New sounds from Salvage
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Salvage: Progressive music after the silence. Pix by Amila Gamage
They had an exciting start in 2009 with four single releases and a memorable live performance as a guest band on TNL Onstage’s Party in the Park, but along the way, Salvage drifted apart in 2012. The good news is that after nearly three years of radio silence they are back with some new progressive tunes and music that stirs the listener’s soul.
“Time played tricks, but we were too meek to give in to its endeavours,” a verse taken from Salvage’s new single ‘Erased but not Forgotten’ tells the story.At a concert announcing their return to the music scene last Saturday (July 18), Salvage played some of their new and old tunes to a select group of invitees. Hosted at the Dynamic AV Technologies Experience Centre, the band took the stage confidently and produced a performance that left the audience singing the catchy tunes that stuck in their heads after the show.
Hoping to make a difference through their tunes, Salvage is amping-up with former TNL onstage winner Crishantha de Silva (CC) on vocals, and front axe men Shalinda Halpe and Sajana Bupathi. Bassist Upul Warnasuriya and drummer/percussionist Udaya Wickramage (Ubu) are also part of the combo.
Their new sounds are heavily influenced by metal giants like Iron Maiden, Dream Theatre Tool, Audioslave and some others like Breaking Benjamin and of course Alter Bridge, though they still believe in bringing a uniquely local touch to the music that they produce.
CC and Ubu share a majority of the song writing, with their lyrics expressing deep emotions and lessons for life. We were also told that Ubu is more of a “philosophical- visionary” while CC is a “hopeless romantic”.
Audience enjoys the old and the new from Salvage
Salvage definitely seems to be moving towards experimenting with hard rock and progressive tunes with their new singles. “There is a lot of imagery in my writing while I try to visualize the moment and put it into words,” CC tells us. ‘Rolling’ talks about how complacent people are in their journey through life. The song is definitely something to watch out for in the future.
Drummer Ubu, as he is known among his mates also shared some of his ideas on song writing. “Lyrically speaking I concentrate mostly on the moment when I write. The lyrics have a lot of lessons that I have learnt in the past,” he says adding that as a musician he was inspired by a lot of dark music, but he tries to journey out a more positive pathway through the songs he composes.
Salvage will next perform with popular bands like Stigmata, Killfeed, Circus Cult, Tantrum and Constellation at the Rock Fest on August 1 at the Women’s International Club Colombo. Catch them then.