Easy Wanderlings will perform at Bacardi NH7 Weekender in Pune between 8th and 10th December, this year.Β
What is the best music, a momentary acquaintance once asked me – ‘well, the best music is the music that pours from the soul of course; that is the truest form of music.’ Well, the truth of that statement remained a theoretical expression until we discovered the real life manifestation of those words in the music of Pune’sΒ up and rising Indie band, Easy Wanderlings.Β
The band is a group ofΒ friends and friends of friends, who came together back in 2015 with a shared goal – to make music that they cherish and that transcends the rigid business and ideology of making music in the present scenario. Their music is best described as an amalgamation ofΒ ambient pop, soul, and folk, and is a representation of all those cherished and special memories that make a person smile. The band is, as they themselves best describe it,Β ”A flock of easybreezies β¦ wanderers at soul, wildlings in spirit.”
Credits: Justdial
To the listener, the sound of Easy Wanderlings is as soothing and minimalistic as can be, and that’sΒ what the band aims at. The creative process in bringing forth that sound however, is much more complex as the band does most of the producing and recording themselves, including the live instrument sounds of the western flute, accordion, violins, and cello.
”All of us in the group were always musically inclined since a young age, most of us are self-taught musicians. Some are currently working, some finishing studies, and some full time in music.. Also, the thing is that we didnβt want to have a conversation several years later that βWe loved making music and we wish we worked on getting some songs out to the worldβ. The goal is to work hard and compose solid music and perform it for the world. No regrets. Hell no!”
Credits: Varun Mehra
The members of Easy Wanderlings are spread across many cities in India, with each member facing a different walk in life, yet the band manages to overcome these shortcomings to come together to produce the music they love.
”When we set off in mid-2015 our goal was to record and share good music. Weβre all friends and friends of friends, with similar music taste and we got along really well. Individually we may not be that strong musically, but when we get together itβs a whole new ball gameβ¦ the chemistry is fantastic.”
”Music was the primary goal, the people behind it came later. We use artwork to communicate with our fans and we preferred to keep it low-key when it comes to sharing our names, faces, and location. One of us is a maestro in sound design, so using way too much jugaad (thus saving us studio costs) we managed to release four singles at different points of the year, just home recorded. We didnβt even have enough guitars for the band, our fans lent their expensive fancy ones to us for every gig. The support was incredible from the audience.”
Quite interestingly, since the bandmates are spread far and wide across different cities, the 8 members have never performed together at any particular time. How they recorded and came out with theirΒ first four singles is a tale that left us in awe –Β ”They sat up late night, for the surrounding to get quiet, and then created an igloo out of the house sofas, crawled inside and recorded snugly. And these recordings eventually got them their first performance at NH7 (Bacardi NH7 Weekender, Pune 2016)!”
The band will be seen performing yet again this year at Bacardi NH7 Weekender in Pune.
As most indie bands do, Easy Wanderlings have faced their own challenges in growing as independent artists in the current music scenario in India.
”As an independent artist, it is hard to make ends meet initially. The pay isnβt that good. For us, since we wanted to record many instruments live (and not digital patches), we found it hard to find local musicians who played instruments like Cello or Clarinet, we had to get it done remotely. Luckily because we had a good designer part of the team it made our lives so much easier to record and get our music out.”
The band’s latest single,Β ”Enjoy It While It Lasts”, is a testament to the unique musical capabilities of the band and the reason why they are growing in popularity among Indie listeners and others alike, in the country.
The band finds their musical influences through artists from various genres, such asΒ Bread, Kings of convenience, Gordon Lightfoot, Nick Drake, Fleet Foxes, Fleetwood Mac, The Paper Kites, Avial, JosΓ© GonzΓ‘lez, John Mayer, Carole King, Blackstratblues, AR Rahman, The Eagles, Β and Bob Dylan.
Easy Wanderlings have marked themselves as one among the most popular bands rising out of the Indie circuit in India and have enjoyed success at many a session of Sofar Sounds and the dreamlike performance at NH7 Weekender in Pune, 2016.
While the band cherishes all of their creations, the dearest ones they’d like for new listeners to try areΒ ”Enjoy It While It Lasts”, ”DreamΒ To Keep Us Going”, and ”Hereβs To You.”Β
Words of wisdom that the band would like for Indie bands and upcoming musicians alike, to stick by are,Β βFocus of perseverance, be patient, focus on making good quality music and be smart when it comes to marketing and brandingβ.
Credits: facebook.com/easywanderlings
Be sure to catch the band at their upcoming gigs at Euriska, PuneΒ on 13th September, Sofar Sounds, Pune on 20th September,Β antiSOCIAL , Khar onΒ 27th SeptemberΒ and at Bacardi NH7 Weekender, Pune between December 8th and 1oth.
Follow Easy Wanderlings on Facebook here, on Twitter here, on Soundcloud here, and on YouTube here.
Stay updated with the band through their website here.