“This album is not so much a collection of songs, but it is more of a poetic commentary on humanities worst and the lessons that we must listen to, in order for our future to remain a future” -Akram Khan
ISOLASHUN by Aditya Prakash is a self-reflective music exploration on identity and redefining beauty.
ISOLASHUN pushes the sonic, aesthetic, and narrative boundaries of Karnatik Music to raise questions of bias, hypocrisy and identity in the “classical” culture.
This work attempts to disturb aesthetics of refinement, by pushing the limits of “musical” tonality that compel a visceral response, whereby Aditya’s voice becomes an extension of an experience, rather than a curated expression.
Incorporating political content alongside religious text, and everyday soundscapes alongside heightened instrumentation, pushes traditional narrative content (of ancient myth and divinity) moving from the ancient, impersonal, and glorified “past” to the personal, political, and disturbing “now.”
By lingering in a space where the beautiful and melodious co-exists with the abrasive and jarring, ISOLASHUN invites listeners into the tension and discomfort of the creative process which has elicited tremendous self-questioning in Aditya; to reflect on our aesthetics and biases as individuals and a society, and catalyze dialogue.
A link to download a PDF about the project:
ISOLASHUN releases on New Amsterdam Records on July 28, 2023. Accompanying the album will be a short film, INSIRGENTS, directed by Akram Khan and Maxime Dos, as well as a podcast series, “A Search for Identity and Beauty – an ISOLASHUN podcast.” ISOLASHUN live will premiere in 2024 as a solo, interdisciplinary, multimedia production by Aditya and is co-commissioned by UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance.