| Motherjane | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Kochi, Kerala, India |
| Genres | Rock, Progressive Rock, World Music |
| Years active | 1996-Present |
| Labels | Aum-i Artistes |
| Website | Official Website |
| Members | |
| John Thomas Clyde Rozario Deepu Sasidharan Santosh Chandran |
|
| Past members | |
| Suraj Mani Baiju Dharmajan Rex Vijayan Laji Biju Peter R.Mithun Deepak Dev |
|
Motherjane is an Indian rock band from Kochi, India, formed in 1996. The band consists of John Thomas (drums and percussion), Clyde Rozario (bass guitar), Deepu Sasidharan (guitar and backing vocals) and Santosh Chandran (guitar). They have released a total of two studio albums, and three singles. Since their formation, different styles like progressive rock and Carnatic music have influenced their music.
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Motherjane was formed in 1996 by drummer John Thomas and bassist Clyde Rozario to "fill in" for another band which had backed out from a college festival at St. Albert's College, Kochi. The initial line up consisted of John Thomas (drums), Clyde Rozario (bass), Mithun (guitars) and Laji (vocals).[1] Vocalist Laji soon left the band and Motherjane had to continue as an instrumental band without a vocalist. In 1999 lead guitarist Mithun left the band and was replaced by Baiju Dharmajan.[1] Around that time, Motherjane used to play at a restaurant called Ancient Mariner in Marine Drive, Kochi. In 2000, Suraj Mani a HVAC engineer by training,[2] who used to perform with Bangalore based rock bands, shifted to Kochi and chanced to meet the band at the Ancient Mariner. Thomas invited Mani to sing with the band, but Mani was not satisfied with the band only doing covers. Mani became the bands vocalist and wrote Motherjane's first original song "Disillusioned" soon after. About the same time, Motherjane recruited yet another guitarist, Rex Vijayan. Things took a slight detour after six months, when Mani moved back to Bangalore, but they continued to meet and jam as a band.[3]
Motherjane released their debut album, Insane Biography in 2002 under Kan & Will Records.[4] The songs "Maya" and "Soul Corporations" had strong Indian musical elements which would continue in later albums. "Soul Corporations" was featured in Geki-Teki Metal, a compilation album released in Japan in 2004.[3] Soon after the release of Insane Biography, rhythm guitarist Rex Vijayan left the band in 2003, and was replaced by Deepu Sasidharan. Sasidharan, at that time, was playing with the Kochi based Hard Rock band 13AD. Insane Biography was the only Indian album to be featured in the Asian Rock Rising Festival in Japan on November 1, 2003. The band also headlined Levi’s Great Indian Rock 2003.[5]
Maktub which was released in 2008, marked a change in Motherjane's musical style. Influence of Carnatic music was prominently seen in the guitar, vocals and percussion, and native instruments like the chenda were used. Strong Carnatic guitar leads by Baiju were instrumental in growing Motherjane's fanbase exponentially and provided a new musical direction to the band. In 2009, Rolling Stone India named Maktub as the album of the year.[6]
In 2008, Motherjane opened for Megadeth and Machine Head in Rock in India 2008, Bangalore and for Opeth in Saarang '08 at IIT Madras.[3][7] Motherjane has been a frequent headliner of college rock festivals across India and has performed at IIT Kanpur,[8] IIT Madras,[9] IIT Bombay,[10] IIT Delhi,[11] IIT Guwahati,[12] AIIMS[13], VIT University and BITS Pilani[14] amongst several others.
Motherjane was ranked #1 in Rock Street Journal's bands of the decade in 2010.[15] In the 2010 AVIMA Awards, Motherjane won the award for the Most Popular Act of Asia, and lead vocalist Suraj Mani was awarded Best Rock Vocalist.[16] In the 2009 AVIMA Awards, Motherjane was awarded the Best Rock Act.[17]
In November 2010, Motherjane on their website announced guitarist Baiju Dharmajan's departure from the band to work with his new band Wrenz United. Later, in January 2011 Motherjane announced that Santosh Chandran has joined the band as the new guitarist.
Motherjane's new album, tentatively titled 'Graffiti Without Walls', is expected to be released by the end of the year 2011.
