It is not strange to see a popular Nepali singer take the stage with a backing track, and without a band. Then there are other young singers who, accompanied by a single acoustic guitar and a loop station, perform for the audience, eliminating the need for musicians to back them up. As lucrative as this may be for individual singers, the audience may then miss out on power-packed performance of a real band onstage. Musicians will suffer. But who cares so long as the singers are making money? A singer who does is Kengal Meher Shrestha, popularly known as “Kenny” among her friends and followers. A top contestant of the first Nepal Idol, Kengal became a household name through the reality show, thanks to her energetic stage performance and powerful vocals. Her claim to fame came from her ability to recreate unforgettable versions of famous Nepali songs in her live performances, and she sure was able to cash in on the popularity by travelling the world on concert tours with her fellow contestants.
But Kengal wants the world to know that doing covers on music tracks is not her thing. She now wants to continue something she had been doing before reality TV made her popular—be part of a band again. Thus the formation of Type III with former band members and close friends Carey Maharjan on drums, Sunny Raj Shrestha on guitars and Laxu Prajapati on bass.
“I was more into performing with a band ever since I started singing, and much before Nepal Idol happened. I used to perform with Carey, Sunny and other members,” Kengal says. “I know how hard we worked together to make good music in the initial days and there is always a sentimental attachment between the members. We are like a family.” Kengal, Sunny and Carey, all in their mid-20s, go back to 2011 when they were trying to enter the music scene and looking for like-minded musicians to collaborate.
The road to band-formation has not been easy for Kengal though. “My image as a solo singer definitely doesn’t help. It has been difficult to promote the band only by its name,” says Kengal, who doesn’t want to prefix the band with her name unlike many other popular singers. Being a part of a new act without using her already popular name is obviously a challenge.
Type III is working on its original music and is ready to hit the studios with a few singles
But despite the challenges of putting together musicians from different backgrounds, petty arguments, and managing time for compositions and rehearsals, Type III members believe sheer love of music and team spirit will pull them through. Type III is just a name, the members say, and they chose it because it had a nice ring to it. They define their music as alternative rock, highly influenced by the American female-fronted band Evanescence. Type III is working on its original music and is ready to hit the studios with a few singles and eventually an album. It is also performing live at every opportunity it gets and definitely wowing the audience.
Type III also featured in The Annapurna Express Music Fest on Feb 9 at Tangalwood, Kathmandu where the band impressed one and all with its heavy sounds and tight performance. There are still only a handful of female-fronted rock bands in the country. Therein lies great potential for Type III.
