Singles Roundup #5: Diversify your playlist with these latest tracks

ANC, a three-piece Mumbai based band released their latest single Be Alright. The band was adamant that things would “be alright” even after having to cancel their release tour. The track aims to spread a sense of optimism that even during such tough times, things will be alright. This light breezy track, not only features groovy bass, vibey percussions, soft guitar plucking, but also luscious vocals and harmony by Second Sight’s Anusha Ramasubramoney and Kush Asher on the keys.

Pune based artist Gaurav released his latest single Dheere Se. The track acts as a breather and is fresh from all the Bollywood music with its catchy Hindi lyrics, melodies and a pop tune. With slight electronic elements, this track sure sets a refreshing vibe.

Agaahi Raahi and Awara came together to release their latest hip-hop rap single Halaat. The track talks about this virus called ‘inequality’ which is persistent in our country. The song tries to portray the real ‘haalaat’ of India ranging from serious inequalities, politicians, WhatsApp university, sold media, and other pressing issues plaguing the country.

Sagar Shah who goes by the alias Nowl is a Mumbai-based electronic music producer and DJ. He creates downtempo, chill music and has a blend of electronic drums, acoustic instruments, and analog synths. His latest track Bloom has a very calm, and happy vibe to it. It is soothing enough to put you in a meditative state for introspection. His music can be described as the music for the mind.

Tangents is a progressive metal act based out of Bangalore. This 5-piece band released their first single IGOR, after 3 years of releasing their debut album. Apart from dissonant guitars, the track also features a neat solo section. The cover art of the track by Divya Negi, compliments the intensity of the song well.

After being featured on a number of national and international platforms, Tushar Mathur released his third single Stepping About. The song talks about the current generation’s big battle between hustle culture and self-care culture where millennials measure self-worth with productivity. Mathur’s influences like Tom Misch, FKJ, and Daniel Caeser can be seen through the tracks groovy looped guitars, chilled-out vocals, and melodies and a catchy bassline.

Akshay Achar aka Kali is a Bangalore based Kannada rapper who dropped his latest track Jaatre. The music video aims to encapsulate the essence of how people view the world from different angles. The story behind the track was the nostalgic memories of Kali visiting fairs. In this track, he draws metaphors on how most experiences that we as individuals go through in life are like a fair and how he still views the world as a fair.

Mumbai-based multi-lingual hip-hop crew recently released their outspoken and bold new single Mahaamaari. It portrays how the Indian society has reacted to the COVID-19 pandemic. This latest track features Bengali- Hindi rapper Maharya and Mawali as they dive deep into the failings of the Modi government in dealing with the pandemic and the failing of the administration in carrying out their core duties. The lyric video, besides having interesting visuals, also consists of clippings of the current pandemic situation across the country.

ASHWYN, a Bangalore based electronic music producer released his latest single Begin Again featuring Swedish singer Pikes. This indie-electronic track has certain pop and rock elements in it as well as dancefloor electronic beats, and guitar parts played by ASHWYN himself.

DJ/Producer duo Lost Stories in collaboration with Jonita Gandhi and Ashwin Adwani came together to release their latest single Mai Ni Meriye which is a rendition of the Himachali folk song Chamba. This track is a perfect blend of soothing electronic beats, infused with Indian classical instruments, giving it an Indian folk vibe paired with beautiful vocals. The Indian classical instrumental part brings back the nostalgia for big Indian weddings.

Rock Salt is a funkadelic rock band hailing from Delhi. The band is known for their fast-paced eccentric music and that can be seen in their debut single Isle as well. The groovy base really sets this song apart but their influences of Led Zeppelin, RHCP, and Snarky Puppy can be seen blending in this song.

Yohan Marshall who goes by the monicker Yodadrunk released his latest single Sweetheart which is an initiative to raise funds for SAATH, an NGO for suicide prevention in India. Sweetheart is a combination of ambient electronic beats and new-soul and dream-pop melodies. The track talks about the feeling of abandonment, of people laughing off their problems while hurting inside and is a reflection of a love-hate relationship between a vulnerable person and the world as he/she comes to experience it.

Anand Sreeraj and Rishad Musthafa are a Kerala based singer and producer duo who released their latest single Hold Me Tight. This pop-indie track not only has some catchy pop electronic beats you can dance to, but also has an Indian classical touch by including the flute, which seamlessly blends in the track. The song is themed on the adventure ride of love.

Vivek alias XR is a Delhi based rapper who released his latest single Khud Ke Liye which is based on the concept of self-love. This song is a reminder to everyone who has forgotten the value of this beautiful life. The track is based on the idea of how self-love is very under-rated in our society and people spend a lot of time thinking about the opinions of others before taking actions for themselves.

The frontman of post-rock band aswekeepsearching – Uddipan Sarmah released his single Puhor. He says he doesn’t have a particular genre he wants to stick with his solo act as he plans to evolve and not restrict to one particular style of music. ‘Puhor’ means light in Assamese. The track is about the change we’ve experienced in our lives these past few months in the form of sadness, anger, loneliness, and a sense of hopelessness. It talks about how this simple life which we are living these days is the light at the end of the tunnel for a better future.