Following on from the huge success they received for their debut single 'Fantastic, I'm Plastic' earlier this year, New Delhi via Brooklyn-based outfit ZYkR now return with their wonderfully atmospheric followup 'Paranoid'.
Channelling the bold and intense flavours of acts like Massive Attack, 'Paranoid' makes for a broad and captivating new release. Filled with sweeping and ethereal tones, diverse instrumentation, and some truly eerie vocals, their latest gem gives us even more reason to pay close attention to the trio in the months to come.
So with their new track doing the rounds right now, we sat down with Aseem from the band to find out more about his origins and what has inspired him most over the years.
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What were the first instruments you fell in love with?
The guitar. Although I didn’t actually own a guitar till high school. All my musical heroes played a guitar and I wanted one so bad but Delhi didn’t have good guitar stores so I had to order one from the US. My folks had a condition that they would let me buy the guitar if I got through engineering school. So I had to really earn that Epiphone Les-Paul. And of course I dropped it in the first week I got it – the strap came off, and it fell on the floor, chipping in a few places including the E from Epiphone. I remember I was so upset with myself. I have such love for this instrument and it’s still my main guitar - live and in the studio.
What has been the most prominent inspiration behind your music so far?
I get very inspired by good lyric writers – Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Elliot Smith, Ben Gibbard – the way they can paint pictures with their words. I think as a musician, you’re a product of everything you’ve ever heard. So picking inspirations becomes hard but if I had to pick the most prominent it’d probably be either Porcupine Tree or Radiohead. The way they evolved over their careers to keep defining and redefining themselves is particularly inspiring to me.
What kind of music did you love as teenager?
In my early years access to music was primarily through cassettes and CD’s, so we only had access to whatever was stocked in the stores, and that was either Bollywood or mainstream pop music. But by my teens music piracy was having it’s heyday and that brought me exposure to music beyond the top 40’s. My friends and I would burn cd’s for each other– everything from folk and classical, to blues and metal. I used to listen to whatever I could get my hands on, though admittedly there was a lot of rock music – Nirvana, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Supertramp, Pearl Jam, REM. Some of my earliest loves came from CD’s burnt for me by my friends.
Can you remember the first song that made you want to pursue a life in music?
I don’t think I can point to a single song. Music’s been a part of my life for so long it’s hard to trace the seed. There were events that happened along the way that convinced me I wanted a life in music. I was fascinated by the power music had over me. It was the one place I found solace and belonging. I come form a professional family with no artists or musicians, so for me it was hard to convince myself, and people around me that I could do this. But I’d say since middle school, when I first started playing, somewhere I think I always knew this is what I wanted.
When you wake up in the morning, what kind of music do you like to listen to?
It varies but usually it’d be ambient electronic. BT’s This Binary Universe is still one of the best morning albums in my opinion! Sufi Music, especially Abida Parveen is another favourite for that hour.
How many of your songs have you written about people in your life?
I’d say 4 out of 5 songs would be about me, or the people in my life. A lot of my songs come from some point of contact in my life –could be a conversation, a movie, or a situation. I do get majorly inspired from other mediums - a book I’m reading or a film I’m watching. But even then I think the song ends up reflecting some part of your own story. I’m reading this book by Chuck Palahniuk where he says ‘Everything is a self-portrait.’ I’m inclined to agree. Every piece you make reveals something about you. Even the choosing of a subject matter is indicative of something in you. So in that sense all my songs are about me, or the people in my life.
What have been the most memorable moments in your career so far?
I’ve been lucky to have some amazing opportunities in my career so far. Performing at a packed Boston Symphony Hall was an incredible experience, as was having my installations displayed at the Boston’ World Trade Centre and the Rose Kennedy Greenway. With ZYkR, I think playing Arlene’s Grocery in New York last year was very special. I’d grown up reading about Arlene’s in biographies of musicians who got their start in New York. From Jeff Buckley to The Strokes. To be performing on the same stage was really cool.
Outside of music, what are your biggest passions?
Writing is a pretty big passion of mine. Lyrics or poetry, articles or short stories, I’ve always enjoyed writing. I loved reading since I was a kid, especially fiction and I’m fascinated by the power of the written word. How symbols like these letters can trigger our imagination to play out entire stories and scenes in our minds is truly amazing to me.
If you weren’t a musician, what other path do you think you might have taken?
I’d probably be a nerdy researcher doing his PHD in music technology. I love building instruments, writing software, designing tech. and I’ve been working for a while in programming interactive installations and custom-controlled performances. I went to engineering school before Berklee, so there’s a problem solving part of my brain that loves to break things apart, study them and build something. I think that’s also why I love electronic music and sound design so much. For the potential to create sounds that haven’t existed before.
And what advice would you give to those looking to start a career in music?
I feel like I’m not really in a position to be giving advice since I’m still figuring it out. Having said that, I’d say do it only if you love it immensely. It gets tough, but in the toughest moments what gets me through is thinking about the joy that comes from finishing a piece of music I’m proud of. That is incomparable and makes it really worth the trouble. The other thing I’ve learnt is to separate work from your art. If you’re a fulltime artist, do some work which is not your artistic vision. Working for other people in whatever capacity you can in the overall ecosystem helps to support yourself while also creating distance between you and your art, otherwise you risk getting too attached.
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ZYkR's new single 'Paranoid' is available to stream and download now. Have a listen to it in the player below.