JRO - June Rained Out?

Last weekend was a nice getaway from work. Chennai's biggest rock show, the 'June Rock Out' (JRO) was kicking off and we had decided to go for the curtain raiser event, at the YMCA grounds. One of my friends, learning Music at the Vineyard school of music, had arranged for the tickets and stuff. Everything was set and we were all looking forward to a nice evening of music on Saturday. We were three of us and we reached the venue as usual, an hour late :-) Well things just dont feel nice if my college friends and I make it to any place on time !! So this trip was no exception to the rule :-)

Now coming to the show, the band on stage was 'AZIZ', a two-member band from the UK. One guy on the electric guitar and the other on a table, oops sorry, I mean tabla (bad joke, I know). By the time we reached there, the show had already begun and just as we were scanning the place for a vantage place to sit, all hell broke loose! God chose to answer the prayers of almost every single resident in Chennai, at that precise moment. It started raining nuts, and frankly, its been a while since I saw it raining so heavily in Chennai. Sad part -> I was not enjoyin the rain from the cozy comfort of my home, but I was stuck right the middle of it, with nowhere to run! As everyone started running helter-skelter ( though I dint understand where these guys were running, cos there was absolutely no place to take shelter!), we just stood there half dissappointed, half wondering 'what next' !

Just when we were about to get fully drenched, someone came up with a cracker of an idea. There was this big advertising hoarding, made to stand on the ground, with supports. What we did, we removed the supports, and all the guys lifted the four corners of the hoarding, such that it was horizontal, and all of us (around 15 of us!) took cover beneath it. That was some fun! Best part, we hardly knew the people beneath the hoarding, but we were all helping each other, knowing that if one person lets go, the whole thing would be on our heads, and of course, not to forget the relentless rain! The sight was hilarious, with all us standing in a 'hands-up' pose, supporting the heavy metal chunk, above our heads. All said and done, the purpose was being served! As we expected, the show was called off, and the best news came a little while later, when the organiser announced that the band had agreed to do a repeat performance on the following day, at the Vineyard Centre. Thankfully, it was indoors this time!

Meanwhile, the rain dint look as though it would stop too soon, and we people could not afford to keep our hands up and hold the hoarding forever! Something had to be done, and the carpark was a good 300 mtrs away. After escaping the rains for so long, none of us were prepared to waste all the hard work, and make a dash for the carpark. So what do we do? Enter next idea! We decided to take the hoarding with us, all the way to the car park, walking in unison or else the whole idea would crash (so would the hoarding). All of us took equally measured, calculated steps and started walking towards the car park ( hands still up). Though we did face some resistance from the ppl in charge of the event ( cos they thought we were taking it home, probably), none of us were in a mood to give in, and finally they did oblige. Thankfully we reached our cars, safe and 'dry' :-) Some experience it was. And when we finally put the hoarding down near the carpark, guess what the haording was actually about? It was an advertisement for a social activities club. And it read, in huge letters 'Acts Of Mercy'. Our minds thought the same thing - 'How Apt' !!!

Well some of u guys might think if it was worth all the trouble, to just avoid getting wet! Well, it was not just about being dry and stuff, it was about a lot of fun! Getting wet would also be fun, true, but this was fun too! The repeat show took place, as promised, on Sunday and we did go for it. The band 'AZIZ' was too good. Just two members and they produced some amazing music, trust me! The guitarist used all the available sounds from his processor, tricks which included plucking the strings with his teeth and stuff. But I liked the tabla the best. He was too good, and trust me, the tabla sounds really amazing. It is an instrument which has really fascinated me. I have always been a big fan of fusion. Love it when there is a small piece of tabla or a flute, in a western song! This performance was just the treat that I had wanted. Lovely music at the Vinyard centre.

All in all, a fun filled weekend, and it left me asking for nothin more!