About “Friends from Moon”:
“Friends from Moon” is a one-man band of an Indian musician, Ritwik Shivam. The moniker, which was inspired by his first hallucination trip under a full moon, was also born out of his vision to construct a world where every broken soul could dive and feel a certain strength and acceptance. He translates the motifs of fear, melancholy, magic and escape through a bed of sounds laden with reverbs, echoes, pounding drums, dreamy arpeggiated synths and bold-distorted guitar sounds. A few influential artists that contribute substantially to his musicality are: Devin Townsend, Colin Stetson, Johann Johannson, Jesper Kyd, Mikael Akerfeldt, Adam Young.
Follow Friends from Moon: https://www.instagram.com/ritwik.shivam/
About album “Astray”:
“Astray” is a heavily conceptual release that takes the listener on a wild journey of musical highs, lows, and everything in between. It’s an eight-track long concept album with a heavy existential narrative which consists of a central protagonist who has an inherent tendency to gravitate towards darkness that he explores more and more as we progress through the songs, which transition from a happy to a desolate place in a dramatic fashion. The soundscape is a pure reflection of a state of mind where you begin to see through the surface of everything, question your worth, willingly detach from the optimist to embrace the pessimist.
The central theme is the character’s identity crisis and the need for belonging. There is a feeling of impending doom which is caused by him feeding the darker shades of his personality which eventually consume him. The album’s story was influenced by short stories and movies about H.P. Lovecraft and his fixation with concepts of humanity’s insignificance and decadence.Just like the culmination of his stories, the protagonist here too meets a tragic end. The songs initiate from vigorous punk, hard rock and then transform its way from somber prog rock to experimental-fusion to progressive groove metal, concluding with melancholic ambient rock and an introspective soundtrack.
Tracklist:
1. Rage On
2. Rebellion Road
3. The Enemy
4. Astray
5. Come Together
6. Marvels beyond Madness
7. Riverine
8. Of the Spirit
