John Bemis
Reporter
@bemiscourant
It’s a Tuesday afternoon, and sophomores Robert Hoover, Sam Klearman, and Bhaskar Abhiraman are in a garage rehearsal space, cables and musical equipment of all sorts strewn about the room, tossing around ideas for their newest original song. They, like many students, enjoy writing original music in their free time.
The Grassy Towels, their name based on a backyard sprinkler and towel mishap, represents just a small portion of the NCHS original music scene. “What makes us unique is that when we come up with a song we don’t do exactly what the original artist does, we like to change it into our own style”. Bhaskar said. “We do original pieces for fun, some are based on early American history, many of them are about food. Sometimes we like to make fun of pop songs.”
Bhaskar takes a formulaic approach to his songwriting with The Grassy Towels. “It often begins with an idea, the theme or message we’re trying to express. The central idea of a song usually becomes the chorus. The mood of the music has to match the theme of the lyrics.”
The band’s three co-founders were already friends when they decided to channel their love of music into a collaborative effort. “Sam picked up guitar and I already knew piano” Bhaskar said. “So one day during the summer, we decided to go to New York City, he brought a guitar and I brought a plastic instrument called a melodika. We played street music in Central Park and people seemed to really enjoy it,” he said.
The Grassy Towel’s guitarist, sophomore Sam Klearman, believes the band has a unique approach to music compared to traditional high school rock bands. “I think having the trio that we have, rather than having the bass and drums and guitar, and having a keyboard does add a certain element,” he said.
Lacking a bass player drives the band to approach songs differently. “I think one of the better examples was ‘Good Times Bad Times’, which we did at Ramstock. The bass part is pretty essential to the song, so we had the piano do a half-bass and half rhythm guitar part, as well as a solo.”
The band member’s respective influences are reflected in their creative process. “We all have different styles; Sam has a background in classic rock, Robert really likes 90’s alternative and progressive rock and I have a background in classical” Bhaskar said. I think all of these come together beautifully.”
Not all student songwriters, however, write songs with a group. Senior Dan Antoniu, though involved in NCHS bands Triple Coil and Threshold of Pain, tends to write material by himself. “I find things that work together and a message you want to convey, and then I just go for it,” he said.
Dan’s style of songwriting changes since he started. “I started wanting to play heavy metal, and to be the fastest guy, but that’s changed so much. Now I just try to be melodic and play with the chords,” he said. “I’m trying to get into school for composition.”
Contrasting Dan and The Grassy Towels, junior Callie Busch initially takes a holistic approach to compositions in her music tech class. “I ask myself, do I want to write a more techno-y pop song? Do I want to write a classical song and what instruments do I wanna use? Then I start thinking about chords that I like and have heard in songs previously.”
Making music on a computer allows Callie to incorporate various instruments into her songwriting regardless of her experience with them. “With the use of computer you can play virtually any instrument without actually knowing how to play the instrument” she said. I can compose a song featuring a violin or viola without knowing how to play any of those instruments.” “The only thing I really need to know how to do is play piano.”
For student musicians, the opportunity to express one’s self through their songwriting is invaluable. Student musicians strive to create dynamic pieces while expressing themselves in the art form of songwriting and musical production. Whether in the classroom or the bedroom, they all value what songwriting has to offer. As Bhaskar said, “the creative process of putting a song together from input from everybody in the band, highlighting the best of all our styles, is awesome. There’s so much to say in an original.”
