Composer-producer Arka Sengupta talks about his latest album 'Fear of an Obtuse Earth'
Hyderabad-based guitarist-composer Home Brewed Universe aka Arka Sengupta
Pandemic or not, Hyderabad-based instrumental rock/metal artist Home Brewed Universe aka Arka Sengupta has always been sticking to a usual grind of a day job, playing about with around the 16 cats that inhabit his house and writing music. “Believe it or not, what keeps me going is a constant thirst to do something productive and an absolute lack of social life,” he says.
His upcoming album Fear of an Obtuse Earth (releasing January 25th) does draw from the pandemic, as you’ll hear on the cracking record opener “Babel East.” Over chaotic fretwork that threatens and digs into grooves, Home Brewed Universe walks the line between metal and prog, with airy keyboard portions building an atmosphere. The aim of the song, however, is definitely to be as heavy as possible. “The song reflects the initial stages of the pandemic where most people were making stupid decisions and there was chaos everywhere,” Sengupta says.
The rest of the 10-track album is driven by a concept of dystopian nature — a human being who fears losing reasoning and intellect due to the rise of technology and artificial intelligence. Undoubtedly influenced by U.K. prog band Porcupine Tree‘s 2007 album Fear Of A Blank Planet for the title of his own record, Sengupta hails frontman Steven Wilson as a formative songwriting force. “[That album’s concept] I believe is pretty relevant to the current scenario in the world and it is quite similar to the concept of this album of mine. So, the name, Fear of an Obtuse Earth is an intentional homage to Porcupine Tree’s Fear of a Blank Planet.”
With a sonically heavy and groovy slant on Fear of an Obtuse Earth, Sengupta is looking to change the way he writes and releases future material. “These days, most people don’t listen to full albums. So, I might just move to releasing two or three EPs per year to suit the music industry landscape,” he says.
Watch the video for “Babel East” below. ‘Fear of an Obtuse Earth’ releases on January 25th. Pre-order here.
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