House music connoisseur Alboe decodes the meaning of success in his new album, 'Enroute ’24'

Electronica musician Alboe, aka Vedant Chandra, has just dropped his latest album, Enroute ’24. Fresh from his electrifying performance at the Ziro Music Fest, Alboe continues to push the boundaries of Indian classical and house music fusion. He ups his game of blending house music and Indian classical sounds by composing tunes based on a central theme of hyper-success and fame. Joining us for a chat, he opens up further about the concept he explores in the album, how he approaches the sonic treatment for the scores in this album and much more.

Inspired by figures like Elon Musk, Shahrukh Khan, Joe Rogan and Warren Buffett, Alboe sought to understand the allure and complexities of achieving extraordinary success in Enroute ’24. Through his research and personal experiences, he developed a unique perspective on the journey to the top. “When I started writing the lyrics I thought to myself, ‘What would it be like to be one of those guys at any stage of their career — before they started, during their peak till after they died? I tried to position myself in their shoes — oftentimes based on their quotes. Each song was born with that thought process,” he says. He then highlights that ‘Enroute’ is the word he uses in the album’s title to explain the journey of success.

Having observed many interpretations of the achievements of the mentioned celebrities, we wondered if it affected or changed how Alboe himself looked at success. “Personally speaking, this album was a non-conformist album. I started to drift towards what I enjoy about the music I make. When my first album came out, I was positive that people would like the sound of its music. I was trying to conform to a certain genre that people would like. With this, however, I’ve experimented a lot. I’ve put in solos, shlokas and other random elements that generally would not belong there. So, that was me trying to get closer to myself, I guess. I think in that process, I felt a bigger sense of achievement,” he tells us.

We also ask Alboe to give us a listener’s guide into the tracks from this album. “I would say start the song from the first song and press shuffle. It is not a chronologically listed album. The first song is called Imarat and the last song is the radio edit of the same song. So, I want to show a full circle of achieving,” he says. He then adds, “Ironically, the second last song of the album is called The Whale and it talks about how trivial or unimportant success might be. The song asks, ‘What is the success of Elon Musk, Joe Rogan and others? How does it affect someone who’s already enlightened or happy with themselves?’ It has zero effect.” He further explains that the song intends to present a contrast that exists between individuals about the idea of success.

This album is more personal for Alboe. Having learnt much about this process of music production while composing this album, Alboe also learnt that fusion should be carried out only when it feels natural to the composer. While the mix of house music, rhythms and beats of Indian classical instruments, results in a refreshing soundscape, he cautions, “It (composition) has to be original. There are a lot of artistes who are sampling old tracks and adding electronica elements to them. I feel like that, sometimes, will not work because the musicians, who made the track, which was sampled, many years ago, had something very different in mind. Also, it takes away from the feeling and the overall idea of the original songs. Further, when composing this style of music, one should have an innate knowledge of both genres. I think knowing both will help one decide what elements to use from both and then blend them to make something more original, seamless, easy to make and easy to listen to.”

As Alboe prepares to take Enroute ’24 on tour, he’s already looking ahead to his next musical adventure. While this album delved into the world of hyper-success, his future projects will focus on creating more dance-oriented music, he tells us in conclusion.

Enroute ’24 is now streaming on audio and video platforms.

Email: pranav.shriram@newindianexpress.com

Twitter: @pranav_shriram