Chennai's Public Issue!

Inspired by Mr. Big, Public Issue, a Chennai based Rock Band, are on a high after winning the South Zone Finals of the Campus Rock Idol 2006-2007 and qualifying for the Finals at Pune on February, 11 2007.

Public Issue are Christopher- Vocals and Rhythm guitars, Nipun Nair – Guitars, Vinodh aka Tibu - Bass, Vinay – Drums. Three out of the four are students of visual communication at Loyola College, Chennai and Christopher, the vocalist is undergoing his B.com degree at Madras Christian College, Chennai. Like any other student with alternative talent or prodigy that does not confirm to parental or professorial standards, these youngsters are sacrificing a lot to make it to the big league.

Aged less then 20, this bunch of talented Madrasies are ready to take the Indian Rock scene by storm. They hate new age rock and are fans of pure rock of the 60s, 70s and 80s. Their inspiration being Mr. Bigg, Dave Mathews Band and Eric Johnson among a host of other legends, these rookies are well on the way to emulating the success of their icons after their triumph here in Manipal.

At the South Zone Finals, they keyed up the crowd with Mr. Big’s ‘Green-Tinted Sixties Minds’ and three other self composed songs which were equally well received with applause from the crowd. It was a no nonsense focused performance which didn’t include any sort of riposte unlike other few who went an extra mile with their efforts to gee up the crowd.

With impressive performances in Chennai and Bangalore under their belt, this band unlike any other that started out practicing in garages to the disapproval of their neighbours have come a long way and are here to stay. “The future is bright, there are loads of opportunities for bands like ours” says Vinodh aka Tibu who seems optimistic about the future of Rock and Rock Bands in India.

In the words of Nipun Nair, the Guitarist, “We are a progressive funk band and we love to have fun on stage. Hope it rubs off on the crowed too!” This young band, only a few months old is currently working on their original sound. Seems we are going to hear a lot about them in the years to come.