File picture of a rock concert at Nehru Park

June 12: They are the interpreters of melodies, but they need a room of their own where they can hit the high notes.

A group of friends jamming together to make some music, mostly rock, is not an uncommon sight in the city. But these budding talents lack a proper platform where they can showcase their high-voltage music before audiences.

To get over the hurdle, White Room ? a city-based youth club ? has decided to form a forum of rock bands to map out routes for organising more rock concerts.

“The entertainment industry is growing by leaps and bounds. But there is hardly any space for rock bands to perform. This is because few sponsors are coming forward,” lamented Arup Saikia, a member of White Room.

He added, “Rock shows cannot be performed in a small space. There is hardly any scope in our city unless a good amount of money is spent.”

The club is planning to approach several government and NGOs to sponsor such rock events. In return, these bands will help the sponsors take their cause forward through music.

“It will be a give-and-take policy. If they sponsor our shows, we will help them raise awareness about several social causes through our music,” said Saikia.

Faith, a leading city-based rock band, had bagged the first runner-up award at the National Campus rock concert in Goa recently.

It rued that even after winning prestigious events outside the state ? that, too, at a national level ? has not helped much to change people’s perceptions about rock music.

“We hardly get an opportunity to perform in the city. But we get to travel across different Indian metros and other cities of Northeast,” said Raja Rasaily, a member of Faith.

This band, which has been around for nearly a decade, has six members, including Joshua Kueah (lead vocalist), Tariq Reza Abdullah (lead guitarist), Krishna Pradhan (second guitar), Deepak Saikia (bass), Joy Kashyap (drums) and Raja, who plays the keyboard.

The city has over 20 small and big rock bands, including Celestial Doom, Voodoo Child, Acidic Slender, Bluesophication and Aerohead.

The bands get a chance to perform only at three events ? Alcheringa, the annual festival of the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, the annual college week of the Assam Engineering College and Pyrokinesis, the cultural fest of the Gauhati Medical College Hospital.

“Shillong is the favourite hunting ground for international bands, too. This is because they have understood the value of local bands. Guwahati hardly witnesses any performance by big international bands,” said Raja.

“The local bands first need to be given a chance to prove their mettle. Once that is done and rock shows became a part of the city’s cultural life, bands from outside will automatically be attracted here,” he added.

A rock concert was recently held at Nehru Park, where five city-based upcoming bands performed to a large crowd. White Room will organise another rock show at Nehru Park in July.

“We want rock concerts organised at frequent intervals as we are sure to attract a large number of music lovers. Attracting listeners has never been a problem; its funding that is the main obstacle,” said Saikia.