Getting Sentimental with Philomela
Philomela is a Boston-based Bengali band known for their original compositions about shared sentiments. On October 8th, the group’s coming to atac for a 100% free show; their first live gig in some time. RSVP today and get ready for one of the area’s best acts.
atac: Hey Ayon. Tell us a bit about the band. Who are you?
Ayon Basumallik: Our band, Philomela (Facebook), is Sharanya, Debadeep, Koushik, Shantanu and me (Ayon). We have all lived in the US for quite a while now—over two decades for most of us. We all grew up in India and came here either for grad school or as part of our jobs. In the Greater Boston area, we have known each other for a while socially and have performed together in various community events since 2008.
We typically ended up performing a mixed fare of existing Indian music - folk, semi-classical, old Bollywood and the songs of Rabindranath Tagore. Eventually, we realized that we had our own stories to tell - our own songs about shared sentiments. So we began composing our own songs and became a band around 2015.
atac: So when did you start playing out?
AB: We had our first show in Framingham at Keefe Tech in 2018 where we played our first set of original compositions. We recorded and released our album in 2019. And then the pandemic hit in 2020. For more than a year, we were unable to get together in person but we continued to work on new ideas. The last two years, we have been back together in person and we have a host of new originals we want to share.
atac: What are some of your earliest memories of music being a part of your life?
AB: All of us grew up with a lot of music in our homes. Personally, both my parents had a broad taste in music. A Philips record player (an old Hi-Q model) played all the time at home —traditional Bengali music interspersed with Beatles and Belafonte. A 45 rpm EP record of the Muppets’ Halfway Down the Stairs and an LP of Indian instrumentals by V. Balsara were personal favorites. My mother, a trained singer who always sings being truly lost in the music, got me to really enjoy and feel music.
atac: When did things move from just listening to performing?
AB: I didn’t enjoy the sound of my own voice all that much and never wanted to learn singing. At some point, I discovered I could play the harmonica. I did take violin lessons for about 4 years starting when I was thirteen. It was really in college that I picked up again and in grad school that I really got into it. I picked up the guitar and piano mostly by watching YouTube lessons and Scott The Piano Guy on PBS. My wife and kids are an inspiration and I couldn’t really be composing and experimenting musically without their support.
atac: Tell us an awesome story about the music scene back home.
AB: This was a while back, maybe in 1993 or 1994 in my hometown of Kolkata, India. Kolkata always had a vibrant musical scene and at that time, there was a lot of buzz around “Jibonmukhi” (life-focussed) music. It was a departure from classical and outdated norms. The songs were about everyday life and everyday people. A pioneer of this new style was a singer named Suman Chatterjee. I loved his songs and went to attend his show as part of a Festival of Contemporary music. It was almost a three hour set but he just sang *one* of his own songs!
The stage had a keyboard and drum machine setup on one side and a nylon-string acoustic guitar on the other side. He moved seamlessly from one to the other, with his own renditions of contemporary songs from the last three decades. Many of those songs were familiar—but the renditions just opened new doors from me. It was mesmerizing, I remember being actually unable/unwilling to speak for a full hour afterwards, just wanting that feeling to linger.
atac: I hear you’re a blues fan, too?
AB: Yes, there was a B.B King concert that I was lucky enough to attend in 2006. Well, that is a story for another day but Lucille really spoke to me. A man, a guitar and the blues … you need nothing more.
atac: The band seems to be pretty hard-working. Got any tips for new acts?
AB: Do it for yourself, first and foremost. If you can really enjoy just the process of creating something…of watching ideas take form when you are alone by yourself, you will be happier and make others around you happy too.
atac: DIY is fun for sure, but also a lot to take on. Any examples of a time things went wrong; when a set didn’t pan out? How do you work through it?
AB: I remember our band was in Kolkata in 2019. We were releasing our album there and hosting a concert. In the concert, we were playing the title song Bondhu (Friend) of the album where I also do rhythm guitars and backing vocals. After the first verse, I am supposed to play an interlude on the Ocarina. Half-way through the first verse, I realize that I left the Ocarina on the piano, which is halfway across the rather large stage.
atac: Doesn’t seem like a good place for the Ocarina to be…
AB: About eight bars away from the start of the interlude, I start on an improvised waltz across the stage while strumming rhythms. Four bars more and I manage to reach the ocarina nestled on the piano keyboard. I let a power chord ring out while I pick it up. About half a bar to go and I manage to quick-step back to the microphone, barely catching my breath as I breathe out the first few notes on the Ocarina. All’s well that ends well I guess (and the audience thought it was part of a choreographed sequence!) but certainly learned my lesson. Check your pockets regularly for keys, wallet and phone offstage; for picks, harmonicas and ocarinas on-stage!
atac: So this show on October 8th—it’s free, open to the public. Old friends and new fans are welcome; what can everyone expect?
AB: We’ll play our old favorites like Durga, Bondhuchaya (shadow friend) and Rangamaati (Red Earth). We will also debut new songs - Shekor (Roots), Dadur Dokan (The Corner Store), Swapno (Dream) and a few more. They touch on some themes we have visited in the past—nostalgia, love, inspirations. With the new songs, we explore new topics and experiment with more musical genres. Indian folk, classical, western rock and blues influences have always been part of our soundscape. In the new songs, we use viennese and jazz waltzes and some true-blue-headbanging rock too. atac provides a very intimate setting where we are looking forward to reconnecting with our audience in person!
atac: Well, we can’t wait, Ayon. See you there!
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Philomela performs a free show on Sunday afternoon, October 8th. RSVP here—this band is seriously great, and you won’t want to miss.
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