SINGER-SONGWRITER BANAT Kaur Bagga was only five when she started playing the harmonium because of her grandmother. “She would push me to perform kirtan at our local Gurudwara. At that time, it wasn’t something I loved doing. Quite the opposite in fact,” the Mumbai-based artiste tells us.
She describes her latest EP, Flish, as the culmination of her journey as a musician, from then up till now. As she grew up, Banat branched out into listening to Opeth, Yann Tiersen, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and other sufi music. Her EP ranges in genres from pop and rock, to neoclassical and folk. Flish, through its music and art, creates a fantasy world full of emotions.
On track
The first track, Taabir is a whimsical and dreamy number. This is followed by Ode, an homage to the month of June. “The song is about hope, loss and acceptance,” Banat tells us. Your Vancouver is inspired by singer Jeff Buckley’s Vancouver, and is a song about relationships. “The next track, For The Child In You, is a piece inspired by my oldest cat,” the singer adds. The final and titular track, Flish is a more fantastical number about a fly and fish, who are both envious of each other’s lives. But they forget that at the end of the day, both belong to the same pond. The songs are piano-driven, with guitar-based melodies and influences of progressive rock, metal and pop. “The universe of Flish is symbolic of how my sound has changed. It also represents my own growth — from being a young, angsty teen to a composed and self-assured individual,” says the artiste.
Like a dream
The cover art for the EP instantly caught our eye on social media. Similar to the sound, the art is very ethereal and dreamy. It was made by ar tist Drishali Motwani. “Working with Drishali has helped me develop a style and vibe. The fantastical elements in these illustrations are very powerful and symbolic,” she says. As for future plans, Banat says she can’t wait to get back to performing live. “Online just doesn’t cut it! But for now, I’m focussing on writing more music and also scaling The Acoustic Classroom, a music school I founded two years ago for young kids,” she sums up.
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