Stories in sound
A sound, story and shape-shifting musical project by Bahrain-based creative Sean Aaron Fernandes has dropped three new tracks earlier this month.
Sean, under his artist name 'Monsoon for Two' has released his side project Byculla Video Club's three newest tracks - Feel So Pt 1, Eat You Alive and Margao.
Known for blurring the lines between genre, narrative and sound design, Sean treats each song as a self-contained 'videotape' in a growing library of sonic episodes.
With this new drop, the Byculla Video Club (BVC) is making its boldest mission statement: storytelling through sound that refuses to stay still.
'Each track is its own short film, really,' the Indian creative architect behind the project, told GulfWeekly.
'A song isn't just a vibe – it's a scene, a memory, a moment. That's what the Video Club is for.'
Emerging from the atmospheric, experimental leanings of Sean's project Monsoon for Two, Byculla Video Club has evolved into something less like a band and more like a creative ecosystem.
The 'video club' in the name isn't just nostalgic kitsch; it's a structural metaphor.
Each release functions like an old VHS cassette – distinct in tone and aesthetic, yet part of an ongoing archive.
'The idea was to keep making different music without being tied down to any single genre,' Sean explains.
'So every song becomes a tape, and the BVC is the library. That freedom to shift styles is baked into the concept.'
Indeed, previous releases have bounced across indie, funk, folk, disco, and ambient electronica, with new tracks promising further sonic experimentation.
Eat You Alive leans heavily into orchestral and electronic elements, and was written within a day, drawing inspiration from one of Sean's previous relationships.
Meanwhile Margao explores lush cinematic textures, inspired by Sean's grandmother's home in Goa, India.
Feel So was written when Sean was facing an existential crisis and the loss of his first job.
The project is deeply collaborative, drawing in artists from across Bahrain and Saudi Arabia within an open door ethos.
Frequent collaborators include local mainstays like Gofer, Pineapples, Sugar Rey, Neon Sfynx, Abhinaya and Ronald Shera, who also plays keys and sings in the live band.
'There's no gatekeeping here,' Sean added.
'If someone has a sound, a voice, or even just an idea - they're welcome. It can get chaotic, but that chaos is part of the magic.'
The core live band includes Ryan James on bass, Ryan John on drums, Sunny Salis on guitars and Abhinaya on vocals – anchoring the project's swirling collaborations into something tangible for the stage.
Their live debut at Over 338 during the Hive series flipped through a mixtape of eras and emotions.
What sets Byculla Video Club apart isn't just the genre-bending sound but the immersive sense of storytelling embedded within each track. Songs don't merely express emotion. They frame it like scenes in a film, 'scoring the movie in your head'.
This cinematic impulse is no accident.
Sean grew up surrounded by stories – some inherited, some imagined. Even the name 'Byculla', a reference to his father's upbringing in a gritty Mumbai neighbourhood, serves as a kind of mythic anchor for the project.
'I've never even been there,' Sean admits, 'but the name just stuck with me. It's a memory I never had but still carry.'
With more than 30 tracks already recorded, the most recent releases are just the next few shelves in an ever-expanding library.
In the world of Byculla Video Club, every song is a story waiting to be played, and rewound.
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