Weaving together the genre of pop with more desi elements of hindustani classical instruments like the sarangi and the almost-forgotten bulbul tarang, Mumbai-based singer-songwriter Tejas Menon has curated a deeply personal soundscape with his latest EP, Museum.
The four-track EP begins with Exspiravit In Machina which features a voice sample of his father who passed away in 2021. For Tejas, who was the voice of Archie in The Archies, Museum marks a significant departure from his signature medley of rock, funk, R&B, soul and electronica.
Drawing inspiration from The Lion King and Hamlet, the EP also serves as a glimpse into the complex relationship he shared with his father.
“Museum has been an attempt at not just reconciliation with my memory of my father, but also the exploration into my identity on a more literal level… Who I am as an Indian, as an immigrant, and to study my own history,” says the artiste. The other three tracks on the EP produced by Tejas, Jehangir Jehangir and Adil Kurwa, are Museum, The Clock and Read Your Mind.
The young artiste shares that museums have not just been sanctuaries of knowledge, but also a ledger of human errors and cautionary tales. “Museums are my comfort zones and always serve as a reminder to be better and leave better behind,” he reflects.
Channelling echoes of forgotten wisdom, Museum explores the cyclical nature of history. It unveils how humans yearn to rewrite the wrongs of the past, yet find themselves tracing the same scars on a personal and societal level.
“I tried to play with the concept of time, using a lot of loop elements and reversing entire sections to create new sounds that conceptually fit the theme,” the singer shares. Mirroring the artiste’s exploration of time, Nisha Vasudevan's artwork for the EP draws inspiration from the Mughal era, a subtle nod to Tejas' Indian roots.
Museum is now streaming on all major audio platforms.
