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Chapter 14
When I set up the mic, noise came through the amp. I adjusted the volume and angle with practiced ease, and the crackling soon disappeared.
Same as ever.
Come to think of it, this practice room was exactly as it had been in the past. The mic amp that crackled every time you set it up. The slightly musty smell of the soundproofing. The only difference was that back then I’d mostly been alone, and now I was here with my future band members.
Still, having people with me is reassuring.
I sat down with the acoustic guitar in my arms.
Until the fire, I stopped by here every day to practice all sorts of things.
Singing, guitar, piano. I used to roam the empty practice rooms on this floor, picking things up bit by bit. Thanks to that, as time went on, I’d learned to handle the guitar and piano a little. Apart from sleeping and class, I’d spent nearly all my time here. You could even say I’d spent more time in this practice room than at my accommodation. Recalling those days, I let the corners of my mouth lift. Then I settled in front of the mic and began to sing, just as I had back then.
I wake up in the morning, once again.
Calm, with no accompaniment. Yet clearly, I began telling my story. The moment I sang the first line…
“…!”
Jalen’s eyes flashed. He shifted to face me properly, like a child urging someone to hurry up and tell what comes next. As if enchanted by the words, enchanted by the song, he stared at me in a daze. I kept going, strumming the acoustic guitar, thrum, thrum.
As usual, in the same bed I know.
The emotive guitar formed a harmony with the singing. The story that had been so composed began to stir with feeling. As the guitar rippled like waves, tak, ta-tak, Itai’s drums slowly started to rev up.
I’m looking for you again, like yesterday.
Tomorrow will be same day, again.
While the guitar and a hint of drums supported the vocals, doom, dudoom, Hjalmar’s bass line struck the heart. As if answering it, Itai’s drum beat grew more and more intense.
“…Haa.”
Jalen, who had been watching me with bated breath, shuddered as if a thrill ran through his whole body. He turned to look at Hjalmar and Itai with a face that said he’d never expected this.
Every time I see you. I dream of you. Look, who’s in the mirror.
In no time the song flowed into the chorus. Like a band that had played together for years, we listened to each other’s playing and each other’s vibe and built the song together. Maybe because of that, Jalen’s face was unmistakably that of someone entranced.
Every time I see myself. I dream of you. The man across the time, within me.
When we finished the first chorus and were about to move into the second verse…
“Hold on.”
I stopped playing abruptly. Hjalmar and Itai, who had been following my vocals, stopped moving too.
“What is it, Sinu? What’s wrong?”
“Is something not right, Sinu?”
I shook my head.
“No, it’s not that.”
I turned my gaze to Jalen, who still seemed out of it.
“Hey, Jalen. You okay? I waited, but you never came in.”
“Ah… ah…!”
Flash. Only then did Jalen seem to snap back to himself, eyes wide, shaking his head side to side. Sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck, he gave an awkward smile.
“Sorry, guys. I got so lost in the song that I forgot to come in. Haha…”
Jalen seemed to have a lot on his mind. He fell into a daze again and then asked me.
“Sinu. You really wrote this song, right?”
“Yeah.”
Then he asked Hjalmar and Itai.
“And you two really are playing this for the very first time?”
“That’s right.”
“Yeah. Why?”
Gulp. Jalen swallowed hard and let out a trembling breath.
“Phew. After hearing you play, I think I’d regret it forever if I didn’t join.”
He looked at me with earnest eyes.
“Sinu. Can I join your crew too?”
That evening.
Back at the hotel, I flopped down on the bed and fiddled with my phone.
[Sinu’s crew (6)]
[Sinwoo invited Jalen.]
[Sinwoo: Hey guys, this is Jalen, a first-year in our music department.]
[Jalen: Hi. Nice to meet you.]
Before long, the chat room began to buzz at the new crew member’s arrival.
[Ash: Ooh~. A newbie!]
[Abby: Hi, Jalen!]
[Hjalmar: Yo yo! Wassup?]
[Itai: Welcome.]
[Jalen: Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone. :)]
As the chat filled with greetings…
[Ash: Jalen, what instrument do you play?]
[Jalen: Ah, mainly piano. I can also do a little guitar, drums, bass, and vocals.]
[Abby: Wow, so you can do everything? Even singing like Sinu?]
[Jalen: Haha. No, not singing like Sinu. Just enough to help out with backing vocals. 🙂 And bass and drums, I’m not a specialist like Hjalmar and Itai, just able to do the basics.]
He said it so modestly, but in truth, piano, guitar, drums, bass, even vocals, Jalen had the skills to make an entire album by himself.
Of course, his playing quality can’t match the best players in each field. But it’s more than enough for writing and performing songs.
As the chat turned to the new face, Jalen…
[Itai: Sinu. Can you send me the video from today’s session? My fiancée is curious and wants to see it.]
[Ash: Video? Wait, you guys filmed today?]
[Abby: Huh. What is it, what is it?]
At Itai’s message, the dance majors began to stir. Hjalmar bragged to them.
[Hjalmar: Today we all got together and helped with Sinu’s demo, and it was so cool! The song is amazing too!]
[Ash: Really?]
[Abby: Why didn’t you call us? :(]
[Sinwoo: You’re dance majors. Today was song work, so it felt awkward to call you.]
That was true, wasn’t it? It was just a process of syncing up to finish a demo, and there was nothing for the dance majors to do. And with only one day to finish, time was tight.
Still, seeing them this disappointed, maybe I should have at least mentioned it.
[Abby: Hmph.]
[Ash: If there’s a recording at least, let us hear it~.]
[Sinwoo: Ah, hold on.]
I opened the album app on my phone and opened a video file.
Will this do?
When I pressed play, the footage of us syncing up in the practice room rolled. My calm voice and the emotive guitar. Then the drums and bass coming in, striking the heart. And on top of it, Jalen’s piano adding a delicate groove. Of course, it wasn’t a formal recording, so the sound quality was a bit lacking. But the richer structure and sound made it look like a pro’s live video to anyone watching.
I’ll only send the song that’s already public from the open mic stage. The other songs haven’t been released yet, so I should be careful about posting them in a chat room like this.
I uploaded the band practice video of “Again” to the chat. As if they’d been waiting, Ash’s message popped up right away.
[Ash: Oh, what’s this?]
[Sinwoo: You asked to hear it. What we worked on today.]
[Abby: Ooh. I’ll go watch!]
How long had passed? Suddenly the chat room exploded.
[Abby: Wow. Wow! Wow!!]
[Ash: This is the song from the open mic, right? Hearing it like this feels completely different!]
[Abby: Right! You guys are really good at music! Especially you, Sinu, your voice still gives me goosebumps!]
As the two dance majors filled the chat…
[Ash: Your band is so lovable!]
[Abby: Right! We’ll be your band’s first fans!]
At the dance majors’ words, silence instantly fell over the chat. Probably because I still hadn’t said anything directly about a band, the others found it hard to speak up. Whether they were members of my band or not. And sure enough, my guess seemed right, because a long message appeared.
[Jalen: But Sinu. Did you accept me, Itai, and Hjalmar as members of your band? I can’t tell whether we’re just helping this time, or whether you’re running the project thinking of us as band members.]
I raised my eyebrows at Jalen’s message. Of course. Even Jalen, who had only joined today, was thinking this.
It’s actually good. Better to make it clear this time.
I typed on my phone.
[Sinwoo: If you want to be members of my band, I’d be grateful.]
I meant it. The reason I hadn’t brought it up until now was that I wanted to wait until we were closer and they’d shown clear willingness to join.
Of course, Hjalmar wanted to be in my band from the very start.
If I only accepted Hjalmar as a band member, the others might feel hurt. Besides, none of them had firmly decided whether to join my band or not. As I sent the message…
[Hjalmar: Aren’t we already Sinu’s band members?]
??
[Itai: I thought so too.]
???
At Hjalmar’s and Itai’s messages, I blinked blankly for a moment, then burst out laughing. They’d already thought of themselves as my band members.
[Sinwoo: Right. You’re all already my band members.]
[Jalen: Awesome!]
As everyone in the chat got rowdy again…
[Hjalmar: So. What should we call the band?]
At Hjalmar’s message, the chat went quiet for a while as everyone deliberated, and then a new message arrived.
[Jalen: We became a band by playing like jamming, so how about Sinu’s Jam?]
[Hjalmar: Sinu’s Jam? Nice. It really feels like Sinu’s band.]
[Ash: When you get famous, you could sell jam as merch!]
[Abby: Lol]
[Itai: I’m in favor. My fiancée says it sounds good too.]
Hmm, Sinu’s Jam.
I’d need a band name anyway to introduce my band to people at the social events starting tomorrow. And if I didn’t like it, I could always change it. So I’d go with this for now.
[Sinwoo: Good. Then from today, our band is Sinu’s Jam.]
And that was the moment the band Sinu’s Jam was born.
