The biggest competitive platform for rock musicians in India, the Hornbill International Rock Contest, on Sunday night wrapped up with one of the biggest crowds the ongoing Hornbill Music Festival had seen. Just four days earlier, British legends Smokie had played to a packed stadium, part of an event organized by the Nagaland Outdoors’ Club and Sky Entertainment.

The December 7 evening event at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Kohima saw rousing performances from finalists Hidden Truth (Kolkata), Silver (Pune), Nightmares (Sikkim), Muses of Authority (Siliguri), Technicolors (Nagaland), Chrome O Soul (Chennai), The Family Cheese (Mumbai), Adam’s Apple (Darjeeling), and The Doppler Effect (Delhi), fighting it out for the top prize of Rs. One million rupees.

After months of hard-necked auditions, sleepless nights of practice, and big hopes – and Kohima’s biting cold – Adams Apple from Darjeeling were declared the winner of the 2014 edition of the rock contest. They walked away with the grand prize, one million rupees. The contest was judged by a panel comprising American guitar hero Vinnie Moore, and Indian masters Sanjay Divicha, Thejove Medeo and Wati Imchen.
Nightmares from Sikkim ran up close second to pocket Rs. 5 lakhs, while Muses of Authority from Siliguri hit the pot at Rs. 3 lakhs to go home richer.

Individual prizes
In the individual category, Tengchu Marak of Restless Heart (Tura) was adjudged the best vocalist. Sanjay Kumar of Final Surrender (Bangalore) was declared the best guitarist while Akshay Dwivedi of The Doppler Effect (Delhi) was declared the best bass guitarist. Jared sandy of Final Surrender of Bangalore was adjudged the best drummer, while Jerard Felix of Chrome O Soul (Chennai) was declared the best keyboardist. The individual prize winners pocketed Rs. 30, 000 each and various musical equipment and instruments from sponsors. The prize for the most promising band from Nagaland went to Paper sky.    

Another highlight of the grand finale was a set from none other than Vinnie Moore. The American guitar god played several blistering numbers from his classic albums much to the thrill of the packed stadium. Playing for the first time in India, Mr. Moore left the crowd grumbling as he wound up his performance to make way for the competing bands. It was a night to remember.  The organizers, Nagaland Outdoors’ Club and Sky Entertainment thanked fans, the media and well-wishers for their support and enthusiasm for making the event a successful yet again.

Nagaland Post.