Patrick Masih of MOWGLEE responded to Tony Cummings' questions.

Mowglee

Tony: Can you give a potted history of the band?

Patrick: The band are all childhood friends, three of whom (George, Bob and Marcus) attended the same secondary school - excepting me - Patrick. We first started playing together in our mid teens. Marcus, Patrick and George used to attend the same small Asian fellowship and played praise and worship there - mostly Asian tunes. There are two brothers Marcus and Patrick. We all have roots in the same village in India, ie, our parents are from the same location and distantly related. We used to jam together without ever really being a band - none of us wanted to sing! We got a singer, various line up changes (with the four of us being constants), then reverted to a four piece in 1995.

Tony: What is the spiritual vision for Mowglee?

Patrick: Mowglee are a band of Christians and not necessarily a Christian band - our music isn't all praise and worship, it is mostly secular although as writers our faith and values are reflected in our music. We endeavour to live our lives to glorify God and this includes ministering through our music - a fantastic privilege.

Tony: Our reviewer was a little disappointed that your EP didn't include any identifiably Asian music. What are you trying to do musically?

Patrick: We're just playing music that we love - it is perhaps a little presumptuous to expect an Asian sound just because we are Asian. Having said this we definitely have some Asian influences and a few of our other songs reflect this. However we have always listened to more western music and this inevitably surfaces in our sound. We don't have a musical agenda, we simply want to play and write quality songs that we can take pride in and that others too can hopefully appreciate and enjoy.

Tony: Do you have a particular ministry to the Asian community?

Patrick: No, we hope to reach as many people as we can irrespective of race or colour.

Tony: What are your major musical influences?

Patrick: I can only speak for myself and perhaps Marcus - as the others aren't here! The Beatles, U2, Motown, Oasis, James, Suede, Simon And Garfunkel.

Tony: Talk about one of the songs on your album. What's it trying to say?

Patrick: "Crazy" is one of our oldest songs that has a very live feel and best represents the Mowglee "sound". This was written back in 1998 when Marcus brought a verse/chorus idea to a practise. We liked the chorus but felt the melody on the verse needed development. Patrick stepped in, made some changes to the melody, wrote a second verse and the song was complete. It's about how the world, events and tough experiences can leave us confused, jaded and frustrated when only God can bring order and peace to our existence. His constancy and grace maintain us when we fail to make sense of a crazy and bewildering world.