Vineet Singh Hukmani is full of surprises. The iconoclastic nature of this vocalist, songwriter and recording artist is clearer with each new release. His latest single “Nine” emerges, not on its own, but instead as part of a nine-song collection encapsulating his extraordinarily prolific and successful 2021. Nine short stories based on the songs are included as well. Bold doesn’t quite describe the audaciousness of this move, but Vineet is moving more and more in the direction of artists who operate and, most importantly, succeed by their own standards and follow their Muse rather than marketplace winds.
He has a strong sense of storytelling form as each of the nine narratives possesses comprehensible plots. There’s no biting off any more than he can chew. Vineet intends for the stories to be able to function as standalone works, but I believe the music and songwriting remain his ultimate priority. Offering fiction isn’t meant to displace the songs but, instead, enhance the overall listening experience.
The new song “Nine” is one of the best pop gems Vineet has produced thus far. There are electronic flourishes scattered throughout the song though Vineet is careful to center the performance on his singing. Applying light post-production effects to the vocal doesn’t dilute their urgency or emotion.
His elasticity as a vocalist is welcome. He seamlessly handles segueing from the straight-forward pop of the verses and chorus into the light hip-hop delivery of the song’s bridge. This is an intense passage in the performance when emotion reaches its peak and the vocals, music, lyrics, and production are on the same page thankfully.
It isn’t a long song. Vineet doesn’t go in for self-indulgence in that area and his sense of economy is a crucial component in his composing. What is remarkable is hearing the wealth of sonic and musical detail he invokes in a song in less than three minutes thirty seconds. Vineet sacrifices the unnecessary details other performances would have clung to.
It helps make it a musical experience you want to revisit. Vineet’s “Nine” could work in any setting and expresses itself in an affable, universal fashion that underlines he’s an everyday person just like us. The stories do the same. The need to create is an intensely personal need, but the sensibility driving this book of short stories seeks community as well.
There will likely be no other release like this in 2022. Vineet, himself, may never repeat something like this again. The boldness of a freewheeling creative spirit in love with possibility is the mastermind behind the single “Nine” and the book of the same title and his willingness to throw aside his chains, self-perceived or otherwise, is thrilling. It’s also a little dizzying to think about where he may go from here. He’s interested in everything, it seems, and there’s nothing he can’t do. The coming year and beyond will test that idea as nothing else can, but there’s nothing about his latest project that suggests his creative fires will be soon snuffed out.
Troy Johnstone