New York based Nepali Hardcore band Sangharsha have just completed their new full length and are gearing up for its release. Formed in 2010 the band has released 2 EPs, a split with Jugga and a compilation album featuring Hardcore and Metal bands from Nepal and Pakistan titled Ghalazat MMXIII. The band started with a straight forward fast hardcore sound and later shifted to a heavier and darker sound incorporating sludge and doom elements. Though they're from New York, Sangharsha has made a permanent spot in Nepal's Punk and Hardcore scene.
We recently had a chance to interview Kshitiz Moktan, guitarist/songwriter, to talk about the band, their new record and more. Read it below
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| Sangharsha w/ Kurt Ballou at GodCity Studios |
Before we get started,could you please state your name and role in the band
Hello to all, my name is Kshitiz Moktan, and I am the chief songwriter and guitarist of the band Sangharsha.
Tell us a bit about your band's history, what influenced all of you to start a hardcore band?
Sangharsha basically formed out of my need to realize the inner-self in me. life and the different perspectives of our need to live that life is the sole influence behind me creating Sangharsha. This is the passage through which we have begun this journey to attain as they say inner peace.
Most of your songs are heavy except one of your recent release "Nekita" which has a more emotional approach, similar to bands like Defeater or Touche Amore. Can we expect more songs like Nekita in your new album?
I think every song that I have created is a reflection of the time and period which I was in that moment. I wrote Nekita in my basement in around the fall of 2011 when this lone tree in front of my house began shedding its skin, the color of the leaves changed, they fell to the ground, the birds stopped playing in the tree, from green to dark brown the tree started looking pale. But at the end of it, when the snow started to fall in winter it started looking more beautiful than it was ever before, the snow and the dew in the morning gave it a real different outlook. To me that reflected towards how sometimes we have to go deep within the ugliness in us to find the real beauty in us. Thus Nekita sounds more emotional than all the other tracks in that record which is why you were associating those bands along with it. But to your point the new record is totally different from Nekita.
You recently finished recording your new full length at GodCity Studios. How was it like working with Kurt Ballou who has worked with bands like Integrity, Modern Life Is War and Heave Heart?
Let me start with this, Humbleness has a meaning and I think Kurt defines that and he is the single most humble guy we have ever met in our life. The name certainly presented some jitters and tension when we met him the first day, but right after stepping into his control room, the whole environment changed and it was a life changing experience for us for the whole 7 days we were in the studio. There is a certain level of easiness, welcoming, positivity and professionalism that Kurt represents which makes recording in his studio an experience of a lifetime and it truly helps a band become who they want to be sonically as well as technically. There are no words that will help to define the total experience…… Let's just say we will record every record we write in the future with him……
What were the influences while writing the album?
The greatest influence while writing this album though was the struggle to complete the record due to the various elements that nature gave us while writing and recording it . The winter storm brought us snow, hail, freezing temperature, rain, slippery roads, fogs that made visibility 0 while driving etc. From the beginning of the record to the end of it you will feel that there is a certain panic and distress in it. I think it retains the struggle within us to overcome no matter what happens in our life to keep pushing ourselves to do more and become more of who we are and who we want to become in life.
What can fans expect from the new album and when can they get their hands on it?
We do not have fans, all we have is our family and friends that support us and relate to our music and I certainly hope the new album will help to connect to us in a more defined way. We are in the process of putting it out pretty soon, so anyone who wants it, can contact us at our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/shoutatsangharsa?ref=hl, we will put you in the list to send it for free.
Do you have any plans to head back to nepal for a show?
Nope, we are just happy where we are and where we stand.
Other than your own album, what releases are you looking forward to this year?
There is a new band from Tennessee called YAHUTJA( Neurosis meets Grind meets Math), their new LP which is coming in the mail pretty soon that I am personally excited about currently(seeing them Sunday as well) the new TRAP THEM record should be awesome and also some new material from a band called UNMOTHERED (Austin,TX)- check them out, it is sort of a haunt-rock sound that they play.
Thanks a lot for talking to us, anything else you'd like to add before we finish the interview?
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to provide my insights into pretty useless things in life, but to finish it up I will always say try to be who you are and what you are…..
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