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Petros Nyambi on stage

Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
A trendy, talented group of young men are slowly etching their names in Bulawayo’s urban music folklore as their ingenuity and harmony as a band has caught the eye of many in the city.

Known as the P JAY Flames Band, led by Petros Nyambi (on lead vocals), the band is made up of session musicians who come from different crews to jam together at different nightspots, chief among them The Place at the Heath Streak Academy. Other places that the group has performed at and has left an indelible mark include Cape to Cairo, Safari Bar and most recently, Club Connect.

Other members of band are backing vocalist Lungile Ndlovu from Harmonic Rhythms Band who also plays drums; Paul Maseko who plays the bass guitar and Joseph Banda a keyboardist who also plays for Afro Jazz musician Jeys Marabini.

The band, which ignited the stage during the Afro Beats last Thursday at Club Connect is only eight months old and does not rehearse according to Nyambi.

“We’ve actually never practised together. When we started off, rehearsal spots in the city charged like $50 for a three-hour session which for us was too expensive. So we’d sit down as a group and list our favourite songs. So in the beginning, our practice sessions would be during the live performance to the audience. With time we got better and better,” said Nyambi.

The leader of the band said he initially started off as a solo artiste two years ago.

“I started a solo project as PJ Flames which is my stage name. After realising I couldn’t go it alone, I decided to set up a band which would back me at performances at Safari Bar and Cape to Cairo.”

He said it was not easy getting gigs at first, but after making a name for themselves, they are now getting a couple of shows.

“Each week, we have bookings. Fridays we perform at Safari bar, Saturday Hockey Stadium and Sunday, The Place. It’s quite encouraging because before, we’d get one gig per week or two gigs per month.

“With time, we started getting more gigs and now, we’re working three times every weekend and that’s a plus,” said Nyambi.

What has made the band popular is that they engage their audience, offering people the chance to join them on stage and sing renditions of their favourite songs through a live karaoke.

Backing vocalist Ndlovu said: “People want to be part of what’s happening on stage and we afford them that opportunity as we want to see them singing their favourite songs with the backing of a live band. This always goes a long way and it’s proven that they’ll always come back to watch us perform knowing they’ll also take the mic and have a go at singing during our performance.”

He said the group which mainly performs cover versions hopes to compose their own songs and produce an album by the end of the year.