Tara Lily x Surya Sen - Like The Ocean (Edit) (Single)
Photo Credit: Sonia Abbas
South London’s British-Bengali musician Tara Lily teams up with electronic producer and rapper Surya Sen—two formidable voices from the British-Bengali music scene—for a powerful new edit of “Like The Ocean.”
Taken from her debut album Speak In The Dark, a record about “things that go unsaid—secrets, desires and our connection to our ancestors”, Surya Sen, signed to Skint Records, delivers an alluring poetic verse in Bengali. “’Like The Ocean’ is a Neptunian track reminiscent of the ocean waves from ancient times,” explains Tara Lily.
Speak In The Dark has received widespread acclaim with features in Dazed, The Guardian, NME, Wonderland, Clash, Notion, Crack Magazine and Mixmag who listed “Breathe Now” among the best tracks of the year. Singles and videos from the album have garnered widespread support including multi-Brit Award winner RAYE: “No Way Out”, shot in the Himalayas in association with The North Face, the jazz collaboration “6 Feet Down” featuring Theo Croker and “Double Time”, which received backing from Jamie Cullum (BBC Radio 2), Jamz Supernova (BBC 6Music) and was named Radio 1’s 'Track of the Week'. Tara also celebrated the release of ‘Speak In The Dark’ at Rough Trade East and Rough Trade Bristol with a live in-store performance and signing.
Tara’s debut album is an artistic representation of her emotional highs and lows with ADHD. Often recorded in the nocturnal hours by way of improv-jams, the body of work is also inspired heavily by Tara’s travels through Asia and her journey of reconnecting with her own cultural roots in India. Produced solely by Dom Valentino, the 10-track project includes collaborations with GRAMMY-nominated American jazz trumpeter Theo Croker and UK-Bengali lyricist Surya Sen, as well as a stellar line-up of guest musicians including saxophonist Jazz Lee, Indian classical virtuoso Akash Parekah, Mei Kirby, and additional instrumentation from Archy Marshall.
Speaking on the project, Tara explained: “I was diagnosed with ADHD at 15 when I was expelled from school. I often feel like every day is an emotional rollercoaster. This album is a representation of that. It’s a journey of high-energy, intense songs and deep, slow, mournful ballads”.
Growing up in Peckham as part of a British Bengali family, Tara Lily gained a unique perspective on London culture and its blend into global sounds. She has spent her life absorbing a multitude of sounds and genres from her surroundings, ranging from electronica to jazz and RnB to traditional Bengali folk music. From training at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music, where she studied jazz piano and voice, to learning Indian classical music, this intriguing blend of sounds and learned understanding of the worlds in which they originate caught the immediate attention of the likes of Virgil Abloh, Gilles Peterson and Iggy Pop amongst others.
A formidable talent who celebrates strength and power in her music, 2024 marks the start of this new chapter for the rising star, following up her acclaimed EPs Last Flight Out and Lost in London. Her continuing journey of musical self-discovery has seen her gravitate to south Asia, seeking out local musicians and jazz players to perform with, whilst still able to support the likes of King Krule on stage at the Apollo Theatre and RAYE at the Royal Albert Hall.
Her global itinerary this summer has seen her perform at several UK festivals, including Glastonbury, We Out Here, Wilderness, Shambala and Daytimers Festival – and is set to play at The Barbican in London and Factory International, Manchester next year. An authentic, unique talent that has decided to delve deep into her roots to form new musical and cultural connections, Tara Lily reminds us that the musician’s journey is filled with necessary twists and turns, and it is this search that is truly developing her talent and repertoire. One of the most powerful young female voices coming from our shores, Tara’s seeking out of an international musical community genuinely inspires as a path less-trodden - but her new music - as witnessed on her debut album stands as a marker that the biggest treasures are often found in unexpected and hard-to-find places.