New Delhi/Mumbai Collective Excise Dept Turn To Coming-Of-Age Folk-Pop on ‘Billo’

Among the newer acts on the block, Excise Dept’s latest single “Billo” showcases yet another side to their already-diverse catalog of just a handful of songs. A lockdown-origin project between artists Rounak Maiti, Karanjit Singh and Siddhant Vetekar, there’s a keen interest in “digital space, the mockery of right-wing news channels, WhatsApp forwards, Nineties Bollywood romance, desi folklore” and more.

While “Billo” is a more hopeful song fed through the filters of everything from Punjabi folk-pop to the influence of Indian-origin U.K. act Cornershop, Excise Dept’s other songs range from hip-hop to trap and experimental in Hindi, English and Bengali.

Excise Dept says in a statement about their latest work, “‘Billo’ takes the listener on the sonic equivalent of a carefree car ride in the summertime––a colorful but nuanced tapestry of guitars, harps, strings, vocal chops and pianos, backed by a steady drum shuffle and warm bassline. The combination of instruments and sonic textures feels effortless, as well as unmistakably desi and Punjabi in character.”

Written and recorded in 2022 in New Delhi, the collective say that the song “reimagines the trope of a Punjabi ‘billo’ in popular imagination, instead putting her center stage in navigating a coming of age journey not unfamiliar to most of us––family pressure, romantic pitfalls, comfort in friendship and the anxious excitement of tackling life head-on.” The music video shows different situations in a friendship between three women, focusing their road trips and drives around town together.

While more singles from Excise Dept are planned, Maiti for his part has gone on to release a new single with the group’s manager and fellow artist Andrew Sabu. The duo paired up for the wavy, synth-pop jam “Give U Nothin,” which comes with a trippy music video made with the help of Excise Dept’s Singh and Vetekar.

Watch the video for “Billo” below.