Recently, I was given the opportunity to meet "The Picture" a modern rock band that came into being when four long-time friends with a love for rock came together back in early 2006. Based in Riga, the quartet is working to find their niche by creating a sound reminiscent of some of the well known British pop bands of the last decade and combining it with a Latvian twist reminiscent of Brain-storm. Lead singer Kaspars Eglitis uses the appropriate phrase, "Lat-Pop" to describe the sound and feel of their music.
"The Picture" is made up of Kaspars Eglitis on lead vocals and guitar, Janis Brakmanis on lead guitar, Nauris Brikmanis on drums, and Mikelis Leinzs on bass. They are supported by their manager, or "Impresario" as she calls herself, Ilze Malasvska. The group has a long history with music, with almost all of them having been involved in musical endeavors of one sort or another for well over a decade. Nauris and Mikelis were both active orchestral musicians (interestingly, each of them played the clarinet), while Eglitis was previously involved in a pop-rock back called Remotion.
Brakmanis is the newest to the music scene, and offered this about his musical background.
"These guys were playing in an orchestra - I was more interested in playing on a Playstation," he said.
Thankfully those hours on video games appeared to have paid dividends with his fingers' ability to work the chords on a guitar.
Having recently had the chance to experience "The Picture's" work in the laid back Jazz Bar Bastejs in Riga, I was treated to back-to-back acoustic sets that ran the gamut from their original work, to well known Latvian folk pieces, to covers of Oasis and Radiohead. Something that I found telling and pleasing about their performance was that they were genuinely enjoying their music. They created a playful atmosphere that really shined through when the multi-talented Eglitis stepped in to handle the drum work, and Brikmanis brought his light tenor to the vocals.
The wide variety of music played during the evening was telling, as it allowed me to understand that the strongest performances the group gave during the evening were without a doubt those from their original work. This should bode well for their future prospects if they can keep recreating the bounce and originality that works its way into their music. Tunes such as the pleasingly popish Neviens to Nezin (Nobody Knows That), the mellow love song, Divata (Together), and the more rock inspired Ka Vairak Nav (What No Longer Exists) each showcase a different and vibrant aspect of their musical sensibilities.
One of the challenges facing "The Picture" in their quest for broader recognition and success in the Baltics as well as the broader European market is the odds that stack against those bands that choose not to use the lingua-franca of international music 's English. However, Eglitis and the rest of the band members are well aware that they will likely have to put out more music in their 2nd tongue if they want to make an impact.
When asked about his thoughts on singing in English, Eglitis offered this information, "We want to be able to become successful and popular here in Latvia. After that, we will focus on making more music in English so we can be successful in the rest of Europe."
It seems that the current focus on Latvia is a way of ensuring that they can forge their own identity before entering the broader European music scene. That sentiment was betrayed when Eglitis commented on the comparisons to Brit-pop that have been made about the band.
"We don't want to be known as a British style band, or just a pop-rock band. We want to be known for who we are and for our music, without having to be compared to anyone else," he said
You can see "The Picture" performing live in Sigulda on May 16th.
The Picture can be found online at
http://thepicture.draugiem.lv/
