“We never meant to be a part of the college competition scene,” Moses Koul, guitarist of the experimental indie band from Delhi, L for Vendetta (LFV), tells us. “We never saw ourselves as a band that could compete and win prizes and stuff.” Moses iterates in plain language that it has always been only about the music and playing shows rather than competing. He says, “After a few venues shut down, gigs have become few and sparse in nature. We are now writing an album, so to have L for Vendetta in the memory of the people and know that we are active, we took part in a few competitions where we were placed.” LFV might have run into witnessing instances of gross injustice against some bands at different competitions and festivals, but the band does accredit the college music scene as a great space for exposure. “Obviously there are a few competitions,” says Moses, “that really cheat the artist badly; like, they don’t pay the prize money and stuff. And then, there are competitions where you have to pay to play, which is even worse.” Moses believes that there needs to be a line drawn somewhere, where artists and musicians cannot be exploited like this. “But I believe – when it comes to the college music scene, especially now with access to SoundCloud and YouTube – people are consuming some really brilliant music.”

Starting off as a duo comprising Moses Koul and Rudraksh Banerjee, which later bud into the experimental metal outfit, Kraken, the band finally found its own with a revised line up and a new direction of music. “Push came to shove and we formed a full-fledged band,” Moses says. “Rudraksh is no longer a part of the band since he moved to Italy, so we got a new drummer and everything. Now we have really good members and most are in Delhi, so we can really push and take this forward.”

At the moment, LFV are visiting their jam pads, sitting down and writing some music for their first full length album that the band hopes to record and release in the near future, “The music is very major-keys-poppy,” Moses tells us, “but it’s juxtaposed by dark lyrics. I feel that combination goes really well; as far as the music goes, it is ambient pop with shoegaze influences.” The band doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to hit studios though; “We don’t want to record the songs and then go to the jam pad and jam them out,” Moses announces, “Instead, we want to jam, make songs and then go to the recording studio.” 

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Watch L for Vendetta play on Balcony TV below: