Premiere: Ereimang Return with Manipuri Folk-Meets-Rock on ‘Heirangkhoi’

Manipuri folk/noise-rock project Ereimang’s second song “Heirangkhoi” brings heavy riffs and powerful Manipuri vocals from singer Nganthoibi Ningthouja to a song about the cycle of life and relationships.

Their first release of the year, “Heirangkhoi” follows Ereimang’s debut single “Kwakta Lamjel” from 2023 which introduced the band founded by Bengaluru-based artist Kamal Singh. The new song comes with a music video directed by Heisnam Shantanu and shot by Khaba Maimom carrying forward their inclination for storytelling through ancient tribal tales, dance forms (with performers Ningthouja and Purnima Yengkokpam) and of course, heavy rock riffs.

Looking back at the success of “Kwakta Lamjel,” which has over 400,000 views on YouTube, Singh – who also makes music under the moniker Hoirong and was part of alternative act Lounge Piranha – says he had a feeling the project’s first song would do well, but it went well beyond that. “I didn’t think it would be like nothing I’ve done in my life and received at the level it has,” he says with a laugh.

Does it set a new bar for all subsequent Ereimang songs? “I guess it does, but I don’t want it, I don’t want it to be like that. That’s a slippery slope,” Singh says, laughing again. He adds, “I thought this was something people might resonate with. I also do see it happening on stage.” Like with their first song, Ereimang brings in drummer Reagan Yumnam and guitarist Gajendra. Singh says, “Now, the focus is on getting it ready for performances and Gajendra and Nitin [Shamurailatpam, vocalist-guitarist in Lo! Peninsula] will be a lot more involved.”

With visuals taking us straight to the forests and landscapes of Manipur, “Heirangkhoi” was filmed in late 2023 amid the ongoing violence in the North East Indian state. Singh says, “There was one day we had to cancel shooting because there was a lot of trouble happening. There was no internet at that time also.”

Singh had gone over for relief work and it coincided with the video shoot for the song. In one particular scene, Singh and the band are performing in an open paddy field. “It was kind of risky because we were out in the open and just in front of us, there was another settlement on the hill. Anything could’ve happened, but we thought we had to do this.”

Watch the video for “Heirangkhoi” below. Stream the song on Spotify.