Mumbai Duo Second Sight Collaborate with International Artists For ‘Shallow Waters’

Mumbai acoustic duo Second Sight – comprising musicians Anusha Ramasubramoney and Pushkar Srivatsal – had a clear-cut plan for their act over the next year. The pair who released their four-track debut EP The Violet Hour in 2018 were plotting to follow up with a full-length album with their band as well as a self-produced duo record going into 2021. However, due to the current coronavirus pandemic, Second Sight have had to alter their plans.

Despite the setback, the acoustic outfit has managed to squeeze out a release while in quarantine. The pair’s latest offering is the Latin-jazz track “Shallow Waters.” The song originally stemmed from the duo’s observations of India’s political climate. “The notion that questioning the government equals hating the country and how the people themselves are propagating this is what really shaped the lyrical ideas of the song,” says Srivatsal.

Once the track was complete, Second Sight began reaching out to musicians to collaborate with them on the song. They got on board Cuban percussionist Marypaz Fernandez Garcia who Ramasubramoney met last year at the Rajasthan International Folk Festival at Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur (where she helps as a Spanish translator). Next, Sri Lanka-based bass player Aniel Someillan and Brazilian keyboardist Pedro Carneiro Silva were drafted in to play on the song too. “Pedro was the piano faculty at Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music in our second semester and he’s always been super supportive of our music since music school days,” says Ramasubramoney.

“Shallow Waters” weaves in and out of dynamic channels from the percussive and harmonic vocal delivery by Ramasubramoney and Srivatsal to the groovy and invigorating parts by Garcia. Srivatsal’s acoustic guitar arrangement flows elegantly with Silva’s exquisite keyboard work while Someillan holds the song together with his robust bass lines. The track has been mixed and mastered by Srivatsal and has also been given a play through visual to go with it from Ramasubramoney.

While in quarantine Srivatsal has been conducting vocal classes online and working on his chops as a guitarist and producer. “Hanging out with my dog Ringo keeps me busy,” he says. As for Ramasubramoney, she’s been working on assignments and a dissertation as she’s currently pursuing a Masters in Linguistics. She says, “I’ve recently discovered that I like video editing and collaborating with friends and musicians around the world, so I’ve been putting up videos on my personal page.” Next, Second Sight plans on releasing three more songs as demos over a couple of months.

Watch the video for “Shallow Waters” below: