“The band is not just about Madonna [Sebastian] or me. Everafter is not about one person, it is the culmination of a dream of six passionate musicians.”
Composer Roby Abraham is very clear about what he wants to be written about their band, Everafter, which created a flutter on social media when the music video of their single, ‘Veruthe’ was released early this year. The band is set to go live by the end of this month in Kochi. In addition to Roby and Madonna, the band has John Thomas, Rex George, Ashwin Aryan and Joel Varghese.
The excitement is palpable in the voices of Roby and Madonna when we catch up with them over the phone. “Everafter wasn’t born overnight,” says Roby, who has impressed music buffs with his tracks in Theevram, Friday, You Too Brutus and Rasputin .
“I always wanted to form a band or be in a band. For me, a band is all about the right people coming together at the right time. The members are bound together not just by my music, but by their personalities as well. In fact, finding the right combination is a matter of luck. Fortunately, we have got the right blend in Everafter,” says Roby.
Roby and Ashwin, the guitarist and one of the vocalists of Everafter, first struck a chord. The next addition was Madonna, who sang for Roby in You Too Brutus .
“The three of us did a session for Music Mojo on Kappa TV and had almost decided to form a three-piece band. That was exactly when the independent music scene in Kerala got a new flavour. There was a never-before-seen acceptance for bands. Soon, we ended up having two more like-minded musicians – John, our drummer, a founding member of Motherjane, and Rex, our keyboardist. By the time we were ready for a new season of Music Mojo , we found Joel, a real talent on the bass guitar,” Roby says.
They came up with 12 songs for Music Mojo , all originals, all of which the band will perform at the launch.
While most of the songs have a rock soundscape, there have some melodies in their kitty as well.
“We have Malayalam and English songs. For those of you who have enjoyed our video, ‘Veruthe’, I would like to say that please don’t make it a reference point for the band. There will be a new ambience, new flavour for the songs when we go live,” says Madonna, who became quite a sensation with Premam .
Speaking from Hyderabad where she is currently shooting for the Telugu remake of the movie, Madonna says that she rehearses with the band whenever it is possible.
“I want to act as well as sing. After I’m done with the film, I want to concentrate on music,” she adds.
In fact, the musicians often schedule rehearsals in such a way that Madonna can also be a part of it.
“For any band, the orchestra should be tight and even if she is not there, we work on that area. We are aware of the curiosity when a celebrity is part of a band. We are amused by enquiries and bookings for the band that focus on Madonna. They are under the impression that we will sing songs from Premam!” Roby says.
Besides the 12 songs, the band will sing Roby’s composition from Theevram , ‘Ee pakal ariyate’, cover version of the song ‘Maaleyam’ from Thacholi Varghese Chekavar and a tribute to Coldplay at the launch. “We are also planning to feature other singers at the live gigs,” Madonna adds.
For example, singer Arun Alat will be performing with the band at the launch. The band is also planning to bring out a video of one of their songs.
For the time being, they are rehearsing hard for the big day.
“There is no promise that we are going to be an overnight sensation. We have long-term plans and have confidence in our original compositions,” Roby signs off.
The group
The members are Madonna Sebastian (vocals), Roby Abraham (guitars and vocals), Ashwin Aryan (guitars and vocals), John Thomas (drums), Rex George (keyboard) and Joel Varghese (bass guitar). Vineeth Jay is the additional sound designer. The Malayalam songs are written by Manu Manjith, Rafeeq Ahamed, Joe Paul and Arun Narayanan, while English lyrics are by the band members and Neelima Aryan.
