Rishis: The Rishis  LP   (Cloud Recordings / Primordial Void)

Bio: Early 2025 is set to welcome the highly anticipated newest outing from The Rishis. The Athens, Georgia based band is centered around the songwriting duo of Sofie Lute and Ranjan Avasthi and has now expanded to a full band with a rotating cast of musicians playing psychedelic folk rock with tinges of world music to add coloring to the mandala. Sofie and Ranjan have been writing songs together for over a decade now with their debut album, August Moon, which arrived in 2022 on the Elephant 6 Recording Company label of Cloud Recordings. In addition to the duo, the Rishis regularly feature a variety of artists, including members of Neutral Milk Hotel, the Apples in Stereo, the Olivia Tremor Control, Elf Power, and the Primordial Void Collective. Other guest musicians on this newest outing include Mac McCaughan (founder of Merge Records), Robert Schneider (producer of the Elephant 6 Recording Company), co-producer Chris Byron, and Colin Willard & Gregg White of Shangri-La Studios in Malibu, California. The Rishis self-titled second album, out February 21st on vinyl and digital formats, picks up where August Moon left off, propelling us forward to explore the inner workings of the collective consciousness. This sophomore release tells stories of people who have lost their voices, identities, and homelands. But this record is not all wintery forlorn tales, it also illuminates themes of hope and rebirth. The Rishis self-titled album plays to the light proclivities of life while also delving into the darker themes that have permeated the last few years in the U.S. and around the world. The band says turning on, tuning in, and dropping the needle on this new record should transport the listener on an aural journey of sorts. The upcoming record was recorded primarily at Nuci’s Space in Athens with some overdubs at the historied Shangri-La recording studios. Before its release in February, The Rishis will unveil 3 songs from the album, with the 1st track, Coloring, breaking the light of day on November 20th of this year. This newest record from The Rishis arrives in a psychedelic landscape, infused with lyrical musings of magical music, harkening back to memories and ideas waiting to be birthed upon hearing these joyful tunes.