Khiyo is a London-based British-Bengali band that gives Bengali heritage music a modern acoustic sound. Formed in 2007 by British-Bangladeshi vocalist Sohini Alam and composer/multi-instrumentalist Oliver Weeks, Khiyo takes an experimental approach to Bengali heritage music, presenting folk and protest songs, the music of the great Bengali composers and more modern material in fresh, dynamic new arrangements that draw on Western classical music, jazz, folk and rock.

And now a little background...

 

In 2013, the band was at the centre of controversy in Bangladesh about the music video for their version of Rabindranath Tagore's Amar Shonar Bangla, also the national anthem of Bangladesh. Against the backdrop of political turmoil caused by the verdicts on war criminals from Bangladesh's 1971 War of Independence, Khiyo was accused of sedition for 'distorting' the anthem by one of the most well known musicians in Bangladesh, with the controversy flaring further as more of the biggest names in Bangladeshi music weighed in for and against the band's version of the song, which went viral. The debate eventually had a positive effect on the band's reputation, making them national news in Bangladesh and raising their profile in the UK and India.

 

Khiyo is gaining a reputation as a powerful live band and is currently promoting its debut album, which was released by Arc Music in April 2015.

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Khiyo