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| Sunday, 19 January 2003 |
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Democratic in outlook and professing to be led without leadership Hi-Octane define themselves as an "Alternative rock" band. The group has Jonathan on rhythm guitar, Jagath and Peminda on vocals, Heshan on drums, Vije on bass, Mills on lead guitar and Lauryl on rhythm guitar. "We have different tastes in music, which is difficult at times. What we do is play a bit of everything, grunge, metal, classics and do a fusion to cater to a diverse audience. And see to it that they too have a good time," says Peminda. The group's debut performance was on the 'TNL On Stage' last year. The seven describe it as one of those 'trial and error' sessions, where Jonathan 'tried' his hand at guitar just one month before the event. "He learnt to play the guitar just one month before the show and I was hardly a drummer," Peminda laughs, saying that entering the competition was like a joke. But we got the shock of our lives when we were chosen. And the fact that we came to the semi finals, made us want to make an impression as a band," they say. The On stage show compelled the group to become serious about their music and even get a proper drummer, to gear themselves up for the real thing. "At the beginning it was just four members and we actually called the band 'Four play'. But when we decided to have more members, the name didn't sound right," Peminda explains how `Four play' became `Hi-Octane'. The group played as the guest band at the Royal talent search that was held at 'Navarangahala', in September 2002. And to hear the flammable seven describe it, it had been quite an experience, especially in terms of audience. They say the Navarangahala had a cool and spacious atmosphere that reminded them of an open air concert. "It's always better to play at an expansive venue than playing at a small club," they say, notwithstanding the need to get a fixed venue which is bound to be a not-so-spacious club. "Well we've played at 'Bliss' and we'd like to play at places like 'Rhythm & Blues' and 'Potluck' but it's way too difficult with a low budget," they counter, giving a subtle pointer to the fact that they are in need of a sponsor. The group launched their first original at TNL On stage, called "Cry for the broken" and have also worked on two more called 'Destruction' and 'Frustrated'. Nevertheless, the album is on hold as they haven't found a good sponsor to give them the appropriate boost. The group is determined to give their audience a different taste of music. Their inclination is to re-do the oldies and come up with music that nobody else does. "Out there, you get a lot of rock bands who seem to do the same. But we want to shy away from the conventional stuff. We want to be the first to introduce those to the local crowds," they state. 'Hi-Octane does covers of Creed, System of the down, Metallica, Bryan Adams, Vertical Horizon, Hoobastank and Nirvana. They admit that having seven members hasn't been an easy task. "It's a problem when it comes to playing what we like, but we compromise." Defining the band as a combination of talent and endurance, they say getting along has never been a problem. "We don't have a problem bonding, we've known each other for a while." And that, they say, is why they don't need anybody to lead them. "Everyone gets their chance to be a leader, depending on the songs they come up with." The group believes in crowd support and active interaction during shows, and say that it triggers off a lot of energy and gives them the boosts to play better music. Claiming that it's the audience that counts, they see no point in merely satisfying themselves. "Getting them involved in the show makes us happy" they say, adding that, it goes both ways, which is why they try to balance it. Music to the super seven is a hobby. "We've got four people who study, one wants to a be computer engineer, another wants to be an accountant, the third a business person and a the fourth is a pre-med student," they elaborate. 'Hi-Octane' like most of the bands, believe that Sri Lanka should help sponsor more rock bands. "They should cater to the needs of people who want to make a difference and it's a relief to see people coming out of the pop scene to the rock scene," they say suggesting that more concerts be held to give the young and upcoming bands a boost. In their opinion, the club culture that offers to pay the best band in town is inequitable. The guys seem to believe in originality. "We should promote more originals," they say adding that radio stations should play local music more frequently. They point out that playing someone else' covers nullifies a person's or group's potential. "We merely get compared to the original artist," they lament. Walking down memory lane, the guys say that it was 'Kreb's Cycle' that supported them. "Plus, Norman, our sound engineer has been with us from the time we started. Actually he's been a father figure to us. And of course Shanthadeva and Suren, ex members of the band have taught us all that it takes to become musicians," The group believe that they've done pretty good considering the short time they've been in the field. "We are still in a learning process. We haven't made it to the top as musicians but we'll be there someday." The seven plan to do their higher studies abroad. Yet they plan to jam in Sri Lanka when they come back for the vacation. "We want to leave a mark so that people will recognise us whenever we come back and play." by Umangi de Mel |
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| Produced by Lake House |
Seven
is a lucky number. Many would agree to that and not just those with a
superstitious bent either. But to the flammable sounding Hi-Octane, seven
is a lot.
