Rhythm of Love: In conversation with Avora Records

Aizawl-based band Avora Records, the winner of Nagaland Hornbill International Rock Contest in 2017, has been making waves in the region’s music circuit. They have been winning top prizes in various contests when not performing simply for the task of it all. For instance, the Mizoram band was the winner of music events, the Sennheiser Top 50 season-3 besides the MZU Vibrio Rock Fest recently.
Eastern Mirror is thrilled to present Avora Records in today’s Rhythm Of Love as they take us through their musical journey and their love for Nagaland.

Eastern Mirror: For the record, could you guys introduce us and the role you play in Avora Records?
Avora Records: We have Stephen Hnamte on vocals, Ruata Renthlei and Khos Hmar on guitars, CK on bass and Sanga Ralte on drums.

Eastern Mirror: How did Avora Records come into reality? Talk us through your journey and the reason behind your band’s name.
Avora Records: We all became acquaintances through the Mizo music scene. We used to collaborate on different projects and quickly learned that we have good chemistry. We wrote songs together even before the band became official so it was only natural that we form a band. The name of the band though is a very sensitive subject for us…maybe we’ll tell you guys next time, but not today.

Eastern Mirror: How does the song writing process works for you? Do you have any influences?
Avora Records: Ruata first comes up with the guitar riff. We take that into the jam room to refine it and then work to come up with our individual parts using the riff as a foundation. Stephen’s our lyrical genius.

Eastern Mirror: To your credit, your band has taken top prizes in various contests. How hard has it been for Avora Records to be where you are at the moment?
Avora Records: Thank you! Yes… we are blessed and sometimes lucky I guess. 
We always try our best in every competition and even rent out jam pads twice a day sometimes. We’d take videos of our practice sessions and look back on where we can tweak and improve our music. We always pray together before every performance and have a strict rule of always staying sober every time we go onstage. I guess these little traditions really helped us get to where we are at right now.

Eastern Mirror: What was your winning streak at the Hornbill International Rock contest 2017? How did it change Avora Records musically and artistically?
Avora Records: We’ve entered three competitions namely The MZU Vibrio Rock Fest (Mizoram), Sennheiser Top 50 Season 3 and the Hornbill International Rock contest 2017 and luckily won all of them. These accomplishments can be a blessing as well as a curse.
We have to keep up with the hype that’s been surrounding us and this pressure can get really intense at times. However, It also helps us to be more professional in the way we put out music, deal with organisers and handle our social media presence.

Eastern Mirror: Having performed in Nagaland, what is your take on the music scenario of Nagaland?
Avora Records: To be honest, the scene in Nagaland is way ahead compared to the scene here in Mizoram. They loved our original and took us in as if we were one of them. We’d love to come back in Nagaland!

Eastern Mirror: What was the vital experience and lesson you took back with you from Nagaland?
Avora Records: We made a lot of new friends who we still keep in touch with and I believe this is the most important experience we got out of Hornbill.

Eastern Mirror: What’s next for Avora Records? Any projects in pipeline?
Avora Records: We are currently recording our debut album which will be out this summer hopefully… and two new singles along with music videos are coming soon too.