Hear Siddharth Basrur’s Dub and Reggae Turn on ‘Rise Above’

Mumbai-based vocalist, producer and guitarist Siddharth Basrur has taken on everything from rock (Kinky Ski Munky, Last Remaining Light, Runt) to metal (Goddess Gagged) to instrumental rock (The Library), ad jingles, film work and more. There’s clearly more genres to explore, as he throws on a reggae and dub-informed beat over his musing new song “Rise Above.”

Basrur calls the song a “happy accident” but also tells us that some of the inspiration came from playing open world videogame Grand Theft Auto 3 and listening to the in-game radio station K-Jah, which plays dub music. He adds, “I’ve never released something like this before, so I’m quite excited about it.”

Produced entirely at home, “Rise Above” has a typically easygoing pace and rhythmic quality that is associated with reggae, but it’s not all about happy vibes in the lyrics. Basrur is singing about when the “world came to a standstill” due to the coronavirus pandemic, survival was top priority but people also seemingly “took time out to stop and smell the proverbial roses.” He adds in a description, “But things are slowly going back to the way they were. We’re getting in each others’ way. We’re getting in our own way. This is a song about getting past the only obstacle that really stands in your path – you.”

The music video for “Rise Above,” shot by Basrur’s friends Ashlesha Bangia and producer Ayan De, features roving footage edited together from outdoors. The artist says he was looking for footage on his hard drive for a lyric video and stumbled upon the backup files from 2012’s “Stay” music video. “I found some nice beauty shots and other things random footage that wasn’t used, and the video was born. There’s tons of Easter eggs, throughout the video, if you can spot them,” Basrur adds.

Watch the video for “Rise Above.” The song releases on all streaming platforms on September 7th.