B-Side Guys

Sometimes distance isn’t measured in miles but in musical intervals. On “New Delhi / New York,” the closing track of SH/VA’s debut EP, those intervals stretch and contract like a city breathing, creating pockets of space where two worlds don’t so much collide as conspire. It’s this sense of deliberate musical geography that defines “SHIVA,” a seventeen-minute exploration of spaces between.

Opening track “Inadequacy,” produced and mixed by Daniel Markus at Juniper Sound NYC, turns emotional uncertainty into sonic architecture. Instead of dwelling in confession, the track builds its power through arrangement choices – vocals that float above sparse instrumentation, then sink into denser textures, mirroring the way self-doubt ebbs and flows. The production creates depth through contrast, using silence as effectively as sound, allowing each note to resonate fully before introducing new elements.

“Cold Brew” shifts the EP’s energy without breaking its spell. Ben Noble’s production work here deserves particular notice – the track manages to feel both precisely crafted and casually intimate, like overheard conversation in a favorite café. Live performances at venues like Bar Goyana have revealed how these seemingly studio-bound arrangements translate remarkably well to stage, gaining new edges through direct contact with an audience. The song’s bridge section particularly shines in live settings, where its subtle dynamic shifts create moments of collective breath.

“Hey Suguna,” produced by Shantanu Pandit, emerges as the EP’s structural centerpiece. Rather than leaning on obvious cultural signifiers, the track finds its power in subtle rhythmic choices that feel both inherited and invented. Early performances at Brooklyn Music Kitchen showed this song’s evolution – what began as a simple melody has grown into something more complex without losing its essential warmth. The arrangement builds carefully, each new element entering with purpose rather than decoration.

“Hyperbole” lives up to its title not through excessive production but through careful restraint. Documented in live shows at Pete’s Candy Store, the song demonstrates how SHIVA’s material benefits from spatial context – each venue adding its own reverb to the track’s emotional mathematics. The production captures this sense of space, creating an intimate atmosphere that lets the vocals take center stage while maintaining enough tension in the backing track to keep listeners engaged.

These live performances across New York’s venue landscape have clearly informed the EP’s final form. From Bar Goyana’s warm acoustics to Pete’s Candy Store’s intimate setting, each space has left its mark on how these songs breathe and move. This attention to environment extends to the studio work, where producers like Daniel Markus and Shantanu Pandit have created distinct sonic spaces for each track while maintaining the EP’s cohesive vision.

The EP’s masterful sequencing becomes clear with closer “New Delhi / New York.” Recorded at Juniper Sound NYC and produced by Shantanu Pandit, the track doesn’t try to force resolution between its namesake cities. Instead, it creates a third space entirely, one defined by personal geography rather than postal codes. The production here is particularly noteworthy – vocal layers weave through the mix like streets on a map, creating intersections of melody and memory.

Throughout these five tracks, SH/VA demonstrates rare restraint for a debut release. At seventeen minutes, the EP refuses to overstay its welcome or pad its runtime with variations on its themes. Each song occupies exactly the space it needs, no more, no less. This economy extends to the production choices – whether in Daniel Markus’s work on “Inadequacy” or Ben Noble’s contributions to “Cold Brew,” every sonic element serves the song rather than the other way around.

What elevates “SHIVA” above typical debut EPs is its trust in musical rather than biographical narrative. While personal history clearly informs these songs, they never rely on context for impact. Instead, they create their own context through careful attention to arrangement, production, and performance. The result is a collection that maps emotional territory through sound, finding universal resonance in specific coordinates, suggesting an artist who understands that the shortest distance between two points isn’t always a straight line – sometimes it’s a song.