he war in Iraq, the geno-cide in the Congo, colo-nialism and cultural iden-tity. Crucial political

issues of our times, certainly. Butthese are also recurring themes ina new album by Clara May, aChicago-based group featuringIndian-origin filmmaker andmusician Tom Silva and singer-songwriter Nicole Sotelo. Titled“Hush,” the debut album is set tobe released April 19.

Born to Indian parents in KualaLumpur, Malaysia, Silva has adiverse background. He has writ-

ten and directed “The Quiet,”which was named BestIndependent Film by ScreenMagazine in Chicago and pre-miered at the Art Institute ofChicago.

He has worked as a film criticat the Daily Southtown newspa-per, a subsidiary of the ChicagoSun-Times.

He is currently enrolled in amaster’s program at theUniversity of Chicago, where he isworking on a book of short sto-ries.

“Hush explores themesuncommon in today’s indiemusic world such as identity,racism and ethnic conflicts,” Silvatells Desi Talk in an exclusiveinterview.

Among the songs is one called“Hyderabad,” that discusses raceissues. It is available as an MP3online.

“Last year I visited Hyderabad,India, it was incredible experi-ence. I was surprised with its richtradition and culture,” Silva says. “‘Hyderabad’ is more about stand-ing in sacred spaces on the otherside of the world – the mosquesand the temples – and feeling thehumanity of the people around

me. The song is a call toreturn to our innocenceand to realize we are a sin-gle race.”

The songs, all of whichare written by Silva andSotelo, are set to a varietyof music.

Folk from the 1960smingles with worldmusic, pop, post-punk, romanticballads andbrooding guitarnumbers. Thevariety is a

reflection of the dif-ferent backgroundsof the artists who col-laborated on thealbum.

Sotelo is a HarvardUniversity-trained the-ologian, who writes andspeaks on issues ofequality. She is also theauthor of “WomenHealing from Abuse:Meditations for FindingPeace” and is a contribu-tor to the forthcomingbook “Weep Not for YourChildren: Essays onReligion and Violence.”

Working with her wasan “amazing experience,”Silva says. Ten percent ofthe proceeds from thealbum sales will be donat-ed to charity, he adds.

Also featured on “Hush”are Barmey Ung, aCambodian-American com-poser who has studiedFlamenco guitar in Spain,and plays classical guitar onthe album; Marcus Smith, aprofessional church organistwith an extensive back-ground in liturgical, gospel

and jazz music, who plays theorgan and keyboards; MichaelSinclair on bass; and NatePusateri, the drummer and per-cussionist.

“I had the finest session play-ers on ‘Hush,’ helping to coalesce

a sound made of many musicalstyles,” Silva says. “We want-

ed to use our combinedIndian, Malaysian,Mexican, Chilean andEuropean backgrounds

to create a new kind ofAmerican sound.”

The album wasrecorded in Chicago’s

legendary Rax TraxStudios by

PhillipAmerson,

a well-

knownmusic pro-

ducer whoworks with variousartists to developtheir songs andstyle. Amerson’sability to playmultiple instru-ments such asguitar, bass, key-boards inspiredSilva to go foruniversal musicwith 60s folk forthe album.

“Among our manyvoices, I think I am veryinterested in celebratingmy Indian heritage andtalking about the issuesthat affect South Asiansthrough the medium of

rock music,” Silvasays. “As a com-munity, Ibelieve weneed to bringall of our eth-

nic identitywith us andfuse it toour lives inAmerica.

Whether it’smusic or something else, I

think the work thatcomes out of this canbe exciting and cooland appeal to the

mainstream of American tastesand yet still deal with issues thatdefine the South Asian experi-ence. Our voice as a communityisn’t being represented and itneeds to be.”

In addition to the U.S. market,Clara May is being promoted inMalaysia and India. Silva says thegroup’s website, claramay.com,has had many visitors from thetwo countries.

The group is also looking at theEuropean market.

“Initially, we hope that our fansin Asia and Europe will obtain ourmusic through digital downloadsthrough iTunes, Amazon and ourwebsite,” Silva says. “It is veryimportant for us to connect topeople in other countries becausewe believe in the notion of cos-mopolitanism.”

A cosmopolitan sensibility ispart and parcel of Silva’s life. Bornin Malaysia, he moved to theUnited States, where he has dab-bled in a variety of art forms –with a fair amount of success, onemight say.

“I owe the successes I’ve had tomy parents,” Silva says. “Theywere extraordinarily industriousand talented people who emigrat-ed from India to Malaysia whenthey were in their early 20s, leav-ing behind family and friends insearch of a better life. ... My father,who worked for the British initial-ly, became a very successful busi-nessman. My mother was a highlyintelligent, very thoughtfulwoman who completed her uni-versity degree.”

Both his parents supported hiscreativity and encouraged him tobe independent and to be proudof being Indian, Silva says.

“A generation later, my siblingsand I replicated our parents’ jour-ney when we moved to theUnited States in search of greateropportunity,” he says.

“The U.S. has been very goodto me – it allowed me to make afeature film, start a rock band andcontinue my studies at theUniversity of Chicago and to workin the world of business. It’s testi-mony to the greatness of Americathat all these things were open toan immigrant from Malaysia.”

So what’s next for Silva andClara May? He is already workingon a new album, expected to bereleased next year.

He offers this tidbit: It will havea hard-rock song aboutKanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. “Welove being able to honor theseplaces through our music,” hesays.

www.desitalk.com – that’s all you need to know

8 April 15, 2011 COVER STORY

T

Music for a CauseChicago-based Tom Silva is set to release his debut album and hopes that his music

will give a voice to the South Asian community, N. Begum writes

Hush: The Debut Album

Filmmaker and musician Tom Silva and singer-songwriter Nicole Sotelo.