New EP Half Light now available through CD Baby.com
“Mahavira pull off the big, loud rock sound with absolute ease and manage to feel individual and not totally derivative” – God is in the TV
“an awful lot of twisting interplay. Jangly guitars, glissando guitars, well-played guitars all make their powerful presence felt” – The Dreaded Press
“I like the musical ambition”– Steve C-Sonic (Asian Dub Foundation)
“Love it, love it, love it”– Bobby Friction (BBC Asian Network)
Biography
Since 2007, Mahavira has established itself as one of London’s up-and-coming bands to keep an eye on. Few other groups can so accessibly piece together the complicated grooves, soaring melodies and darkly twisted tones that make up Mahavira’s repertoire.
Though all men hail from different points, the three core members of Mahavira – Ed Parker of England, Jay Matharu of Ireland and Zoltan Toth of Hungary – share a common background that informs their new brand of hard rock. Each spent his formative musical years exploring the experimental sounds of the likes of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, King Crimson. Later, the burgeoning grunge rock scene would give each a new direction in which to branch out.
For lead singer Parker, it would be Jeff Buckley, Robert Plant and Chris Cornell of Soundgarden fame that would hold the biggest influence. Throughout his years at university, Parker sang with Cardiff blues band “Yellow Food Fobia”, but always harkened back to these legendary singers while honing his unique vocal abilities. In Mahavira, Parker is able to add to this vocal legacy by creating his own fiercely beautiful melodies.
Matharu, the musical engine of the group, graduated from London’s Guitar Institute where he learned to channel his considerable creative and technical talents into stylistically nuanced performances of his own sonic creations. From drum and bass to progressive metal, from shock rock to pop, Matharu has been a staple of the London music scene from the day he arrived, playing with a wide variety of projects. Now at the helm of his own musical ship, his song-writing prowess and incomparable guitar skills are on full display.
More recent on the London scene is bassist Toth, a Hungarian ex-pat with decades of experience. The grizzled, Morphine-esque tone Toth elicits from his rig is the result of an earlier decision to keep everything fretless. A music school graduate himself, Toth’s solidly punchy bass lines are a perfect low-end compliment to Matharu’s own intricate lines.
Together, the sound wrought by Mahavira is a powerful combination of each man’s talents. The complicated, interweaving instrumentals are tied together by Parker’s evocative lyrics – sometimes with a haunting peacefulness, sometimes with an explosive aggression that leaves the listener little choice but to shout along.
Though originally billed as a fusion blend of heavy rock and classical Indian music (thanks to the Asian heritage of Matharu and original bassist Raj Heer, who gave the band its name), Mahavira – a “Great Hero” in South and Central Asian mythology – shed the last vestiges of its world roots after a personnel shakeup in 2008. Now featuring its core members, along with a revolving cast of drummers, Mahavira is more Alice In Chains than Indian Raga.
Mahavira has enjoyed regular airplay on the BBC Asian Network’s Friction show, and can usually be found at one of a handful of London’s top rock and metal clubs - you just have to know where to look.
Hi there, Is Jay already in Sweden? Haven't heard of you guys in a while. We just finished recording 4 tracks in a studio and will add some live performances to our upcoming cd.
I was wondering if the gig in London with us is still going to happen because we are really looking forward to it. So please let me know.
There's a review of 'Half Light' in the new issue of Black Velvet - issue 64 with You Me At Six on the cover.
Check it out. More info is at www.blackvelvetmagazine.com
Order copies from an online store if it's not available in a shop near you. Support the stores! So they can support us, and then we can keep writing about you!
Just wanted to let you know we currently have 2 tracks up for free download (one live recording) from our myspace if you're interested. We will be rotating the 2 free tracks every couple of weeks just to find out which tunes you guys like the most, so feel free to let us know what you think. You can also check out our latest live acoustic session on Balcony TV below. Hope all's well! Cheers, Dave.
Hey Jay i won't make it on the 19th as we've got a gig on the very same day..we have a gig on the 24th of feb though in Old st.if you are not busy.. Peace Robbie 12
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Brazilian rhythms and the Portuguese language added to the songs makes £leTriKa style unique, giving birth to a new kind of Metal. If you are really looking for something new about Metal, you should check £leTriKa out!
Hugs from Brazil, Claudio David
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Valeu demais a força! Quando rolaumtempinho, me fala o que achou da £leTriKa. Agente junta Metal com umasparada Brasileira. Tamutendumbom feed nas rádios gringas nos quatrocontos. Mantenha contato, blz?
we have a gig on the 24th of feb though in Old 
