Exclusive Premiere: Electronic Duo Lateral’s Melancholy Sax-Laden Song ‘Stay Here’

Although it didn’t happen at their most recent gig – the sixth edition of gig series Kerplunk alongside post-rock band Aswekeepsearching – Guwahati duo Lateral’s brothers Amitabh and Siddharth Barooa are often asked to play songs from their long-standing rock band Lucid Recess, even when they’re in full electronic mode.

Siddharth, guitarist in Lateral, says, “A lot of people don’t know about Lateral but remember us from Lucid Recess and it’s surprising for them to see us in this different light.  But once they get a hang of this new music, their responses have been really encouraging.” Carrying on with Lateral, their latest song “Stay Here” is a throwback to their 2017 single “What If This Is The Only Time,” featuring saxophone and guitar melodies over Amitabh’s distinctly downbeat vocal croon.

Even though there’s synth and minimal beats, “Stay Here” further showcases how Lateral’s sonic palette can draw from guitar and other instruments. Amitabh picked up the alto sax in 2018 and taught himself how to play it and use it in their music. He says, “It has really brought a nice and organic change to our music and this experimentation with different instruments is also a reason for our music not exactly sticking to genre.” One of their previous songs, “What a Way To Know,” also featured saxophone.

Siddharth says, “Our main areas of work have been downtempo and house. We’re also exploring some lo-fi and hip-hop elements on our new songs as well. We’re also collaborating with a lot of different artists and you’ll be able to see a very different version of Lateral in those.”

“Stay Here” is taken from Lateral’s upcoming five-track, which will feature more live instruments, in addition to the synthwave turn they took their first single “These Nights.” Siddharth adds, “We will be releasing the third and fourth singles with music videos in March and releasing the EP in April.”