Localturnon Artist of the Week- Saby Singh

 

 What is the history to your taking up Music? How did it come into being, your journey ?

My grandfather used to be a professional Raagi, and as a little kid I had a strong bonding with him. I used to listen to him rehearse and sing and he would teach me little things often. And later as I grew, I got more professionally involved and I began Hindustani Shastriya Sangeet. I have been practicing for around 11-12 years now.

I heard The Beatles at age 14-15, and I was blown away, taken into an entirely different world of music I had no idea existed. I found it dynamic and wanted to be in a band ever since.

I started a two-piece acoustic set after meeting a college mate at 18, then formed a three-piece classic rock band, later formed a two piece rock band. I also played in a full four-piece rock band. And played bass, guitars and lead vocals in every project I have ever been.

I have been practicing professionally as a singer songwriter for a couple of months now. And so far, it is going great.

So who are your favourites/ Icons/ Role Models in the field of music? 

A lot. I am heavily inspired by Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Radiohead, Eddie Vedder. I admire Jeff Beck, Mark Knopfler as guitar players, Robert Plant, Freddie Mercury, Eddie Vedder as my most influensive vocalists. Lately I have been introduced to Steven Wilson, and I can’t tell you in words how much I admire Steven and how big of a role model he is for me.

How do rejuvenate your creative insights / get the adrenalin going?

I start fresh, with no ideas at all. I let myself fall into the feeling. The place I want to be at, the emotional state I want to be in, my zone. If I have to quote, then I would say that I recollect all the thoughts and feelings in tranquility and let the feel take it away from there. I wrote “Tum Aur Main” in like an hour only. The power of being able to feel.

Does your Music carry a message / a theme or a story? If so can you share more on it ?

My music is my journey. It revolves around the same old problems a teenager faced and how difficult stepping into the outside world is. A lot of my songs are romantic, heart breaking and sad. I try to write them so that they are beautifully sad. Everybody who actually listens to the lyrics and feels the music hit should relate to how we all are just the same at the end.

Of all the performances you’ve given, which is your favourite one and why?

I think my favorite performance would be when I performed with my two-piece project, The Nerds, at IISER Pune back in 2014. It was my first gig as a two piece and I was under a lot of performance pressure. To our bad luck, all the disasters that you can possibly imagine happened to us. I broke a guitar string, my effect pedal fused, I broke a nail and it bled so much. The drummer had his drum sticks slipping often.

But after everything we managed to pull a great show. And to our surprise, we got an encore call after that. We also played as the opening act for the main event at the festival. It was something. It makes me emotional when I think about it. It reminds me of the passion I have for this art, and keeps me driving forward.

Do you have any interesting fan stories to tell?

Oh yes, definitely. I was playing an encore set at some café in Delhi after my four-piece project had finished the show. It quickly became a very intimate gig for me. Everybody got so connected at the first song only. A couple of songs later, I was in tears, because it was so moving, the connection with the people listening and I was having the best time of my life.

Then a random lady got up from the audience, came up to me and said something in my ears and then kissed me. It was so beautiful that I forgot what she had said. I felt so beautiful. It was one interesting and one hell of a moment.

Of all the music you’ve created, which is your favorite one and why?

I have written a lot of songs, but I don’t perform all of them live. Because it gets hard for me to have control after I have exposed myself, the inner feelings through a song. My favorite pieces are in those tunes that I don’t ever play.

But from my regular set, I love ‘Nothing Man’.  Nothing Man is a simple song, the lyrics are so simple and pure. I have felt empty and worthless for a long time. I wrote Nothing Man when I was in the lowest of the times. That song is intimate and closest to my heart. It reminds me of me, who I am, and where I come from! We are born with nothing and we leave with nothing.

Can you share about some funny incident that happened on-stage / during performance / with you or the other artists / stage members?

Oh yes, there is this one. I had a gig at a school. We had to play for some children, so we had created a set list that would make kids dance and have fun. It was a three hour set. After almost half the set, the children had gone crazy and were dancing like there was no tomorrow. I had this weird idea of going off stage into the crowd and grooving with the kids. So I got off stage and went into the mass. And as soon as I stepped in the chaos I realized my mistake and regretted it immediately.

The kids surrounded me and every body wanted to be as close as they could, everybody wanted to shake hands and hugs and all. It got so wild, that they ripped off my T shirt, I almost lost balance and fell. The senior students and the security had to step in to save me from the chaos.

I learned some valuable lessons of not going into the crowd without some security and kids, oh my god, they are crazy!

We still laugh about that moment and it has become a staple fun story to share often.

How has the musical journey been so far for you and what are you looking forward to now?

It has been a roller coaster ride for me. I started with such passion for the art and energy, but it is hard to maintain it. Everything was clear when I knew what I had to do, music. But the reality checks drain your motivation unlike anything. I got to know about other fellow indie musicians who were still struggling to get their place even after so many years of performing and all. I have had no idea of how to do what I wanted to do. There have been times when I was directionless, aimless and dead, and times when everything was crystal clear. The story so far is dynamic, prone to change and utterly random.

I have never lost the passion though. It has only made me stronger to achieve what I want.

I have had a stronger outlook about my career after the amazing team at Worker Bee started managing me and I have a direction right now.

I have loads of ideas and concept of what I can do musically, but for the time being for the sake of learning, experience and ease, I am focused on being a solo singer-songwriter.

Do you have any words of advice for youngsters who are thinking of getting into this line?

Just be patient and never stop practicing. Just keep writing songs, never stop singing or playing your instrument. I have written over a thousand songs by now. I still write 5-6 songs a week. That is how the good stuff comes out. After a hundred average songs, comes something like ‘Tum Aur Main’.

If you are good, then you will definitely have your moment to prove it. Wait for that moment, and keep doing your thing till then, and finally when that moment comes, give it your 100% and nail every second of it. I bet you things will start happening then on. Just never stop. Keep practicing and writing, and be positive.

That’s what I have learnt till now and that is all I would want a youngster to know.

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