See you at Barnaby Junction!

One never knows what like-mindedness and an interest in music can do. Well, it can lead to the formation of a music band, most definitely. Having met in college and performed together, seven young music enthusiasts went on to form the band Barnaby Junction, and now the band is ready for its first big live gig! Needless to say, the group is excited. Ahead of their performance, we got talking to Aravind Karunakaran, the band’s lead guitarist, who plays both acoustic and electric guitar, to get to know the members and their music better. 

When they met  
We met as a part of our college band. Some of us have graduated, and some are in their pre-final years. We knew we wanted to keep performing independently even after leaving the college band setup. All of us have different musical interests and this gives a wide range of genres to explore and perform. 

What’s Barnaby Junction?  
The name actually comes from Barnaby Road in Chennai, which we frequent for a music shop and food spots. When we were looking for a band name, we decided that this would be a common connection amongst us. Also, the name has a ring to it. 

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Introducing… 
The members include Shreya Venkataraman (vocals), Lokeshraja B (vocals), Adhitya Narayan P A (keyboards), Saaiarjun N (drums), Theerthasenan C V (bass), Venkatasundaram S (violin), and Aravind Karunakaran.

Shreya is a versatile singer who has been learning music for over 12 years. She has performed at various shows and won accolades. Lokesh is a classically trained singer who was also in the top 12 contestants in SaReGaMaPa Lil Champs. Adhitya is a proficient keyboardist who has been playing keyboard for over 10 years. Theerthasenan has been learning music for the last 16 years and  has performed at multiple concerts in India and abroad. He is a proficient keyboardist who has ventured into playing the bass recently.Saaiarjun is a drummer and percussionist who is now teaching drums as well. Venkat is a classically trained  violinist and wants to study and pursue music further. And I am a self taught guitarist, an ardent fan of Coldplay and John Mayer. I also excel in basketball. 

What is your genre? 
We play progressive rock, carnatic rock, funk, blues and filmi. We are exploring as many genres as we can until we find our signature sound. Since all of us live quite far away from each other, most of our brainstorming sessions happen online. The more productive times are when we meet across the weekend. Since everyone has a genre they are comfortable with, a song can take different directions. The fun is in watching where it actually goes.

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First live gig! 
We’ve put together a set-list, which is a mixed bag of genres, like indie, blues, filmi, funk and rock. We’re going to be performing a few originals that we came up with in the last few months and a few other covers. It is a multilingual performance meant for people of all ages. 
  
Tickets at Rs 299.
November 3, 7.30 pm.
At Medai – The Stage, Alwarpet.

Email: rupam@newindianexpress.com
Twitter: @rupsjain