MUMBAI: Mumbai-based electronica act FuzzCulture is releasing a new EP titled Strange Cities, which will be out exclusively via Apple Music on 15th January 2021. The global release on streaming platforms will be on 29th January, 3 weeks after the Apple Music Exclusive. Strange Cities sees change, or more of an evolution from the last FuzzCulture album Escape To Where You’re Wanted, which was released in 2019.

Strange Cities EP Artwork by Nikhil Kaul. (click to download)

With unavoidable earworms all over this EP, the songs on Strange Cities open FuzzCulture’s sound to a much wider audience, with prominent elements of dance music, electronica, pop melodies, pleasant chord progressions, and songwriter Arsh Sharma’s collective influences over the past few years. Not so strangely, the concept behind the title of the EP came from when Arsh changed cities three years ago and moved to Mumbai. He realised how much a city shapes and changes you when you struggle in a place which is not your own home. “I also realised that cities are the people that live in them and the stories they tell.” he said, adding that all the songs in the EP have a lyrical, abstract story, and an observation to them. Strange Cities, lyrically and thematically, definitely has that vibe laced with a decent dose of bittersweetness and self-deprecating sarcasm.

The EP begins with the up-tempo single Nicotine, which will be out with a music video before the EP on 8th January 2021. The title track Strange Cities follow, with definitive guitar, piano, vocals and synth parts held together with anchoring basslines, and a catchy melody. Brief Encounters is the third track on the EP, left instrumental between the engulfing soundscapes that meet halfway through the EP. The orchestration sets a perfect bed of soundtrack music you can crash into. We then move into two more upbeat dance tracks - Starlight and Mr. Murder - both in their own respective directions when it comes to storytelling.

When asked about the effort put into producing the EP and what was different from previous releases, Arsh said, “With the new EP, I tried a completely new production approach and using a lot more organic elements to complement the trademark electronics I use in FuzzCulture production. There are horns, trumpets, clean guitars, atmospheres, pianos and drones.” He also mentioned he aimed to create an EP which didn’t sound like it’s been made by computers, adding a deliberate looseness to the production to give it a more human and organic feel. Strange Cities has a vibe of ‘if a singer-songwriter made a hybrid dance electronic EP’. It’s quite ageless and the clever use of sounds and scapes are a breath of fresh air among indie composers and producers.

FuzzCulture has also announced a new logo this new year. Strange Cities is the second EP from FuzzCulture after 2016 two-track EP Twins. FuzzCulture is best known for 2015 debut album No, followed by 2019 album Escape to Where You’re Wanted.

Strange Cities Tracklist:
01 - Nicotine
02 - Strange Cities
03 - Brief Encounters
04 - Starlight
05 - Mr. Murder

Album CreditsAlbum Artwork: Nikhil Kaul
Written and performed by FuzzCulture
Mixed and mastered by Arsh Sharma