Picasso Recess

by Rikaza Hassan

A three piece band labeled "punk" that have been around for ages; their music is "hard rock," according to Mikhail, "thrash punk" according to Nirodha and by the standards of Nevaan, "heavier punk, I can't really explain, ask Mike (Mikhail) for the proper term."

This may come off to the uninitiated as confusion and lack of focus, but it is more a reflection of the merging of three different styles in a most unique manner that is Picasso Recess.

"We convey a sense of duality: an infusion of lyrics and melodies and music contrasting all the time, "says Mikhail. "We try to write ambiguously, always presenting something at face value but also something else a lot deeper."

Their music also "appeals to more people than a standard band," because it is "very accessible and very relatable. We don't sound progressive but I do like to think of a metal philosophy when writing a song."

"Our songs are like a story line," remarks Nirodha. "They're about family, background and depth of feeling. Mikhail writes stories and turns them into songs."

Picasso Recess are in one sense perfectionists. "We try to be," says Mikhail, "to give as much credit as we can for the hard work."

"If we don't like a song, if we think it doesn't sound good we throw it away." They are also masters at "construct"ing a song, "deconstruct"ing it and then "reconstruct"ing it. "We could take a song, break it down and redo it, or put it together with another song that we have broken down and fit the matching pieces together."

They also make sure to "practise as hard as we can," before a show and to do "everything professionally. We plan ahead leave no room for ifs and buts." Nevertheless they also claim to be three very relaxed people who "don't take ourselves seriously."

"Our audience is more likely to have fun with us. We try to write as honestly and deeply as we can and hopefully reach out to someone at a deeper level. If they don't like our music they'll at least think we're nice guys."

They also find themselves experiencing nervousness ridiculously each time they get on stage despite the number of times that they have been up there. "I'm petrified that something will go wrong; I have 101 worries," says Mikhail. "It's really scary on stage. "When I look at the people I freak out," adds Nirodha.

Mikhail in addition makes certain to put on a "very active stage act." "We don't play very technical music and don't have complex musical arrangement. So we play what we play while doing a lot of aerobic stuff like kicks and flips." Nevaan on the other hand admits to having no stage act whatsoever.

"Mikhail has a good one, but I just stand there and play." They also tell me of one particular show where Mikhail did a little jump and found he had broken the flooring on landing. A quick recovery, a business-as-usual exit from the stage and they walked out scot-free.

Even at present Mikhail is still recovering from nearly having broken his leg at their last gig. "The doctor asked me to not stress the lg, but I'm practising even now. I know this is a very stupid and irresponsible thing to say, but to do and die for the show. Just give us the chance."

Back flips and fan mail aside, it is not easy being a three piece according the boys. "It's a lot of work for each individual with three people. There is absolutely no room for error." Says Mikhail, "It's really hard for me since I have to do both vocals and guitar."

However the three were reduced to two not so long ago when Jackson (Ranil) left to join the Stigmata. "It was very amicable and there was no bad blood. "Jackson became very associated with metal and we stopped relating with him. He's a great drummer but he wasn't a perfect match anymore."

Nonetheless says Nevaan, "It was really bad. We were stuck for sometime," before they found Nirodha formerly of Sword of the Spirit. It took the two five months of auditions to find their perfect match. "We had to mess with him a little to see if he would fit in."

With Mikhail back permanently, Picasso Recess are working on material for their first ever album, hopefully to be completed by the end of the year. "We need just the right material to get it right. If not even a great band could come out sounding like utter shit." And they've most certainly got the talent.

"When I was in England for my studies, I used to work as a promoter and people would stop and say that they've seen me before. I heard people discussing a local gig in a library in the U.K. We're just part of the first generation, we've got talent and we've got heart. All we need are the lucky breaks."

Picasso Recess certainly deserve their lucky break. After all, all they want to do is "play our music, nothing more than that."n

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Nevaan (22)

bass guitar

Nevaan describes himself as "quiet" and "funny"person who can "draw a bit" and has a "bit of a temper." Currently working and studying for his C.I.M.A., he has no idea what he wants to be doing in the future. "I live for the moment." He counts John Myung as his inspiration and role model while being a fan of melodic metal.

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Mikhail Ismail (22)

vocals + guitar

This Tool fan works in finance despite holding a degree in Biomedicine. He listens to everything from pop rock to heavy/hardcore metal but is not interested in anything out of the rock/metal sphere.

He is an ardent believer of charity concerts, saying "If we can even contribute 100 bucks to help a kid I think it's really good."

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Nirodha Jayasinghe (18)

drums

He brings the heavy influence to the band with his Lamb of God inspirations, "double foot," playing and "interesting breaks." Currently at home after his A/Ls, he is primarily focusing on the band.

Nirodha plays better when under pressure and also plays guitar and bass apart from drums as a hobby. He describes himself as an "interesting" person who likes to "listen to music and get intoxicated."