Music from 70s and 80s are ‘Subject to Change’

CHENNAI: When a motley bunch of youngsters crossed paths during inter-college culturals in the mid 2000s, they hit the right cord and formed the band ‘Subject to Change’. A decade of ‘changes’ and several performances later, the band is back with a live acoustic performance after a hiatus of one year.  

Arguably one of the most fun bands from the city — both on and off stage — the band members takes a walk down memory lane. Anisha Sarah Verghese (vocals and percussions), one of the core members, recalls, “We used to perform for different colleges.

But, we never got together then. It was after college that we all got together for one show at Bella Ciao in 2007. It was an epic experience, as we hadn’t tried acoustics and acapella until then. We started with one song and the whole crowd stood on the table to look at the band that was performing. That’s when we thought that maybe we should form a band!”

But for the six-piece band, it was never a plan. It just happened. “We’ve been good friends and bandmates. That’s why we have been able to be around for so long,” she adds.

After four-five shows a year, the band gradually began doing more shows at one point and Aakash Jacob (vocals and guitars), says, “There are shows that stood out for us, like the November Festival. It was a theatre fest and we were supposed to perform for the first 30 minutes. We had a multitude of problems, the power got cut and it also began pouring outside.

But, Benny Dayal (who was also a part of the band initially) and I, began playing without our guitars plugged in,” he narrates. Soon after the power came back, they continued to play but, the unimaginable happened. “The theatre fest started late, because of the crowd standing outside in the rain and jumping to our music! One of the sound monitors even blew because of that!” he laughs.

The group is seriously addicted to melodies, which again is not an outcome of a ‘formula’. “All our performances and pieces are outcomes of a conversation or a poorly constructed joke,” says Aakash, and Anjana Raghavan (vocals) and Toby Joseph (guitar) burst out laughing.

Talking about crossing cultural and linguistic boundaries, Anjana shares, “We have performed for non-English speaking and English speaking audiences. It showed us that genuine music has no boundaries. There’s something about the sound and the vibe. We have played in different places and crossed boundaries without ever intending to,” she explains.

Ecstatic, nervous and excited about coming together for a live performance after a year, Aakash reveals an unknown backstory. “We last played in May 2016 and this gig was to happen for December 2016. But as we all know, it was chaotic and a notice that no entertainment shows should be staged for seven days surfaced. So, two days before our performance, it got cancelled. But, it’s happening now!” he exclaims.
Despite busy individual schedules, the group is back and the lineup includes a mix of 70s and 80s music, regionals, signature tracks and more. Friendship and love gushes in this band and the fans of Queen and MJ say, “We are a combination of bad jokes and panic and this is a reunion we are looking forward too. We also have Mario Rohan playing the bass and Salwain Alfred (Alfie) on percussions with us.”

Ask them about the change they have noticed in the music scene and Aakash speaks for everybody. “It has grown in the last 10 years, with more locations. But, people see musicians as someone they can order and make them sing. Not everyone gets the hard work and effort that goes behind it.  But, it’s amazing to see musicians perform together.”

‘Subject to Change’ will play on Jan 6 at Bay 146, RK Salai from 8.30 pm onwards. For details call: 9710976876