FreshFindsIndia - Shore.PNG
IndiEnglish2.png
 
 
 
 

Featured on Spotify Fresh Finds India July 28, 2021

“Shore Out Of Reach” & “The Only Constant Is Change”

 
 
 

Featured on “The Other Side Reviews”

Opening with ‘Milky Hands’, Naresh introduces us to her soothing vocals and soul-stirring guitar. Reminiscent of Joni Mitchell and Janis Ian, but with some “boppier” quality, Shore Out Of Reach is very intimate. Using a personal narrative in the majority of her songs, Naresh easily connects with listeners enveloping them in a comfortable blanket. Yet, while each track has a languid vibe, the lyricism has a juxtaposing complexity.

Touching on topics from motherhood to living in quarantine, Naresh explores existential truths in this conceptual EP. Once again, the songs may have a soothing folk feel, but there is brutal honesty and grittiness in them. I love ‘Stuck In Quarantine’ for its more melancholic and desperate tone, but then Naresh treats me to her relationship with her child in ‘Milky Hands’ and her “happy place” in ‘Shore Out Of Reach’.

One common feature I hear in each track is the harmonic blend of instruments and rich vocals. Bold and dynamic, but with soft warmth, listening to Naresh’s voice is like a cool breeze across your face on a summer’s day. She hypnotises you with her simplistic style, then leaves you grinning from ear to ear because of her calming effect.

 

Featured on We Are YMX

Sahana Naresh perfectly embraces the idea that getting out of your comfort zone can lead you to new opportunities, including love and the beauty of being with someone who can grow with you as a person in a relationship in order to create a solid bond. “THE ONLY CONSTANT IS CHANGE” is a hopeful hymn that encourages you to simply trust the process, live in the moment, and have a little faith. A blend of acoustic and alternative-Indie vibes that'll put a smile on your face, a cure against a bad day. Thanks to her classical training, Sahana is able to create a constant flow through the entire song with her vocal skills and adds more personality to the already immersive production.

With a solid music theory base on her side and loads of aces up her sleeves, the artist is willing to release more music that can make listeners feel cathartic and create a sense of community among them. A hard worker capable of mixing modern soulful Indie music and classical Hindustani vocals to celebrate her roots.

 

Interview with “The Champa Tree”

We have always featured mothers with incomparable struggles. The women who have achieved the impossible and created a new benchmark in motherhood. We have also tried to bring to open the strong narratives of women who are blessed with immense talent, perseverance, empathy, and integrity. The Champa Tree met one such talent, Real Mom Sahana Naresh, who has one eternal love in her life – Music. Music is a therapy, an all healer which soothes our mind magically. Singers dedicate their lives solely to the notes in the songs because they are living the magic.

 

Featured on Sinusoidal Music

A significant part of music journalism is just the frantic desperation of being buried under a tumultuous collection of tracks and albums to review. Throughout all the years, we develop an affinity to some of the music we once heard and forget the others; but there are some numbers so exceptional and introspective that really remind us of music’s perennial power to evoke. 

Indie singer-songwriter Sahana Naresh’s latest — Milky Hands is one such track. Naresh spins together a most heartfelt and emotional number inspired by the birth of her daughter — to who she dedicates the tune. Milky Hands is a mother’s memorialization of the innocent infancy of her child, decorated across the track with the whimsical innocence of the sounds of the child laughing and playing with her mother. The song is characteristically indie-pop, accompanied throughout with only the ukulele and Naresh’s saccharine vocals representative of maternal comfort.

Interviews & Recognition

Sinusoidal Music review - Shore Out Of Reach, Milky Hands

YMX

Rising Artists Blog

IGGY Magazine

 Artist Bio:

Sahana Naresh is an Indie singer/songwriter traveling between Seattle and Chennai, pursuing her dual passion of soulful Indie music and classical Hindustani vocals.

Born into a family of musicians, Sahana grew up viewing the world through melody and the mesmeric strings of her dad’s Veena. Her uncles were behind the pioneering 70s Indian rock band Human Bondage.

Sahana grew up listening to an eclectic array of music genres thanks to her parents and uncles - Carnatic music intertwined with 70’s rock and roll influences like The Beatles. Her cousin Keshav Purushotham, a talented artist and her producer, introduced her to artists such as The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys and Phoenix, adding more layers to her musical canon. She fell in love with these artists for their energetic sound and versatile vocals - ranging from impressive falsettos to effortless laid-back singing. As she started discovering artists on her own, she fell in love with musicians such as Feist for her whimsical, free spirited music, Norah Jones for her elegance and soulfulness, and Jack Johnson for his meaningful music, percussive style, and his ability to foster a sense of togetherness while giving back to the community. On the Hindustani classical front her teacher Vidushi. Aditi Upadhya and her teacher’s father Pt. Dinkar Kaikini's music has influenced and shaped her musical aesthetic. Right from focusing on the importance of the rhythm, the musical notes and the way words sit on and flow with a rhythmic cycle, Sahana has learned to hone and bring finesse to her craft.  

 

About “Milky Hands”

Milky Hands is the debut single of Sahana, part of her upcoming album "Shore Out Of Reach". Inspired by the birth of her daughter, Sahana's rendition echoes the duality of newly found parenthood - the unwavering bond of love and the disquiet moments brought on by the anxiety a new mom feels for the safety of her child - in the chorus - “This world how will it treat you? for I can only keep you; Here with me for now…”

Led by soulful strings of the ukulele, Sahana helps navigate us through a labyrinth of emotions and sensory experiences that spin a tale of love and joy between mother and daughter.

Can you tell us more about the inspiration for the song? 

“The day I met my daughter; I was in a lot of pain but her beautiful face when she entered this world is still etched in my head. The love I have for her only grows each day, even when I went through the most challenging times in my life - physical pain recovering from childbirth, postpartum depression, and sleep- deprivation. A week or two after I gave birth, I was so overcome with love that, one afternoon, the song just came to me in a flash. Luckily, I had a steno pad and pen next to my bedside and I managed to jot down the lyrics and record the idea on the phone!”

 

Were there any notable or amusing happenings surrounding the recording/production of the song?  

“Facing motherhood was quite a challenge, and I took it head-on. And just as I was finding my rhythm and developing some order in all the chaos this little thing called The Pandemic happened!  Between running a makeshift studio in my apartment, recording songs while planes flew above our building (never rent on the approach path to an airport if you are a musician), coordinating across different time zones with my producer in Germany, and entertaining my daughter, it has all been part of the exciting (and wonderfully exhausting) journey of making this single and EP. Sometimes these came together in the form of a happy accident, like when one day my daughter burst into the room babbling loudly while I was in the midst of recording my album. And that vocal outburst went on to become the beginning and end of Milky Hands aka my daughter's debut performance!”

 

Do you have a personal quote about this release? 

“Milky Hands is dedicated to moms everywhere - whether you are in the throes of diaper runs or in the midst of dealing with teenage angst. You are seen and you are heard. And maybe, you find some solace here.” #judgementfreezone 

Why should we write about you?

“I think I have a unique yet relatable story to tell as a singer-songwriter mom, trying to balance two juxtaposing emotions in “Milky Hands”. I feel this story is worth sharing with the world.  

Being classically trained, I bring technical rigor and an understanding of vocal nuances to the songs. I can create deep texture in my songs which is the result of intricate layering of my favorite instruments and vocal harmonies. My writing and melodies are meant to make you feel cathartic and have an endearing quality of vulnerability to them.   

The eclectic influence of genres I listened to growing up and the versatility of my range creates an interesting combination of novelty and timelessness that I believe will keep listeners coming back for more.”

 
 

Milky Hands

Spotify

 
 

The Only Constant Is Change

Spotify