Premiere: Metal Artist Taz James Launches Project Polyphony’s Grand Debut Single ‘River Red’

Even after more than a decade in the metal scene, Bengaluru-based keyboardist-composer and guitarist Taz James keeps the dazzle alive on his solo act Project Polyphony’s first original song “River Red,” channeling symphonic modern metal to preface his upcoming album On-ṯu.

Featuring over 50 members as part of the orchestra – including a stirring Carnatic violin section from Shravan Sridhar – “River Red” is James’ return to releasing music outside of Thiruvananthapuram metal bands Whitenoiz and Chaotic Years. James is a regular session musician, teacher and conductor, which explains the grandiose nature of “River Red.” The song features vocalist Century Khoury, drummer Chris Joseph (from rock band Abstract Tide) and bassist Jakub Kalousek.

James says “River Red” was the last song written for On-ṯu, but it felt “perfect” to introduce Project Polyphony, which had so far been the artist’s vehicle for cover releases so far. He adds, “I’ve always had the orchestra in mind to record the songs that I’ve written, and well, the recording was interesting because we started right after the peak of the second wave of Covid-19. Everyone was home, and we had to maneuver around these hurdles. We decided to record the whole album in parts, and, coincidentally, ‘River Red’ was one of the first songs that got finalized.”

The whirlwind song runs through a few movements, going from loss to fury at times. Over and above the 50-odd musicians who have been part of “River Red,” James says there are more musicians who have “asked to remain nameless for the time being” about their involvement in Project Polyphony. On-ṯu for its part, will comprise 10 songs, including a Malayalam song. “We’ve come to finalize four of these songs recently, and the rest are progressing quite well. I would say an early 2024 release would be ideal,” James adds.

After “River Red,” there will be more singles coming out through the year, with three songs remaining exclusive to the album. “I genuinely cannot wait for everyone to listen to these songs, because I’m excited and also quite nervous, as these songs are extremely personal to me. Most of all, I’m just honored to be doing this along with all the incredible people involved,” the artist says.

Listen to “River Red” below. Get the song on Bandcamp and hear on streaming platforms on April 14th.