THE ALT-ROCK circuit gets a new band named after the world as it is right now — Sick Society. The outfit brings together members of various established bands from Indian independent music — Thaikkudam Bridge, The Harbingers and Mad Bypass. While the three outfits have their own distinct sound, a common love for rock made this project happen. Sick Society enters the scene with a four-track debut EP, Weird Relay.
“All of us knew each other from playing in different bands and having been a part of notable indie projects in the past,” says drummer Abin Thej, who is also the founder of prog rock group, The Harbingers. “We knew each other but never thought of forming a band or working on a project together until the lockdown hit us. Since there were not many gigs happening, we finally got some time to focus on this material and get some music out. We are pretty happy to create our music and approach a sound that’s coming from our hearts,” he adds. The band consists of Abin, vocalist Kiran Paul (Mad Bypass), guitarist Hari Krishnan PV (C Major 7 and The Harbingers) and keyboardist Ruthin Thej (Thaikkudam Bridge). Hari says, “Each of us has grown up listening to different styles of music, from jazz to death metal.” And they all bring their own styles and influences to the band.
Weird Relay chronicles personal experiences and emotions of each member and the tracks touch on themes of time, love and longing. The first track You’ve Gone Slow, is about moving on from the past, while Don’t Make Me Wait is an open letter to the person who you’re stuck waiting for, for your whole life. The third track, In Search Of Me, addresses the inner demons we all carry within us. The last track on the EP, Well! Hell! is a take on the state of the world right now. The EP also features a bonus track — an acoustic version of You’ve Gone Slow.
The whole EP was composed virtually over the span of many weeks. “There was plenty of time to make use of, and we managed to knock this EP together while staying in different cities. The main challenge was obviously putting all the parts together,” Kiran explains. In the initial stages of composing the songs, Abin and Kiran shared some ideas back and forth. Once the song compositions were in place, Ruthin and Hari discussed their parts. “After three months of numerous video calls, we had enough to start tracking them. And then it was recorded. The challenges paid off and it was thrilling to work like this and put an EP out,” Kiran adds. Up next, the band wants to do more online gigs and is already working on a new single.
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