Just Rock Off with Salvage
The steady beat of the drum could be heard, right out on to the roadway of a quiet neighbourhood in Narahenpita. It gets louder as we enter the house (its source) and the heavy guitar riffs kick in. Suddenly, everything drops and we hear a roar of laughter coming out of the sound room. We find the ‘Salvage’ practice sessions in full swing and clearly the guys seemed to enjoy their time with each other.
Their music is explanatory of what each member of the band is like in person, which is energetic and fun. And this is just what their audience can expect at ‘Just Rock Off’ their latest gig, which will be held at the Havelock City Colombo on Saturday (Nov 17) starting at 6.00pm.
The practice recommences and we are treated to a sampling of one of their latest singles ‘Just Rock Off’. “We’re Reinventing melody, We are escaping gravity Boom!, ” CC De Silva, their vocalist belts out. The lyrics itself are just what the show is about, that is to give into that deep energy, which is all that is good about Rock music.
The concert is being billed as a testament of what ‘Salvage’ is, Shalinda Halpe, the band’s lead guitarist, tells us. This is because they’ve realised that as a band, the five of them have each a different take on what Rock music is.
“This is why Salvage does not fit into the moulds which people have made for music in Sri Lanka. We are not heavy enough for certain audiences, while we might be too heavy for certain crowds.”
“Just Rock Off” is essentially ‘Salvage making a statement to say that regardless of how it may be, “we are here, playing the music we like to play,” Shalinda says.
Musically speaking, Salvage has always been self sufficient. And as our conversation progresses, we find the most interesting thing about the show will be the sixteen original tunes that ‘Salvage’ looks to bring to the stage.
They do not stick to a particular formula when it comes to composing a song. Instead, it usually stems from either a lyrical idea or a guitar riff. As Shalinda puts it , their song writing today has improved tremendously in terms of technicality and the music. “Our skills set was at the same level. So we simply had to focus on doing something creative and unique.”
“We do try and stick inside the whole Rock and Roll spectrum,” CC tells us, adding that its hard to classify Salvage into a different sub genre. Rather, the individuality of the band members, together with their different musical influences, is brought into each song.
“I’ll say this I did nothing” Shevanka Fernando, the band’s bassist chimes in with a cheeky grin. He adds that when he came for an audition six months ago , they had been in the process of creating ‘Stage of heartache’.
The band tells us musically their biggest influences are each other. This has brought ‘Salvage’ to a stage where they’re like a well oiled machine.Each of them know their roles in the band and look to do their best to fulfill them.
‘Salvage’ has been “rocking off” the industry for almost ten years. Looking at the scene as it stands today, they feel the listener base for ‘Rock and Roll has decreased and that’s what they want to change. The band has their own sound and because of that, their audience is not limited to those who would only go for a metal/ rock concert.
“We played at several school organised gigs and what we noticed was that these kids are into our music,” CC says.
“Rock is not dead” per se, because even though people don’t show up for a gig, they’d still probably listen to the music in their homes,” he adds. This one of the things ‘Just Rock Off’ looks to address. “ We want to show Sri Lanka that Rock music is fun at the end of the day.
Tickets for the show are priced at Rs. 700 and can be obtained by contacting them on Facebook via facebook.com/salvagedmusic