Reminiscence of 'Terrace Jam' 🕩
It was in the year 2009, while I was studying art at the College of Fine Arts in Bangalore, that I met Nishchith Moses. We discovered each other’s musical interests rather quickly while spending time at the sculpture department and even more in the canteen, where we spent an enormous amount of time drinking chai, philosophising over existential philosophies and the lyrics of Nick Drake.
Soon enough, we started to meet at my place frequently after school to jam. All I had as an instrument was a very cheap electric guitar and plenty of VSTs to crank it up. My computer at that time was breaking apart in all its glory. It sent out low-voltage electric charges into the guitar strings and the rest of the metal parts. To avoid discomfort, one had to wear a shoe or not touch the ground while playing the guitar. Truthfully and without fail, Old Monk, the very old vatted rum (at least on the label), accompanied us on this creative journey.
These meet-ups lasted for about 3 years and resulted in a pile of compositions not bound to any particular genre of music. Both of us had a keen interest in heavy metal music, which somehow seeped into some of the pieces, while others meandered through all of the other influences we were experiencing. We had no intention of publishing any of these tracks or working further on them. Rather, it was the pure joy of creating music together that fueled this process.
Here are some of the reminiscences of terrace jam sessions I had with my dear friend Nishchith.