‘I want to get the soul back into music’

Musician Lesle Lewis is back with some interesting new sounds. This time around, he wants to bring a little ‘soul’ into music with his new band...

What have you been up to since Colonial Cousins?
Lots of stuff! To start, I’ve done the music for a few Tamil movies. I have also been composing jingles for TV and judging reality shows too. I am currently in the process of working on some new Bollywood movies and have just returned from the Andaman Islands, where I debuted my own very funky new show: Lesle Lewis — fashion unplugged.

So what’s your band all about?
My new band is aimed at getting the soul back into music. The sound of this band is rock combined with Latin-salsa mixed with Bollywood, very much like R.D. Burman—meets Santana—meets Lesle Lewis, with a little bit of blues, Jimi Hendrix and Marathi rock thrown in for good measure. The sound leans towards rock, but I know that people from all age groups will identify with my music.

Why do this now?
The changing musical trend of young India is very much the sound I relate to, since movies like Rock On and Wake Up Sid have been such big hits, it is obvious that India is ready for my style of music.

Is Bollywood on your agenda? What according to you, does it lack?
I would definitely like to do music for Bollywood. I think there are many good composers and many good songs too, but what I feel lacking most, today, is the soul in the music. Hopefully I will be able bring that quality back soon.

How does culture influence you?
I am an avid traveller and always keep my ears open for new sounds when I travel. I am very open to other cultures and so am able to incorporate the best of their sounds in my music.