What is that feeling when a song reminds you of something that never was?
Sometimes you hear an act and wonder why the views or streams on it are so low but the point is that greatness is still great whether or not it is popularized, commercialized or recognized.
They performed at all the biggest festivals from Magnetic Fields to Ziro Music.
In a roomful of sounds that all sound the same – Sky Rabbit is a brief reprieve of unpredictable brilliance. Those vocals delivered in a cocky and self-assured way. The nonchalance of the music.
They made two great albums – lyrically and sonically astonishing and in an age-old twist – disbanded. By the time I discovered my favorite band it was too late.
Their music bridged the divide between alt and electronic to craft something both emotional and danceable. The sounds are aching and vulnerable – bordering on post-punk and melancholy shoegaze.
Each song of theirs is a standout. Their 2012 self-titled is an album that will forever be my favorite. There are no encores to great things in life. The 9-track masterpiece is sombre yet catchy.
The entire album is an emotional rollercoaster. Truth, nostalgia, rebellion and what not. ‘Oil’ is a song about the trappings of desire.
He’s never full
And always wants more
…
He can imagine
…
But it has never really happened
And if they came to life
They’d stun his eyes
‘Try’ encourages listeners to break apart from society’s constraints and embrace the natural. To take steps to protect the environment. To reject the consumerist culture of modern society. ‘Hilltop’ chronicles the aftermath of a bomb dropping. Existential misery wrapped around cryptic imagery. The band wraps youth inside of its lyrics. The depth of Dylan Thomas meets the style of Oasis.
Yes, it’s a joke
Your time is a joke
And we’ll keep on joking
Till the clown weeps
Today is all our yesterdays… A lyric in another goes.
‘I Become I’ is one of my favorite songs ever. Introspective self-actualization reaches its highest on this…
West will be east
East will be west
Setting sun will rise
Rising sun will set
…
And I may become I
And I may become I
They cut songs with John Leckie who produced for greats such as Radiohead and also worked on Pink Floyd’s ‘Meddle’. Sky Rabbit was a departure from all that had been around in their times. Acclaim was quick but quick acclaim leads to quicker burnout.
They are my go-to-cry-band. Good days, bad days, best days, worst days. They are also a secret that I do not wish to keep anymore.
I have never heard music better than this. It shocks people till this day when I play one of their songs – so they ask – What is this playing! – and I say – Sky Rabbit from Bombay…
Songs such as ‘I Become I’ and ‘Maybe is Open Tonight’ – fuse melancholic poetry with nostalgic punk to create a sound that is simply unforgettable.
…
This cannot be so wrong
those nights were not staged over
Look at the sky and earn my name
maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe
Sky Rabbit is one of the greatest Indian acts ever. They are a rarity. Listen to both the albums and tell me if I am a liar. Every so often a great act ends up obscure on the internet. No matter how good people still tend to overlook. Leaving it like a forgotten treasure buried in the hearts of few.
It’s a stranger’s choir when I choose to move on
When the dark comes up we will float over buildings
Your new year’s treaty left us with foul breath
I’d wash it off with a glass of familiar love.
There’s thronging danger waiting for footsteps,
It seemed to cross the fences the wrong way,
You reckon we will be meeting at days end,
It’s a highway call to wave all your white flags
Yea, I feel worthless despite your claims
Yea, I feel run down by all your stains
Your stains, your stains, your stains, your stains, oh no…
This is the great Indian sound that the scene is still sleeping over. Their music should have shot them to eternal fame but here am I alone on an obscure corner of the internet listening to their EP – ‘Where’ and wondering what if?
