Guwahati: An idea conceived in a coastal town of India found its way to the fretboard of Anurag Gogoi’s guitar through “Coral Gloom.” The sea waves coupled with a workshop experience at the prestigious Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music were enough to stir emotions in the heart of the multi-instrumentalist, which resulted in the birth of the debut original of the city-based musician.
“While I was there, I came across a disturbing topic i.e. depletion of coral reefs. It somehow affected my mind, I couldn’t get it off so I thought let’s compose something. I went to the hostel after a long day, then I started composing and recording the track on the spot on a very minimal setup,” said Anurag on asked about what served as a catalyst for “Coral Gloom.”
An instrumental that took two months to complete, the composition has been arranged to create imagery that elucidates the dwindling of coral reefs from the womb of mother nature. “The song is an instrumental number, which allows me to say a lot without even uttering a single word. The starting of the track sounds positive, but then it gradually becomes dark, I tried to portray the before-and-after stages of the coral reefs through that gradual shift,” he said.
“Coral Gloom,” now available on all major streaming platforms, is an instrumental that falls under the umbrella of Ambient Metal, and it endeavours to be a voice for nature while raising awareness on the impending condition of coral reefs all around the globe. What makes it even special is that it has been sponsored by XLN Audio, a leading music software company based in Stockholm, Sweden.
The instrumental was chosen by his mentor, Imtiaz Alam to represent India and sent to the board members of XLN Audio, who were impressed by it and approved the sponsorship. Alam, an endorsee, has been working in close collaboration with Anurag to bring global sponsorship to the northeastern region of India. On being asked about how he feels about being sponsored, the musician expressed his joy with sheer enthusiasm. “It still feels like a dream, when I first started audio production I used plug-ins from XLN Audio. And now they’re sponsoring us! I can’t explain the feeling! And the best part is we’ll be passing the sponsorship to other artists as well. This entire process will uplift our music community as a whole”, he said.
Anurag, who hails from Guwahati, is a full-time musician and plays guitar for his band Audile.” Although the stringed instrument is the one he is the most adept at playing, he is also skilled at playing bass, drums, cajon, ukulele, harmonica, and piano. A passion that turned into a profession, the musical voyage that he has been sailing through was set forth from his home. “I always had a good bonding with music as my father was a guitarist himself. I started playing the guitar at an early age but it was an on-and-off kind of situation,” he added.
His musical career witnessed him start with Blues and Classic Rock, and gradually shift towards Ambient Metal and Post Rock, which are also the genres of his current works. Throughout his association with music, he has been profoundly inspired by the Beatles, MLTR, Nirvana, Journey, Bon Jovi, Meshuggah, Bryan Adams, and John Mayer. To add to it, his inspiration also lies in the creations of gems of Assam that include legendary artists like Jayanta Hazarika, Papon, Kalyan Baruah, and Jeenti Dutta.
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For Anurag, music has gifted him the wings of freedom to express himself. “All I have is music, everything I’ve learned so far in my life is somehow influenced by music. I love to express myself through my songs, music gives me that freedom which I believe nothing else can,” he said. In the coming days, he plans on releasing two EPs and a few singles. Additionally, he, along with his mentor is also working relentlessly to facilitate international sponsorship for artists in Northeast India.
From strumming melodies of life to voicing his concern regarding the depletion of coral reefs through his guitar, Anurag Gogoi’s work stands as a testament to how music speaks a language, so loud and clear that it reverberates throughout the corners of every person’s heart and mind and makes them wait for a moment and mull over what would have been ignored otherwise.
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