THE ELECTRYFYING BROTHER DUO
By Heshan Perera
The two brothers, Gehan Kaushal and Hassy Vinod were both members of the Eastern music senior choir in their respective schools for about five years. Throughout that time they were able to enhance their skills in playing the piano. So these lead them to get into the field of music. They both schooled in Kandy. Gehan studied at St Anthony’s College Katugasthota and Hassy at Ranabima Royal College Peradeniya. They mainly produce in-House and Electro-House genres but they have influences in all EDM (Electronic Dance Music) genres as well. They received the 8th place in the world remix competition for R3hab & Nervo & Ummet Ozcan – Revolution that had over 800 submissions from all around the world.
USLanka: Who are your favorite artists/bands/Inspirations? And for what reason are they your favorites?
There are a number of artists and bands which have been an inspiration to us but from all those there are some outstanding figures to mention here; the legendary duo from France, Daft Punk, Armin van Buuren, Axwell, Steve Angello and the current world’s number one DJ- Hardwell. They are our favorites simply because they do great music and their creations vary in a wide range.
USLanka: What is Music to you guys? How does it make an impact in your lives?
For us music is, quite simply put-the very air we breathe. We believe that music can enhance one’s self-esteem and it can complete a person in many different ways. In addition to that it is considered to be the universal language to communicate from one end to the other. So basically for us, there is no life if there is no music.
USLanka: What are the songs you guys have released so far and any songs or albums to be released in the future/New projects?
We kicked things off with our three songs EP released in last January containing “I’m Alive” featuring Dineshi, “Taprobana” and “Assassin”. We believe that this is the first ever House/Electro EP released by a Sri Lankan. After that we came up with an Electro House summer single called “Samantha”. Recently we released two remixes, which had a lot of positive feedbacks and comments from people all around the world (R3hab & Nervo & Ummet Ozcan – Revolution and 3LAU – How You Love Me Feat. Bright Lights). And we were lucky enough to get singed in to a UK based record label named RoundOne Records which was a dream to us. Under that, we released a track called “Horizon”, collaboration with a Serbian EDM artist, “NEBB”. The track is available on iTunes, Beatport.com and Soundcloud. Also we are planning to release couple of Sinhala tracks featuring some popular local artists as well.
They believe that Electronic Dance Music is the future of music industry and recently it’s been taking over the world with its commercial dominance. Now what if two locals step out and try to come up with something that would be equal to what people have been listening from mainstream electronic dance music producers? They think that particular feeling inspired their fans to support and follow them, having faith in that they would also be able to produce quality music equal to international standards. A Few of their songs aired in local radio stations. Via social media networks such as Facebook and Soundcloud, they gathered a dedicated following composed of both international and local fans. In the wake of the positive feedback and comments coming in from their fan base, this has motivated them to up their ante and create better music.
USLanka: What are your future plans in music?
The first thing is to produce better and quality music which is up to international standards. The next step is, to build our fan base and get recognized worldwide.
USLanka: If you guys won $20 million in the lottery, what would you do with the money?
Wow! That’s a lot of money. Obviously we would be turning our bedroom studio into a professional one with high-end equipment then and of course a world tour including Tomorrowland in Belgium and the Ultra Music Festival in Miami. Meanwhile not forgetting to save a reasonable amount of money for the needed because we believe that, we get what we give.
USLanka: Do you guys have any mottos or anything that defines yourself?
“Don’t stop believing and work towards your dreams!”
USLanka: What’s the magic formula behind the success of the two of you?
Hard work and dedication, through endless sleepless nights.
USLanka: What do you guys like to watch on TV?
We love Comedy Central.
USLanka: If someone wrote a biography about you two, what do you guys think the title should be?
“THE ELECTRIFING BROTHER DUO”
USLanka: As per your perceptions, what is the meaning of life?
Life has no meaning unless we create one; it’s just simply living your dreams.
USLanka: Can you guys talk about that one defining moment when you knew you wanted to be musicians?
Of course! How could we forget that? It was when we saw “Above and Beyond” for the first time live in a music festival in Colombo.
USLanka: What challenges have you guys had to face in your chosen career?
There’s not much support for the homegrown artists (mainly English) and no such popularity for EDM here in Sri Lanka. So it’s hard to reach out and to create a dedicated fan base on this specific genre at the moment. But we hope this will change in near future considering the growing popularity of EDM around the world.
USLanka: Do you guys have a favourite holiday spot?
One word..Singapore.
USLanka: What words of wisdom would you like to dispense to the young and aspiring artists out there?
Yes to the young aspiring artists we would say “do small things with great courage; believe in your talents”.
USLanka: Any message you guys would want to convey to your fans and for your supporters?
To our fans we would say “thank you for your love and continues support”. Special thanks goes to our lovely parents for the magnificent support for they are our backbone. Also we would like thank these wonderful people: Yazmin Yousuf, Sasith Gamage, Gihan Senevirathne, Pasan Liyanage and Lalindra Chandrasiri.
