Strung out to Dry’ is Rohan Solomon’s orchestral piece that merges with the grandeur of a symphony orchestra. “It is a concept album as well as an orchestral album. There is a flow of a story that follows a protagonist through the ups and downs of his journey. I have been in awe of concept albums and orchestras as I support a rock band for years now. I always wanted to do something like this at some point. I figured that my 20th anniversary year was as good a time as any,” says the former frontman of Delhi-based Alt-Rock outfit Cyanide and a Grammy-submitted producer.
Solomon is a singer-songwriter, composer and audio engineer, all rolled into one. He has had his name in the global radio charts—the Euro Indie and World Indie Music Charts. In his latest album, he has skillfully made each track backed by a band of guitars, piano, and drums, creating a sound that is both timeless and modern. The instruments help him in developing a story.
“Guitar drives an album. Drums, bass, and percussion also play an important role. One song has a Ukulele instead of a guitar, so I use instruments as and when needed in a song. Even most of the percussion like shakers and tambourine are performed live by me in front of a microphone,” says the musician, who has been developing a dialogue between the popular format of music and the grandeur of a symphony orchestra for a while now.
With the passage of time, Solomon has come to be influenced by many factors. “Some songs have vocal harmonies which was one of my earliest influences when I was a kid listening to Motown stuff like Jackson 5 and The Temptations,” he says. The concept album was, in fact, influenced by one of his favourite albums by Dream Theatre; the symphony orchestra surrounding the band was influenced by Metallica’s S&M. “Each of these influences describe different stages of my life and capture the whole journey.” He was also obsessed with the song, ‘Lakadi ki Kathi’ from the film Masoom (1983). At the age of 10, he started singing with his mom every morning as she did her riyaaz.
His earlier music videos, ‘Serenity,’ and ‘Happy Place’, were shot at the family home in the hill station town of Landour, Uttarakhand, his escape from megacities. He calls Landour his “personal meditation retreat”. Solomon has also represented India in the junior league in Taekwondo. But fate had a musical journey planned for him, he says. His Grammy submission for ‘We Demand Change’, which led the song straight to the top 5 and top 20 spots on international radio charts, is a career highlight.
When asked about growing competition in the music industry, he says, “I don’t really see other artistes as competition. Music is so subjective. There is room for everyone. Artistes of similar genres are bound to have common fans. To stand out, you just need to be yourself. People relate to honesty and are able to connect with it,” he says.
