Evergreen is another rock band from the land of Avial and Motherjane and from the quality of their music it looks like they may have come to stay too. The green and fertile strip of coastland on the Indian subcontinent facing the Arabian sea may not be the rock destination of India but many of the bands from Kerala have swayed the masses. Evergreen is going to do that too.
Unlike every other new hard rock and metal act in the country taking to "Death Metal" these days, Evergreen's debut album "Beyond and Between" exudes rock and it gets better the more you listen. I don't see any rush here on the album to play blistering solo's, riffs, and thundering grooves. Instead the band takes it easy with some lovely ballads such as "Epilogue" and an acoustic number too. There are faster numbers but they don't wear you down like those "Death Metal" growls of other metal and hard rock acts burgeoning in India.
The album opens with the hard-rocker "Vengeance" clearly showcasing what the band is worth. "Vengeance", the fastest and hardest song on the album distinctly shows the band's musical tastes in the heavy sounds of the 80's, from bands like Whitesnake and Deep Purple. Saji Antony's keyboards on "Vengeance" and later on "Sublime" definitely proves this.
"From here to clarity" is mellower when compared to the opener but I was happy it wasn't another head-banger. Then comes "Altar of dreams" that begins slow but gradually moves to a faster number and it features some nice guitar work by Sunil Silvester, the band's guitarist. I don't know why an acoustic version of this song was included though it does sound good too. Evergreen could have added a new song instead. I must also mention Jagan George whose vocals are noteworthy, steering each song. His voice reminds me so much of another singer but I am not able to nail it right now.
You also get a feeling of the sounds of the 80's bands such as Journey, Toto, Europe and The Scorpions. "The Calling", "Run to the light" and "Sublime" reflect this.
"Epilogue" is a nice concluder where you'll hear only vocals and keyboards. The first time I heard this song, I couldn't help playing it twice.
Other personnel in the band are Arun and Suraj who provide all the needed bass and percussion support.
The album and ringtones are available for free download at
www.gimmesound.com/evergreen. and you can catch the band at
www.evergreenrocks.com where you can listen to the audio songs with better clarity and also watch some of the band's videos.
How much of their sound is going to be accepted by this generation is the question. Evergreen has a long way to go and much to learn to add novelty and variety to their music to keep their fanbase interested, but they do have the potential. Their album is cetainly worth more listens than one.
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