Carmine and Tyler Schwartzman are the masterminds behind Underground Manta, a band whose sound is heavily influenced by Hip-Hop, Blues, and Rock&Roll. It’s a pretty interesting mix, but Underground Mantra just makes it work. Be sure to catch them live in action this Wednesday night at LaRouge Lounge!
AAHH: It’s pretty unique to combine classic rock, blues, and hip-hop together. Seeing that rock music isn’t as popular as it once was. Do you think that your style of music is the new approach to rock/alternative music?
UM: I think it is the evolution of things. Classic Rock comes from the Blues. Hip Hop encompasses all music that comes from the blues. R&B, Funk, Rock, Soul, etc… I don’t see the point in being a purist. We love Jimi Hendrix; we love The Beatles; we love A Tribe Called Quest, and we love Kanye West. Naturally it will all come out when we play our music.
AAHH: How was the time you spent at Berklee beneficial to Underground Mantra? And what’s the single most important thing you have learned so far?
UG: We realized how different we are from other musicians. Berklee is a very prestigious school for music. You have some of the most elite musicians studying there. The vibe and mentality we brought over there was very different from the majority of students there. We learned just to do our thing even though we were surrounded by different ways of thinking. Some of which we found helpful and some we found not so helpful.
AAHH: So what’s next for Underground Mantra? Do you guys have any new projects coming out or any collaborations coming up soon?
UG: We are constantly working on our music. Whether it’s writing new material refining old songs, or just getting better on our instruments. We have a set of ideas that we are calling Electricaswell. It’s our most electronically influenced music yet. We started very raw. Now we’re finding this balance between the modern era of music and the pre-digital era of music that we love so much and are rooted in. We aren’t sure on when it’ll be released, but as long as you check into undergroundmantra.com or our Instagram @Underground_Mantra, you’ll see what we are up to.
AAHH: How did you end up hearing about Vibes In the City? And what are you most looking forward to tomorrow night?
UG: We came across Vibes through Indie on The Move. It’s a network for independent bands that sends out notifications when available gigs pop up. This open mic seemed to be a great fit for our style of music. We’re always looking forward to playing in new venues and show the audience our true expression.
