Rajan Shrestha is a Kathmandu based artist, primarily known as the bass guitarist of post-rock act Jindabaad. He is also one half of Anaasir, a collaborative project with Pakistani electronic musician Alien Panda Jury.
Phatcowlee is Rajan Shrestha’s solo electronic project where he infuses samples and LA beat sensibilities with deeply personal lyricism to create songs that veer into the ethereal. Cinema - his debut EP - is an excellent example of this distinct sound – in it, a love for Nepali film music and lo-fi hip-hop is combined with Rajan’s songwriting sensibilities that draw from Adhunik Nepali Music.
“Accidentally tuning into TV Filmy, a local channel that broadcasts classic Nepali movies led me to reminisce about Gitaanjali: a national TV program of the 90s that played popular Nepali film songs. I became nostalgic, and this EP is a result of just that.”
Most of the songs in Cinema begin with samples from classic Nepali films (Mayalu and Chino) before they evolve into rhythms, textures and voices of their own. The result is a curious interaction between Rajan’s nostalgia for the past and his current experiments with song construction, which are tinged with modern sensibilities and methods. There is a raw directness to his chosen samples which belies the unexpected sonic territory the songs go on to explore, where the artist’s inspiration and his reaction to it, take the lead.
