Neon Nights on reinventing pop and retro hits: 'Sweet spot is when someone hears something they haven’t heard before'

From strangers to band mates, Neon Nights has been through a musical journey worth talking about. Comprising Lian Khuptong on drums, Jael Syuhlo and Asherie Zonunmawi on vocals, Joshua Constantine on guitar, Daniel Hatzaw on bass, and Lian Suanlal Guite on piano, the band is set to perform at The Piano Man, Safdarjung, New Delhi this Saturday.

They are best known for their lively renditions of the biggest pop hits from around the world and that is just what they will showcase this weekend in the capital.

HT talked to the band about what journey so far has been like and what they are most excited about for the upcoming performance.

You describe Neon Nights as a bunch of "misfits turned music maestros". Who are the misfits in the band, and how did you all end up making music together?

Honestly, all of us. We come from pretty different musical spaces. Some of us grew up on rock and retro, others are more into pop, soul and newer music. So when we first got into a room together, there wasn't some grand plan to create a particular "sound". We were just playing songs we liked and seeing what happened. And a lot happened.

Someone would change a groove, somebody else would throw in a harmony that wasn't there, and suddenly a song we'd all heard a hundred times felt new again. We kept coming back to that. So yes, the misfit part is still accurate. "Music maestros" is probably us getting slightly carried away.

You've said you put a fresh spin on everything from current pop hits to retro classics. What makes a song worth reworking for Neon Nights, and is there a song you've completely transformed?

Usually it starts with a song that all of us genuinely want to play. That matters. If we're bored playing it, the audience is going to feel that too. Then we ask ourselves: what can we do with this that the original doesn't already do?

Sometimes it's a different groove. Sometimes we make it heavier, strip it down, change the vocal arrangement or take a very polished pop track and make it sound like five or six people actually playing together in a room. We particularly enjoy taking newer songs and giving them an older live-band feel. That contrast is fun.

There are a couple in the 12 September set where you'll recognise the song almost immediately, but what happens after that isn't quite what you expect. We'd rather not ruin those before the show.

The band launched only in 2024. What has surprised you most about going from garage jams to performing at a venue like The Piano Man?

How quickly it stopped feeling like "just a jam". At first, you're thinking about very basic things. Did everyone learn the song? Is that transition clean? Who forgot the ending this time?

Then you start playing in front of people and your whole way of looking at the music changes. You notice which moments make people sing, which songs make a room go quiet and listen, and which ones suddenly get everyone out of their seats. That part has probably surprised us the most.

Playing The Piano Man is special because people there really listen. You can't hide behind volume or production. If the music works, they'll give you everything. If it doesn't, you know pretty quickly. That's exciting. Also mildly terrifying. In a good way.

When you're playing a mix of familiar Western hits, how do you balance giving audiences the songs they came to hear with putting your own stamp on them?

We never want somebody to hear their favourite song and think, "What have these guys done to it?" There are certain things you don't mess with. A chorus that everyone wants to sing. A melody people have known for years. Sometimes even a tiny guitar part that people are waiting to hear without realising it.

We keep those moments. Then we play around with everything surrounding them — the groove, harmonies, dynamics, solos, intros, endings and the way one song moves into another. That's where Neon Nights comes in.

For us, the sweet spot is when someone knows every word of the song but still hears something they haven't heard before.

You're performing at The Piano Man in Delhi this weekend. What can people expect from a Neon Nights gig that they might not get from simply listening to the original versions of these songs? Which song are you most excited about performing?

The unpredictability. You know exactly what happens when you press play on a recording. Live, we don't always know what's going to happen either.

If the room starts singing, we might leave space for them. A solo can run a little longer. We might suddenly pull everything down to just the vocal and one instrument, then come back in full force. Songs also bleed into each other in ways you won't find on the original records.

And we jump around a lot. One minute you're somewhere in the '80s or '90s, a few minutes later you're singing something that came out much more recently. That's what we love about the show. It feels alive.

As for the song we're most excited to play? Ask us again after September 12. It's usually the one where the crowd ends up louder than the band. But if we had to pick one, then I would say "The Chain" by Fleetwood Mac.