Gandhar is all about having fun, at least in his new EP, Doors. His artist bio is pretty straightforward, “Gandhar, straight out of the vibrant streets of Mumbai, wears many hats – he’s a self-taught producer, DJ, singer, and multi-instrumentalist. Mixing a myriad of genres with his personal touch, he crafts groovy beats and sings over them. He’s been lighting up stages from Pune to Goa, Bangalore to Delhi, and favourite music hotspots like Shillong, Kochi and Pondicherry. He also recently made his festival debut at major events like Vh1 Supersonic 2024, Control Alt Delete 13, India Art Fair in Delhi and Echoes of Earth in Bangalore.” The claim to being “vibrant” is not unfounded. It hits you right in the face right from the first track on the 13 minute 15 second long project that unfolds into the artist almost blending his brain and turning into ultra-neon liquid and serving it upfront to you.
For the most part, the record is energetic, and the artist plays with his voice a lot. The music is quite obviously electronic, but there is such dynamism to Gandhar’s delivery and manipulation of his vocals that it almost feels like there is a certain kind of disembodiment to it that is almost necessary. You can hear the influences, there is a lot of Daft Punk-esque energy surrounding the track, there are some notes of something you would hear on a Nucleya meets Disclosure kind of record, and there is some distinct kind of rooting in 70s funk music – perhaps on a Chaka Khan number.
All four tracks are good as standalones, and you can sense that the artist is a DJ – and that has influenced the production – not negatively, though. It just helps you contextualize a lot of the spread out natures of the loops and the familiar percussion workings. The two best tracks, however, are the last two. The titular doors, and the closing resolve are wonderful tracks. One thing that you realize very early on in this EP are that the lyrics are not arbitrary, not meant to be word-fillers where the sound is uninteresting. They are a-synchronous at some parts, sure, but they build the songs into more compact listening experiences. The lyrics also help the listener navigate the fluctuating moods within the record.
The last track, “resolve” is darker, spiralling almost, and is an interesting note to end the project on. For one, you do not expect a mostly fun, often whimsical electronica album to end on such a contemplative note [literally so – Gandhar sings “I Wonder” over and over again]. This EP is amazing work on the artist’s part, and the sudden coagulation of all things reserved, the arrival of slight amounts of stinging things almost makes you want to listen more, makes you wonder [pun intended] if there is more music in a similar vein and that is, in itself, the most definitive success for any record.
