Electronic music has been growing at a rapid pace in the country, and within that space are some of the best experimental artists, establishing their style and sound like no other. One of those gifted artists is Yuhina. Hailing from Gangtok, the electronic artist has been on a journey of finding herself and finding fulfilment through her music, transitioning from a product designer to a full-time musician. On this edition of Voices, she sits down with Premise. for a brief chat about her career, philosophy, and performing all over the world.
You went on your India tour with Komorebi and also performed in the Netherlands with Sheherazad. How has the experience been for you, touring and playing music at all these locations? First of all, I feel extremely blessed to have been offered these opportunities by fellow women in the field, and perhaps even a higher force that’s been orchestrating this unfolding of events. The experiences have been illuminating and profound in so many ways; the privilege of sharing energy with varied audiences in real time, observing how the space affects the performance, the break-neck logistics of touring, how expensive it is, how utterly draining yet exhilarating. And while I observed some differences between audiences here vs. audiences abroad, there’s a universal undercurrent that unites - a yearning to feel safe, seen, connected.
You’re part of the lineup for the Wonderfruit Festival in December. How excited are you for that? Extremely! I’ve heard and read such incredible things about Wonderfruit, its ethos, it’s focus on sustainability, mindfulness and community. So many artists I love - Massive Attack, Little Dragon, Four Tet, Lianne Lahavas, etc have played this festival and I’m still in disbelief at having my debut solo international show there. It also came about in the most beautiful, organic way. Just goes to show that you can be a label-less indie artist, and the right opportunities will still come if you’re in internal alignment.I’ll be performing two distinct shows: a mantra and chant-based set for the ‘Dhyana’ stage, an offering that I feel deeply honoured to create, drawing from my cultural and ancestral heritage. I’ll also be playing my existing set at the ‘Enfold’ stage, featuring all my released music. I find myself shuffling between nervousness and excitement the closer we get to December. And I’m equally thrilled to experience it simply as a festival attendee, and to explore the country for the first time.
You transitioned from a corporate job to becoming a musician. How are you finding the shift from a structured career to the unpredictable life of a musician ? There are good days and bad days. Sometimes my old life seems really attractive, particularly during financially lean stretches. And I’m not going to lie, it’s really hard navigating that space and maintaining a sense of safety in the world. But once I’ve attended to that fear, I’m able to see more clearly why I did what I did, and how I wouldn’t trade this life of adventure and autonomy for anything. I’ve had to really lean into faith and surrender, many of the ideas and constructs I once held about reality have completely dissolved. And it’s been both humbling and empowering in a way I can’t fully articulate. I’ve never felt this present or fulfilled, life has never held more meaning, and unless something shifts dramatically, I’m here to stay - like I sing in Brave :)
Let’s talk about your music. Tell us about your latest track, "Lego House (Redux)”, with Space Hydra. Lego House (Redux) is a parallel-dimension, “the upside down” version of my original Lego House. The idea of remaking it came while Space Hydra and I were considering a joint live-set. We wanted to see how darker elements applied to a message that had been previously told with softer, more ethereal sonic qualities - so the same gentle, uplifting lyrics, but this time with dissonant, haunting melodies and a more driven beat. We changed directions a few times as we were figuring out our working dynamics, but I’m pretty happy with what we managed to make as a first collab.
What part of making a song lights up your soul? Which part do you look forward to the most? The part that has always felt most sacred to me is when an idea appears out of nowhere, either just as a melody or a fully formed song, and it feels ALIVE. Mischievous even. Like a conscious, autonomous entity that will leave as swiftly as it entered. And then it’s a frantic sort of chase - Should I quickly record a voice-note before it goes? Or do I write down these lyrics? But what if the melody leaves? And how am I supposed to remember all these instrumental bits!? Should I keep humming and memorising every section before it’s gone forever?? I look and sound pretty unhinged at these times. And they happen at the most inopportune times too - when I’m half asleep, or showering, or have no access to my phone or a notebook. It’s like a game, a taunt. And I love how humour and sacredness coexist in those moments.Beyond that, all the unplanned, delightful sound-experiments that happen during production - I live for those. And harmonies. I could spend hours and hours on vocal harmonies.
Your debut project, MNEMONIC, is about to turn one soon. Looking back, how do you feel about the project and its reception by listeners? It is! She’s transitioning from infant to toddler :’) I feel incredibly fortunate that it’s been having such a good run, I’ve played over 20 shows since it’s release and have had the most soulful conversations with people who’ve resonated with it. Been moved to tears on more than one occasion hearing what it’s meant to some folks. All of MNEMONIC, from conception to release, was such an emotionally charged time. At every level. It was also a very vulnerable record; like a public secret-diary. Processing it all has taken some time, but I’m really proud of it and feel deeply privileged to see it grow and take on a life of its own.
MNEMONIC fused genres in ways that felt both chaotic and harmonious. What inspirations did you have in mind while creating the project? That’s exactly where it came from - chaos and harmony. Estrangement of all kinds, identity fracture and reform, death and grief. Inward journeys. Radical compassion. Light, shadow. All of this wove its way into the lyric and instrument choices, accompanied by moments of experimentation and pure spontaneity. There was no rigid framework, no direct reference, it kept shape-shifting and hybridising the entire time. Eventually it started to feel like it was directing me instead of the other way around. Like it knew what it wanted to be long before I did - dark and soft and undulating.
How important do you think evolution is for an artist? Is it something you keep in mind when creating music? Immensely important. While I don’t consciously think about it while I’m creating, it’s one of those cornerstones in my life upon which everything else is based. I think it’s incredibly damaging to get too attached to a constructed, limited idea of the Self. One way of thinking or being. It provides a false sense of control and security that inevitably falls apart. Our primordial intelligence already knows what it wants - to move and flow and evolve. We tend to get in the way of that because of fear and attachment, but it’s ok to let go. Necessary even. Artists are explorers and trailblazers, entrusted with the responsibility to offer depth, solace, and new paradigms of thought to the world. Clinging to the familiar and resisting growth means stagnation, resentment, and missing the chance to enrich the collective consciousness. In welcoming evolution, we honour both the art, and life itself.
What are your future plans? Are you working on a new project or single that you can give us an inside scoop on? First off, there’s a release happening this month :) Following our initial experiment with Lego House (Redux), Space Hydra and I felt more confident in our combined sound and decided to collaborate on another track. DATA THIEF releases on October 25th, it’s a grungy, hypnotic, score-like piece. In many ways it feels like an extension of MNEMONIC, but lyrically I’ve taken a different approach this time, and I’m curious to see how my audience receives it. For the future, well, I won’t say much, but I’ve been marinating in ideas of sound journeys, movement and more workshop-esque experiences. Very early stages, let’s see where this goes.
How do you see electronic music growing in the country? After recently touring, what insights did you take away about the industry and the fanbase from your experiences? Electronic music is probably one of the most recent additions to our musical landscape, and understandably, audiences are still developing a relationship with it. But we also have a staggering rate of adoption, so while we still face significant infrastructural challenges (for eg. sound systems and audio engineering that rival those I experienced at a festival in the Netherlands called Draaimolen, where the sonic depth, clarity and quality were unlike anything I've encountered and make a HUGE difference in the overall experience), I’m hopeful of us closing that gap within a decade. Electronic music is still perceived here as largely soulless and mechanical, lacking the emotional depth associated with more traditional genres. But like any other tool or instrument, it is the artist’s intention and ability that breathes life into the work. And there is no dearth of drive or talent in our country. Plus, we have an incredible wealth of diverse cultural legacies, something few places on the planet have to this extent.
I think if we embrace the new while honoring our roots, if we create, share, evolve and bring each other along on the journey, I’m optimistic that it will gradually become a natural part of our collective musical vocabulary. We could create a cultural movement all our own.
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