Interview: Manoj Jacob

A few days ago Indiecision reported that Bangalore based Shoestring, the project of mult-talented Manoj Jacob, was giving away free music on its blog. Jacob spoke to Indiecision about band members, the second album and what he’s up to right now.

1. Give us a brief history of Shoestring. How did it start? Zaitz Farm Road?
I’ve been writing songs from my college days. One day I decided I was going to record them and make an album. That’s how Zaitz Farm Road happened in 2005. I chose what in my opinion were the best 7 songs I’d written. The plan back then was to form a band after recording the album and take things forward. So I promoted the album under the name Shoestring, which seemed an interesting enough band name. However a combination of my own busy work schedule and my inability to find the right fit in terms of band members, didn’t allow Shoestring to form.  So Shoestring never became a band. It remained and still is my personal project. So far, I’ve been its founding and only member.

Take the jump for the complete interview.

2. There was supposed to be a second album, what happened to that?
There was a second album. Called ‘Thirty Something’. 6 songs. I released them on my blog as free downloads. Currently Zaitz Farm Road is going up on my blog for the first time as an online release. After which I will put up ‘Thirty Something’ again for download.

3. Why didn’t the band work out?
My busy work schedule did not give me enough time for a band and finding the right team members. It was easier to just sit down with my guitar and write more songs.

4. What’s Manoj Jacob up to now? Any album details you can reveal?
I’ve been working on new songs for a year now, and I plan to record soon. Not sure if it will be an album as that takes too much time off me. I’ll do it a single at a time and release them online free. I’m also working on a new site www.manojjacob.com which will house all my work – advertising and otherwise (music, photography, non-advertising writing).

So the name won’t be Shoestring anymore.