Adam & The Fish Eyed Poets Release New Album

Adam And The Fish Eyed Poets

Now three albums old, Kishore Krishna, founder of Chennai electro rock band Adam & The Fish Eyed Poets, is convinced when he says “I don’t think anyone in Chennai knows that we exist.” The one man band, which recently added three band members, are currently spending their nights in Krishna’s Chennai pad, working on their next album, More Songs From An Island, which is the second part of their latest release, Songs From An Island. They also recently returned to perform in Bengaluru, where they’ve played last week. Ask them why they choose the Garden City over their home turf and Krishna says, “It’s not that dude. The thing is there only one venue is Chennai (Star Rock). It’s very hard for standalone pubs to function here, so the music scene is quite dead.”

Krishna, who first adopted the moniker Adam and The Fish Eyed Poets in 2008, is not only a multi-instrumentalist, but a prolific one at that. Delivering an album a year, he debuted with Snakeism in 2010 and Dead Loops in 2011, both comprising multi-genre songs that won him rave reviews. The project was Krishna’s solo bedroom project until earlier this year, when he decided to form a full-fledged band with Prabhu Muralee (drums), Nischint Murari (guitars and bass) and Abhinav Krishnaswamy (guitars and bass). While Murari left for the US after recording one half of the two part album, Shakey Rays’ guitarist Vikram Kannan has hopped on board for the following. “I guess the first two albums represent a conflict between Nick Cave and Otis Redding… Otis won,” Krishna says about their newest work.

In spite of the comparisons with the new setup, their latest album sounds richer and heavier than their previous works. Also, unlike earlier experiments that were carried out of Krishna’s home, this album has been mastered professionally in a studio.

Krishna also credits the change in their sound, evident on a new track titled “Magic Wand”, which is darker than most of their songs, to Muralee. “The drummer is so good; he gives us a lot of options to explore. The band’s sound is a lot more exciting now,” he says. The disturbing lyrics add to the mood. “It’s sort of a conflict that runs through our music. But I think this album is funnier than its dark. My sense of humor is not as personal here,” he says. 

With Songs From An Island, Krishna, the storyteller too makes a comeback. Like his previous albums, this one comes with a photo essay, a narrative of sorts that can be traced through each of the 11 songs. The album, according to Krishna, tells the “story of a 21st century arranged marriage between an ego dystonic lesbian [Shanthi] and a software professional [Ravi].” It was a holiday in Kodaikanal that started it all. “I was with my folks and probably the only youngster there. It was packed with couples and old people. I saw one strange couple who seemed to have some tension between them,” he says. 

Pictures, for Krishna, provide a context to his songs. He maintains that that he can’t write a song without a story in his mind. “I started out as a writer who used to sing. I consider myself a poet first and a musician second. Oh wait, Bob Dylan said that,” he says. Adam & The Fish Eyed Poets’ tracks mirror the visual storyboard that comes with it, though Krishna doesn’t seem to care for chronology. The story (and the album) tracks the life of a dysfunctional couple, over two decades starting 2013. However, there is no mention of the 2020s. “Hair spray and spandex and gated snare reverb make a comeback in the 2020s, so I skipped it entirely,” he laughs. “I wanted to keep the suspense going. So the next album sorts that out,” adding that the pictures will be in color next time.  

Krishna is hoping to include a female vocalist in his forthcoming album slated to release in December. When Krishna talks about it, it sounds more like he’s casting talent for a film he’s shooting than recording in a studio. “It’s hard to find one. I saw many skilled singers but not one who would fit the character.” He adds, “There’s more to singing, it’s like method acting. The thing is, our sound is very different from any bands. I’m not trying to sound elitist but it’s hard to find someone who can get into the character that our band needs.”

The band will next perform at the Bacardi NH7 Weekender in Pune this November. Though they are still undecided about the set, he says. “I don’t know man, it depends on whether or not we can find a horn section in time, let’s see.”