Close

 Popular in Features

Meera unlocks relatable nostalgia with new track, Keys

Following an outstanding debut EP, “I’ve never been happier to be lost”, Meera has launched an absolutely beautiful jazz-soul track called Keys. The singer-songwriter with of one of the best voices in the indie music community, shares, “the song was born when I saw my parents sorting out all of the keys they had gathered over the years – unsure of what each even locked.”

The whole song, from writing, to performance, production, artwork, mixing and mastering, is completed in Ahmedabad – at Compass Box Studio. Notably, the end of the track features voices of Meera’s friends and family. She adds,

“they’re all of the people I wanted to surround myself with but could not: voices from all over the world saying one phrase.”

The striking artwork, created by Dharun metaphorically represents how some of our memories seem locked far away. Asked about the whole story behind the concept, Meera explains, “I sent him a bunch of photos which I had taken over the years which resonated with me in the context of this song. The original idea was that my arm was reaching for a doorknob to open onto a collage of memories. Then, that doorknob became the moon, which we liked as just a representation of how some of our memories seem so far away, as if they were in outer space and yet, sometimes we traverse those vast distances to access those memories. The fun thing was that most of the photos in the collage were taken by me at different parts of my life – specifically the clock (which is actually a chalk drawing that I had found in some parking lot of a long forgotten building!) and the key on the right hand side , which were initial inspirations of the album art. Really each image in that collage was discussed and picked for a specific reason and that made the process so personal and meaningful! Actually if you look closely, the messy chord chart of the song itself is in the collage as well – just for a good measure of meta”

Follow Meera Desai: YouTube | Instagram | Spotify

Know Meera Desai:

Meera is a singer and a songwriter currently based in Ahmedabad. Born and raised in New York, she received training in western classical and jazz throughout her early years and teens. She then moved to Ahmedabad two years ago where she further her studies of Hindustani Classical music . First studying with Pta. Tripti Mukherjee in New Jersey for 4 years, she has now been studying with Shri Vikas Parikh for 3 years, both students of Sangeet Martand Pandit Jasraj. Her lyrical songwriting style and thoughtful compositions stem from her inspirations: artists like The Swell Season, Joni Mitchell and Norah Jones. She has been professionally touring her original set in India for the past few years, as well as with Heat Sink, a progressive rock band.

She worked with Raag Sethi to release an original EP of lyrical folk and jazz-inspired pop, titled ‘I’ve Never Been Happier to Be Lost,’ from which a few songs were featured on Apple music’s top playlists, and were nominated for multiple awards. Her aim is to tell her stories, listen to others’ stories, and immerse herself in the ocean that is music. In addition, she volunteers at Compass Box Studio, where she serves as a sessions vocalist, helps with communications, curates the spoken word live sessions.

Song Credits:

Composer: Meera Desai & Raag Sethi
Lyricist: Meera Desai
Producer: Raag Sethi
Main Vocals, Backing Vocals: Meera Desai
Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, arrangement, upright bass: Raag Sethi
Drums: Shivang Kapadia
Clarinet, Saxophone: Harmish Joshi
Mix Engineer: Protyay Chakraborty
Master Engineer: Raag Sethi, Protyay Chakraborty
Album Artwork: Dharun Vyas
Music Video directed and shot by: Yuvan Seth

svg5 min read