THE UNSEEN GUEST: Out There

The Unseen Guest

Out There

© 2004 Declan Murray & Amith Narayan (634479033902)

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Intricate acoustic guitar based rock and western song-writing with rich vocal harmonies combined with a percussive throb that is provided by Indian musicians playing all kinds of Indian percussion like tablas, dholaks and mridangam and other indian sounds

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"In short, 'Out There' might be the best recording I've heard in a decade or more. I'm giving it a 9 out of 10. Nothing gets a 10, ever, even if God descends to record His/Her/Its debut"
- DUTCH PROGRESSIVE ROCK PAGE, Netherlands

"The Unseen Guest is one of the most exciting new groups I've heard this year"
- WWW.CDREVIEWS.COM, USA

"The mix of Eastern sounds and Western song writing not only creates an original and ground-breaking sound, it is also puts forward ten songs that are nothing short of breathtakingly beautiful musical masterpieces"
- BONEMACHINE, Australia

"The Unseen Guest is a journey through all kinds of music, a great sound collage. This is music with soul"
- DAREDEVIL MAGAZINE, Germany

"This is the sort of album Sunday afternoons were made for. Relaxed in tempo, expansive in atmosphere and provoking in thought...In short, a fascinating album which will appeal to all those with a streak of independence, a desire for free thought and a laid back attitude to life"
- [THE MAG], UK

"The Unseen Guest is another band that has accomplished the seemingly impossible. They have taken traditional Indian instruments and managed to wed the sound with American Folk and Blues to create a sound which is distinctly their own"
- WWW.INDIEMUSIC.INFO, USA

"It's a synergistic marriage of Western and Indian music. It swings, it rocks, it's exotic and bluesy. It does a little bit of everything"
- NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS, USA

"Amazing pop rock for people all over the Earth.... This is the high-point of chill-out music with worldly flair...even after somewhere around forty-five minutes of stellar songwriting, I feel like I haven't had enough of these musicians, and it just might be "never enough"
- ROCKNWORLD.COM, USA


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BIOGRAPHY

The Unseen Guest make music that is difficult to pin down. Wedding traditional Indian instruments with Western song-writing and guitar, and covering it with rich vocal harmonies, they apply this basic idea to songs that come from every end of the spectrum - sounding sometimes like a mix of American folk blues and Carnatic music, sometimes like a Parisian taking on Nick Drake, at others like Buena Vista by way of Mumbai. They manage to incorporate Western music with traditional Indian instruments in a way that makes it genuinely new, avoiding patchouli-scented cliché or Bollywood bombast.

The Unseen Guest came about when, Declan and Amith met while Declan was travelling through South India in 2002 with a $5 balsa-wood guitar. The two became friends and met again in Mumbai where Amith was based, where they spent several weeks jamming, busking and singing to anyone who'd listen.

A year later, while Declan was still on the road, Amith sent him an email, suggesting recording an album mixing Indian music with Western. Declan, busy working at the bottom rung of the Australian job ladder, was only too happy to accept. Three months later they met up again in Amith's hometown of Calicut in Kerala, assembled a rotating cast of local musicians, and set to work on recording their debut album.

The result is 'Out There', a self-produced album that belies the freewheeling spirit it was made in, with a soul that shows its international origins, and a natural sound that doesn't sugar-coat the excellent live playing of its participants. With a percussive throb that is provided by Indian musicians playing everything from tablas, dholaks and mridangam, to mandolins, harmonium, veena, and carnatic violin, topped with the intricate guitars of Declan and Amith, the album melds left-field Western music with Indian in a way that has never been done before.
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THE BAND

DECLAN MURRAY - Lead vocals, guitars, slide guitar, bass guitar, piano and bongos

AMITH NARAYAN - Harmony vocals, guitars, mandolin, veena and bass guitar

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Additional musicians on "Out There":

Sumodh Sridhar - Tablas, mridangam, dholaks, ganjra, shakers & other Indian percussion
Anil Kumar - Bass dholak, ghadam, edakka, thavil, mridangam and chimes
Joy - Banjo and mandolin on "Listen my son" and "Mangla Express"
Shah Jahan Wadiyal - Violins and string arrangements on "Let me in"
Lajoo G - Harmonica on "One down"
Sunil Bhasker - Harmonium on "Out there"

reviews

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  • Amazing cross-cultural ear and soul candy
    author: khurtle

    After hearing the song: Listen My Son on a Putumayo Presents compilation, I just had to find out who was making this incredible music. This is one CD where every song is amazing cross-cultural ear and soul candy.

  • Wonderful & Refreshing!
    author: A.S.K.

    This album is heartbreakingly gorgeous. Fresh & orginal, impeccable musicianship...the only thing I don't care for are the slow, atmospheric songs, but there are only a couple of them. Otherwise, it's an awesome album. I can't wait for the next one!

  • Great!
    author: Heather

    this is great.. the music, lyrics, everything.. I like so many different types of music, and I am soooo glad that I found The Unseen Guest.... Heather

  • Great Music
    author: G.Abhimanyu Mahesh

    The demo music that I have heard on this site is great. Came to know about them through this site called indiabands. Then hopped on here. Feels great to know that an indian is making it big on the global scene. All of kerala is with you.

  • Absolutely Awesome !
    author: Michael Perry

    I absolutely love this album. It's the best I have heard in a long time. Specially 'Sandalista' - haunting tunes to the core. The mix of Indian instruments is divine. So are the lyrics. I think they are going to rock all the way.

  • A refreshing creative sound ..... a must have in any music collection!
    author: Jasmine Calver

    I love it! I wake up to "The Unseen Guest" every day....it's in my CD alarm clock!

  • The Unseen Guest are heading for a promising future, taking us on a diverse 45 m
    author: Ray Stanbrook

    These sounds provide a well crafted backdrop boasting a range that includes everything from Mandolins, Harmonium and Venna to a Carnatic Violin. Not things you run across down the Camden Barfly every night, in other words. Declan Murray delivers an engagingly rich vocal grounding, (similar to that of Ed Hardcourt) and a harmony which is very well complimented by Amith. Indeed, the album feels like a guided tour, a snapshot of an experience and growth. The highly listenable "In The Black", relates a tale of getting paid to drink, featuring the chorus:"I don't care if you need me, just keep me in the black for another day." For me, "Out There", "Listen My Son"and "Circle In the Dirt" are the real standout tracks, featuring truisms like "listen listen my son my son, i won't tell you twice what i can tell you once" and "put one foot in the front of the other, find myself a highway on my own". This quest for discovery produces rich musical achievements evoking sunshine-bleached landscapes, the deepest south of America or the dusky roads of India. It really is a collection of deft, powerful pop tunes perfect for long roads trips when the destination is not always in sight and the rush to go home is immaterial. Lovely interjections of calm filter through "Anywhere Somewhere", while "Mangala Express" is an exellent instrumental, where drifting banjo and mandolin trade off to great effect. "Out There"is never very far away from singer/songwriter territory, but rich guitar acoustics and textures ensure it sounds contemporary , while the use of unconventual instruments adds a fresh vibe and the lyrics are well-constructed and experty crafted. The Unseen Guest are heading for a promising future, taking us on a diverse 45 minute journey during which we're happy to throw away familiar musical maps.

  • A relief
    author: Steven Pearlman

    What a relief, it has been so long since i heard an album that sounded so perfect, thank you guys for writing something that really spoke to me. Anyone who reads this, take my message seriously, get this album...watch this band, a perfect meld of sounds. Thank you especially Amith for your supportive words...Best of luck to you guys, as I know you will go all the way...

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