Sarthak and Shashwat Karkare debut their new project, St Cyril, with an EP laced in style and some exciting chords
(From left) Shashwat and Sarthak Karkare in performance
For music aficionados in the city, Shashwat and Sarthak Karkare are familiar names. Having been around the alt-rock and indie circuit since 2012, the brothers recently launched their latest project, St Cyril in 2022. Their latest EP, The most amazing exhaustion of the century, comes as a snarky explosion with its vibrant guitar chords and synth experiments.
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The brothers have been playing together since school. “We are, thankfully, good colleagues and also share similar tastes in music,” shares Sarthak Karkare. Having been part of multiple projects, including Unohu with Yohann Coutinho, Sarthak’s solo-project Maqta among others, they decided to start St Cyril in the pandemic, he notes. “We named ourselves after the road St Cyril in Bandra,” he laughs. The sense of almost-punk snark is imbued in the three-track EP. The title, he shares, perfectly summarises it.
“We realised that there is a vast difference between what we experience and what we portray as a society today. Many of us are in this weird cycle where they are exhausted by the many achievements and constant hustle, but celebrate the exhaustion instead of addressing it. The title was a snarky take on the need to add colour to something dull or drab,” he points out. Each song is a take on this absurd experience.
It kicks off with the vibrant, up-beat Just a guy that explores the growing presence of social media in every aspect of life. Sarthak’s guitar drives the track with gusto. This is followed by the groovy Bacchic ways to highlight the disconnect between aspirational nightlife to its unhealthy nature. The final track, Summer house, is the pick for its synth-heavy sound with keys and choruses and a guitar solo that takes it to the next level.
The duo started working on the track in April this year. While Sarthak worked on the lyrics and production, Shashwat took reins of the arrangement and percussion. “The good thing is that we are organised musicians, and clear on what the album or a song should sound like,” 28-year-old Sarthak shares.
Having grown up listening to Green Day and Linkin Park, the sonic reference points for the tracks ranged from The Wombats and The Strokes to Arctic Monkeys. He admits, “We tried many different things sonically, but realised that the tracks were tied together thematically.”
With the EP out, the duo have their sights set on their next one already. The guitarist reveals that they are now looking to push their experiments further with synth and distortion. With upcoming performances being planned in Mumbai and Bengaluru, he points out that the other projects such as Maqta and Unohu, will continue in parallel. “We hope to build an ecosystem that allows them all to grow,” he says.
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