The FLAME of music!
by Nilma Dole
There are flames of fire, flames
that ignite passion and a lovers’ burning flame. However, I found out
about a flame that is quite unlike any other. And this flame is the
flame of music which comes to us in the form of the music band Flame.
Comprising a record breaking lucky seven guys, the band is a mostly slow
jam R&B and pop outfit that can play anything to suit your hearts’
desire.
 “We initially started as a trio and played covers of the Eagles and
the Beatles blended with some James Taylor, John Denver and Simon and
Garfunkel. Plus we love to sing in harmony and play for music,” said
Naushad. Admitting that the fiery flame of folk music was what got them
started, Naushad reminices how one of the founding members Roshan and he
made merry with the music Flame is famous for.
Even though Roshan is now domiciled in Canada, he is very involved
with the development of the band and their foreign tours. “Our passion
is our priority and even though we all have full-time jobs and families
that take up our time, chilling with the band with some good music is
what we love doing,” they said.
These guys are pretty good at balancing their time despite having day
jobs. Chris, who handles guitar and vocals, works for a leading
telecommunications company while lead singer and support guitarist
Naushad has a job in the IT industry. Backup member Rienzie is a writer
and an author at a leading advertising agency while banker Niroshan De
Silva is the drummer. Primal works the bass guitar the right way and now
a fine Flame find Kamal De Silva helps out too.
Formerly of Mirage, Kamal is a talented musician who has travelled
around the world making Sri Lankans happy with music. Somewhere at the
back, you’ll see the sweet dude Lal completing the Flame outfit. The
secret behind the unity of Flame is that we are all treated equally with
equal chances of singing.
“We are transparent when we deal in the business aspects of the band
and safe to say, we are still standing strong,” said Chris. They have
played to packed audiences at the TAJ and the Mount Royal including
bringing couples together at many weddings. Under the name of flame,
they have toured many countries.
“At the moment, we’re playing for the Colombo Hilton Residence every
Friday and it’s great to see people relaxing after a hard days’ work,”
said Naushad.
As for advice, Chris said, “We are amazed by the talent out there and
Flame is more than willing to help budding musicians learn the finer art
of music making.” What I noticed was that Flame is obviously a band that
is more than just a bunch of musicians, they are a fitting example of
unity in diversity.
With many coming from various religions encompassing Islam, Buddhism
and Christianity, the glue that sticks together is their love for music.
So let the flame of Flame’s music ignite your melodic passion! |
