Musicians have often been regarded as the unbiased scribes of culture — artists who capture a sign of the times with their music. Telling stories through their work was initially a norm for musicians, composers and bands until the scourge of corny mumble-rap, cheesy-pop and repetitive electronica took over with the onset of the 21st century. Lost amid the roaring stream of today’s mainstream music, however, is an eye-opening neo-urban composition from Delhi based singer-songwriter Aditya Kaushik, titled ‘2020: A Shit Show’.
This lengthy ‘Echoes’ by Pink Floyd-style auditory experience commands an audience of its own. In a digital world hijacked by complacent creators and musicians riding every mundane wave, finding artists who dare to experiment with sounds, innovate or do something out of the ordinary is almost a rarity. With social media’s algorithms stacked against the favour of genuine talent or technicality and inclined towards the aesthetic-driven and entertaining lot, the pressure to be relatable makes the very idea of breaking out of the box, a discouraging thought for most aspiring composers.
Aditya Kaushik’s creative process
For Delhi-resident Aditya, who cites Damien Rice, Leonard Cohen and Thom Yorke as his sonic influences, music has always been about soul-searching and asking the right questions, resulting in his approach of non-conformity towards music. His comprehensive ballad ‘2020: A Shit Show’ is one such experience that awakens the mind of every listener, prompting them to take a good, hard look at all the corruption, ignorance, climate change, and genocide that has festered, no thanks to our own ignorance. The song transcends the regular, not merely in sense of how long and painstakingly detailed it is, but also in light of how the entire track has been composed entirely using samples, chopped-up audio from news-reports, podcasts and speeches by political leaders.
A mix of intelligent sampling, Musicality and composition
The song’s consistent grime-flow and heavy, low-pitched basslines accord the background its dark, somber flavour, that can be heard playing out in harmony with the tune’s peculiar congregation of not-so-pleasant audio clippings. The unapologetic ballad doesn’t shy away from throwing light at 2020’s most unnerving moments; spanning from US-Iran war tensions early on in January, following the trump-ordered drone-strike that killed Iranian war-veteran Soleimani, to the Indo-China border conflicts that have been brewing up at the Galwan border, since the past month.
Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s untimely death that left the planet shook, found itself a reference alongside other globe-turning cataclysms featured on the track like Australia’s rampant bushfires. The infamous Corona-fuelled pandemic that brought humanity to a screeching halt, found itself a comprehensive mention on the tune that goes on to criticize the inefficacy of major democracies in dealing with it. The current Indian Government and America’s Trump-led Republican parties have also been called out via satirical edits of statements.
Aditya’s ingenious production and laborious arrangement of samples allowed him to also fit into the tune, news-clippings about India’s catastrophic migrant worker exodus and references to the fake-news racket plaguing the nation. India’s media outlets and two-faced journalists have been strongly rebuked by the track as well.
Aditya’s peculiar production-style reflects hints of his aversion to preconceived notions about musical composition. A mountain-child at heart, Aditya is a firm believer in the liberating aspect of making music. “I envision myself evolving into an artist that shares an intimate bond with his listeners and hopefully someday, people from around the country will travel to the mountains only to witness me performing mellow music in a cozy tavern amid the enchanting hills.” His unorthodox approach to production and experimental use of samples, keeps listeners glued to their seat, waiting eagerly for the track’s next big reveal. An accurate portrayal of the nightmarish year 2020, the song is mesmerizing and promises to be a gritty eye-opener for most of us.
You can listen to it below
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