artiste

OF THE MONTH

The unique sound of singer-songwriter Astha Tamang-Maskey cast its magic over every Nepali who was growing up around the decade of 2010s.

She released her first album Sabai Thikai Hunchha at the age of 19 in 2009. Having moved out to Canada at the age of 12, it represented a desire to connect with her Nepali roots. A deep connection to the art form driven by a rich musical childhood developed a unique musical identity that struck a chord with the Nepali audience. Driven by a passion for continuous evolution, she graced the Nepali audience with music that was beyond its time. Her latest album Muse, released mid-January, continues to embody these values.

It all started right at home, with an environment where “there wasn’t a single day when music was not playing in our home”. From her mother’s ghazals and Nepali classic records to her father’s passion for western classics like The Beatles, it was a fertile musical environment.

At the same time, she also forged a deep connection to the acoustic guitar. “Picnics and bonfires, my parents happily slow dancing, uncles strumming away and showing me different guitar chords” — Tamang-Maskey credits memories such as these as the reason why the instrument sits at the heart of all her songs.

Sabai Thikai Huncha offered the youth of early 2010’s with quintessential ballads that acted as the backing track for their emotional lives. But she also quietly sowed the seeds for a DIY music movement that has flowered to great heights. “Although I had several meetings with many music labels in Kathmandu at the time, I didn’t sign any contracts,” she said, “It was very important for me to have done everything my way, produce and distribute the album independently and own all the rights to my music.

Co-founded with Rohit Shakya, the album also gave birth to the company Fuzz Productions which embodied the true essence of the independent DIY music movement at the time.”

Her focus on continual artistic evolution was soon apparent when her second album, Ma Ek Sapana, was released in 2012. It featured an avantgarde style that traces a direct path to the heartstrings. The album featured darker and experimental sounds in songs like Khaali and Bhed which explore “vulnerability and emptiness”.

The music video for Khaali with its mysterious but familiar arcane symbols was all the rage. The album had basically taken the road less travelled and extended the horizon of possibilities in Nepali music.

“Evolution in music, I believe is the birthright for every musician,” opined Tamang- Maskey, “It is how we continue to grow and express who we are.” And she continues to explore a lot of new music on a daily basis. “I pull inspiration from artistes who are really pushing boundaries and continuously experimenting.

Collaborating with other musicians can also really shape and spark creative thought,” she said.

A driving philosophy which focusses on continuous development has allowed her to trace a unique path as a musician.

At the same time, her music adhered to a different production standard, a few steps ahead of the norm, especially in the beginning when the DIY music scene in Nepal was barely existent. “My desire to elevate my music to a standard I had set for myself, I think was my biggest motivator,” she said, “I’m continuously working hard and striving towards becoming better at my craft.” As an audio engineering graduate, she tends to attend almost all her studio sessions from recording to mixing and mastering.

Tamang-Maskey continues to explore new musical directions, collaborating with musicians and producers from both Canada and Nepal. She has collaborated with Torontobased music producers Losh and CaptainCl!ck for her latest English album Muse. The album further explores electronic music influences which were apparent in her early songs like PMS (Stop Spoiling Me). “As a songwriter, I always wanted to create a space where I had no restrictions — where I could in a sense be somewhat ‘genrefluid’.

I feel the most inspired when I feel that sense of freedom,” she said.

As important as the stylistic freedom is for her work, each next album draws on her own life as well, with Muse marking new milestones in her life. “I go through somewhat of an emotional cleanse with each album I put out,” Tamang-Maskey shared, “I continue to be inspired by the complexity of human emotions we all experience. From the beginning of my music career to now, my musical process has not changed, what I continue to experience however is my own evolution and growth as a person.”

“The album Muse describes my last couple of years experiencing many milestone changes in life, one of which included meeting ‘my one’, falling in love and getting married. In the album, I explore themes of selfcare, unconditional love, positive and negative passion, and nostalgia,” she shared. Inspired by these life changes, she is ready to dive back into the creative mode for her upcoming Nepali album, to be released in 2020 itself.