Music for the eyes

Fans of indie music in the city are now coming together for listening sessions, which consist of more than just sitting in a corner and having the event as an individual experience. The one-year-old The Listening Sessions have events that circle around igniting discussions around music videos and the art and aesthetic behind them. Not an anything-goes session, the founders hand-pick artistes who share stories around music videos. The sessions also involve an act by indie musicians, as well as speakers, who talk about the topic at hand. 

Vipasha Tilak, one of the co-founders of the movement, says that the idea was to bring the focus back on the music video for indie music bands. “Back in the day, when people would listen to music on MTV or Channel V, many of us used to recognise the songs by the video that played with it. Nowadays, while there is a lot of work going on in both the musical and visual genres, there’s not much research done on music videos,” she laments.

This is where Vipasha and her partner, Romel Dias, come in. The musical sessions that they host have an indie artiste performing during the first half and then an interactive session where experts talk about music videos. “We usually pick a theme for the night and the person who comes in has a fresh new perspective to give. It’s not just about technicalities. We also had one of the plus size models who walked the ramp at Lakme Fashion Week and was part of an inspirational music video. We also had one of the writers of the movie Aligarh, who spoke about showing protest poetry through music videos. It’s always a unique topic and we always have lively discussions around it,” Vipasha explains. 

Gladson Peter performing

Romel himself has conducted a couple of these sessions on topics like nostalgia through music videos and gentle folk music. Other topics, Vipasha confesses, have varied from feminism and gender fluidity in the ’80s to Smashing Pumpkins music videos and comedy in rap videos. 

Aside from deconstructing music videos of various indie bands, the duo also supports the scene by showcasing artistes who often get sidelined for flashier acts. “These are not people who will be the opening act at spaces like AntiSocial or Hard Rock Café. We make sure to get unique, talented acts that also have a very niche audience,” she says.

One such act was Gladson Peter, who can play over 45 instruments, and up to 17 of them at the same time. “It was amazing to just watch him. He can play instruments with virtually every part of his body. We also had a koli singer come in once. And another time, we had a guy who beat-boxes in the Carnatic classical genre. We had Adil Manuel performing an impromptu guitar score once that he had never played before the event. We make sure to keep it very edgy each time,” she explains.

One problem with keeping it niche is that the audience is never very large. But that’s something that the duo is happy to work around. “We make sure to do the sessions at intimate spaces, so that it’s both in tune with the kind of session and the footfall. Though we have a small following, it’s a dedicated one and the love that we’ve got from everyone and the fun that we’ve had curating these events makes us want to keep going and do more of them,” Vipasha signs off.