The relentlessly creative Bhajan Bhoy crafts psychedelic soundscapes; from lazy interstellar ragas to lysergic electronic music, mellow hypnotic experimentation and all sorts of kosmische mutations.
During the last edition of Le Guess Who?, the multi-instrumentalist, guitarist and composer appeared as a member of both Water Damage and CHELA. This year, Bhajan Bhoy present a unique and exclusive performance at the Speelklok Museum, with compositions from his album Summer In St. Mary’s, on the grand Romantic Witte organ (originally found in the Buurkerk, built in 1883).
Summer In St. Mary’s is an album of beautiful and highly meditative and minimalist compositions with repetitive motifs, played on a 19th century church organ in the 15th century church of St. Mary’s in the small village of South Cowton in North Yorkshire. Visiting the church in 2022, Ajay Saggar (Bhajan Bhoy) was immediately drawn to playing the Packard pump organ. He heard the amazing sound that emanated from it, and the seeds of an idea to record on it were sown. Over two long days in the summer of 2023, he composed and recorded a number of long compositions.
Spending those long hours in the church gave him a stereophonic impression of the auditory surround. Inspired by the “natural musics” of the house’s structure (its acoustics, creaks, wind blowing through the wooden doors and room tone) and the history of it, he fell into a spell of playing music in a very open and free manner for many hours that, within the confines of this very special building, felt transcendent and astral.
BHAJAN BHOY performs Summer In St Mary’s at Le Guess Who? 2025 on Friday 7 November. Also performing are a.o. Snakeskin, BIG|BRAVE, Carme López, and many more.
