The Easy Wanderlings have always had a fluid structure and right from the very beginning they’ve given their music more importance than the people who make it. They’ve had musicians come in, make music, stay for however long they can and the carry on to live a different adventure. They are a scattered bunch so their lineup keeps changing. The current one has Sanyanth [co-founder] on the guitar, Sharad on the electric guitar, Malay [the other founder] on bass, Pratika on vocals, Nitin on the keyboard Siya on the flute, Shardul on the violin and lastly, Abraham as the percussionist.
Their tracks are soulful, dreamy, soft, warm and all the other feelings that resonate with that. ‘We all get into that mood after a long day’s work, or a lazy Sunday gazing through the window, or a feeling when you look-back into good ole memories or when you go on midnight strolls. That is what we do and create,’ explains Sanyanth. The Wanderlings go across genres, ‘But our music is constantly evolving, especially with the coming and going of new wanderlings,’ he adds. ‘Most of us have been influenced by soul, folk and funk music from 60s till about 80s. Modern influences are artists like Leon Bridges, Kings of Convenience, John Mayer and Michael Kiwanuka. For the most part our sound is easy on the ear and something to lay back, reflect and lose yourself.’
They’ve managed to grow fairly fast in the last three years of their existence. From small, intimate gigs at cafes to the biggest music festivals like NH7 Weekender and Vh1 Supersonic. It’s amazing to read their story considering the first time they recorded music was in a make-shift recording studio with similar instruments. ‘So, we didn’t have money to record at a studio but we had two couches that we could turn into igloos at midnight and when the area became quiet, we began recording. The four songs we first released on soundcloud were recorded inside that hot claustrophobic den. We made sure got the best sound quality with what resources we had. We borrowed instruments from friends while recording and even for live shows. A friend and fan, Matt, that time a teacher at a school in Pune had all sorts of fancy guitars he’d let us borrow and eventually got us our first acoustic guitar.’
Thankfully, they managed to crowdfund their debut album eventually. It’s called Written in the Stars and was rated as one of the top ten indie albums by Red Bull and Music Aloud, Beehype Magazine and A Humming Heart. The Wanderlings are now planning a musical road trip (Dec – Feb) all across south India in their ‘wander-wagon’, traveling over 4000 kms, 30 cities, a whole lot of performances and collaborations with artists along the way. ‘We might release a single later this year, but no promises,’ the frontman adds.
Text Hansika Lohani Mehtani