Glass Onion strikes a rather motley pose. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta

Who: A motley group that hits the cramped mezzanine quarters of a Lake Terrace house almost every evening to practise its music. The members are liberally sweat-streaked — there are no fans. But no one minds. Drummer/vocalist Priyanka takes the tiny area leading to a slightly larger room, where the two guitarists find space to sit, while bass player Subhayu stands and plays. Meet Glass Onion, comprising students from Jadavpur University, Presidency College and Future Institute of Engineering and Management.

Why: The unusual name is derived from a song from The White Album by the Beatles, borrowing from the Fab Four’s insistence that their songs did not carry profound meaning, but were meant to be enjoyed.

Where from: Formed last year, the band has passed through line-ups before hitting on a working chemistry. The reason it works, according to guitarist Debarshi aka Laddu, is because they “are friends before being band members”. All except lead vocalist Arunava grew up together around Southern Avenue.

Style: Glass Onion’s music is not about flash, says the other guitarist Vinayak, a master’s student at JU. Diverse influences, from the Beatles to Jaco Pastorius and The Ventures come into play when the band performs. Currently, Glass Onion has four originals, but they also play covers from CCR, Fleetwood Mac and The White Stripes.

What next: Glass Onion has finally started getting shows. They have picked up hard-learned lessons along the way. “We realised that while approaching people, professionalism went a long way. We now have a card, a brochure with a CD inlay,” explains Debarshi. Glass Onion won the JU engineering fest, Sanskriti, in 2006 and went on to perform at Princeton Club. The band also reached the finals of the Scholastic Beats band battle, held in association with t2.

What campus band do you love' Tell t2@abpmail.com