Eka – Music In Unison

Chanced upon the music of this Delhi-based rock fusion band called Eka, and found the band profile interesting enough to do a feature. The band line-up is really spectacular. Two out of the three key members have been associated with Euphoria in the past. Guitarist and vocalist Hitesh Madan became the lead guitarist of Euphoria at the age of 17 and has worked as a music arranger and composer in the past. Keyboardist Benjamine ‘Benny’ Pinto has been associated with Euphoria for 18 years and is a true showman. Self-taught bassist and vocalist Lokesh Madan on the other hand followed a corporate career for sometime before returning back to his true calling. Drummer Bosco D’Souza and classically trained vocalist Saranya Ghosh add to the performance of the band.

The band is essentially a live band playing a range of music from classic rock to Sufi and popular Hindi music. They have quite a few original songs under a genre they have labelled “Swatantra Rock”. A sneak peek at some of them is available on Youtube and on Eka’s website. Although the band has two ex-Euphoria members, the music of the band is fortunately quite different. The originals show a lot of influence of classic rock and funk music. While Nimbu pani is funk-based, Aaye Tum and Chalte Jaana show a distinctive rock flavour in a groovy way. The lyrics of Jaane Kyun seem very amateurish and so does the rendition in places, but the song on the whole sounds good, with a very sing-along kind of a tune.

All said, while the talent and performances of the “Eka” are really appreciable, the originals that form their current repertoire sound a bit dated. When someone calls their music “Swatantra Rock”, you would really expect an independent and unique sound, which they are totally capable of developing with the immense talent they hold. All they need is more time together to come up with that sound. That still doesn’t stop them from giving one heck of a live show even now, covering a lot of Sufi and classic rock music of which I am a huge fan! So if they are performing live, I would definitely go and watch them.

Check out the band’s Facebook profile here. You can also get Eka’s updates on their website.