventually, this crew came together to form the “The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree”. …

Representing Our Blood Line, Our People- Khasi Bloodz from Meghalaya

Published by Lisa

“Here’s to the heartaches that pulled you through/Here’s to the walls you built to stop them coming back to you/Here’s to the bad times you’ve been there before/ And oh your feet are sore and you can’t do it anymore…” – A verse from their song ‘Don’t Stop’ Khasi Bloodz is a hip hop group from Meghalaya. The group, which started in late 2009, is the first Khasi hip hop group. Their music is influenced by Old School music, Hip Hop from the 90’s, Jazz and Rock. R&L member Lisa caught up with the group during one of their rehearsals. Hi there! Tell us how you got together to form a band? We started off with six of us but a few months back, new members have joined the crew and our family has gotten bigger and better. Initially, our band was called ‘Khasi Blood’ as we wanted to represent the blood line of Khasi’s but later added the Z to make it sound more Hip Hop. What kind of music do you make? And what is your …

Interview with Triau Trackx Band from Mizoram

Published by Lisa

Triau Trackx is a pop-rock band based in Champhai, Mizoram. They released their self-titled album in 2015 and are currently recording their next EP. Lisa, from Roots and Leisure, recently sat down for a quick chat with band members, Ramenga(drummer), Ruatfeli(vocalist), Ate-a(guitarist) and Lalthazoa (Tz’a) (Bassist), before their performance at the Bacardi NH7 Weekender, Meghalaya. Here’s an excerpt from the interview as Triau Trackx tells us about their music style, thoughts on the Northeast music scene and their message to the R&L community. Tell us how you guys got together to form the band and the origin of your band name? It started out as a project to promote local artists based in Champai, Mizoram. There is a river called ‘Tiau’ which flows between India and Myanmar, which is near Champai, the people there used to call us Triau Trackx and that’s how the name of the band came to be. What kind of music do you make? We make different kinds of music, sometimes ballads-working with only a piano, and other times it is grunge music, …