Neil and The New Vibration soar with rhumba
When they play live, the audience is always thrilled by the novelty of a mzungu, Neil Nayar, who sings and speaks in Chichewa and plays live music alongside Malawian band members trading under the banner Neil and The New Vibration.
The group dishes out different genres from kwasa kwasa to country music.
Neil and The New Vibration comprises Nayar, who does the lead vocals, plays the rhythm guitar on an acoustic and writes the songs, Blessings Nkhoma on lead guitar, Rosha Vole on the bass and Edson Msendera on drums.
Vole and Msendera, who have been with Nayar for two years, have also been playing together at Konkalazi Band. The Lilongwe Area 23 band also has a female face in Christine Msuseni who sings backing vocals.
Asked about the secret behind Neil and The New Vibration, which is fast becoming a household name especially in Lilongwe, manager Nayar said:
“We practice the songs to be tight and well arranged. We work very hard to create a sound that holds a country feel, with a strong rumba/African elementand a lot of traditional Malawian influence too. I guess one unique point is that the songs are composed for listening before dancing,” said Nayar.
He, however, said the group did not do much last year due to a number of undisclosed factors affecting band members.
“I’m hoping 2016 will be great because we are planning to play all over Malawi. And also visit some other countries in Southern Africa. The aim is to take us to the next level so that when we release our next album it will not be four stars, but five. I’m also planning to stay in Malawi for a long term and want to make this band a force to be reckoned with,”said Nayar. n
