MUMBAI: Towards the end of August, Dualist Inquiry went ‘live’ on Facebook to reveal the information concerning the act’s latest EP’s nature, the process and collaborators. Dualist Inquiry (or Sahej Bakshi) revealed the album ‘Dreamcatcher’ will feature three collaborators who would contribute in the form of vocals, and ever since, the anticipation towards the release increased even further.
And it wouldn’t be unfair to justify the hype surrounding the Delhi-based producer’s newest and most elaborate project. Dreamcatcher, in no way, steers Dualist Inquiry away from the efforts that have become his strengths – the minimalistic electronic sound, the guitar-infused grooves and the ability to adapt with every new release. In fact reflects the artist’s evolution into a dedicated composer who would rather lock himself in the studio for three months only to further push his creative limits.
Although everyone expected the producer would release one of the four collaborations off the album before its official release, but Bakshi relied on the old trick and continued with the hype through the release of ‘Sleepwalker’ that involved no collaborator. Of the four collaborations, it is Kavya Trehan whose vocal efforts seem to bring the best out of Dualist Inquiry’s compositions – ‘Zero Hour’ and ‘Opaque’. The MOSKO’s vocalist has performed live with Sahej Bakshi on a couple of occasions, and the sheer compatibility through the final
mix does not come as a surprise.
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The sixth track of the album ‘Trainwreck’ is everything but what the track name suggests. In fact, it would not be too far-fetched to conclude that this collaboration featuring The F16s stands firmly as the finest and freshest sound off the album. The composition almost sounds like The Weeknd meets Mark Ronson production. The dreamy Josh Fernandez vocals boosts the outcome of the track, and indeed further makes ‘Trainwreck’ ideal for a live gig. Looking forward to see how Dualist Inquiry pulls this live.
Dreamcatcher would not give you several convincing reasons to play the album for the rest of the year or even the month – as in the case of his debut EP Doppleganger – however, Dualist Inquiry’s consistent desire to adapt and sheer gut to experiment in a scene where every other electronic music consumer is a critic, needs to be appreciated.
Not many artists emphasis on providing an ideal concluding track to any of their efforts, and once again, this is another aspect where Dualist Inquiry has stood out with ‘Dreamcatcher’. The track ‘Violet’ that follows ‘For Joss’ – a collaboration involving Sohrab Nicholson – proves the producer’s attention to details does not restrict to the sound or the arrangement, but the order of the album and the ultimate experience.
The rest of the album continues to remain more or less Dualist in its nature. At the end of the album, the four tracks involving the three collaborators and ‘Delirium’ will stay with you, and it would be safe to conclude that electronic music fans (esp. the ones attending NH7 Weekender) will not be disappointed on how Dreamcatcher would transcend into live sound.
