Strangle performs live at Svana Studio Sessions

By Mannu Shahi

Strangle is a tightly knitted hardcore quartet hailing from Lalitpur, that has been actively making music in the Nepali DIY scene for over a decade. Comprising of Ashish Kayastha on guitars, Dipesh Joshi on drums, Bibek Tamang on bass, and Santosh Shrestha on vocals, the initial line-up of the group assembled for the first time in 2009 and played live in rather eccentric places like Lukla, Namche, and Khumjung the same year.

Starting out as a thrash metal outfit, the group, with time, shifted towards hardcore/crossover thrash to record an eight-track demo album in 2012. Strangle has published two full-length albums ‘You’re Next In Line’ (2017), ‘Nation Failed’ (2020), and an EP ‘The Illusion’ (2018) under their belt.

Ashish Kayastha is the only remaining founding member who has managed to help sustain the group over time. In 2009, the guitarist teamed up with his friends Utsav Thapa on vocals, Avinash Magar on drums, and Ramesh Sunar on bass to give life to the very first edition of the band. Avinash, the drummer, was the one to pin the name Strangle after one of their original tunes “Strangle in Pain”. 

However, by 2011 the members all deserted away in their personal responsibilities and the band was not very active for a certain time until 2012 when Vikrant Singh Thapa replaced Avinash on drums and swapped the vocal duties in place of Utsav.

This edition of the group was playing shows and vibrantly participating in music-making until 2014 when three members, including Ashish, had to leave the country for higher education. Thus, for two more years the band went on a hiatus without the nucleus ally of this unit, who returned to Nepal in 2016 to form yet another version of Strangle consisting of Amrit Bhandari on vocals, Bibek Tamang on bass, Ashish Kayastha on guitars and Dipesh Gurung of The Elements/The Kathmandu Killer helping out with the drums till the return of the former drummer Vikrant Singh Thapa.

This formation of the group recorded the first album together but sadly Bikrant left due to some personal reasons and came in Dipesh Joshi, the current drummer of the band. Soon after Strangle were offered a touring gig in Indonesia along with another crust punk group The Doltish in 2020. 

The two bands traveled for a 15-day tour in five cities of Indonesia including Jakarta, Bandung, Sukabumi, Malang and Bali as well as played in a grand punk festival called Libertad Fest. While their plans were for a shorter stay, both the groups were stuck in Indonesia for 4 months straight due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Without proper resources and planning their elongated stay came off as a rather scary and uncertain experience. Although the members look back and cherish those moments now as a period of strengthening their friendship and compassion for one another. Also, during the same time the group published their second full-length album via Bandcamp and their official YouTube handle.

After returning back, sadly vocalist Amrit left the group and Santosh Shrestha, the present vocalist, stepped in as the front person for the outfit. Although the group has seen quite a shift of members in the line-up, nonetheless, all of their past friends are still part of the Strangle family and help out in whatever way possible to keep the band moving forward.  

Since the band is a community-driven cluster its objectives are concerned in the overall upliftment of the underground music scene. Thus, organizing their own shows, bringing in their own gears, helping other bands, and creating an inclusive scene are among some ethical actions Strangle is popular for. 

And recently, the band was featured in the Svana Studio’s Live Sessions Series Season 2. Svana, an emerging live recording studio in Lalitpur, has been hosting sessions with various rock, punk, and metal bands to bring forth live recorded material for a wider demographic. Released on April 9, 2022, Strangle performed six tunes from the second album ‘Nation Failed’, their socio-politically driven lyrics perfectly complementing the angsty music. 

Santosh’s growls and screams augment the rage of youths with the political malfunctions in our country. Ashish welds things together with killer riffs and finely crafted structures. Bibek equilibrize the lower end and supports the synchronization throughout and Dipesh blasts some top-notch drumming raising the energy level even higher. 

So do check out the video via the official Svana Studio channel and support the band further by discovering them on their social handles for more exciting news that the band plans in 

the future.