Channel [V] Launchpad performance

Well….. Dec 15th will forever be etched in our minds as a night to remember. 3 days and 2 nights stuck in a train with a horde of pilgrims travelling to Sabarimala and the 6 of us crammed in between lunch boxes, children’s diapers and the great Indian train melee. Donald strumming the electric guitar to the awe of onlookers who cant figure out why the guitar sounds like a box of wires, Marc sleeping like he’s just discovered niravana, Madhavi & Sai cracking PJs’ that could melt a block of ice, Anis glued to his cellphone like a dog with a bone and Ram desperately holding on to a sliver of hope that the girl of his dreams is going to magically appear at the next station.

With just about enough cash to get to Pune and back without having to beg, borrow or steal, the onus was on Don (Donald) to manage our finances or rather make sure we didnt get carried away buying the kind of junk being sold on the train. That said, Don was also the first to start buying stuff which included a “map of india”, a sewing kit among others.

We finally managed to reach Bombay where we lugged around 100kgs of equipment (3 guitars, 1 Synthesizer, Drum pedals and our clean underwear) till we were able to catch a bus to Pune. I gotta admit that the Bombay-Pune highway is one hell of a road. I only wished we had a car of our own to really enjoy the drive down. 36 hrs after boarding the train from Calicut station, we had finally arrived in Pune and stranded in the middle of nowhere waiting for someone to guide us to the SCMHRD campus where the event was being organized.

The folks at SCMHRD were incredibly helpful and made us feel right at home. Here at last was a campus where music was appreciated. Unlike back in our college where the standard response was “Turn the volume down….people are trying to sleep”, here they genuinely wanted to hear us play! And on a personal note let me just add that the female gender of students were unlike anything I have ever seen before (in a mind blowing sort of way).

 The next day was D-Day and we were all pumped up about being the first band on stage. Channel [V] Launchpad is a sort of platform for upcoming bands to showcase their music and talent and the winning team gets a chance to perform for Channel [V]. It was a big break for us, since being in a B-School, the only platforms we get to see are platforms for New Product Development or strategic analysis frameworks. We entered the arena to find a huge crowd gathered for the event. It was quite unnerving to see such a huge audience all geared up for a night of rock n roll. After setting up our equipment for what seemed like ages, we were finally ready for a sonic blast.

 We kicked off our performace with Guns ‘n’ Roses’s Sweet Child of Mine, which had the crowd getting into the groove. Madhavi’s vocals were sharp and full of vibrant undertone as she made Axl Rose seem like a chorus singer. Marc’s lead guitar was deft and quick while the drums tried to keep up with the pace. Don as always was like a machine on the bass. Although the sound engineers screwed up their job as usual, the song managed to sound crisp. We then took the pace down a notch with a rendition of Pink Floyd’s Coming Back to Life. Marc was simply brilliant on the lead guitar while Anis’s vocals was worthy of David Gilmore’s (Lead vocals in Pink Floyd) legacy. After leaving no doubt in anyone’s mind why Marc is the best lead guitarist ever to step foot in SCMHRD (and probably anywhere else he sets foot on), Marc topped off his breathtaking solo with a sweep of his cigarette lighter, which made the audience bellow for an encore.

 Madhavi then geared up the crowd for our next song – School of Rock (from the Original Motion Soundtrack). The crowd went ballistic with the classy lyrics. School of Rock needs a lot of attitude while playing and if its one thing we had, it was attitude. From Anis and Madhavi swaying wildly to the groove, to Ram tossing and flipping his sticks and trying to smash the bass drum, to Don and Marc synchronsing the arms of their guitars, it was a song that was enjoyed by the audience as much as we enjoyed playing it.

We capped off our performance with Angel Dust’s Bleed single. Its a song that is fast and yet very technical. Lots of underlying variations and skip beats. But everyone stepped up to the plate and although we made slight mistakes, it was probably our best song. We managed to keep it tight and clean. At the end of the song the response was overwhelming. People rushed to us to congratulate on our scintillating performance. The best part was that the winning band “BOOM SHANKAR” from S.P.Jain  told us we were better than them. I’m sure they were being modest though.

Boom Shankar: Let me tell you a bit about these guys. If xZethy proved MBA grads could rock, then these guys sealed the deal. These guys are tight. And they love their music. After hearing them play Parikrama’s version of “But it Rained”, I was almost ready to admit that they were maybe as good as us .. Watch out for them people. This band is gonna make headlines someday.

Yes, unfortunately we only managed to finish runners-up. We lacked an original song of our own which probably tilted the favor of the judges. But the response and critical acclaim we received was fantastic. We learned so much from our performance that we couldnt wait to get back to campus and start jamming again. Coming back home the mood was more sombre, but luckily for Ram and Marc, they were able to spot an entire contingent of college girls in the next compartment, right next to the mess car. 50 PET bottles of pepsi and 20 hrs later, they were still trying to figure out an opening line to meet them. Anis was happy he could get back to his phone after the distractions of the rock show, Madhavi and Sai were happy that they still had a bottle of whiskey (courtsey of Ram) to fall back on and Don was already thinking of the next competition to win.

P.S. – Thanks to the organizing committee at SCMHRD for a wonderful reception, help and great hospitality.