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Crossover culture at its best

Motimba, Lokkhi Terra in town

Nusrat Jahan Pritom
Two UK based bands -- Motimba and Lokkhi Terra -- are right here in the heart of Bangladesh, bringing with them the rich diversity of London, a city where cultures mingle and new genres are born.
Motimba, formed around 1998, is an Afro-Cuban Funk Jazz band and Lokkhi Terra's style can be labelled 'fusion'. Featuring musicians from Europe, Cuba and South Asia, both bands are led by the jazz bassist and keyboardist, Kishon Khan.
"This is the first time I'm bringing any of my projects to Bangladesh," said Khan. "The way 1 really discovered music was when one day 1 saw a blind flutist. He took me to his hood' and that's where I was introduced to ethnic music. I've been involved with music since the age of four by the way."
"Motimba and Lokkhi Terra comprise almost the same group of musicians. Of course, we have many renowned guest artists who have and continue to create beautiful music with us, such as Pandit Dinesh and Fazal Qureshi. But mostly it's JustinThurgur, Oreste Noda Fernandez and others. In Lokkhi Terra there are Jimmy Martinez, Graeme Flowers, Robin Banerjee, Tansay Ibrahim, Sohini Alam, Mithun Chakraborti and Aneire Ehmar Khan. In Motimba, there's Javier as well.
“The bands differ in style. Though there are certain similarities, as both are cross-cultural, Motimba highlights the Afro-Cuban jazz where as Lokkhi Terra fuses Bangla folk music with Latin beats. I'd say they usually run parallel to one another," Khan said.
During his visit to Bangladesh in the early 90s, Kishon Khan spent most of his time in the slums, making friends at the grassroots level, understanding the local music and culture. He would travel with bauls, trying to grasp their philosophy, the ultimate result of which is Lokkhi Terra.
Motimba will be releasing a new single next February and an album by next April. Lokkhi Terra is currently promoting its new album "No Visa Required".
Justin told The Daily Star how he got introduced to the band: "Kishon Khan was running a jam session where his was the house band. I went for around a month, and once I got a taste of Cuban music and delved deeper into it, I found the energy to be awesome.”
“When I started, I understood music theoretically but now I can feel it as well. We do a lot of writing together and I love Latin, African, Bangla, Jazz and Funk -- this varied interest can be observed in our music. You can say these two bands are rather a family of musicians,” Justin added.
Noda shared his experiences: “In 2003, I went to see some Cuban musicians playing in London. Kishon Khan was also playing there. When I saw him I wondered what part of Cuba is he from? We were introduced. I had conga at home, and he invited me to his, and we started jamming together.
• "Cuban music to me is inherent. If you can incorporate the infiuences of all the cultures, then you got something magical."
He added that being in Bangladesh for the first time is a fantastic experience. "They are all alike here, unlike London which has people from all over the world.”
Javier, who is also here for the first time, said, “Being here is like being back home. The greenery, the mosquitoes -- all the same!” Javier has been studying music for over 15 years.
Aneire, who has been with Lokkhi Terra for , over two years, said, "At first I couldn’t imagine a tie between Latin and Bangla music, but once we got going, I saw many similarities - the nuances, the sensibilities... We performed at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Ronnie Scott's, etc and have found a range of audience. Their reactions and responses have encouraged us immensely!"
Motimba is performing at Radisson Water Garden Hotel today. Lokkhi Terra will be performing on November 5, 6 and 7 at International Club, Gulshan Club and Drik Gallery respectively.