By Prasanta Phukon
It has been an eventful three years for Fame The Band from Tura. After enthralling music lovers in their home state and winning at competitions like Strawberry Fields XX in Bengaluru and MoodIndigo in Mumbai, the band members — Fame Sangma (24) on vocals, Tengsam (24) on bass and brothers’ Mikkimra (25) and Mark Shira (23) on guitar and drums, respectively — moved to Mumbai in 2017 to pursue a full-fledged career in music.
The band already has many awards in its kitty. In the last interview two years ago, the artistes had said they were self-taught and evolved as musicians over time. And indeed they have bloomed in the music world since the time four youngsters shook hands for the BattleRock challenge in 2013.
Fame The Band has recently released its much-awaited album and a music video. The young musicians recorded their first full length album called Nouns back in 2017. But the music video Don’t Save Me from the album was shelved due to delay in production.
The band will release another music video, also from the album, in a few months. Currently, the members are working on their EP (extended play). When asked about their favourite song, Fame replied on behalf of the other members, “There is no particular song that we think is the best. I think every song that we have written is the best that we could have written at the time.”
The band members are reluctant about their “alternative/pop rock” identity and said they perform what comes to them naturally. “Artistes have to stay relevant to the time and time changes fast… people who truly love music will appreciate any form of good music,” said Tengsam, who is a trained audio engineer.
Fame, who is a good writer and painter, admitted that survival in the competitive music world is a challenge for Indian bands. “The brighter side of the challenge is that we are doing what we love to do most,” she added.
“If music had not happened, then we would have been living separate lives. But it is music that unites us and so far we have not thought much about other things in life,” said Mark, who has a knack for fashion designing and describes himself as a romantic person, when asked about life beyond music.
Mikkimra is a Liverpool fan. When he is not strumming the guitar, he is busy playing retro games or lazing around or pondering over the philosophy of life. But when it comes to music, Mikkimra is as decided and focused as his friends.
“We have learned from our mistakes over the years and improved ourselves and are still trying to do better than what we are today. We have a plan for the band and certain goals to achieve. We hope that our goals are accomplished,” said the guitarist.
The young achievers have a few words of advice for the new comers. “Practise hard and be focused. Do not take criticism to heart. Go on and be stubborn at the right time. Listen to the right people. The difficult part is choosing the right people and the right time for everything. Anyone can get better at anything. It just requires a little bit of patience,” said the band members.
The Fame members also want their fans and other music lovers in the state to support local bands and talents. “It gives artistes like us an extra drive to do better,” they said.
Photo courtesy: #FameTheBand