Pune Guitarist Vinay Kaushal Releases Stirring New Single ‘Reality Check’

Seasoned Pune-based guitarist Vinay Kaushal has been playing the six-string for almost two decades now. Although he grew up on plenty of rock music, he attributes his musicianship to his sitar playing mother, who also features on his 2018 debut album Naked on a Train conceptualized during his time spent at Hollywood’s Musicians Institute. “I feel I can communicate my thoughts better with the guitar than in words,” says Kaushal. The artist is now out with his latest single, the acoustic rock offering “Reality Check,” featuring Mumbai singer-guitarist Siddharth Basrur.

Over the last two years, Kaushal has been busy performing at gigs and has also been involved in other projects such as funk band Funkatrix as well as fusion outfit Empty Café. However, with the lockdown thrown in earlier this year, the musician decided to spend his time writing new music. “Reality Check” was born out of those recent sessions and draws inspiration from the likes of American rockers Widespread Panic and Incubus.

The new song includes a hooky acoustic guitar part, riffs, and slide notes too while Kaushal also shows off his chops with distorted sections and a resounding solo for the outro. Apart from the guitarist, Canada-based drummer Agneya Chikte and Kolkata bassist Among Jamir throw in a bouncy groove as Basrur brings his well-known vocal acrobatics to the table, going from the restrained to the rocketing across the nearly five-minute track.

Basrur has been on Kaushal’s bucket list of collaborators for a while. He says, “I sent it to him and it was pretty much a, ‘Hey, I think this is totally your vibe, will you check it out?’ conversation. Sid was just awesome as I expected.” Lyrics for the song were penned by Kaushal’s wife Uma Athale, that revolves around how people grow apart. “Sometimes you can try to hold on but then eventually one realizes it’s time to stop pretending,” says the seasoned guitarist. Following “Reality Check” are more singles by Kaushal featuring collaborators from across the globe, with the next one out in December.

Stream “Reality Check” on Spotify below and on other platforms.