EP RELEASE
GHOST PEPPERS
ARTIST: Ghost Peppers
TITLE: "Red"
RADIO ADD DATE: 2/14/25
LABEL: Sugar City Music
CATALOGUE#: SCM2502
UPC#: 198937670875
MUSIC LINKS
Spotify
Apple Music
Amazon
Soundcloud
Pandora
Music Page on this website
And all your favorite steaming and download sites worldwide!
PRESS
Inverse Journal Review by Tehmina Pirzada
Orlando Weekly Review by Bao Le-Huu
A SOUTH ASIAN FUSION STORY
The first track on the EP is "Jao Cheray/Waiting for Goodbye," which was also the debut single release from Orlando-based recording artists, Ghost Peppers, on the Sugar City Music label. In live performances, co-founders Amrita Ghosh and Kevin Meehan present a fusion of South Asian music in Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, and English, including their interpretation of classic songs by Indian Nobel laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, and covers of Bollywood blockbuster hits delivered in an unplugged acoustic duo format. While rabindranath sangeet (Tagore Music) and Bollywood songs are all fusion music in their own ways, Ghost Peppers created their own re-mix approach to Tagore Music by adding harmonies and new English lyrics to this rich genre. They only intensified this fusion process in their follow-up original compositions by drawing on those influences and others ranging from Indian classical music to Americana folk, rock, and reggae. According to Ghosh, “Ghost Peppers music reflects our multicultural reality.”
SONGWRITING
Written during a feverish hour of creativity while rehearsing for 2024 Diwali programs in Central Florida, “Jao Cheray” was recorded at Bobby Chan Studios and mixed at Sugar City Studios and the Melrose Center, all in Orlando, FL.
The music grew out of Kevin listening to hours and hours of raag music and then responding to those musical lines with melodies and strumming on an acoustic guitar. Though it was not a conscious decision, the lyrics register a wistful look at people lost to sudden death and the hopeful confusion of those left behind who are “standing in the shadows, waiting for a word.” Tragically but prophetically, the song was written at almost the exact moment when a dear friend of the band, Abdul-Karim Mustapha, was passing away and they have dedicated the track to his memory.
For the EP, Ghosh and Meehan have added two more original compositions. “Ek Dhaaga/The Calling,” was born when Ghosh invited Pakistani singer Sana Illahe to do a song together about India-Pakistan unity and solidarity and Meehan composed a tune based on the concept. What followed was a dynamic studio session where Sana and Amrita came up with Urdu and Hindi lyrics and a sketch of the vocal arrangement. This package was then tweaked with added English verses at later sessions by Ghosh and Meehan. The whole song is a poignant reminder of a deep bond that connects India and Pakistan through unspoken messages of love and shared ethos--despite statist divisions--and it responds to the milieu of border politics in Kashmir. While the border is a violent rift that divides, threads of light bind people together and call them to peaceful fellowship, “if we could only hear it.” Orlando-based drummer James Campbell frames the music with an insistent, urgent beat.
The third and final track, “Azaadi/Liberation,” begins with a found recording of street protests in Delhi, with the crowd chanting “Azaadi!” The word, which means “freedom” and “liberation” in Urdu, originated in street marches in Kashmir and resonates for protest gatherings arcoss India. The word “Azaadi” is chanted in unison and sung by students to claim public space and make their voices heard. For Meehan and Ghosh, the chanting provided a frame for developing their song, and striving to keep the resistance sentiment alive with conviviality. Another massive beat from drummer James Campbell fades in and “Azaadi” emerges as a rocked out anthem evoking the “waves of freedom” that remind us of Kashmir. This song is thus dedicated to Kashmir and its people.
Performances on the EP include Amrita Ghosh on Bengali, Urdu, and English lead vocals, with co-founder, Kevin Meehan, on acoustic and electric guitars, bass, keyboards, drums on “Jao Cheray/Waiting for Goodbye,” and vocals in Bengali, Urdu and English.
LIVE PERFORMANCE AND AUDIENCE RESPONSE
After the public debut of the songs from “Red” at a November 2024 concert at Florida Gulf Coast University in Ft. Meyers, FL, audience members highlighted the emotional impact of Ghost Peppers songwriting, and the smooth flow between languages. In a talkback segment with the band, one audience member commented, “I don't understand Bengali, so I'm not sure what all the lyrics mean, but the feelings expressed were so strong,” adding, “The music took me to an unexpected place emotionally that just felt like home.” Another listener commented that, “There seemed to be no hierarchy between the different languages, it just flowed organically from Bengali to English and back again, and sometimes we even heard both languages at the same time.”
The group has appeared at numerous venues in the Orlando area, including the Fusionfest 2024 Main Stage, Folk Night at the Barley and Vine Biergarten hosted by Renee Arozqueta, the Orange County Mayor's Diwali, the Audubon Park Community Market, and International Mother Language Day events sponsored by Bengali student groups in Central Florida.
BOOKINGS AND OTHER INFO
The EP Release Party for “Red” will be Friday, February 14, 2025 at Maya Cafe, 1980 Howell Branch Rd. Winter Park, FL, 32792, from 7:00-8:30 pm. Ghost Peppers will perform all the songs from their new EP plus some others that will appear later in 2025 on a full-length release. Tee-shirts will be available for sale “while supplies last,” and guests can pick up complementary stickers and coasters (also known as CDs).
For bookings and other information, email the band directly at sugarcitymusic@gmail.com, or direct messages to @sugargcitymusic_ or @_ghostpeppers on Instagram.
“Jao Cheray/Waiting for Goodbye” Lyrics
Harano shei din
Shei shona gaan
Shondhe belar shey akaash
Hear you in the rain
See you in the sky
Feel you in the silver sliver of the moon
Jao cheray tumi
Jao cheray
Shesh alor sathe
Kichu chhilo kotha
Kichu chhilo asha
Bujhini ashbe naa
Wind won't blow
Sun won't shine
You left me wondering why
Standing in the shadows
Waiting for a word
Waiting for your goodbye
Tell me where you been
Tell me what you seen
Are you holding my dearest dreams
Jao cheray tumi
Jao cheray (waiting for a word)
Shesh alor sathe
This song is dedicated to the memory of our dear friend Abdul-Karim Mustapha (1973-2024).
Lyrics to “Ek Dhaaga/The Calling”
Ek Dhaaga
Ek dhaaga jisse sab kuch juda hai
Ek pehchaan, ek saaath
Humesha se bulaata hai.
Woh undekha saath
Woh apna ehsaas
Bulaata hai
Ek dhaaga jisse sab kuch
Jura hai
Kuch iss taraf
Kuch uss tarah
Woh ehsaas bulaata hai
Dil mai umeed jagata hai
Ek dhaaga, jisse sab kuch juda hai
Calling, there is a callling.
If you can only hear it
Threads of light bind us together
Hope is in the calling.
Ek dhaaga jisse sab kuch juda hai
“Azaadi/Liberation”
Dil mein ek goonj si uthi
Sun lo yeh saaz
Kabhi na kabhi dekh lo yahan
Sun lo mere yaar
Leher hi leher roko nahi
Aane do bahar
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Azaadi
There is an echo forming inside the heart
Waves of freedom washing over when the music starts
Wave after wave keep arollin, will it ever stop?
Bell of history keep atollin, till they all ring out
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Liberation
Roko nahi toko nahi aane do bahar
Roko nahi toko nahi aane do bahar
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Azaadi